Category: Pubs

The Old Shoe is a brand new bar in Orchard Square, with the premises converted from a former shoe shop, hence the name – they probably realised Sheffield people always continue to refer to places by their old name, such as calling John Lewis Cole Brothers (until it closed of course!).

This is a joint venture involving Mike Pomranz of Exemption Ciderhouse (who had the Cider Hole bar at Shalesmoor, which is relocated to this new venue) and Matt Beety of the BEAR on Abbeydale Road.

Installed as manager is Nath Hehir, who many will recognise from various good beer pubs around the city he has previously worked at! Completing the team is Tom, a former wine sommelier who previously worked at the Joro restaurant and among various things he’ll be doing at the Old Shoe is blending soft drinks!

On the beer front there are two handpumps for cask ales along with 17 keg beers on tap. For the cider drinkers there are three keg taps which at the soft launch weekend (8/9 July) were supplied by Ross on Wye, Little Pomona and Orchards of Husthwaite. All the taps and pumps are on the back wall behind the bar and printed drinks menus are available on the bar to peruse.

The Old Shoe is bigger than you might expect when thinking of a former shop unit and is split into two parts, the bar area with plenty of tables and seating and a retail area with numerous fridges full of bottles and cans available to buy to drink in or take away, including a large cider and perry selection. The bar also offers a range of natural wines.

Also located in the retail space is the Exemption Cider House kit that was previously located at the Cider Hole, this is in an extension of the space behind the bar and makes the table in that room feel like a cider equivalent of the “chefs table” you get in some Michelin starred restaurants! There are various events planned in this area including meet the brewer sessions, keep an eye on their Instagram and Facebook for updates. It is also the new home of Mike’s record player and vinyl collection!

Following the two days of soft opening some tweaks are taking place then the bar will open properly from Wednesday 12 July.

You can find the Old Shoe at unit 20 of Orchard Square (off Leopold Street) in Sheffield City Centre. Cathedral tram stop and various bus stops are a short walk away. Opening hours are Wed/Thu 1100-2300, Fri/Sat 1100-0100, Sunday 1300-2000.

Lost in West Bar may sound like some terrible B-Movie set in Sheffield but it is actually a new bar project from Helen Fay Seaton of Lost Industry Brewing, which launched on Friday 7 July.

The bar is in the premises that was previously Bar Stewards and West Bar Tap, unfortunately they closed down after not working out financially. Lost in West Bar has seen the venue receive a little bit of a refit and the subtle changes have made better use of the space of this micropub, improving the seating capacity, atmosphere and storage space.

The yard at the rear has received a little bit of attention too with some flowers added to make it feel more like a beer garden.

On the bar there is a range of 4 cask ales, 8 keg beers and a cider on tap, plus spirits and soft drinks. The beer range showcases Lost Industry brewing as you’d expect, along with some carefully chosen guests.

The launch night saw a band (Tombstone Buzzards) playing outside in the yard and a food stall provided by Pipers Artisan Sausages. It is anticipated a number of outdoor events will take place in the future featuring live music and food.

Whilst getting the bar open was supported by the whole Lost Industry family and friends, its a very small team running it, with the only member of staff being part timer Phob who you will often find behind the bar offering a friendly welcome.

You can find Lost in West Bar at 163 Gibralter Street, S3 8UA. Buses 57, 57a, 81, 82 and 86 go there. You can find out more on their Facebook page. Opening hours are Tue/Wed/Thu 1600-2200, Friday 1400-2300, Saturday 1200-2300 and Sunday 1200-2200.

Tucked away on A61 on Halifax Road at Wadsley Bridge is The Railway which changed hands just over a year ago. A warm and welcoming traditional pub that serve traditional beers as well as cask beers. They regularly have four keg beers which they rotate, but all from local breweries and a further 5 cask beers from UK based breweries.

The manager Sam is very keen to develop the local appeal but extend that warm welcome to all who enter and to that end they have live music in their concert room on the first and last Friday of the month a as well as providing Sky plus and BT Sports to provide a variety of sporting events.

