February 2026. Letchworth Garden City.
Just for you, a map showing all the things in Letchworth, a town rather changed from our time there 35 years ago.
Notably, Sagar Tandoori where we ended our £40 Friday night splurge with a flaming sambuca is closed,
not that I’d have been able to see it in the drizzle.
Broadway leads to Arena Parade and the usual “town hall ruined by car park” scenario.
But the Arena Tavern stands unchanged in 35 years ago, one of the few pubs in the “The Worlds End” using the same venue outdoor and indoors.
I can’t believe the Tavern was brand new when I arrived in 1991; it always looked the sort of shopping centre sport/live music bar that had been there forever, a bit like Jono’s in Ilford.
That beer range is straight of the glory days of Boring Brown Bitter, too.
The young barman is, you guessed it, a gem; approving of my choice of the Rev James pulled from a beer engine that looks older than the pub.
Last time here, and that would have been BC (before craft) I’d had John Smiths Cask, and it wouldn’t have been as good as this cool, chewy pint (NBSS 3.5). The Rev is as indestuctable a pint as Black Sheep or Vault City Custard Tart Smoothie.
It’s a quiet Sunday afternoon in Letchworth, there’s more trade in the three Italian restaurants (all on Untappd), but the Arena is warm and cosy and mixes Elton John with Paramore (not at the same time, though Elton does so many duet it’s not impossible).
There’s a drip, drip into a dog bowl the barman has placed on my table to catch water from a leak above. It’s a metaphor for life. Or something.
retiredmartin 
I’m not sure I’ve seen Shepherd Neame beers on in a pub they didn’t own. Do you see that very often?
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I’ve checked my spreadsheets for the last three years, Dave. The only Sheps beers I had were in Sheps pubs. I may have seen their beers in pubs they don’t own, but if so that would have just made it easier to choose from among the other beers.
I was in the Elephant in Faversham a couple of weeks ago, and they are very keen to point out that they NEVER have any Shepherd Neame beers on!
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Our first encounter with deep seated anti-Shepherd Neame zealots was also in the Elephant. Ten years ago. For 30 minutes the devoted cask ale drinkers talked us into submission. We dared not say we were staying in The Railroad up the street. My brother is still scarred from the encounter and hasn’t touch an SN beer since. He drinks water in SN pubs and walks very quickly past the brewery.
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Will may correct me, but I distinctly recall Sheps being a much better experience 25 years ago, in fact Spitfire was often superb. I’d have put it alongside with Bombardier, 6X and Directors as reliable beers when Mrs RM first drove me to drink. Volume sales of all those must have plummeted in the 21st century (and I know what Old Mudgie would put that down to).
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Will beat me to it. While I drive down the A1 he checks spreadsheets, what a trooper (don’t see that as much these days).
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The Elephant is the sort of pub I’d like to see as National Pub of the Year. I assume the Southworths have never made it to the Tamworth Tap.
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The Fox And Goose in Hebden Bridge – before it was community whatever – used to be very keen to point out that it never sold French produce.
People should measure themselves firstly by what they do, not by what they don’t.
Unless that’s morris dancing…
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Only Richard has been to Tamworth.
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I’ve never felt the need to deny Morris Dancing, but silence could be construed as confirmation. For the record, I have never danced outside a pub wearing clogs and bells
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Martin: I don’t know about 25 years ago, but in 1980 one of my brothers moved to London and we went to a Sheps pub, near where he lived for a few months. Just the once, but I remember exactly how good the beer was.
No spreadsheets in those days, of course.
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Yes Etu and there’s an Oswestry pub keen to point out that it never sells Guinness. And it’s won an award !!
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“For the record, I have never danced outside a pub wearing clogs and bells”
And, just for the record, I’ve never SEEN a pub wearing clogs and bells! 😁
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This question interested me so much I just did a search of my own blog and could only see one mention of Sheps in a non Sheps pub (Bredgar Sun). Spitfire and Bishops Finger used to pop up quite regularly in Spoons, less so now.
