The Greyhound, Ipswich

A pleasant Adnams pub in a very posh part of Ipswich, with some stunning old houses to look at on the walk in up the hill via Fonnereau Road. In contrast this is a fairly simple brick building however the exterior, festooned with flora, certainly fits in. The interior consists of two long rooms either side of the bar and a sizeable rear area. Mustard yellow, white and greyish blue are the predominant colours. Extremely busy and we got the last table left, a tiny two-seater in a corner by the rear bar. A legion of young staff who were to a (wo)man busy, friendly and efficient. Four ales from Adnams, I plumped for a Mosaic (NBSS 3.5) and a half of the Dry Hopped Lager. Big on food here and most of the clientele were eating but we weren’t made to feel unwelcome. A good all-rounder, at a quieter time I may have liked it even more. Visited early August.

The Greyhound is an Adnams pub, uphill from the town centre. I arrived yesterday afternoon to find a sign stating that they were fully booked. However, seeing that there were free tables, I decided to chance my arm and ask if they had one available for a swift half. To my surprise, the staff were friendly and accommodating and instead of the patronising "have you booked" remarks I seem to be getting everywhere, they gladly showed me to a table, in what is quite a large outdoor area to the side and rear of the pub. Southwold Bitter, Broadside, Ghost Ship & Mosaic were the real ales. I opted instead for the Wild Wave cider, which was nothing special. A nice drinking environment, with a pleasant atmosphere and good service made this my favourite pub of my first 6 of the day in Ipswich.

Small traditional road pub, basic but good for it

Official site of The Greyhound - thegreyhoundipswich.co.uk

Official site of The Greyhound - thegreyhoundipswich.co.uk

This is a smart, two bar pub in a nice residential area just to the north of the town centre, dating back to the 1840's. I initially entered into the compact front bar, which is a little cramped, but has a nice tile floor, yellow painted walls and standard chairs around several tables of various sizes. There is a fireplace with mirrors above in an elaborate frame on one wall and numerous pictures of greyhounds throughout. There was a good crowd in here early on a Saturday evening, so much so, that I decided to move over to the much larger lounge which runs down the left hand side of the building and necessitates a trip outside to access it. The lounge initially has exposed floorboards and very similar décor to the front bar. The front section has a dining room feel to it, with standard tables and chairs ideal for those wanting food, a nice tiled fireplace on the left hand wall and various art prints adding a bit of colour. To the rear, the room turns 90 degrees to the right and here there is a carpeted section with butcher's block style tables, surrounded by standard chairs. Here the visual distraction is provided by photographs of local scenes. There is a car park and outdoor seating area available, with plenty of picnic benches with parasols around the rear of the building. I visited not long after a match a Portman Road had finished, and found the place absolutely rocking. Quite a few people were eating and a quick glance at the menu found main meals coming in at around £11. The pub is run by the Adnams brewery and it was their beers that dominated the handpulls, with Southwold Bitter, Ghost Ship, Broadside, Explorer, Mosaic and Fat Spratt available alongside a guest option, which was Fullers Brit Hop. I'd missed the seasonal Fat Spratt when I was released last year, so decided to give it a try and was pleased to find a very quaffable pint in top condition. The young team of bar staff were all very polite and friendly and seemed to work very efficiently to get through all the food and drink orders. This is a nice, lively, family friendly pub that is well worth the short detour out of town to visit and certainly seems to merit its current inclusion in the Good Beer Guide. I enjoyed the atmosphere and beer very much here and might have been tempted to stay a little longer had I been able to bag a seat.