The Tramshed, Sheffield

Official site of The Tramshed - tramshedsheffield.com

Official site of The Tramshed - tramshedsheffield.com

Interesting place, with the bar housed in a the eponymous former transport depot (presumably only ever used by narrow-gauge horse-drawn vehicles given the entrance width / ceiling height) with some wooden sleepers still inset in the floor in front of the counter. Seems to have expanded into the next-door shop which now houses the kitchen / dining room, and an art gallery is advertised upstairs. Draught beer is also now available too, with nine taps offering a range of styles ranging from a couple of lagers, Heathen (£1.95, half) and Unbeliever from Abbeydale through Partizan Pale, Vibrant Forest Sabro, Boundary Export Stout to the 7.2% Buxton & Dugges Ramberget IPA plus a cider.

The choice of name is apt, as this really did used to be a tram shed, as shown by the wooden blocks in the floor that would have supported the rails. There is a staircase on the left, which leads to a gallery above, and the bar is on the right. Big surprise: there is no draught beer at all, neither cask nor keg. There were already a few people drinking at the time of my late afternoon visit, some going for the Sam Smiths bottled cider, which comprises the cheaper part of the drinks menu. A wide variety of modern beers in the newly fashionable 330ml bottles and cans appeared on the list, with barely any below the £4 mark. I had Big Hug Spirit Pale, a fairly ordinary 4.2% beer which set me back £4.20. This seems to be a place where people come to meet friends and socialise, a pub in fact; it just seems odd that there is nothing on offer that could not be bought at an off licence. And for a lot less money. Perhaps I've got it wrong: maybe it's regular pubs that are undercharging, rather than this one ripping people off. Hmm. Anyway, the service was friendly, the atmosphere was convivial and there was some soul music playing on the sound system, so what's not to like? I'd still say that a couple of real ales on the bar would have me back here a lot sooner than the prospect of the canned and bottled stuff, but I'm just an old stick-in-the-mud, obviously.