Category: Pubs

Inn Brief

Posted on by Andy Cullen
A new micropub has opened in Woodhouse Mill, at the bottom of Furnace Lane. The Oxbow offers a range of beers on both cask and keg. The former Rising Sun near Bamford, in the Hope Valley, which has sat closed and derelict for a few years now, has had the go ahead from Peak Park Planning Board to be redeveloped with a new hotel on the site. It is to be run by an independent operator aimed at visitors to the Peak District. The Bankers Draft (JD Wetherspoons) at Castle Square in the City Centre is hosting a Little Critters meet the brewer event on Tuesday 11th February at 7pm. The Cavendish on West Street, Sheffield, reopens following refurbishment on Saturday 25th January. A new restaurant specialising in vegetarian and vegan dishes has opened in Kelham Island in an old works on Cornish Street. Named V or V, the bar also has real ale and other craft beers for diners to enjoy – all unfined and vegan of course! The Dorothy Pax at Victoria Quay has had a bar refit and now boasts an increased number of beer lines! The Fulwood Ale Club, a micropub by the same people as the Ecclesall Ale Club, is now open on Brooklands Avenue. Sheffield Brewery Company‘s tap room is now opening to the public most weekends to serve their beer to drink in the brewery! Check their social media for opening hours. Also one that has opened since we published our guide to the Kelham Island area is Saw Grinders Union in Globe Works at Shalesmoor. This smart bar has 2 cask ales and a variety of other craft beers available along with cocktails and food. On Abbeydale Road, the Two Thirds Beer Company is now open. This bar in the unit previously occupied by Steel City Cakes, near the Broadfield, boasts 16 beer lines with a mix of cask beers on handpump and other craft beers on keg taps. On 30th January Shakespeare’s are serving a range of American Sours, the Joiners Arms in Bakewell are hosting a Thornbridge tap takeover & meet the brewer and the Kelham Island Tavern is hosting a ticket only Tryanuary tutored beer tasting. The Devonshire Cat are hosting a charity fundraising dinner for Cavendish Cancer Care on 6th February. In return for a generous donation you will enjoy a 3 course dinner and a gin & tonic. Of course it being the bar it is there will also be an excellent choice of ales on the bar to buy too! Advance table bookings are required for this event. The Jolly Farmer at Dronfield Woodhouse sees managers Karl and Ash celebrating 15 years at the helm this month and they will be celebrating at the pub on 8th February from 7:30pm. Expect live entertainment, food and beer to feature! Tiny Rebel have brewed a range of special beers to celebrate their 8th birthday and these will be available as part of a tap takeover at the Chesterfield Alehouse micropub on 13th February. A recent opening is the Parrot Club at Neepsend, owned by the same people as O’Hara’s Spiced Rum. There isn’t any cask beer, however a range of 3 craft beers from Triple Point is available on keg taps. Opening late January is Matilda Bar, an underground speakeasy style joint under the Sidney Warehouse gallery space. Access is via a door on the corner of Sidney Street and Matilda Street. A membership scheme will operate however anyone can sign in at the door. This is in addition to the existing bar in the gallery. Local craft beers will be available on keg tap. Just to add some confusion however, there is also rumour of the old Matilda Tavern pub that has sat boarded up for quite a few years reopening very soon! Toolmakers Brewery (on Botsford Street, which is behind their Forest pub on Rutland Road, just up the hill from Cutlery Works and the Gardeners Rest in Neepsend) continue to host music events at weekends in their tap room. The first Saturday of the month its Trojan Explosion from 8pm to 1am featuring Ska, Rocksteady and early Reggae music played on vinyl whilst most Sunday evenings sees live music. Check their Facebook page for details. The Royal Standard has closed, ei group are advertising the lease so it should reopen as soon as someone new takes the pub on.

Carbrook Hall

Posted on by Dave Pickersgill

As you are probably aware, as a pub, the ACV-rated, Carbrook Hall closed in March 2017 and over two years later reopened as ‘Starbucks Carbrook Hall.’ Just before Christmas, I finally visited. The Jacobean wood panelling in the ‘Old Oak Room’ has been retained and is in good condition. However, the ceiling has received a heavy dose of white paint. On my previous visit, in April 2019 while renovations were taking place, the ceiling was exhibiting the distinctive colourful design which had been in place for years.

