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Detail Pages
Old Swan Inn (Ma Pardoes), Netherton, Dudley
Netherton
Dudley
DY2 9PY
Pub Type
Punch TavernsReviews (Current Rating Average: 9 of 10) see review guidelines
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Steve C left this review about Old Swan Inn
I visited the Old Swan Inn on a Friday afternoon a month ago whilst on a seventeen strong PubsGalore pub crawl of the cream pubs in the Black Country. This pub with its various rooms and two separate bars was up there with the best, although there were some unsavoury characters chatting yam yam and dealing little packets of penny sweets in the beer garden at the rear?!!
The hand pumps on the bar were badgeless, but a chalkboard behind the bar listed four Pardoe’s beers which is not surprising as this is their tap. I sampled a couple that were recommended which I found to be very nice.
This is an interesting place with good beer that is well worth a visit.
On 3rd November 2012
- rating: 8
[User has posted 5268 recommendations about 5236 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about Old Swan Inn
A real treasure, comprising of a maze of rooms in what must originally have been two separate buildings. The lounge bar is entered from underneath the embossed swan sign on the left-hand side, with another door in the larger part of the building to the right which boldly proclaims "Pure Home Brewd Beers" (with its old-fashioned spelling of brewed). The public bar is justly renowned for its well-preserved interior which is full of curiosities ranging from the enameled tiles on the ceiling to a slightly risky stove, an ancient wighing machine and a modern 'backwards clock'. No clips on the four pumps, but the four regular house beers are listed on the blackboard (including the execellent Dark Swan at £2.20), together with the local gastronomic delicacy - home-made scotch eggs. Rather out of the way, but one of the 'must visit' Black Country pubs.
On 31st October 2012
- rating: 9
[User has posted 8117 recommendations about 8117 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Real Ale Ray left this review about Old Swan Inn
Another Black Country gem and well worth a visit. Service and beer quality were top notch. This multi roomed pub is well worth a good look round and the front of the pub is also stunning. There is an old style organ in the back lounge, which would be quite mad hearing that being played after a few pints. I went for the Old Swan Original and Bumblehole.
On 8th October 2012
- rating: 10
[User has posted 3382 recommendations about 3381 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Bucking Fastard left this review about Old Swan Inn
A true classic with the front public bar unchanged since my first visit in 1975,the stove in the middle of the room with flue exiting to one side and the enamel Swan ceiling mural ,only the spittoons have disappeared.The four unclipped handpumps dispense the house brews at very reasonable prices,starting at £2.20 pp.
The back snug is also atmospheric with a beautiful decor,red leather banquette,a real fire,old clock,etched glass and a photo of Doris Pardoe herself.Outside the snug is a small serving hatch and more seating.
The extension into the former shop next door and out towards the rear has given the interior a lot more capacity to cope with visitors to this shrine,but it is very pleasing to see that the original heart of the pub has been preserved.
Along with the Bull and Bladder,this is a must visit pub on any tour of the Black Country.Make sure that you do the full tour of the interior.The ale quality is also superb,one of my favourite pubs in the country.
On 7th October 2012
- rating: 10
[User has posted 2730 recommendations about 2730 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Ale Monster left this review about Old Swan Inn
This is an amazing local land mark built in 1863 and one of the few brew pubs left in Britain by the mid 70’s. Any proper beer drinker in and around the Black Country and probably further a field has heard of “Ma Pardoe’s” and the Olde Swan brewery. The pub is a real rabbit warren with four rooms and a couple of connecting corridors, it takes some exploring before you realise the extent of the buildings layout. If you enter the main public bar on the right hand side of the building you will find an extremely traditional drinking area with a long bright red bar counter across the back wall directly opposite the doorway, an unusual cast iron stove is stood centrally on the left of the entrance with a tubular flue heading upwards and out the left hand wall, bench seats around the walls, a piano to the right of the door and large old weighing scales in the back right corner, the ceiling is a talking point as it is enamel tiled with a large mural of a swan in the centre. In the right hand corner of the public bar is a door which leads to a corridor down the side of the building, if you look left as you enter the corridor there is another door immediately next to the one you just stepped out of, this leads to a room directly behind the bar which I would describe as a traditional snug. The snug has a serving hatch from the front public bar, red leather seats, half wood panel walls and two fire places, a small cast fire near the entrance and a large cast iron and tiled fire place with an elaborately framed mirror above in the left hand wall (if looking from the front of the building). At the back of the snug is a second corridor which runs left to right across the back of the building, at the end of this corridor and also entered by a second front door from the street (on the left of the building) is a comfy lounge area which was a shop until the 80’s, this has an L shaped bar counter on the right, a cast iron fire place in the left wall at the front, then a second area down a couple of steps with a large cast iron cooking stove in the left hand wall and a large piano/organ in the back left corner. At the back of the lounge is the door to a small court yard and stairs up to a restaurant above the pub.
