The Stratford Haven, Nottingham

The Stratford Haven, or Strat, is an L-shaped Castle Rock pub with seating to the right of the entrance and a long central bar counter that runs up the left facing a beer shelf up the left wall. More seating is found at the rear where access can be gained to a beer garden with a covered decked area and thin strip of seating down the side of the pub. The bar supports fourteen hand pumps, during a recent midweek afternoon visit two were off and eight were drawing CRB beers. The guests were Abbeydale’s Summer, Ossett’s Excelcius, Okell’s Bitter and Black Iris Brewery’s Rise & Shine. The service from the barmaids was very friendly and the Okell’s was OK. Food stretched to bar stuff, I thought £3.50 for a cheese and onion cob was a bit pricey. There was a decent crowd in for the time of day, and the atmosphere was good so this pub is on my return list.

This Tynemill pub opened in 1999 in a former pet shop, but the conversion is such that I would never have guessed that this was a shop in a previous life. You enter into a bare boarded main bar area with low wood panelled walls and a green tile dado. Modern etched windows at the front bear the Castle Rock Brewery logo and under them there are a few high tables and stools offering somewhere to sit, plus a couple of drinking ledges for vertical drinking. To the right of the entrance there is a small, carpeted room with a single, long U shaped banquette and loads of excellent brewerania on the walls. This is a theme for the pub as a whole and it was quite enjoyable wandering around trying to take it in all of the wonderful old enamel adverts and other such visually arresting items. I also spotted a series of photos which appear to depict the process of converting this place into the pub we find today. The main part of the pub extends down the left hand side, past some more drinking ledges and upturned barrels before emerging into a wedge shaped, partly carpeted, rear seating area with banquette and standard seating options. Again, brewerania and pump clips dominate the décor and I also spotted a TV screen showing a BBC music programme with the sound turned off, which seemed to defeat the purpose. Menus were on many of the tables and a quick glance suggested good value pub food was available, although I didn't notice many people eating, despite it being very busy during my stay. The ale range is rather spectacular and my notes, which were gleaned from a combination of what I could see on the bar and what was listed on a board on the bar canopy, recorded Castle Rock Harvest Pale, Elsie Mo, Screech Owl, Stewart Adams and Black Gold, Goffs Summer Knights, Fullers London Pride, Marstons Pedigree, Thornbridge Wild Swan, Adnams Broadside, Batemans XB and Dark Star Espresso, plus Gwatkin Sunset Oak cider and a further six real ciders detailed on another board. My impending train home meant that I only had time for one pint from that lovely long list, so I'm glad I opted for the Summer Knights which turned out to be a cracking pint. I really warmed to this place straight away. The staff and customers seemed like a friendly bunch and helped to create a warm, lively atmosphere whilst the pub itself felt like the sort of place you'd happily settle down in for a good long session, helped by the excellent beer selection. An unmissable pub when in West Bridgeford and one of the best in the wider Nottingham area, which is no mean feat.

Ditto Alan Winfield, still a good pub, still tied to Castle Rock. Good beer, good food, good staff.