This heavy use of white paint is the heritage equivalent of taking white paint to the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel (1471/81). From 1508/12, Michelangelo painted the Renaissance frescoes on the ceiling. They remain to this day. The same should have happened to the paintwork on the ceiling of the Old Oak Room.

Suffice to say, that was my last ever visit to a Starbucks.

Dave Pickersgill

The Plough, Sandygate

Posted on by Andy Cullen

As previously stated, we believe that the Plough should be functioning as a Community pub, with the added attraction of its key place in the history of world football. A small internal museum would not be inappropriate. However, the Plough continues to be under threat.

The planning saga commenced when the previous owners, Enterprise Inns (Ei), decided to deliberately run-down their historically important asset before closure in 2015. Since then, there has been no serious maintenance work. Ei and the subsequent owners, Spacepad Construction Ltd., have left the pub to rot. Planning law places responsibility for the condition of the site with the current owner. By law, the building should have been maintained in a fit and proper condition for its current permitted use as a public house.

The site has deteriorated to such an extent that some local residents claim it is an ‘eyesore.’ These concerns are currently the subject of a Planning Enforcement enquiry regarding the unauthorised use of the site as a waste disposal facility and a storage site for unregistered vehicles. An Enforcement Notice has been recommended. Sheffield CC should issue a requirement for the building, and site, to be reinstated to the condition it was in at the time of purchase from Ei. At that point, an independent report, commissioned by the Plough Community Benefit Society Ltd., demonstrated that, in order for the pub to reopen, no major building work was required and that internal refitting costs were manageable within a realistic business plan. If the owners fail to reinstate the property, the Council should exercise its power to compulsorily purchase in order to avoid further deterioration.

The additional material recently submitted to the planning application by the applicant is essentially a re-mix of previously submitted documents, including correspondence concerning the marketing of the Plough and the exorbitant, and unrealistic, rental valuation of £50,000 per annum. The additional material does not demonstrate continuous marketing of the Plough at a realistic valuation as required by widely agreed criteria such as CAMRA’s Viability Test.

The recent planning history of a site is also a relevant consideration in planning decisions. In 2017, the local authority rejected Sainsbury’s application for change of use based on the Plough’s listing as an ACV and it accepted that there were no alternative community facilities within a reasonable distance. In 2018, following the sale of the Plough, the local authority re-listed the pub as an ACV. As there have been no material changes in the reasons why the Plough was listed as an ACV, this should remain an overriding consideration in any decision.

The closing date for comments regarding the latest planning application is 28th.January 2020: www.sheffield.gov.uk/planning reference: 19/02130/FUL

The pub is adjacent to the ground of Hallam FC (the 2nd.oldest football club in the world). Hallam occupy Sandygate, the oldest football ground in the world, the site of the first football game (Hallam v Sheffield FC) as recognised by FIFA. The Plough should be allowed to return as both a community pub and a key player in the developing Sheffield Football History experience.

Dave Pickersgill, Pub Heritage Officer

“Heart of the City 2” and the Sportsman

Posted on by Andy Cullen
Heart of the City2 is the large mixed-use development which is currently taking place in Sheffield City Centre. The scheme aims to provide quality office space, 4/5* hotels, flats, shops, food outlets and more (https://www.heartofcity2.com/). Included in this development is the Sportsman on Cambridge Street, S1 4HP. This pub is located in the area designated, ‘H1,’ a space in which some old buildings are to be retained. The Sportsman dates back to the mid C19th. and is close to the site of the recently demolished Athol Hotel. In the 1975 CAMRA National Good Beer Guide, it was described as, ‘one of the few pleasant and comfortable city-centre pubs selling real ale.’ Electric-pumped Tetley Bitter was the single choice. From 2014, the pub was run by Kelham Island Brewery, as the Tap and Tankard. It closed early in 2018 when surrounded by scaffolding as Heart of the City2 began to gather place. It is now ripe for a planned re-opening. To the rear is the Grade II* listed, ‘Leah’s Yard,’ one of the few remaining examples of the courtyard workshops characteristic of Sheffield. The Leah family after whom the yard is named carried out drop-stamping for the silverware trade. Ideally, we would like to see the Sportsman return to its old name as a traditional outlet. Such a departure would complement both its surroundings and other nearby food outlets. If anyone is aware of future plans for the pub, we would appreciate the detail. Dave Pickersgill – pubheritage@sheffield.camra.org.uk

