The Gadabout, Leicester

Situated in the historic part of Leicester city centre, in a building thought to date back to the mid 17th Century, this is a hybrid restaurant and craft beer bar that strangely didn't feel like one or the other. The interior has been laid out quite sensibly, with the servery opposite the entrance to the left hand side of the building where some limited seating in the shape of high stools and pleasant high backed benches offer drinkers somewhere to relax during peak dining hours. The servery has a curved white counter and a beautiful cabinet acting as the bar back. The room is bare boarded but eventually gives way to a tile floored space which seemed ideal for diners, although a couple of tables had those 'pour our own beer' taps mounted on them in what was presumably an attempt to give the place a USP. This seems a bit out of place among the formally arranged tables and chairs supplemented by a few short benches, which to all intents and purposes looks like a restaurant. Bare brick walls lined with evocative old photos and plain mirrors give the place a bit of character without being overly memorable, but there is a final area tucked away behind the bar which seemed arguably the best spot. Curved brick walls with plenty of breweriana and sensible pew seating with comfy cushioning made this quite a cosy little corner and it was no surprise to find this space full and the rest of the pub all but empty. Some 1950's tunes played quietly in the background and the food that came out looked pretty god, although I didn't actually see a menu. It's a little tricky to spot at first, but there was a single handpull on the bar dispensing Hardy and Hanson's Rocking Rudolph which I decided to give a try. The service was friendly and welcoming and the beer was in reasonable shape - perhaps suffering a little from lack of throughput. A small keg range was ably supplemented by a decent bottled beer selection, with a large blackboard near the bar listing all of the options. I felt that this place had a fair bit of potential - it's an interesting, historic building with a good ambiance and some cosy nooks, but it seems to be suffering from a bit of an identity crisis and I found it tricky settling down as a result. A few tweaks could make this worth a look, but as things stand, I'd probably give this a swerve in the future.

Called in last night on my way back to the hotel. Full of young, think they're trendy punters ordering cocktails. No real ale on the bar and after waiting 5 minutes to be served I decided to leave it. I won't be back.