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Chat about:
Beer of the Week (w/e 27th April 2025) with Thuck Phat
on the Pub Forum
Detail Pages
Ship & Mitre, Liverpool
Liverpool
L2 2JH
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 8½ of 10) see review guidelines
Strongers . left this review about Ship & Mitre
The Ship & Mitre has bare board floor throughout and lots of wood furnishings, including the central bar towards the rear. Split level seating runs around all the exterior walls and to the left rear are a couple of dartboards. I noted six hand pumps on the front of the bar and another three along the rear. During a recent quiet Monday evening visit these were drawing Facer’s Brewery’s Scrum Ptious, Landslide and Abbey Original, Botelai Brewery’s Strand Out, Ship & Mitre Traditional Bitter (?), Neighbourhood Brew Co’s Conundrum, Thornbridge’s Ashford, Colbier Brew Co’s Baritone and Magpie Brewery’s Ten for Bliss. There were also real ciders available alongside premium German and Belgian keg. I went for a pint of Strand Out which was a decent stout served by a polite barman. This place is certainly worth a look for the beer range.
On 28th February 2025
- rating: 8
[User has posted 5971 recommendations about 5937 pubs]
Will Larter left this review about Ship & Mitre
I was a bit daunted by the beer offering here, the seventh pub of an undefined circuit. The six beers on the main bar were (in order) 3.9%, 4.6%, 4.8%, 4.0%, 5.0% and 5.2%. I went for the Black Rose porter (from White Rose brewery, of course) and the Brentwood Lumberjack on the far right. (There was also a very well maintained beer list on a pinboard, and a 3.4% beer was being pulled through during my visit.) The Rose was very good (NBSS 4) but the Lumberjack was feeling his age and had a bit of a back ache (NBSS 2). Never mind, a lovely friendly and impressive pub and defo one to return to. And wander round and have a look. Lovely pub.
On 20th May 2024
- rating: 8
[User has posted 4274 recommendations about 3935 pubs]
Moby Duck left this review about Ship & Mitre
Set in a building with a sturdy looking exterior, once inside the feel is almost one of drinking in a rambling American log cabin bar. Six handpumps and six beers which were Bragdy Conwry West Coast Pale, Black Lodge Out By The Lake, Chapter Blindfold Off and three from Roosters, Howl, London Thunder and a very good as well as interesting Creeper, a decent keg lineup and a good selection of bottles made for an excellent pub, one of the best on my Liverpool visit.
On 20th May 2024
- rating: 9
[User has posted 2151 recommendations about 2118 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Ian Mapp left this review about Ship & Mitre
Definitely one to revisit - at the end of a six Good Beer Guide Crawl - I had eaten one pub too soon. This had a far better menu than the Excelsior - with Scouse and the intriguingly named but giving little away "Beef Dinner".
A great drinkers pub too - with a board of cask and a lot of German and Belgian bottles (which I spotted through the bar, from a different room). Ossett Silver King in great condition.
Not sure I have found such a concentration of Good Beer Guide Pubs together than Dale Street.
On 25th April 2023
- rating: 9
[User has posted 1563 recommendations about 1543 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Danny O'Revey left this review about Ship & Mitre
Ship themed to the extent of being on board inside, but light and airy and great choice of beers
On 11th February 2023
- rating: 8
[User has posted 1542 recommendations about 1519 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Blue Scrumpy left this review about Ship & Mitre
Still the archetypal city centre ale house and for me one of the best 2 pubs in Liverpool. As usual, it was packed on a football matchday. But our group did manage to find a small table.
The pub's own brewery Flagship is usually represented in the ale range. Their Silhouette was on for my visit. Guests were Jennings Night Vision, Republic of Liverpool Dockers Ale, Carnival Carmen, Lister's Special Ale, Neptune Equinox, Team Toxix UN of Chinook & Ringwood Old Thumper. Real ciders were Abrahall's Ruby Tuesday & Weston's Old Rosie.
