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The Cross Keys, Nottingham
Nottingham
NG1 2GJ
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 7 of 10) see review guidelines
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Aqualung . left this review about The Cross Keys
I visited this pub completely at random having no idea what to expect. It's a split level single room with the main bar area at the top. The floor is wooden and it wasn't that busy on my Friday morning visit. There were some TV screens on but with the sound off.
There are two sets of three hand pumps that had four Navigation beers (Splendor, Rebel, New Dawn & Saviour), Doom Bore and Fernandes Chinook. I went for the Fernandes beer (£3.80) which was excellent but expensive. The beer quality was a real bonus on a hot day.
This place was better than I expected it to be from outside.
On 29th July 2018
- rating: 7
[User has posted 2143 recommendations about 2143 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Alan Winfield left this review about The Cross Keys
The Cross Keys was a Bass tied house when i first went in it with keg Bass products on the bar.
We visit this pub quite often,so i thought i would do an updated review.
Once inside there is a single L shaped room with the bar facing,the floor is carpeted and the seating comfy bench type and normal tables and chairs,the rear left side is down one step and seems to be popular with diners.
There were five real ales on the bar on my recent visit,i had a drink of Navigation Golden Anchor,which was a very nice drink,the other real ales were Navigation Apus,Navigation Britannia,Navigation New Dawn Pale and a guest beer Everards Tight Head.
A very pleasant pub to have a drink in and the food is also quite good here.
Cross Keys first visited 1981
Recent visit 18/2/2017
On 16th April 2017
- rating: 8
[User has posted 6113 recommendations about 6113 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Alex Conway left this review about The Cross Keys
Located on a busy main road in the heart of Town is the Cross Keys, a navigation brewery Pub that has always had a good following because of its location and gets very busy, especially weekends. The pub is on two levels with the main bar in front of you as you enter with seating around it and further seating down a few steps on the lower level. The pub, although modernised over the years retains some nice original features and has the feel of a London corner boozer that has been modernised a bit and is quite a nice place to be. Things go downhill when you get to the bar. Seven hand pulls available and a large number of navigation “craft beers” but obviously being a navigation pub all the hand pull were from the brewery except Doomber (WHY?!?!). A couple were not in use and still scared from my visit to their brewery tap before a football game a few hour before I reluctantly ordered the same beer, Brittaina Bitter at 10p more than their tap at £2.80 but still a very good price for the centre of town…….CRAP! Having given the benefit of the doubt at the Brewery tap there is now non longer an excuse, navigation make horrible beer and/or do not keep it in a very good condition. Many friends have said the same and although I never like to let instances such as this usually tarnish the reputation of a brewery in my mind I have decided that their offerings are poor. Past reviews have been relatively positive towards the beers on offer but these were several years ago, I can now only assume that the Brewery has gone through some drastic changes (much for the worse) as I will try my best in future to avoid Navigation beers and their pubs.really a 6.5
On 12th January 2017
- rating: 7
[User has posted 457 recommendations about 457 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Will Larter left this review about The Cross Keys
This is a lovely building in a delightful setting under some roadside trees, and once inside the large windows give it a light, airy feel, even though it was quite busy at the time of our Saturday evening visit. We made our way to the bar where we had spotted three hand pumps, though I think there may have been others in the scrum to our left. The only beers we saw were all from Navigation, but there may have been guests elsewhere. I wouldn't mind coming here again when it's less busy for a more relaxed visit.
On 14th September 2015
- rating: 7
[User has posted 3746 recommendations about 3483 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Mark Davey left this review about The Cross Keys
The Cross keys is now part of the Nottingham Navigation Brewery chain of pubs. It has been sympathetically renovated and is much improved over its previous incarnations. There is a decent outdoor seating area that catches the afternoon sun and is nice to sit in as long as there are not too many smokers. There were a full range of Navigation brews on the bar when I popped in yesterday, including Traditional, IPA, Pale, Golden and Stout. I had a decent pint of Traditional, followed by a pint of Last Knight, a seasonal bitter that was very good. the pub has a couple of pumps dedicated to guests, one of which was the re-invented Shipstones Bitter, a real blast from the Nottingham past. Toilets were nice and clean and the wine was up to scratch according to the wife. All in all, a decent pub just outside the city centre, right on the tram route, well worth a visit.
