The Ivy House, Sunderland

I returned to the Ivy House on Wednesday lunchtime, almost 9 years since my last visit. The pub is situated in a residential area close to, but just to the south of the town centre. It was much quieter inside than on my last appearance when diners were flocking for the pizzas from their wood-fired oven and there were plenty of drinkers. That was a Saturday lunchtime. Midweek, it was much quieter with just a handful of people in. The ale range was just as good as last time - Allendale Golden Plover, Thornbridge Crackendale, Buxton SPA, Titanic Plum Porter & Pennine Misty Morning. In addition, they also had Lilley's Tropical Cider on handpull. Craft beers included Arbor All The Simcoe Ladies, Allendale Anvil & Liquid Light Strung Out On Lasers. My big frustration here was not being able to purchase a half of cider. Two thirds of a pint was the only option, which appears to be a cynical ploy to jack up the prices. I'm aware of this practice in other pubs in this neck of the woods and it's quite annoying. Otherwise, the Ivy House is still a very good pub and without a doubt one of the best Sunderland has to offer.

Enjoyed our visit to this 2019 Good Beer Guide pub in July. Chose Salopian Professor Hicks from the ales available and it was fine.

First visit earlier this week. Six pumps at the bar including Chocolate Stay Puft by Tiny Rebel, which was very tempting but I'd had it elsewhere recently so decided to go for something else. This happened to be Lemon Dream by Salopian. I ordered a half but was told it would be 2/3 pint and was asked if this would be OK. Price was £2.40. I have no issue with places offering 1/3 and 2/3 in addition to 1/2 and full pints, but there seems to be a current trend in some places to only serve by the 2/3 pint, which I find a bit odd. I daresay I could have had a pint, I didn't ask, but a half was apparently out of the question. In terms of the beer itself, I have had this before at another pub (some months ago) and the lemon was quite subtle, but on this occasion appeared to be pretty lacking and was a bit of a disappointment. At the bar I was prompted to press a button to try and win a discount on my drink - a screen flashes between half price, full price, etc, and you have to try and catch press the button in time with it landing on a discounted option. Sadly I ended up on the full price, but it is a nice novelty and I am sure I overheard a gentleman saying he'd got a discount through it so it must actually land on the discount sometimes! The pub itself had dark décor and dim lighting but not too dark and gloomy. It was nice to have tried this pub, but not sure if I would rush back.

This is a smart looking pub situated on a street corner in a residential area on the fringe of the city centre, close to the Park Lane metro stop. Entering through the stained glass front porch, you find yourself in a large curved room with the bar opposite and a large carpeted seating area over to the left. Button backed banquettes run under the seemingly endless supply of front windows, each of which is shaded by a heavy set of drapes. High tables and stools run through the middle of this space, with standard tables and chairs available elsewhere. A bare brick fireplace stands on the end wall and there is a large stag's skull above, one of a great many skulls and sets of antlers to decorate the pub, including one of those interlocking antler light shades - all rather apropos of nothing for a pub called The Ivy House. The ceiling has a large mural painted in the classical style, like a low-budget Sistine Chapel, and there are numerous other decorative touches around, some of which fit well and others of which seem a bit tacky. The servery curves around to the right hand side of the pub, where more seating can be found, including a raised lounge-style space at the far end, which stands underneath another large mural - this time on the wall. A few old pictures have been dotted around the walls throughout the pub and there are a few sections of particularly nice panelling to keep an eye out for. Having said that, the eye is perhaps more likely to be drawn to the row of hand pumps on the bar which were offering Maxim Anderson Best Scotch, Fell AAA, Sonnet Bring Me a Sonnet, Clan Macfannie Iron Brew Beer(!), Salopian Oracle and something from Almasty Brewing. I had a pint of the Oracle, served by a cheerful barmaid, and thought it was very well kept and worthy of a Good Beer Guide listed pub. This is the sister pub of the excellent Isis, over on the other side of town, and in many ways it gives it a good run for its money, offering the same comfortable environment within which to enjoy the wide range of well kept ales. I preferred the ambiance of the Isis overall but that is not to detract from this place, which has much going for it. Well worth the slight detour to include this on any crawl around town.

Top-drawer backstreet pub, pleasingly curved on the corner of the terrace which is also reflected inside. Lots of classy décor - from dark wood panelling to sumptuous gold cornices and a feature fireplace. Two highly impressive friezes, one on the ceiling to left of entrance (some sort of Classical art scene) and one on the end wall far right, depicting ship building and heavy industry. They like their antlers in here, - I noted many, including half a dozen moulded into a light fitting, not sure if that perhaps verged on the tacky. Decent food menu, good selection of pizzas and sandwiches to please the students who apparently make up a fair proportion of pub’s custom. Five ales and a cider on with an excellent selection. My Beer Co Citrus was in good shape. Also a notable range of craft keg available. Oddly there's no halves served in here, measures are in thirds up to a full pint. I thought this might be a craft beer style rip-off but my third was £1.05 so scaled upwards by a factor of 3 it’s not too bad. Shame I came early on weekday as the place was very quiet, but I’d make a major effort to do this one again in the evening should I get back to Sunderland.