The area at the front of the pub and to the left-hand side feels the most traditional, with darker areas to the rear and right-hand side of the central island bar feeling less appealing.
Plenty of staff were on hand to keep the thirsty regulars' appetites sated, but they (the staff not the customers) never seem the friendliest. Nevertheless, you'll struggle to find a better ale range in Liverpool. So, the S & M is recommended.
On 5th October 2021
- rating: 9
[User has posted 3040 recommendations about 3038 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Brainy Pool left this review about Ship & Mitre
I have warmed up to the Ship again lately, it remains a rock solid consistent ale house even throughout the craziness of the last year or so. Reliably good beer and the lack of distracting TV screens and music makes it ideal for a calm pint in a largely boisterous city.
On 25th July 2021
- rating: 9
[User has posted 1174 recommendations about 1136 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Gill Smith left this review about Ship & Mitre
Enjoyed our visit to this 2019 Good Beer Guide pub, and were able to get a beer from their own Flagship brewery, Silhouette. Also enjoyed Navigation New Dawn and Tyton Morepork. A great pub to wander round when not busy.
On 21st August 2019
- rating: 8
[User has posted 1339 recommendations about 1222 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Rob Hunter left this review about Ship & Mitre
I had been in the Ship & Mitre in 2016 but it was the last pub before the dash for the train home so my memories of it were a little vague, other than it being quite busy and took a while to get served. So on a recent trip to Liverpool I decided it was worth another visit, this time at the start of the crawl, in order to refresh my memory.
It looks grand and smart from the outside but is a little more "homely" and traditional on the inside. There are, if I remember rightly, 12 hand pulls including a couple of ciders, with four of these hidden round the back side of the bar and offering a different selection to those on the front. There were also a few keggy options that I didn't pay much attention to.
It was fairly busy but we managed to find a couple of seats in the raised area towards the back of the pub. There was a sign up saying that the upstairs area was booked for a private function so everyone else was to stay downstairs; had it not been for the sign I don't think I would have noticed there was an upstairs area.
A very good start to the crawl and, indeed, if not on a crawl you could easily spend some time in here working your way through the many different real ales.
On 11th April 2019
- rating: 9
[User has posted 830 recommendations about 657 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Malden man left this review about Ship & Mitre
The striking Art Deco exterior is visible from a distance and acts as a magnet. Tricky to walk to from Lime Street due to the tunnel and various road crossings but it certainly is well worth it. Inside there is effectively a large island bar with several distinct areas off it. Some are slightly raised, the front has an open boarded ceiling whereas the large rear room has a glazed skylight. A couple of dartboards, one with bookshelves surrounding it, shelves of model sailing ships, a mitre hat, a ball made from bottle tops, glasses and jugs. To the front right is a food servery hatch, proper old school nosh here, scouse with beetroot and a toasted barmcake £7, chip butties for £2. Thursday nights have "scouse on the house", a mini portion free with each pint until it's gone.
The name is a collaboration of two previous pubs, The Flagship and The Mitre. Nowadays the pub has an offshoot bottle shop, called The Ship in a Bottle. There is apparently an upstairs but I didn't see it.
Loads of beers, handpulled, keykeg and bottled, on the pumps were Marston's EPA, Briggs Rock n Roll #2, Rooster's Wild Mule, Mallinson's CM, Peerless Crystal Maze, Cheshire Brothers Best Bitter and Earl's Eye Amber, Peerless Red Rocks, Titanic Cappuccino Stout Coastal Brewery St Pirans, Deva Equinox, Cross Bay Zenith, 4T's IPA, Salopian Lemon Dream and Copper Dragon Golden Pippin. Now that is one line up.
As a testimony to the beer range the upper walls are continuously lined with beer mats. The service was fast and efficient, the barman asking orders two at a time and remembering too. This is right up there as regards pubs and was justifiably quite busy on Thursday afternoon. I'd recommend this as being the first stop off the train at Lime Street however you may find it hard to leave.
On 13th March 2016
- rating: 9
[User has posted 1710 recommendations about 1683 pubs]