Inn Brief

Posted on by Andy Cullen
A new pub has opened in Castleton. The Swiss House bar on How Lane is part of a family run bed and breakfast accommodation and open to the public, serving up to four real ales. (Photo Robin Gee). The former Palm Tree at Walkley has reopened as the Raven under the same ownership as Loxley Brewery and the Wisewood Inn, following a thorough refurbishment. Six cask beers are available, a mix of Loxley and guest beers. The Shepley Spitfire at Totley Rise has reopened following refurbishment. If you enjoyed visiting the Millowners Arms at Kelham Island Museum during our beer festival, the good news is it is now open full time as a proper pub! It features 6 real ales on handpump along with various keg beers and canned craft beers -plus of course wines, spirits and soft drinks. Bar Stewards on Gibraltar Street has reopened following a refurbishment which has added a second toilet and relocated the bar. The Wharncliffe Arms reopened as a Bradfield Brewery pub on 21 November. The Dove & Rainbow is hosting a meet the brewer event with Laine Brew Company on 27 November at 6:30pm. The Ale Club on Ecclesall Road celebrated their 2nd birthday and Hop Hideout, now in Kommune food hall on Angel Street, celebrated their 6th birthday over the weekend of 16 November. Hop Hideout are also extending their weekend opening hours for the duration of the Christmas shopping period. The Sheffield Tap celebrates its 10th birthday on 28 November from 5pm with some classic beers as well as a new one brewed to celebrate ten years, there will also be cake! Walkley Beer Company celebrate their 5th birthday on 29 November and the beer line up will include the launch of a collaboration brew with Neepsend. The Devonshire Cat‘s Black Friday event this year is on 29 November, here it isn’t people at a shopping mall getting stampeded in the rush for discounted goods, it is a celebration of dark beer styles with some rather interesting beers to try! Peddler Market December event is on Friday 6 (5pm-11pm) and Saturday 7 (2pm-11pm) with the usual format of street food vendors, craft beer and other drinks, makers stalls and music inside and out the warehouse at 92 Burton Road. The guest brewery featuring on the tap wall this month is Gun Brewery. A small new bar called Berlin Bar has opened in Crookesmoor, no real ale though. The former Pa’s Bar & Bistro has now reopened as Bar Kelham, serving food and drink starting with breakfast at 9am. No real ale however.

CAMRA pub heritage update

Posted on by Andy Cullen

After a lengthy absence, the CAMRA national Pub Heritage website is now back on line in a much improved format.

This is the definitive guide to the nation’s most important historic pub interiors. Since the 1960s few pubs have escaped major changes but this website helps you seek out the best remaining historic examples.

This list has been compiled by CAMRA’s Pub Heritage Group and is the product of over thirty years of careful research. It identifies pubs with intact traditional interiors or which have features and rooms of national importance. They range from simple unaltered village pubs to glorious late-Victorian extravaganzas.

In addition, the third edition of the Sheffield Pub Heritage book is now available as a free download. This has expanded to 113 pages and includes new entries and almost 100 new images.

https://pubheritage.camra.org.uk/

https://sheffield.camra.org.uk/rhp/

Pub sales and developments

Posted on by Andy Cullen

Bulls Head, Foolow

The Bulls Head received ACV (Asset of Community Value) status in August 2015. Three years later, the owner wishes to ‘enter into a relevant disposal.’ In other words, they intend to sell the site. As the pub has ACV status, there was an initial six week moratorium during which community interest groups could wish to signal their wish to be treated as a potential bidder. This period ended on the 31st.October. As there has been no community interest, the owner is now free to sell the pub to any potential bidder. A change of use will require planning permission.

