Birchgrove, Cardiff

Visited 06/08/24 A bit further down Caerphilly Rd on the junction with Birchgrove Road was the consequentially imaginatively named, the Birchgrove. Have passed this place usually late evening on way back to Lisvane many times over the last 18 months particularly (generally late week) and it has always come across from the drive past as a bit of a party pub. So, with some trepidation I approached the venue and walked through the front door! Totally different at 9pm on a Tuesday evening. Some outside seating but bar on left hand side of the pub has a classy hard wood floor, a couple of screens, an illuminated dart board in the left-hand end and some seating designed to be well positioned to watching the screens. A fabric banquette provides some comfy seating in the first of the windows. To the right of the entrance is a much larger area with the wood panelled bar turning a right angle to a long section of the pub with a mixture of floor types and plenty of seating options. I bagged the green leather armchair in the corner with the bird’s eye view of the entire venue. There is a courtyard out the back and there are a lot of activities that happen here during the week (live music, poker nights, a bingo night). Looks like someone who runs this place has a clear idea of how to maximise revenue by getting punters through the door. The pub is a bit overly styled, but it presents a nice and very comfortable interior. Four beers on hand pump during my visit, namely Rev James, Brains Bitter, Brains SA Gold and Marston’s 61 Deep Pale Ale. Had a pint of the latter and it was very well kept. Not surprisingly in such a large venue looking to be attractive to a wide audience there were a lot of keg options, lagers (Moretti, Carlsberg, Carling, San Miguel and Cruz), ciders (Inch’s and regular and dark fruits Strongbow) with Guinness, Neck Oil and Brains Smooth Bitter and IPA. Appearances can be deceptive! Thought this was the best of the venues I visited on my first day of this trip to Cardiff. Rated the same as the JDW down the road at 6 but definitely beats that as whilst the Spoons had the best cask offering this place was nowhere near as depressing as the Spoons and indeed it had a really vibrant vibe!

Brains pub located at a busy set of traffic lights. There is a small(ish) bar area and a larger comfortable lounge area, more suitable for dining. We opted for the latter, as there were more handpulls in the larger room. The selection of Brains beers was Bitter, SA, Dark & The Rev James. My hope for a real cider ultimately led to disappointment, but the Bitter I ordered was in very good condition, such that it was probably my favourite beer of the day. Not bad, considering I'm not normally a fan of bitter. I quite liked it here. Yes, it's a Brains pub, but it's one with character and the beer is well kept, which cheerful service.

Birchgrove page at the Brains site - www.sabrain.com

Birchgrove page at the Brains site - www.sabrain.com