Regular ales are Olde Swan (Ma Pardoe’s) Entire, Bumble Hole, Dark Swan (Dark Mild) and Original (Light Mild) with no changing guest beers. The beer is excellent as you would expect in a well established brewery tap house (GBG 2011). Note that as in the distant past, there are no pump clips! Beers are shown on a black board behind the bar and the staff know which beer is on which pump, a subtle touch of class that adds to the traditional feel of the pub.
By now you should have got the message that I like this place. The pub has heaps of character and feels so comfortable to me that I could easily spend all day in here. The pub is on CAMRA’s national inventory of historic pub interiors as the public bar has remained largely unchanged since around 1900. I’m not local so unfortunately I have to settle for occasional visits but the beer is always in top condition and the regulars are friendly. A must visit for any serious fan of real ale and traditional pubs. I love this pub, its outstanding.
On 29th August 2011
- rating: 10
[User has posted 199 recommendations about 199 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Soup Dragon left this review about Old Swan Inn
A terraced pub occupying a couple of buildings and home to the Olde Swan Brewery and affectionately known as Ma Pardoes after a former landlady. The pub is in undressed brick, with some black and white paintwork. A perpetual entry in the GBG and rightly so.
The interior has a nesting of several rooms, all served by a central island bar. In the smaller building there are two rooms. The decor is red, cream and green, with a part wood floor and part red and black tile. A more dining area is down a few steps. There is an organ here and fireplace range, with eclectic pictures on the walls. In the main building, the serving bar faces you as you enter. The front bar room is in red, red wood panel, with white and black patterned wallpaper. A green tiled ceiling sports a swan image and there is a try your weight machine and other eclectic fun items. There is a central post 'heater' and loads of old photos on the walls. There is a TV but it wasn't on and there was no music. Behind, there is a smoke room and lounge. The decor in these rooms is predominantly red and white, with a coffee coloured moulded ceiling and red seating. There is a nice fireplace feature, with old photos and mirrors on the walls, as well as etched glass, a jug collection and some sailor's knots. The service is fine and the clietele mixed and it was busy.
Beer; some tap stuff with Old Swan, Entire, Bumble Hole, Original and Rowley Rag on handpull. All were in tip top form.
Class, can i say more? Well, yes. This pub is proof that the good Lord does indeed want you to have a nice life (enjoy responsibly, of course).
On 10th August 2011
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 3067 recommendations about 3062 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Jaime Washington-Downing left this review about Old Swan Inn
I have lived within crawling distance of this magnificent pub for most of my life and absolutely love it! My husband recently took me for a meal in their lovely upstairs dining area and would recommend it to everyone. If you've been here for a drink, you have simply got to try their food. I suffer with food allegies and the staff went out of their way to make sure my needs were catered for. I'm normally a Guinness drinker but can't resist succumbing to a few pints of 1 and 3. :) This gorgeous little Black Country gem should be Pub of the Year every year!
On 10th April 2011
- rating: 10
[User has posted 2 recommendations about 2 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Andy Ven left this review about Old Swan Inn
I have made the trip here three times this year, in February, April and November. The April day was unusually warm and I reckon that this is a bostin winter pub. It has a roaring fire to warm up next to after standing on a cold and windy hill in Dudley, cheese and onion cobs and a pint of their own brewed Entire.
A GBG entry and it deserves to be. I like it and I'm sure I'll be back again and again.
On 28th November 2010
- rating: 9
[User has posted 244 recommendations about 240 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Old Boots left this review about Old Swan Inn
Legendary home brew pub that I had longed to visit for thirty years and more, my visit was as good as I had imagined. A long multiroomed pub, it appears to have expanded into the building next door over the years, the interior is in a very traditional urban victorian style and is listed on CAMRAs inventory for outstanding historical features. There are two main doors leading into two separate bars with various sized rooms leading off in various directions. Décor is typical tongue and groove with anaglypta walls and ceilings, there are cast iron fireplaces and in the lower level lounge an operational range. Furnishings are comfortable and traditional, benches, tables and round back brown wooden chairs. The house beers, Original, Dark Swan, Entire and Bumblehole are on sale along with a few UK kegs, the strong Black Widow seasonal ale apparently had replaced the 1835 bitter on my visit. The high quality of the beer goes without saying, if only all brewery taps were this good. On the ball staff and the customers were a good mix of locals, couples and naturally one or two archetypical CAMRA types.
On 16th December 2009
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 3275 recommendations about 2982 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Danny O'Revey left this review about Old Swan Inn
This is a traditional pub in the very best sense. Its been loving restored and kept, lots of different rooms/areas/bars, bare boards and lovely little details around the place.
Take into account they brew their own beer and you have a wonderful example of how a pub should be.
A Black Country must.
On 24th November 2009
- rating: 10
[User has posted 1456 recommendations about 1434 pubs]