Queen’s Hotel, Scotland Street

Sheffield City Council have received a request for an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the site of the Queen’s Hotel from a local company, DLP Planning. Their aim is to demolish the pub and replace it by an eleven storey building with ground floor retail/commercial uses and 230 apartments. This is the first stage in the planning process. The EIS should ascertain if the proposed development is likely to have significant effects on the environment. Full detail is available from SCC: https://tinyurl.com/y4zgkeol This building dates from 1791 when it opened as Queens Inn. It was rebuilt in 1928 and closed in April 1997. The slowly decaying remains boast some distinctive Wards sign work, similar to that at Shakespeare’s.

Former Old Bulls Head, Little Hucklow Renovation work has started on the Old Bull’s Head in Little Hucklow, the building having been unused for well over a decade. This will involve alterations to the pub building, including the addition of a glazed ‘seed room’ extension, the addition of an external stone stair, an extension to the south-west corner, removal of the porch, alterations to openings, and internal layout changes. In addition, the car park will be altered to accommodate a new building which includes six letting rooms. The pub was a regular Good Beer Guide entry in the 1970’s and 80’s when it sold a fine pint of Buxton-brewed Winkle Saxon Cross Bitter (3.8%). It later sold Wards Bitter. The Old Bulls Head has historical interest dating back to the 12th.Century with claims to be the 5th.oldest pub in England. Little Hucklow was once the scene of much mining activity, with considerable remains of old shafts, gravel hillocks and rakes still surrounding the village. The Bull’s Head pub contained a collection of mining relics. In addition, the handpumps had Shakespearean characters carved in wood. We look forward to them returning to use! More detail is available in the planning report  https://tinyurl.com/toxepxq Dave Pickersgill

Heeley & Broadfield triangle

Posted on by Andy Cullen
Our guide to the City Centre took us part the way out along London Road as well as to the Railway on Bramall Lane, we now continue past Highfield to Heeley where there is a great hillside pub crawl, then across to Broadfield for some more bars. Regular buses on the Chesterfield Road corridor (20/24/25/43/44/X17) serve the Heeley side of the triangle, buses on the Abbeydale Road corridor (75/76/86/97/98) run regularly on the Broadfield side with the two linked together infrequently in the daytime by bus 10/10a (this bit can be walked in 10 minutes though). More information on the pubs is available on CAMRA’s pub database website – whatpub.com; bus timetables and maps are available at travelsouthyorkshire.com.
Jabbarwocky – London Road Former Polish bar opposite Highfield Library on the junction of London Road and Abbeydale Road. Range of craft beers on keg and Moonshine on cask plus Polish Vodka and food Get there: buses 20/43/44/75/76/86/97/98 Sheaf View, Gleadless Road Previously a failed, closed and boarded up Marstons pub, James Birkett bought the pub in 2000 and transformed it. Two rooms, both clean and simple, good range of real ales and continentel beers at reasonable prices, knowledgable staff and an outdoor drinking area. There have been few substantial changes to the winning formula in the last 19 years, the most notable is that the house beers are now from Neepsend Brewery, which is owned by the same people. Get there: buses 10/10a/20/24/25/43/44/X17 Brothers Arms, Well Road Previously known as the Olde Shakespeare, this pub was taken over by a member of the Everley Pregnant Brothers Ukelele Parody band who’s day job is a brewery rep! Inside the pub has a traditional layout with cosy corners and a dart board, there is a great choice of beers at fair prices and basic bar snacks are available. Outside the pubs hillside situation means the extensive beer garden offers views over the City. Get there: buses 10/10a/20/24/25/43/44/X17 White Lion, London Road One of Sheffield’s Heritage pubs that still has a corridor and multiple small rooms as well as the bigger open plan rooms towards the back. The pub is also known for having live music most evenings, pretty much the only exception being when it is quiz night! The bar features around 6 cask ales on handpump. Get there: buses 10/10a/20/24/25/43/44/X17 Pour, London Road Craft beer and pizza bar. Almost all food and drink served here is vegan. No cask beer, it is possible that real ale in a keykeg may appear from time to time. Get there: buses 10/10a/20/24/25/43/44/X17 Crown Inn, Albert Road Traditional and comfortable two room pub with a great beer garden. A range of cask ales are available, mainly from the better known breweries. Food service is a “Pieminister” franchise. Get there: buses 10/10a/20/24/25/43/44/X17 Tramshed, Chesterfield Road Small neighbourhood bar with craft beer (no cask) and attached dining room. Get there: buses 20/24/25/43/44 Hardy Pick, Broadfield Close Part of Greene King’s Hungry Horse chain with the associated food menu, family friendly, feel of a motorway service station, range of cask beers from Greene King plus a couple of guests. Broadfield, Abbeydale Road Pub & Restaurant owned by True North with large patio area at the rear. Always an interesting selection of real ales and other craft beers plus cocktails etc. Get there: buses 10/10a/75/76/86/97/98 Picture House Social, Abbeydale Road Located underneath the old Picture House, it consists of a lounge bar, pizza diner, games room and music venue. 2 or 3 real ales normally available along with a few other craft options.  There is also an outdoor drinking area accessed via steps from the diner. Get there: buses 75/76/86/97/98 Two Thirds Beer Company, Abbeydale Road A neighbourhood craft beer bar with 16 lines of varied cask ales & keg beer, and a bottle bar. Their slogan is “Don’t drink shit beer”. Sounds reasonable to me!

