The Kensington, Great Holm, Milton Keynes

Please Note: This review is over a year old.

Blackthorn _ left this review about The Grebe

Refurbished and renamed since my previous visit, it is unchanged in terms of layout but has lost the pool table. It still has a rather nondescript corporate style decor, but is I suppose quite tidy and up together.

Food wise, the Chicken Tikka Masala that I had was actually a pretty good example, although I’m guessing the chef probably wasn’t grinding and roasting his own blend of spices. At £8.95 it was one of the more expensive options on the menu, but came complete with naan bread as well as rice and I quite enjoyed it.

Beers choice has increased somewhat, although Greene King still dominates. On this occasion the choice was GK IPA, Abbott Ale, Old Golden Hen, Old Speckled Hen, The Colonel’s Whiskers and Ghostly Ghoul. The cider choice too had been extended, but oddly they had chosen probably the only cider in the world worse than Strongbow – the Swedish Rekorderlig with red berries.

Review from June 2013:
A fairly unremarkable chain estate pub, it is nonetheless somewhat better than I was expecting and it looks as though it may have recently had a refurbishment. It consists of one large open plan room although this is divided in to a couple of different areas with some dark wooden balustrade and stained glass partitions. Outside is a patio area complete with plasma so you can continue to get your sports fix.

Decor wise it consists of a generic corporate style patterned blue carpet, and some pale green khaki paintwork along with a few artistic black and white photos of the local area. At one end was a pool table and darts board and at the other an area which is perhaps more intended for dining with tables containing cutlery, cruet and menus. A fairground style grab machine filled with cuddly toys perhaps gives some indication of the target clientele.

Food wise, the menu was very much of the mass-produced, sizzling variety and consisted of a number of “pub classics” at around the £6 mark as well as a number of steaks, jackets, baguettes, burgers and sizzlers. Various deals are also available on various nights of the week such as curry and pint, sizzler and pint, etc. My Enchillada Sizzler with beef chilli on a bed of peppers and onions with salsa and melted cheese was not too bad as long as you’re happy to accept the fact that it’s not going to be freshly made on site.

Beers on tap were all from the Greene King stable with their IPA and Old Hen’s of the Golden and Speckled variety. There was also a fourth pump that had it’s clip reversed and appeared to be something from Edmunds. The solitary cider was Strongbow, unfortunately.

On 3^rd December 2014 - rating: 6
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