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Reviewing milestone with Mobyduck
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Image posted by Quinno _
Submitted on Tuesday, 25th November 2025
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Detail Pages
The Fat Cat, Kelham Island, Sheffield
Sheffield
S3 8SA
Served areas
Reviews of The Fat Cat (Average Rating: 9 of 10) see review guidelines
Quinno _ left this review about The Fat Cat
Was really looking forward to this one but something has gone awry here. The beer was good if not exactly scaling the heights (Betty Stoggs an NBSS 3 and Beartown 3.5) alongside a short measure and curt service. Despite being very busy on a Saturday the atmosphere seemed weirdly subdued. Was happy to move on. Odd that despite the plaudits elsewhere, my first visit in 2009 remains the high water mark (not measured outside). 7.5
August 2012
A revisit found little changed about the pub itself but there’s definitely been a subtle addition to the clientele of people who have started moving into the redeveloped areas nearby. Ale-wise, there were plenty on with a good XS sampled though the Bully was past its best. It’s a very good pub but I perhaps can’t quite garner the same unyielding enthusiasm as some others. Perhaps I will be burnt as a heretic. Rated 8
August 2009
A characterful two-roomed old-school watering hole, which is a lot more spit and sawdust than the Kelham whilst offering a similar range of excellent quality ales, cider and perry at similarly competitive prices. The main serving area is a classic public bar affair, quite spartan with little tables and stools, narrow and a bit tight space-wise especially at the tiny bar (though there is also a side serving hatch). The slightly superior decoration of the lounge is nice and light but gives off a feeling of faded grandeur that didn't resonate with me, though the open fire was welcome. Both rooms have a scattering of old sepia-tinged photos of random faces (of who?) and old brewery mirrors. There's some interesting tiling on the floor by the front door. There’s a well-designed garden area with a good number of creepers, hanging baskets etc. Some nice-looking good-value pub meals were available. The Kelham Island Brewery is situated next door, so a number of their beers can be sampled here including the infamous Pale Rider. The bogs smelt of piss, which was a bit off-putting – give them a good scrub, please! Items of note are the floodlines outside, showing the high water mark in 1864 and 2007 and the collection of painted cats secreted throughout the pub. The clientèle here seemed more 'tickerish' than the KIT. I couldn't quite dig the place like I could the KIT but it's still a great visit nonetheless. The idea of a “KIT-Cat” crawl is eminently sensible. Rated 8.5
On 4th January 2026
- rating: 7
[User has posted 5964 recommendations about 5943 pubs]
Will Larter left this review about The Fat Cat
I called in here yesterday as part of a five pub celebration of Beer Day Britain, a strangely named day seemingly timed to coincide with Fathers Day. Anyway, the two beers I had were both very good, and when the friend I had arranged to meet at the Sheffield Tap this evening proposed meeting here instead I wasn't at all reluctant to change. I started with a different beer from the two I had last night, Wensleydale Division Bell, a 3.7% pale with sabro and sorachi hops; for the next round I went for one of Sunday night's beers, the Deeply Vale Citra Storm, a 4% pale; and then another from Sunday, the Tatton Brewery Golden Green, a 4.3% pale with citra and jester hops. I rated all three NBSS 4. This pub has been through a torrid few years, following the death of the owner and founder of the Kelham Island Brewery, Dave Wickett. Some long standing staff have left, and the former very cheap meals have stopped - initially replaced by a different provider at around double the price, and then stopped altogether as trade dipped. Information received second hand is that takings have actually gone up since, so presumably there has been an increased turnover of cask beer and perhaps this is reflected in the consistently high beer scores I am seeing nowadays.
The Timothy Taylor Landord is reputed to be among the best in Sheffield, and the house beer, brewed by local Neepsend Brewery, is not Pale Rider but is based on a recipe from the 1990s that was a stage in the development of that award winning beer. Other beers are constantly changing, with an impressive range of styles and breweries from all over the country at reasonable prices. This pub was an innovative model when it started in its present form in 1981, and is still one of the best places to try great beers in great condition.
On 16th June 2025
- rating: 9
[User has posted 4598 recommendations about 4212 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Strongers . left this review about The Fat Cat
The bar of the Fat Cat is found to the right where a central L-shaped serving counter faces banquettes across the front windows and up the right-hand wall. I counted eight hand pumps that were drawing TT Landlord, Neepsend Brew Co’s Fat Cat House Ale (Kipa?), Fixed Wheel Brewery’s Kaisia, Fat Cat Brewery’s Ultra Hopz, Wantsum’s Dynamo, Wensleydale’s Chaos or Calm, Donnington Brewery’s Best and Three Acre’s Ruby Porter. I sat at a table next to the fireplace at the rear with a pint of Dynamo, which was OK. There were less than 20 customers so I decided to take the chance to have a wander, which took seconds because this isn’t the biggest place. I finished my pint sat in the left-hand carpeted room where there’s a fireplace on the rear wall and banquettes along the front and up the left. The service was polite and the beer selection is great so a must visit in this area of great boozers.
On 19th November 2024
- rating: 9
[User has posted 6377 recommendations about 6339 pubs]
View more reviews of The Fat Cat (27)
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Sheffield crawl - November 2009 by Gill Smith
Sheffield 22.10.10 by Gill Smith
Will's 60th birthday pub crawl by Will Larter
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- Official site of The Fat Cat - www.thefatcat.co.uk
- Facebook page of The Fat Cat - www.facebook.com
- CAMRA WhatPub :: The Fat Cat - whatpub.com
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 04 January 2026 by Quinno _
- Bar Billiards : No last updated 04 January 2026 by Quinno _
- Beer Festivals : Yes last updated 04 January 2026 by Quinno _
- Beer Garden : Yes last updated 04 January 2026 by Quinno _
- CAMRA Discount : No last updated 04 January 2026 by Quinno _
- Car Park : No last updated 04 January 2026 by Quinno _
- Child Friendly : Yes last updated 04 January 2026 by Quinno _
- Darts : No last updated 27 July 2013 by Will Larter
- Dog Friendly : Yes last updated 04 January 2026 by Quinno _
- Function Room : Yes last updated 04 January 2026 by Quinno _
- Hot Food : No last updated 15 June 2025 by Will Larter
- Jukebox : No last updated 04 January 2026 by Quinno _
- Karaoke : No last updated 04 January 2026 by Quinno _
- Live Music : No last updated 04 January 2026 by Quinno _
- Live TV Sports : No last updated 04 January 2026 by Quinno _
- Micropub : No last updated 04 January 2026 by Quinno _
- Pinball : No last updated 04 January 2026 by Quinno _
- Pool Table : No last updated 04 January 2026 by Quinno _
- Quiz Night : Yes - Monthly - first Tuesday - last updated 15 June 2025 by Will Larter
- Real Ale : Yes last updated 04 January 2026 by Quinno _
- Real Cider : Yes - including perry - last updated 04 January 2026 by Quinno _
- Wheelchair Access : Yes last updated 04 January 2026 by Quinno _
- WiFi : Yes last updated 15 June 2025 by Will Larter
Isabellas
Kelham Island Tavern- Bubba Bar
- Dirty Mirror
- Craft & Dough
- The Millowners Arms
- Chop Shop
- Hymn to Ninkasi
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