Wm. Hawkes, Hull

This place is not an original pub but a fair effort has been made to make it look like one with dark wood and bric-a-brac everywhere. It's a long narrow room with the bar on the right which unfortunately has bar stools so I didn't get to note all the beers but did see that there were nine hand pumps with one unused, Cathead Chocolate Mint Stout, Lemonade & Pale, RAW Best and something from White Rose. I went for the Stout (£3.00) which was excellent but served in a stupid dimple mug with no choice offered. Looking around everyone was drinking from these hideous vessels. The top of the table I sat at was decidedly sticky. I don't like these places that automatically give you dimple mugs and overall I found this place a bit trendy. It was the least favourite of the Scale Lane trio.

Another of the excellent Old Town pubs, but - like many others - appearances are deceptive and it hasn't always been the traditional alehouse that it now appears. Still, the interior has been very well done and is stuffed (literally in a couple of cases) full of all kinds of memorabilia. Fine range of real ales on handpump, including the Cannon Fire red porter from Sperrin.

Wm Hawkes actually stands for William Hawkes, a former gunmaker upon this site. Until relatively recently this was an old solicitors office and has been made to look aged, very successfully too. A small main bar on entry with black varnish wood panelling and stuffed full of bric-a-brac loads of horse brasses, a cart wheel on the ceiling, loads of tobacco boxes, various bulges above the bar, lots of hanging pewters and jugs, framed prints etc. Through an arch to a larger rear room with more of the same, including a large taxidermy fox hunting a stuffed rabbit. Nine pumps with eight on; my Black Country Fireside was in very good shape and slipped down nicely. One of the city centre’s best.