Vocation & Co, Sheffield

This is a spacious, modern bar which seems to specialise in bottled beers, as well as offering reasonably priced homemade food. You enter through a glass entrance corridor which affords glimpses into the pub itself. The bar is opposite the entrance along the back wall with a large empty space in front ideal for vertical drinking. There are seating areas either side of the entrance corridor, both of which have wooden floors and standard table and chair arrangements, with just the one raised banquette to the left of the bar. The left hand side of the pub has a nice fireplace and the walls have been decorated with a number of old metallic beer advertisements and a large mural depicting a scene from prohibition era America. The other side has an exposed brick wall covered with some small pictures and a number of fans. An old record player is also on display and the bar area has a lot of old LP covers stuck on the beams as well as the records themselves lining the walls up the staircase. The clientele were mostly students and I suspect that is a key target market for the pub, although a number of them appeared to be there with their parents and there is nothing to suggest that the pub won’t appeal to a wider range of people. Four handpulls offered a selection of Kelham Island Pride of Sheffield, Bradfield Farmers Stout, Brew Co First Born and Phoenix Spotland Gold. The First Born was well kept and all beers are listed on a large blackboard near the door which also details the keg range. A great many bottles are available as well, with a comprehensive bottle menu available to help you make your choice. Whilst not a traditional pub by any stretch of the imagination, this is still somewhere that will appeal to a wide range of people and would be a good choice to take friends who perhaps aren’t into real ale.

I've never felt really comfortable here, because there's always music at a fairly high volume, which for me makes it hard to follow a conversation if I'm with more than one or two people. On the other hand, it isn't somewhere I'd really want to sit and drink a pint while doing the Guardian crossword. That said, it's not a bad place, with its strange collection of LP sleeves, and indeed the vinyl discs themselves, adorning the walls. A selection of five ales on offerwhen I was here last week, but as so often in Sheffield these days it's only really aimed at the pale and hoppy end of the spectrum: Abbeydale Transformation, Moonshine and Epiphany, Kelham Island Pride of Sheffield, with Bradfield Farmers Stout for our malt-loving friends.

The Old House is an exceedingly trendy, dimly lit bar that most users, I am sure, will loath. It is expensive, and attracts a young crowd and I really like it. There's usually Landlord and a couple of local ales on (e.g. Moonshine) as well as an array of the more high-end lagers. Because of its size it gets busy rather quickly, but it is still worth a look and the pick of Division Street.