The Angel Inn, Leeds

The Angel is up an alley off Leeds main shopping street and this pub is a Samuel Smiths tied house. Once inside here i went in the room to the left which was not as full as the smaller room,the floor was bare boards but the seating was fairly comfortable and i quite liked it in here,there was the one real ale on which was Old Brewery bitter which was very cheap and very drinkable. I would have happily stayed here for another drink.

I like visiting Samuel Smiths pubs in central London because they're in interesting locations and bursting with character and tradition. By contrast, The Angel is a rather uninspiring, spartan place which was nonetheless quite busy upon our arrival, and we were pleased to grab an outside seat, albeit in the rather grim confines of the alley it resides in. The round was cheap but unlike with the London SS pubs, there was little reason to stay beyond that.

Situated down an alleyway off Briggate, is The Angel, a fairly typical Sam Smith's pub and reputedly one of the City's oldest inns. There's a smallish main bar, seemingly favoured by regulars, with a larger room on the left and an upstairs lounge bar which I didn't visit. In contrast to many other Sam's pubs, I found this to be a rather featureless pub, lacking in character and atmosphere. Despite wearing T shirts promoting the pub as "The City's Best Kept Secret", staff appeared somewhat bored and disinterested on my late June evening visit. The Sam Smiths OBB was cheap at £ 1.50p I'm not putting this one down for a revisit.

A great little Sam Smiths house. The usual Sam’s ales at very good value for money. Always busy reflecting its popularity. Well worth a visit.

One of the 4 Alley pubs off Briggate, this 2 up, 2 down Sam Smiths pub seems to have a more student customer base, presumably drawn in by the ridiculously cheap prices. Both upstairs and down have separate bars with Old Brewery Bitter on handpump in both bars but the lack of any great choice in Sam Smiths pubs usually leads to a truncated visit. The décor and furnishings at the Angel are quite simple and plain with the downstairs rooms having a slightly more rugged approach. The old fashioned portraits and original fireplaces give it a touch of elegance despite its overall cheapness and the historical snippets and old photos are almost out of the Wetherspoons manual.Very busy as one would expect and grabbing a table or seat is very much luck of the draw during peak hours. It is certainly a worthy port of call in conjunction with some of its neighbours but not a place for a full evening.