Friday, February 22, 2008

top 5 drinking holes


now i'm gonna go against the tide of disapproving headlines in the papers this week with my top five watering holes... yes i enjoy drinking, perhaps i have had one too many sometimes (see one or two previous entries on hangovers) but for the most part having a beer with friends is all i need to get by! all this talk of putting up booze prices and cracking down on teens drinking is way too stiff for me, having drowned a large percentage of my own late teens in vodka 'and it didn't do me any harm', all this doom and gloom about the state of the nation is enough to drive anyone to drink! haha


i am a woman of simple pleasures and a half of genuis (Guinness) or another full-bodied ale, good conversation and perhaps the occasional trick with a bar mat or two to master is a great night out in my book!


having just moved to a new city, these nights are thwarted simply by my ignorance of where the decent drinking holes are! a friend took us to the Green Room last week, we liked! we also took our debut trip to the PND (pub next door) and frankly it was fabalas!


and so to the top five places for a pint (IMHO)*


5 The Old Coffee House, London Town

a great little old-school pub that i've whiled away many a few hours catching up with friends over a pint - and so much more pleasant since the smoking ban kicked in so window seats no longer a must! haha


4 The Devonshire Cat, Sheffield

any place that has a 'menu' for beers alone has to be in the top 5!


3 Brighton Pier, in, er, Brighton, hehe

the sun shining, sitting on a deckchair with Brighton Pier Radio in your lugholes, seagulls threaten overhead, pint of lager-top in your hand... perfeck!


2 The Jacaranda, Liverpool

the original Beatles pub! before The Cavern they played here, which is why it's great to go to the Open Mic night on a Thursday and imagine what it must've been like for them. With Macca's performing arts school only metres away its always full of new talent, oh and the Guinness ain't bad neither...


1 this is a toughie... i've lived in so many places and drank in so many great pubs...

The Knot Bar in Manchester boasts a great choice of beers and a legendary jukebox - but so often you can't hear it... The Jekyll and Hyde in Edinburgh has fantastic hidden loo doors! hehe

so i'm going to choose... wait for it...



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The Briton's Protection, Manchester!

i know i know, i just spent 4 years there so i'm a bit biased towards the old Manc boozers, but let me tell you its an absolutley fabulous pub... and no frills! lots of little lounges in an olde-worlde-stylee and no music so just conversation to get you by! legend...



any recommends/ your own lists are always welcome, wherever you are in the world, i might be there too one day and in need of a nice sit down...


*jodester reserves the right to change her top 5 watering holes at any time! haha



3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'd recommned The Porterhouse Bar in Maiden Lane, just off Covent Garden, in London. It serves a wide range of ale and stouts, and has lots of brass fittings. I've been there more than any other pub in my life.

The Canadian Mancunian said...

Port Street Brew House in Manchester is the best new pub in town. Briton's Protection is still lovely, but Port Street has an everchanging rotation of delicious brews on tap. MMMMMMMMM.

jodester said...

Yes have experienced The Porterhouse but it can be so busy and blokey in there... and so many nearby alternatives... ;)

Port Street Brew House you say CM? I shall embark on a mission there asap! haha thanks :)