In August The Railway will be hosting their first beer festival (more to follow on the beers on offer) and in a nostalgic touch are providing a host of retro Arcade Games (free of charge) to add to the atmosphere. So pop along on either Friday 11th or Saturday 12th (or better still both) and enjoy their festival of beer.

Neil Adgie

Railway can be found at 19 Penistone Road North, Wadsley Bridge, Sheffield S6 1LP. The fastest bus there from Sheffield City Centre is the 86, other buses there include the 7/8 and 97.

Devastated family and friends of a Sheffield man who died unexpectedly have joined forces to raise money to buy a defibrillator to be placed at a popular local pub.

Stefan Elliott (43) died peacefully in his sleep in December and his loved ones, along with The Banner Cross pub on Ecclesall Road where Stefan used to work, immediately sprung into action organising a fundraising drive so his memory would live on.

More than £4,200 was donated and Stefan’s family decided to use the money to fund a new defibrillator which has now been put up outside the pub, alongside a plaque for Stefan, with any money left being donated to local mental health charities.

Stefan, a former pupil of Silverdale School and big Sheffield Wednesday fan, lived on Ecclesall Road and worked at Sheffield City Council before he died.

Stefan’s brother, Lewis Elliott (41) from Ecclesall, said: “Losing Stefan has been absolutely devastating for me, my parents, Stefan’s daughter and step-son and the rest of our family and friends. It was such a shock but immediately we knew we wanted to do something to remember him by and the defibrillator just felt right as it would be available to the wider community if ever needed.

“Sophie and the team at The Banner Cross have been absolutely amazing and done so much to support us including organising a fundraising night at the pub and even providing the venue for Stefan’s wake. We can’t thank them enough.

“We also just want to say thank you to everyone who donated and all the support we have received as a family. Stefan was such a loveable and kind hearted person and is so missed by us all. It helps to know that the community he lived and grew up in now has this defibrillator as part of his legacy.”

This June, July and August you can enjoy a pint of local real ale at the Old Queens Head for just £3.25.  The offer runs every day from 9pm until close on selected real ales. 

Since changing hands last November the Old Queens Head has showcased a variety of breweries from Sheffield and the surrounding area on its free-of-tie lines. Alongside its regular Thwaites beers the pub has showcased beers from Abbeydale, Acorn, Ashover, Beer Ink, Blue Bee, Brew Social, Campbell Street (to name just a few – and that’s just the start of the alphabet). 

Manager Andy Stephens, ex of the Rutland Arms, said “The Old Queens Head is a fantastic pub, steeped in history and conveniently centrally located by the bus station.  I’m overjoyed we can put this offer on over summer, there are lots of wonderful beers and styles to try.”

The Bankers Draft is a friendly, well run, cosmopolitan, city centre local – one of a handful of JD Wetherspoon’s branches to have previously made it into the Good Beer Guide and been Pub of the Month.

It has a lively downstairs and more cosy, sedate mezzanine bar complete with small library and a welcoming fire (winter). Food is the standard, good value Spoons fare.

Jonathan and Terrianne are the respected, long serving managers since 2011 – though both were established at the Bankers prior to their promotions. Terrianne is responsible for Wetherspoons regional training in house and Jon, in particular, has long and enthusiastically promoted Camra’s objectives. He has recently been taking a more hands on approach to the Bankers cellarmanship, with a subsequent uplift in ale quality. Jon is ably assisted by Rosalee who also produces the Bankers excellent promotional support material. Charlotte Coffey assists with ordering and availability.

There is a loyal, established Camra customer base: in fact, Jon jokes that he thinks the Bankers is Camra’s “guilty secret”! Many members are recruited directly through the regular 50p a pint card-carrying discount scheme on Mondays to Wednesdays – which is offered over and above the standard Spoons Camra vouchers. The Bankers is the biggest ale seller in the area: getting through 2,000 pints of ale a week in peak times and up to 3,000 in last year’s festival – second nationally to the Kings Cross Spoons!

