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Detail Pages
The Lion Hotel, Stafford
Brewood
Postal town: Stafford
ST19 9BS
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Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Soup Dragon left this review about The Lion Hotel
This is an interesting one - and a pub that i had the dubious pleasure to play footy for back in the 90s for a short time. Then, it was a run-of-the-mill local, with beer to match. It re-opened a year or so ago, after a long period of closure, and has been reinvented. It is a corner hotel, pub and restaurant, with a rear patio area. It consists of two former buildings, both Georgian. These buildings are different, especially looking at the windows, but also share common features, such as the vine keystones and moulded doors, so it is possible they were constructed at the same time.
The Lion hotel was originally the building on Market Place. It is in white, consistes of three storeys, with rounded sash windows (some blind) and two string courses in which traditionally the name of the establishement is written. There are two rounded doors, with fanlights. It may have been known as the Red Lion in 1818, but is listed in 1834 as just the Lion, and was a coaching stop. The other building, fronting Stafford St, has flat sash windows (some blind), a bay window, is in a mushroom colour, with black paintwork around the windows. This building, back in 1818, was the Giffard Arms (Jefford Arms), and then housed the Post Office. The two buildings were certainly united under one owner in 1851 (Henry Wright), but it is unclear if the internal arrangements had been altered because of this. The last mention of the two establishments named separately, that i can find, is the 1900 Kelly's Directory.
The internal arrangements reflect the history. I entered via the one remaining doorway (other blocked) of the old Lion. A small room is off to the right, which appeared to be a comfy seated snug, in white and mushroom, with brick fireplace and burner fire. The downstairs bar and dining area (the upper dining room I didn't see, but is accessed via a spiral stair from the bar) are located to the left, after negotiating a large fireplace, which is now more a feature. The bar/diner is an L-shape, with a serving hatch in one corner, along with another burner in a small fireplace. The walls are mushroom and white. There is a mix of seating, and i perched on a high chair at a high table - but there were more standard tables too. The room is modern, without going over the top. The floor is a mix of tile and wood and the walls have a few photos and tasteful drawings/cartoons on them. There was no TV that i saw and the music was soft and mixed. The service was friendly and the clientele mixed, and a lot more genteel than my footy days!
Beer; usual tap stuff with Peroni and Freedon Pilsner. There are 4 handpulls; these had Joules Pale ale, a very nice Slumbering Monk, a Doombar that had just gone and one unused. As a traditionalist, while a part of me mourns the passing of a traditional pub, this one does compliment the other places that survive - especially the Swan over the road. Good luck, and i look forward to a revisit soon.
On 5th November 2013
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 3067 recommendations about 3062 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Bucking Fastard left this review about The Lion Hotel
The ground floor bar is open to the public,and had a single handpump serving Salopian Lemon Dream on my visit.
On 14th October 2013
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 2727 recommendations about 2727 pubs]