Not already a member?
Join our community and
- Rate & review pubs
- Upload pictures
- Add events
JOIN for free NOW
Chat about:
Disappointment of the week with Mobyduck
on the Pub Forum
Image posted by Graham Coombs
Submitted on Sunday, 7th April 2024
With picture contributions to 5136 other pubs
View all this pub's pictures (25 more images)
Detail Pages
The Maypole, Cambridge
Cambridge
CB5 8AF
Served areas
Reviews of The Maypole (Average Rating: 7½ of 10) see review guidelines
Steve of N21 left this review about The Maypole
Difficult one to give a rating to for me as I wasn’t that enamoured by the pub itself. The outside vista is pretty unimpressive (for the reasons given below), with the exception of the outside wall mural by the bike racks that depicts the inside of the public bar on the outside. And inside the main public bar gives the feeling of a bland estate pub room, even despite the impressive Maypole mural on the far wall and the large beer chalk board on another. And then the separate lounge bar round the back reminded me more of a media company works canteen with its gaudy coloured seating all set for dining. The one bit of the pub I did like was ironically the covered outside section with its grey tables and chairs seating, which I can imagine is a good spot for a pint on a late evening when all the assorted fairy lights are in use.
What I was very enamoured with however was the impressive drinks offerings and the congenial landlord, who was just about everything you could want in a “mine host”.
On the beer front the bar supports 8 ale pumps and some 12 craft keg taps, and behind the serving bar was one of the most impressive selections of available gins I have ever seen. The available ales for our visit were New River Brewery Blind Poet Porter, Mighty Oak Oscar Wilde Mild, Old Brown Mouse Best Bitter from the Three Blind Mice Brewery, Nene Valley Brewing Chestnut Bitter, Tydd Steam Piston Bob best Bitter, Grain Brewing Oak light Bitter and Oakham’s Citra and Mompessons Gold Amber Ale. So, a good selection of different beer styles handily arranged from dark to golden as you go from right to left on the pumps. This was my first visit here so not sure if that was a permanent thing or I was just lucky, but it was a bloody convenient way of presenting a decent line up.
As mentioned below this free house is family run and the current landlord has taken over the running from his father (of Italian origin, hence the slant of the food menu) and is already grooming his son and daughter for succession. A very good host who informed us that our next pub (The Champion of the Thames) had just been awarded the local CAMRA branch POTY award.
I struggled to score this one but think I should overcome my dislike of the pub interior itself and give it the 8 it’s drinks selection and congenial family ownership probably deserves.
On 12th April 2024
- rating: 8
[User has posted 2110 recommendations about 1992 pubs]
Steve C left this review about The Maypole
The Maypole isn’t in the most attractive building, and the adjacent building site also detracts from the aesthetics, however a mural of the bar counter on the front exterior wall informs passers-by of what to expect inside. The interior is L-shaped with a bright and airy front seating area that is faced by the curved bar counter across the rear. A door to the right of the bar counter leads to a rear seating area where the counter runs up the left hand wall. I counted nine hand pumps on the rear bar and eight on the front bar. Available were New River Brewery’s Blind Poet, Mighty Oak Brewery’s Oscar Wilde, Nene Valley Brewery’s Nene Valley Bitter, Tydd Steam Brewery’s Piston Bob, Grain Brewery’s Oak, Oakham’s Citra and Mompesson’s Gold, Three Blind Mice Brewery’s Old Brown Mouse and Weston’s Old Rosie Cider. A craft keg range was also available, as was a pizza menu which sat well with the Mediterranean atmosphere and background music. Up the side of the building is a surprisingly large covered decked area for alfresco eating and drinking. I thought the service was extremely friendly and the Piston Bob was very good. I’d have no hesitation revisiting here.
On 10th April 2024
- rating: 8
[User has posted 5233 recommendations about 5201 pubs]
Tris C left this review about The Maypole
Variously known as the Plume of Feathers, this place dates back to the mid-19th century, demolished in the late ‘30s, the frankly rather unappealing current structure is a modern estate-style rebuild of c.1957 for Tollemache – ‘Tolly’ – Cobbold and now family run by the same family since 1982, Don Castiglione presiding over the bar with daughter, both providing a friendly welcome.
There were eight cask options, my New River Blind Poet, more-than-London priced at £2.75 a half and decent enough.
Worth including on a crawl, but with a very modern grey interior it’s a bit too dour to warrant a prolonged stay.
On 8th April 2024
- rating: 7
[User has posted 1983 recommendations about 1949 pubs]
View more reviews of The Maypole (13)
Pubs Galore is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
- Official site of The Maypole - maypolefreehouse.co.uk
- Open Guide to Cambridge - Maypole entry
- Facebook page of The Maypole - www.facebook.com
- CAMRA WhatPub :: The Maypole - whatpub.com
Cambridge North, 2.31 miles, 44 min walk (show)
Shelford (Cambs), 5.08 miles, 1 hr 38 min walk (show)
Pub Details
Pub details supplied by members of this site to the best of their knowledge. Please check with pub directly before making a special trip.
- Accommodation : No last updated 21 December 2014 by Aqualung .
- Bar Billiards : No last updated 21 December 2014 by Aqualung .
- Beer Festivals : Yes - Frequent. - last updated 08 April 2024 by Tris C
- Beer Garden : Yes last updated 01 July 2014 by ROB Camra
- CAMRA Discount : Yes - 20p per pint - last updated 07 February 2017 by ROB Camra
- Car Park : No last updated 21 December 2014 by Aqualung .
- Child Friendly : Yes last updated 21 December 2014 by Aqualung .
- Darts : No last updated 21 December 2014 by Aqualung .
- Function Room : Yes last updated 08 April 2024 by Tris C
- Hot Food : Yes last updated 01 July 2014 by ROB Camra
- Jukebox : No last updated 21 December 2014 by Aqualung .
- Karaoke : No last updated 21 December 2014 by Aqualung .
- Live Music : No last updated 21 December 2014 by Aqualung .
- Live TV Sports : No last updated 21 December 2014 by Aqualung .
- Micropub : No last updated 04 April 2024 by Tris C
- Pinball : No last updated 21 December 2014 by Aqualung .
- Pool Table : No last updated 21 December 2014 by Aqualung .
- Real Ale : Yes last updated 01 July 2014 by ROB Camra
- Real Cider : Yes last updated 01 July 2014 by ROB Camra
- WiFi : Yes last updated 01 July 2014 by ROB Camra
