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Detail Pages
The Hope & Anchor, Alnwick
Alnmouth
Postal town: Alnwick
NE66 2RA
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 5½ of 10) see review guidelines
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Real Ale Ray left this review about The Hope & Anchor
Four shiney chrome hand pumps, with three in operation, serving up Sunbeam, Pedigree New World Pale Ale and Farne Island. My Farne Island was in great shape and at £3.70 a pint, it would want to be. I have to agree with Steve below, this is more like drinking in a bright café. The room consisted of white walls, with three large black board menus, with a decent choice of various fish dishes. The bar had a brick front with stainless steel counter. There was a wood burning stove in the fireplace with a brick surround, the floor was light oak boards. I think this would be a good place to eat, but I felt a little out of place calling in for one beer.
On 9th August 2014
- rating: 4
[User has posted 3382 recommendations about 3381 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Steve of N21 left this review about The Hope & Anchor
This pub has undergone quite a change since the previous review.
The first thing is that it is a lot more attractive from the outside now with a green and red colour theme (to be in keeping with the Italian restaurant, more of that coming..), and lots of floral troughs and baskets.
Internally it is now more a smart bar and restaurant. The area to the left is still the pub bar but the area to the right, which you can get to from the pub, but has its own entrance, is a separate Italian restaurant called “The Italia”.
Didn’t venture into the Italian but had a drink in the bar area. I cannot comment on what it was like before, but if it was traditional before, it isn’t now and all character seems to have been removed and it’s more like drinking in a bright cafe.
There are four modern chrome real ale pumps on the bar which do not have traditional pump clips but oval spaces where the name of the beer is written in crayon. Not sure if this is their attempt to be smart but it backfired on me and I thought it was just amateurish especially when combined with the interaction with the barmaid that followed. For the record, Wylam Gold Tankard and Hadrian Border Farne Island Pale Ale are the house beers, but both of these were off for my evening visit. This left two Marstons brews in the shape of Pedigree New World Pale Ale and Banks Brewery Sunbeam. Although the pumps were marked “New World Pale Ale” and “ Sunbeam”. So when I asked if that was Sunbeam from the Banks Brewery the reply was “ Oh I dunno, but I think it’s from somewhere near Wolverhampton.” Now technically Milton Keynes is somewhere near Wolverhampton when looking from this part of Northumberland, but I took that to be a yes.
Dogs and cyclists are welcome in the pub and as it provides safe storage facilities for cycles, it is very popular with cyclists. So the only way I see that I will be returning to here is if I catch the road biking craze and turn into an elder version of Chris Frome and decide to cycle the entire Northumberland coastal path.
Yep, you guessed it, I’m not likely to be returning here then.
On 2nd August 2014
- rating: 4
[User has posted 2111 recommendations about 1992 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about The Hope & Anchor
Fairly plain facade, enlived by some light-blue paintwork around the windows and doors. Once inside, you find a 'L'-shaped bar with dining room beyond. Very traditional furniture and decor. Photography exhibition in the rear room, with a raised beer garden to the rear. Accommodation. Three handpumps on the bar, offering Northumberland Newcastle Bitter, Farne Island from the Hadrian Border Brewery and Wylam Gold Tankard (£1.65 for a half). Overall, well worth a visit if in the area. (NB - Review dates from August 2012.)
On 10th February 2013
- rating: 8
[User has posted 8117 recommendations about 8117 pubs]