Crown, Beeston, is Pub of the Year see p. 18 - Nottingham CAMRA

Ray’s RoundRay Kirby keeps you up to date with changes to the local real ale scenehe summer andthe cricket seasonThave finally arrived,which is why the weatheris so bad!! But nevermind there’s still plentyof pubs to visit, well, untilthe next governmentcloses them down, that is.I won’t be doing a “round” this time, asthere are so many other things to mention.First I’ll deal with the new discountsI’ll kick off with the Newmarket on LowerParliament Street. This is a single roomedestablishment with one large bar and thehandpumps are situated in front of youwhen you enter the pub, there are twoon the bar with Heineken UK CaledonianDeuchars IPA, 3.8%, £2.75 and Wells &Youngs Bombardier, 4.3%, £2.85. CAMRAmembers will get a 10% discount (onproduction of your membership card) Alot of the seating is divided by the modernequivalent of the ‘snob screen’ and a pooltable can be found in a small room at theback of the pub. Two large screens showeither sport or sports news. Well worth alook if in the area.Next, is the Cross Keys on the junction ofByard Lane and Fletcher Gate. The nicepeople from Great Northern Inns (theyown the Approach and the Globe, amongstothers) have taken it on. The regularofferings will be Bateman XB, 3.7%,£2.30; Fullers London Pride, 4.1%, £2.90,plus one from the Mallard range (Duckling,4.2%, £2.30 was on) one from NottinghamBrewery (Foundry Mild, 4.9%, £2.70) andtwo guests, (Magpie Monty’s Firkin, 4.6%,£2.80 and Holden’s Wind Blower, 4.3%,£2.70 were available). CAMRA memberswill get a 20p a pint discount (not on ahalf) The place has undergone a completerefurbishment with wooden flooring on theupper bar level and carpets on the lowerseating area. They have a large screenin both areas. The place will open at 8amfor breakfast (finishes at 12 noon, beerfrom 10am) with a full menu from middayuntil 8pm. It will fill a hole in an otherwisebarren area of town for the discerningdrinker.Moving out of town, next, we have theVictoria at Beeston. This is a very popular2 bar traditional local tucked away onDovecote Lane, it backs onto Beestonrailway station. In here CAMRA membersare being offered 20p off a pint and 10p offa half on beer and cider (please note, thisis only available from Sunday to Thursday)40 www.nottinghamcamra.org June / July 2010There is plenty of choice as they have upto 16 beers and two ciders available atany one time. The regulars are; CastleRock Harvest Pale, 3.8%, £2.50; CastleRock Preservation, 4.4%, £2.70; EverardsTiger, 4.2%, £2.60, one from the Batemanrange (XB, 3.7%, £2.50, was on) and onefrom Holden’s (XB, 4.1%, £2.70) plusa mild and a porter will always feature.The rest are ever-changing guests (at thetime of my visit they had) Blue MonkeyAmarillo, 3.9%, £2.60; Brains SA, 4.2%,£2.70; Burton Bridge Maschine Mann,4.5%, £2.80; Adnams Broadside, 4.7%,£2.90; Castle Rock Screech Owl, 5.5%,£3; Arkells Kingsdown Special, 5%, £3;Moorhouses Black Cat, 3.4%, £2.40 andAdnams Oyster Stout, 4.3%, £2.70. Theciders will also change (Thatchers Draughtand Parsons Choice Medium, both 6%and £3.20). For those unsure of whatexactly to have, a ‘taster’ tray has beenintroduced, £2.80 will get you one thirdof three different beers (please note, thatterms and conditions apply, basically, don’texpect three of the strong beers!!)The pub is also noted for the quality of itsfood with a large menu available, subject,of course, to people not eating all theirstock! In addition to the two completelyseparate bars, two further rooms areavailable, although those dining usuallyoccupy these; the larger is also used forlive music. They also have a large coveredseating area at the rear. The pub had wonmany awards, both local and nationaland had featured in many beer and foodguides, including numerous years in theCAMRA Good Beer Guide.To get there by public transport either usethe train (as previously mentioned) theNCT no. 36 (from Victoria Centre, or LongRow, by the library) Trent Barton Indigo(to Long Eaton) (from Broadmarsh or FriarLane) both to Beeston Bus Station, TrentBarton 18 to Station Rd. or NCT 13/14from Beastmarket Hill, (alight on StationRoad) if you get the NCT 13/14 bus backtowards town, you can get off in Lenton forthe final pub that has joined the discountscheme.The Boat, on Priory Street (just round thecorner from the Johnson Arms) This is asingle bar pub situated on a quiet backstreet (but only about 50 yards from themain road) up to 6 beers can be availableat any one time. Their regular offeringsare Fullers London Pride, 4.1%; Wells &Young Bombardier, 4.3% and HeinekenUK, Caledonian Deuchars IPA, 3.8%, allat £2.80, the guests on were Black SheepBitter, 3.8%, £2.80 and Theakstons Mild,3.5%, £2.60.Plenty of seating is available with settlesround all the sides. The walls are adornedwith various Navy memorabilia and photosplus a few framed Nottingham Forestsigned items. There is a smaller area toone side that houses the dart board. Foodis served Monday to Saturday between12 noon and 3pm and includes variouscobs, baguettes, jacket potatoes, burgers,toasted paninis and a few main meals,all are reasonably priced. Backgroundmusic is playing but this does not inhibitconversation, look out for the amusing signfor directions to the toilets.Next up we have a pub that has undergonea transformation after being closed forsome time. The Riverbank (the old TownArms, for those who remember back thatfar) on Victoria Embankment (by the riverat Trent Bridge) has been turned into anup-market bar and kitchen. Two beers areavailable, Greene King IPA, 3.6% & GreeneKing St Edmunds, 4% both at £3.10. Thearea around the single bar has high stools,tables and wall shelves with a slightlyraised area with conventional seating toone side. The other side of the place hasa large restaurant area. Various lite bitescan be had in the bar area, they also havea Deli with various take-away sandwichesavailable. There is lots of outdoor seatingwhere you can sit and watch the river andthe ducks flow by.STOP PRESS: we have just heard that, dueto a burst water main, the Riverbank willbe closed until June.Another pub to reopen after refurbishmentis Spanky van Dykes (eatery andfunhouse) - it’s on corner of GoldsmithStreet and Talbot Street (just down fromRock City) as the name might suggest, itis aimed at the younger element. It nowserves 2 cask ales, Marstons Pedigree,4.3% and Marstons Draught Bass, 4.4%both at £2.70 and two draught cidersWeston’s Old Rosie and Weston’s VintageOrganic, both 7.3% at £3.20. It consists ofone large open-plan ground floor room