The Elephant & Castle, Barnsley

Will Larter left this review about The Elephant & Castle

This is a former canal pub that must have stood at a lock here, judging by the drop in the level of what's left of the long disused Elsecar Canal. I'd passed this way on a May bank holiday photo trip and thought it might be worth coming back when the pub was open. A little research told me that there's no cask beer here, but there's a decent walk from Bolton-upon-Dearne station via Old Moor RSPB and the remnants of the canal, ending up in Elsecar at the Market Tavern. I suggested the route to a couple of my regular drinking and walking companions and the date we chose turned out to be one of the hottest days of the summer, Wednesday, 13 August. It was only 12:30 when we arrived here but it must have been about 30 Celsius. We entered the pub through their patio garden in front, more of a yard really. As expected, no hand pumps greeted us, but I ordered three pints of Beavertown Neck Oil which went down well (once I'd overcome the shock of parting with £18.90) being cool and refreshing without being too gassy, and I must have become accustomed to the hops or the style since the last time I drank this beer and didn't like it, because it was an OK drink. We sat at a table where we could get a bit of shade from a parasol - the inside of the pub had a restaurant feel to it, and none of us liked the idea of sitting in. We soon drank up and headed for Elsecar and a proper pub.

On 21^st September 2025 - rating: 5
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