Clive Alexander

Pete McKee bar crawl set to celebrate the importance of local pubs this July

Pete McKee is set to host a three-day Sheffield pub crawl this July, celebrating the importance of the much-loved local.

Renowned artist Pete has teamed up with four of the city’s local drinking establishments, as well as Kelham Island Brewery, to put on the three-day event from Friday 7 July – Sunday 9 July, ahead of his much-anticipated exhibition this November – Frank & Joy: A Love Story.

Over the three days, visitors to four Sheffield pubs (Fagan’s’s on Broad Lane – home of McKee’s iconic ‘The Snog’ mural; The Bath Hotel in Broomhall; The Greystones on Greystones Road; and the Brother’s Arms’s Arms at Heeley) can pick up a free Pete McKee pub crawl card and get it stamped when they purchase a drink at each venue.

Visitors with stamps from all four pubs will then be able to exchange the card in the days after the event for a limited edition ‘The Snog’ beer glass, from the Pete McKee gallery on Sharrow Vale Road.

Pete has also joined forces with Kelham Island Brewery to produce a limited-edition Frank & Joy beer for the event, which will be available at all four of the venues across the pub crawl weekend.

Pete, said: “A major part of the Frank & Joy: A Love Story exhibition later this year will be about the bond local pubs have with their communities – and what better way to celebrate this than a good old fashioned pub crawl?

“I’ve picked four of my favourite pubs here in Sheffield to take part and got the wonderful Kelham Island Brewery involved too. I hope people will get on board and pay each pub a visit over the event weekend, joining me in supporting our all-important locals and recognising the role they play in bringing people together.”

In addition to the stamp card and limited-edition beer, each pub will also have a different Pete McKee beer mat available, all of which can be joined together to reveal a print by the artist.

Pete added: “I’m really excited about ‘Frank & Joy – A Love Story’ this November, and this pub crawl is just one way I’m hoping to involve the local community in my work and bring the messages behind the show to life.”

Pete’s Frank & Joy – A Love Story exhibition is set to share the tale of two of the artist’s most-loved characters.

Frank and Joy are the couple featured in The Snog, the work of art painted by Pete on the side of Fagan’s pub on Broad Lane in Sheffield, in 2013.

The exhibition, opening a decade after the original mural was painted, will celebrate Frank and Joy’s life story told through their local, while showcasing the vital role pubs play within our communities.

It will open at Trafalgar Warehouse in Sheffield city centre from 4^th -19^th November 2023 and tickets are available now to purchase.

For more information and to buy tickets, visit: frankandjoy.co.uk

For more information on Pete McKee, visit: petemckee.com

Tramlines festival takes place in Hillsborough Park from 21 to 23 July with several stages of live music and comedy plus food vendors, rides, stalls, bars and more and tickets usually sell out.

However of more interest to many of our readers is the fringe – and not just the official fringe stages in the City Centre but what is going on in the many independent venues including pubs, some of which serve real ale.

At the time of going to press with Beer Matters not a lot had been announced, however events we do already know include

• the Washington pub in the City Centre which has published their line up of live music which runs from 5pm on Friday, 2:30pm Saturday and Sunday. Entry is free of charge and the last band is on stage at 10pm with DJs on afterwards to continue the party through to 3am.
• the Fat Cat where on the Saturday afternoon will have live performances from Sarah Mac and Tiny Barbara’s Surf Club with Rocketts playing on the Friday night.
• the nice folk from the Dorothy Pax will be putting on a free music festival over the weekend at Heeley People’s Park.
• The Dove & Rainbow kick the weekend off with live music on the Friday night
• The Red Lion on Charles Street is planning 14 acts over 2 days.
• As usual there is live music at places like Crookes Club, White Lion in Heeley, Church House etc.
• It is highly likely that pubs like Shakespeares that always put on special events for Tramlines fringe will do so too.