The Corner House, Windsor

This is an attractive Grade II listed street corner pub with a large U-shaped layout centred around a centrally positioned servery. The bar has a beautiful U-shaped counter with attractive curved ends, a dark panelled counter front and a part matching bar back with some modern white tiling playing host to the ubiquitous row of craft keg taps. All of this stands beneath a pleasant gantry which has been topped with a number of figurines of jazz musicians, plus a ceramic bottle collection. Seating in the front part of the pub was limited to a row of high stools along a drinking ledge that runs beneath the pub’s front sash windows, with a similar arrangement also available to the right before giving way to a small rear room where button backed banquettes run around the walls, creating a cosy snug-like space. Similar banquettes can also be found to in the front right corner of the pub, albeit in a more opened out space beneath a large TV screen which was turned off through the course of my time here. To the left, you pass through an arch where more seating can be found, although this is mainly in the form of tables and chairs, giving the space a bit of a dining room feel. Walls throughout the pub are painted in dark colours and various seemingly randomly selected paintings add nothing to the pub’s overall look and feel – that honour goes to the ceiling, which has been liberally covered in pump clips, making it very clear that the pub is pushing itself as an alehouse. Some classic indie tunes played in the background at quite a loud volume, but not so much so as to impede conversation. I believe there is also a function room upstairs, but I didn’t get around to exploring properly. I think I counted ten hand pumps on the bar, four of which were out of use, leaving a choice of Big Smoke Solaris, Marble Pint, Oakham Citra, Harveys Sussex Best and Stardust Optic, plus a Seacider cider. One of the efficient team of bar staff took my order and served up a competent if unspectacular pint of the Marble, which left me wondering whether they were slightly overstretching themselves by having five ales on whilst social distancing was still in place. I was hoping I would be really impressed by this place, which sounds on paper like a great place to try out some good cask ale, but left feeling it was good without really getting all that close to being essential. It all felt a bit dark, empty and characterless, but I appreciate I may feel different once proper crowds are allowed back in again. I’d definitely check this one out again, but it didn’t become my default ‘go-to’ place for Windsor, like I’d expected it to.

Proper pub that does what it says on the tin.... it a pub, in the corner. Sought out as its in the Good Beer Guide 2019. Around 10 hand pulls - some local, others not so. Informed bar man helping with selection and taster available. Decent Inspector Remorse Porter for just over £4. Good pub.

10 real ales,5 ciders and 10 keg taps. Quite a dark bare boarded interior.

Official site of The Corner House - www.thecornerhousepub.co.uk

Official site of The Corner House - www.thecornerhousepub.co.uk

The Corner House is unsuprisingly a corner pub, apparently Greene King owned but happily for me no GK beers were in evidence, there was a choice of two,Sadlers One Stop Hop and Wold Top Keepers Light. The U shaped room with central bar was not particularly remarkable,painted in various shades of Grey with wood flooring,Sky News was on the TV screen,muted to make way for the piped Music.There is a roof terrace/smoking area that went uninvestigated, more bar than pub and rather average despite the rather more intersting beers.