Station Hotel, Sheffield

A slightly unusual brick building, there is a function room to the right, the bar being to the left. It's quite smart but with signs of unfinished renovations when I was here. There's parquet flooring, leather sofas and chairs. To the rear is a pool table with proper lighting above it. A large TV was pumping out meaningless pop music and advertising at a nerve-jangling volume. I was only here because my train from the tiny station across the road was delayed. There's a level crossing, whose lights and gates give plenty of warning when the train approaches, so it's quite a handy place to wait. (This is the line from Sheffield to Worksop and Lincoln.) On the bar were several hand pumps, of which two were active, serving the unusually lop-sided choice of a stout or a porter - makes a change from the usual Hobsons choice in Sheffield - you can have any sort of beer as long as it's pale and hoppy. The beer was fine, but I wouldn't return here unless I brought some earplugs with me.