This blogging lark is easy, titles apart. Whinge about opening hours, eulogise the food-free boozer, judge micro pubs on the presence of a mobility scooter, avoid Sunday lunch pubs.
We failed with the last one in Hardingstone, perhaps the ultimate dormitory village for Northampton.
You could walk into the county town in half an hour, but of course no-one with enough money to live in Hardingstone would ever walk.
That OS extract is typical of the county; light industry, lakes, Queen Eleanor crosses, motorways, budget hotels, golden stone. You could do worse.
Everyone was at the pubs here as well, but the Sun was your perfect opposite of the Three Horseshoes.
Very impressive in parts, but even the attractive drinking area in the lobby screams “foodie pub”
It’s what I call “enterprising“, with an attempt to cover all bases. And it was working, with a pub packed with
Family diners(£13.95 for 2 courses)
Dog lovers,
Blokes watching the Prem on SKY,
and real ale fans.
You’ll see immediately my issue. Six beers in a small village pub focused on rhubarb gin and 1664. 20 years ago that would have been a beer exhibition people travelled miles for. Nowadays folk will look at those pumps and think dull. They’re not dull, by the way.
There were chalkboards everywhere advising offers and events, proclaiming the local flavour of beers and veg and gin.
There was so much noise, particularly from the disgruntled Arsenal fan below*, Mrs RM drank up (a decent Phipps, NBSS 3) and we scarpered, tripping over a dog and leaving my battered OS Explorer in the pub.
I know I love pubs with a cross-section of life, and the ongoing condiment drama would have entertained BRAPA for weeks, but Sunday lunch pubs are a law unto themselves. And they smell of cabbage.
*Note to US/Canadian fans- all Arsenal fans are permanently disgruntled. May it remain that way.
retiredmartin 
“It’s what I call “enterprising“, with an attempt to cover all bases.”
It certainly looks large enough to do that. But I agree; better a smaller pub that caters to one or two things.
As for Arsenal; the Gunners aren’t that bad are they? 😋
And with that, I’m off to put the clocks back and go to bed. 😉
Cheers
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Looks a lot more down-to-earth than many dining pubs.
Funny-looking guide dog, though…
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…who wasn’t happy with me taking his pig and calling him “Babe” (private joke).
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Arsenal fans are obviously a bit bored by visiting the same old places every year, nothing a couple of years of away games to places like Milton Keynes and Scunthorpe wouldn’t put right.
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Sack Wenger, appoint Moyes and see what happens.
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Isn’t Avram Grant available?
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Good call.
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It would be great to welcome them to Edgeley Park 😛
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What has Stockport done to deserve that?
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It’s not cabbage you can smell, look at that little dogs face. He knows what he’s done! Funny how dogs look like their owners though?
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“It’s not cabbage you can smell, look at that little dogs face. He knows what he’s done! ”
Heh. 🙂
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One of the signs said “Guide dogs only”. I agree about dogs looking like their owners; or vice-versa, but the six hand-pulls aside, the pub looks pretty good to me.
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It’s a pleasant pub, just too noisy, and with a whiff of cabbage (or dog) that didn’t work for us. Generally Northants pubs are very down to earth.
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Shame it was so noisy; those photos make it look like an idyllic pub interior. I’d give anything to have a pub that looks like that down the road from me 🙂
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I’m feeling increasingly guilty about this now ! A pleasant allrounder with decent beer, home sourced food and interesting architecture, and we walk out because of smelly dogs and noisy Arsenal fans. I’m spoilt, I am.
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Really though, noise and odor are pretty hard to ignore. If that pub were down the road from me but also noisy and smelly, I’d probably walk out too!
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It wasn’t that bad, you’ll know by now I’m prone to over-exaggeration being a snowflake and all…
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