The Red Lion, Stourbridge

This is a detached late Victorian pub and eatery that has a modern brick annex for accommodation. The pub - The Red Lion Inn was situated in front of the church, adjacent to the vicarage, until being moved to its current site between 1880-1900. The pub part is deceptive, as there are two cream wings to a central cream and brick main body. The pub has done its best to become dull, but a few Victoian features survive; namely the cornice and rounded sash windows (some blocked). There is a patio and a beer garden. The interior is a lot larger than first impressions give. It has a couple of rooms. The back room i walked in and out of, as it is dining (i didnt eat) - i didn't see much other than the stuffed lion and tiger as you walk in. The front room is the bar, which is part bisected by a hearth feature. The far end is a games area, with a bar footy game and a poolt able i think - it was hard to see as the place was rammed as it was quiz night. The room is in coffee, brick and a white and beam mish-mash and i didn't see a TV (there is a pull-down screen one) and there was no music. The service was fine. Beer; usual tap stuff with Spekky Hen, Holden's Golden Glow and a decent Enville Ale on handpull. Being miserable, i hated that it was so busy, but it did show that it was a community pub and, of course, it does do a good choice of real ale - definitely worth a pop in - just a shame it looks do dull.

Contrary to J Speer,four of us visited this establishment in Dec 2010, and had a splendid time.One guest was undecided as to which of two particular starters she wanted; they brought her both - for the price of one! Can't fault the service.I shall certainly be visiting here again.

I’ve just returned with my family from the Red Lion in Bobbington. And I’m not impressed. Firstly the food which was distinctly below average. My beef stroganoff had clearly been warmed up in the microwave, and not enough as it was just about warm enough to eat but not piping hot. The meat was tough, the rice was stale and dry and the mushrooms and sauce were watery. My wife had the rib-eye which was meant to be cooked rare; it was cooked medium at best. The chips were basically oven chips and had also just been warmed up. The kids had lasagne and chicken nuggets, again much the same. The service was mixed – the two waitresses did fine, but the manager \ landlord verged on being rude. As we arrived at the pub, he barged through the door in-between the kids and me, clearly in a hurry to deal with something else. I waited at the unattended bar for over 5 minutes before he returned to serve some drinks. The price was extortionate for what we got – just over 70 quid for 4 main courses, a few drinks and some side orders – all of the food was really up to microwave ready meal standard. My recommendation is to go to the Kingswinford Harvester instead – a few nights ago we got a similar sort of family meal. It was nothing special, but the food was all fresh, cooked well and the bill was about a tenner less.

Official site of the Red Lion Inn, contains menus - www.redlioninn.co.uk

Official site of the Red Lion Inn, contains menus - www.redlioninn.co.uk