On 16th May 2014
- rating: 7
[User has posted 292 recommendations about 276 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Real Ale Ray left this review about The Cross Keys
Glad I popped in here as I thought the choice of ales were excellent and very moreish. The Oldershaw Aut Gold, Hobgoblin Ho Ho Ho and the Bramley Bitter all slipped down very easily. Will pop in again.
On 4th December 2011
- rating: 7
[User has posted 3382 recommendations about 3381 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Soup Dragon left this review about The Cross Keys
A late Victorian corner pub and eatery, with patio area. It is in undressed red brick upper and stone lower, with pilasters, black plinth and bar windows. A main corner entrance, but all have nice Victorian lanterns above them.
The interior has an L-shaped room which is in on two levels, the top being the more bar area and the lower set out more for dining. The decor is a mix of light and dark green, red, grey, peach and wood panelled walls, with light green and painted cornice ceiling and a wood juxtaposed with tartan carpet flooring. The walls have a mix of old local photos and prints of paintings on them. There was a TV, which had footy on it and the music was general and at a decent level. The service was fine and the clientele seemed mixed, and it was very busy on the evening we visited – got the last table in the dining bit and wasn’t eating – so can’t comment on that.
Beer; usual tap stuff with Mallard’s Duck and Dive, Coppice Side Notts Blonde, Bateman’s XB, London Pride, Wychwood Hobgoblin and a class Oldershaw’s Grantham Stout.
I agree with the respected Pubsignman – it does straddle that line that seems acceptable to all. A good pub and one of many in Nottingham that needs further patronage from the Dragon
On 16th September 2011
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 3067 recommendations about 3062 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
ROB Camra left this review about The Cross Keys
Two rooms on two levels in this GBG 2012 listed pub. It's very smartly decorated and quite female friendly with large windows and an upmarket feel. The upstairs front room was full on our Sunday evening visit so we sat in the downstairs rear room which was very comfortable. A range of changing guests on the bar and my pint was very well kept. The other half had a red wine from a decent list of wines by the glass and was also happy with her choice. It's a very pleasant pub and a bit of an oasis of quiet compared to the nearby chain bars.
On 16th September 2011
- rating: 7
[User has posted 3224 recommendations about 3135 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Pub SignMan left this review about The Cross Keys
We popped into this smart little pub for a breakfast on the last morning of our recent stay in Nottingham, and left feeling a little disappointed that we hadn't paid a visit earlier. It's a split level, two room pub which somehow straddles the line between 'modernised-traditional' and 'full-on gastro' pub, thanks to the nice comfortable furnishings and pleasing decor. The front room is ideal for drinkers whilst the similarly sized, lower room at the rear has more a more formal table arrangement and seemed like the perfect spot to settle down for a very reasonably priced (certainly compared to our nearby hotel) full-English. The service was very good from the two very friendly barmaids and the breakfast was pretty much spot on.
Unfortunately, at such an early hour, a beer seemed out of the question which meant that the fine range of Batemans XB, Cottage E-Type, Flipside Denomination, Wytchwood Hobgoblin, Fullers London Pride and one other that I failed to note down, had to go untried.
There were a few pubs that I'd hoped to visit whilst in Nottingham but failed to make it to, so a revisit will certainly be on the cards and I will make a point of stopping off here as well to try some of those tempting looking beers. A pleasant surprise.
On 16th May 2011
- rating: 7
[User has posted 3114 recommendations about 3114 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
hondo . left this review about The Cross Keys
Beers from batemans, blue monkey, fullers, full mash, holland & springhead breweries.
On 12th October 2010
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 2883 recommendations about 2820 pubs]