Inn Brief

Posted on by Andy Cullen
The proposed micropub in Fulwood previously mentioned is going ahead and will be the sister venue to the Ecclesall Ale Club, run by the guys from Brew Foundation. The new bar & bottle shop is the Fulwood Ale Club, located at 4 Brooklands Avenue and is due to open some point in November. You can follow them on Twitter @AleClubFul. Thor’s Tipi bar returns to the Peace Gardens for it’s usual Christmas season alongside the Christmas market on 22nd November, staying a little longer this year, until 5th January. After having cask beer for the first couple of years, there was no ale last year which was disapointing (guess mulled wine and hot chocolate is the big sellers!). They are promising a bigger venue this year with a double tent space and extended choice on the bar, the online drinks menu shows a Thor’s Pale Ale so we’ll see! The food this year is pizza. The Green Room will only be opening in the evening from November, which means “Butties to Banquets” will no longer be serving breakfasts and lunches from their kitchen. The outside catering will still be available, check their Facebook page for contact details. In the evenings the programe of music and other events are now back in full swing following the summer holidays and the guest ale has recently been provided by Loxley Brewery. The Indie Beer Feast is back at Abbeydale Picture House on 6th and 7th March 2020. Shakespeare’s are holding a fruit sour event from 25th to 27th October. The Devonshire Cat’s Black Friday, a celebration of dark beers, takes place on 29th November from 5pm. The next Ball Street Deli takes place on Sunday 8th December, on a closed off Ball Street Bridge in Kelham Island. At the last event the Kelham Island Tavern provided a real ale tent. The Mallard at Worksop station host their Halloween beer festival from 31st October to 3rd November featuring 20 real ales and 4 ciders. The Wig & Pen has had a change on the food side of things. The restaurant partner has changed from Craft & Dough to Edo Sushi (all part of the Milestone Group). The Shepley Spitfire at Totley closed for refurbishment on 14th October, plans after reopening include an open mic night and an improved food menu.

Two Thirds Beer Co

Posted on by Andy Cullen
Launching in November 2019, Two Thirds Beer Co. plan to open a new and exciting, neighbourhood craft beer bar in Sheffield; focused primarily on serving high-quality craft beers in smaller than usual two-thirds measures. Founded by three beer-loving enthusiasts, Thirds Beer Co have taken over the old ‘Steel City Cakes’ vegan bake house unit on the up-and-coming bohemian stretch of Abbeydale Road, which is already home to the likes of The Broadfield, Picture House Social, Barrowboy, and Dead Donkey. The bar will boast a range of over 15 different rotating keg and cask offerings from local breweries and beyond, a serve yourself craft beer fridge, placing a focus on high quality service. Two Thirds Beer Co. hope to be the answer to a market that whilst rapidly growing, is still in its developmental stages in this part of Sheffield, and as passionate craft beer enthusiasts, are excited to share their love and expertise allowing customers the opportunity to discover a wide array of wonderful new drinks from across the continent and beyond. Head to www.twothirdsbeer.co to find out more!