To be honest, you’re lucky to get what used to be the stock Sheps beers (Master Brew, Spitfire) in their own pubs these days, and there was no Bishops Finger in the actual Bishops Fingers in Smithfield.
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We thought you found all of our comments deeply interesting.
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My first memories of Sheps was drinking it in their Croydon pub when I first joined CAMRA. The beer on offer then was bitter and mild and I remember them both being very good. I think that you can see when the decline set in from the description of the pub in the 1988 CAMRA South East London Pub Guide which was:
“Once a fine traditional country style pub, now ruined by insensitive modernisation, with loss of games room. Real ale is no longer the priority here, replaced by the desire for high turnover and quick profits”
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We all always find your contributions interesting, Dave. Why are Americans so insecure and nervous these days?
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It all stems from their abject performance in the Cricket World Cup, Will.
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We’re just glad our 51st state didn’t beat the other 50 at hockey. Who knows what would have happened if that game went the other way.
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Yes, “a beer engine that looks older than the pub” from Masons of Birmingham who have been “expert suppliers of bar and cellar equipment” since 1803.
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Timelessness. Who could ask for more?
Non mortals I suppose.
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That (almost) pint of The Rev is a thing of beauty. Got happily sloshed on that a few years back in The Maltsters in Llandaff.
But then I also had one too many Theakston XB at the Dog and Gun in Keswick. That’s a glorious pint, too.
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The Maltsters is now unfortunately not what it has been at times.
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That’s a shame. Had some good nights in there.
The sad demise of Brain’s.
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The sad demise of Brain’s indeed.
They’ve twice downsized their brewery and now, to all intents and purposes, don’t have any pubs.
In Cardiff last autumn the familiar triangular weekday ‘meal and pint’ cards were as I regularly see in Staffordshire Marstons pubs and booking a “Brains” pub for a night next month had me ‘phoning the Marstons reservation line.
The Brains website mentions that “Our beer is proudly served in more than 1,800 pubs across Wales and the UK” but doesn’t detail them, instead only mentioning Marstons, Wetherspoons, Punch, Stonegate, Star, Lounge, Valiant, Mitchells and Butlers and Trust Inns. Seven ‘supermarket’ chains and four other “Retail” companies are also mentioned.
Under “Find a Pub” the Marstons website details, as if their own, all the Brains pubs that they’ve been managing for the last few years.
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My understanding is that Brain’s still have the freeholds on their estate, but have given Marston’s a twenty-five year lease on it. The covenants – if any – in that lease might be interesting.
Perhaps someone more knowledgeable could verify.
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Sheps had a good reputation when I started drinking real ale 35 years ago. Brewed in Kent, see, where the hops are grown? They had a pub in Greenwich that I liked, but tbh I can’t remember whether the beer was all that. These days I’d put them with Hall & Woodhouse in the dullness stakes: lightstruck bottles of BBB on a cornershop shelf. Now King & Barnes, that was good beer.
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“Just for you, a map showing all the things in Letchworth, a town rather changed from our time there 35 years ago.”
I shall study it assiduously… in the very distant future.
“not that I’d have been able to see it in the drizzle.”
You have had some crap weather over the past few weeks.
“and the usual “town hall ruined by car park” scenario.”
Blimey. Your wonky camera actually improves it somewhat.
“one of the few pubs in the “The Worlds End” using the same venue outdoor and indoors.”
I’ve seen that movie. The ending was… not what I expected.
“That beer range is straight of the glory days of Boring Brown Bitter, too.”
Hurrah! For Boring Brown Bitter.
“pulled from a beer engine that looks older than the pub.”
(looks down)
Blimey!
“Last time here, and that would have been BC (before craft)”
(slow golf clap)
“and mixes Elton John with Paramore (not at the same time, though Elton does so many duet it’s not impossible).”
Fair point. ☺️
“There’s a drip, drip into a dog bowl the barman has placed on my table to catch water from a leak above. It’s a metaphor for life. Or something.”
Whoa! That’s getting too deep for me.
(hopefully the dripping doesn’t become too deep for you) 😉
Cheers
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