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Detail Pages
The Bear Tavern, Smethwick
Bearwood
Postal town: Smethwick
B66 4BX
Pub Type
John Barras (Spirit Pubs)Reviews (Current Rating Average: 6½ of 10) see review guidelines
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Ian Mapp left this review about The Bear Tavern
Imposing corner pub that externally is showing signs of faded grandeur. Not many pubs with a clock tower and mounted bear heads, even if they are turning green.
A Good Beer Guide 9am opener. Greene King and their usual range with an additional guest Wye Valley Butty Bach. 10% Camra discount offered to reduce the price from £4.10.
Inside its smart in a very chainy greene king fashion. Open plan around three sides of a central bar. I could hear - over the many TVs showing at least two sports - the click of a pool table from the opposite side.
Eclectic clientelle, as you would expect at 10-30am on a Satruday Morning.
On 6th February 2023
- rating: 6
[User has posted 1337 recommendations about 1323 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Aqualung . left this review about The Bear Tavern
This is a huge open plan room with an almost island bar in the centre then a dart board and two pool tables at the rear. There are TV screens everywhere and early on a Saturday afternoon it was yet another shrine to the God of TV Sport with the sound on and filling the pub.
There are six hand pumps which had 4 GK beers, Fixed Wheel Concussion Mild and a Slater's beer that I didn't write down. This wasn't as good a choice as others have found but the Concussion Mild (£3.30) was in very good nick. I wished I had noticed the CAMRA discount as that would have knocked the price down to under £3.00.
Obviously this discount had no influence at all on the local CAMRA branch including this pub in the 2019 GBG. I did have an all day breakfast here and that was fine.
Overall this one was disappointing due to the TV screens but it would have been just as bad if there had been a DJ or karaoke. That's the trouble with pubs that try to do something to suit everybody.
On 11th December 2018
- rating: 6
[User has posted 2143 recommendations about 2143 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Delboy 20 left this review about The Bear Tavern
Very impressive looking pub which has improved over the last few years and deserves it's Good Beer Guide entry. 6 beers on including Fixed Wheel Mild Concussion, Westgate Brewery Fireside, Abbots, IPA and 2 festive beers - Rocking Rudolph and Greedy Goose. Worth a visit.
On 29th November 2018
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 1656 recommendations about 1556 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Gill Smith left this review about The Bear Tavern
Popped in to see if there was anything apart from usual Greene King beers, and chose and enjoyed Southwark Thames Dock Pale from the selection available. Large comfortable room with many TV screens showing sport.
On 12th September 2018
- rating: 7
[User has posted 1339 recommendations about 1222 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about The Bear Tavern
Landmark pub on the crossroads in the centre of town, with a decorated clock-tower on the corner and an extensive frontage on two sides. The interior has been fully opened-out to leave a variety of seating / dining areas in an overall 'J's shape, all with rather anonymous furniture and decor. Standard Greene King menu. Two pool tables and a dartboard. Surprisingly good choice of real ales from the six handpumps, with Salopian Lemon Dream, Business as Usual from Derby Brewing, Titanic Cherry Dark and Dark Drake from Dancing Duck (£3.05) in addition to the IPA and Abbot.
On 4th March 2018
- rating: 7
[User has posted 8086 recommendations about 8086 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Soup Dragon left this review about The Bear Tavern
This is a John Barras chain Edwardian corner pub and eatery, with patio area and outbuildings. There was an original Bear Inn, which was smaller, but stood on the same site since before 1851. As the area expanded massively here prior to WWI, the pub was demolished and rebuilt. The lower frontage is all in white, but the upper frontage is in the red brick and moulded stone that is typical of the period - even if weeds and the odd plant are growing from it. The clock tower gives a little further class to what would have been a focal point in its heyday. The interior is an open plan L-shaped room. The entrance and middle parts are foody - and family, as the grabbing machine testifies. The far end is a games area, with a couple of pool tables, a dart board and table footy. There are TVs, which had sport on and there are old photos of the area and sport pictures (in the games area) on the walls. The decor is the usual 'different colour walls' style; red, cream, green, brown etc and there is a wood floor (with chessboard area by the pool tables) at the back, while the front is carpeted. The service was OK and the place busy with a mix of drinkers and diners. Beer; usual tap stuff with 4 handpulls; Wainwright, Adnams Southwold, Bombardier and Purity Mad Goose. The Adnams had started to turn - I only had a half, so once i tasted it, half had gone, which i left! Whilst i am not a fan of the chain, they did at least have a clear bar and food area, as well as real ales - shame the quality wasn't better.
On 9th August 2013
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 3067 recommendations about 3062 pubs]