Away Stand Bar - Leeds United

This is a difficult one to be objective about - Elland Road is not one of my favourite places to visit, largely because many of the Leeds Utd fans seem to be comfortable with the amounts of racist and homophobic abuse given out by the vocal minority.

However, putting my football feelings aside, the bar in the away end is actually fairly pleasant for a football stadium. We're certainly not talking about comfort or family-friendly - this is a football stadium after all. On the whole - the experience is a positive one - there's a few televisions placed at unnatural heights to watch the early kick-offs, and the bar itself is well positioned and welcoming.
It's easy for football clubs to fall into the trap of understaffing on match days, and then charging over the odds for poor-standard lager - pleasingly Leeds buck the trend somewhat by actually getting the balance of servers & cashiers about right. The beer is fine (Carling or Strongbow), and acceptably priced at £3.60 a pint.

Overall, not as bad as expected, but quite happy that I only have to go once a season.

The Cross Keys - Water Lane

Now this is more like it. The Cross Keys is a little gem, tucked away on Water Lane which borders on one of the rougher areas in Leeds. However, you certainly wouldn't be aware of the unpleasant surroundings once you were inside - the pub itself is a stunning example of how to do the simple things right. From the minute you walk in, you are greeted by friendly and chatty staff, who were quick to recommend from a wide choice of beers (some of which are brewed on-site). I ordered food as well, which was outstanding (home made fish goujons, with fresh chips, wrapped in newspaper - perfect) and reasonably priced.

Atmosphere in the bar was excellent - decent music was played at an audible level, whilst people openly chatted to others like they were long-lost friends.

I get the feeling that the Cross Keys is very much a home-from-home for some people - the pub offers additional services like a parcel collection point (get your shopping delivered there, and pick it up on your way home after a pint !!) and regular events.

This is definitely a real success, and more people should be aware of it - I think some people are unfairly put off by the location, which is a real shame when the staff have done so much hard work to turn this into a fantastic venue.

However, as I was leaving, I had to walk past two prostitutes who were standing on the street touting for business - still, you can't have everything....

Veritas - Great George Street

I was genuinely looking forward to this one, Veritas is a reasonably new installation in a site that tends to have some decent pubs - in the years i've lived in Leeds, it's been a Hogshead, Waterhole Wine Bar (twice) and the Portland bar. They have also been rewarded with a spot in the CAMRA Good Beer Guide, which is always a good sign.

At first glance, the bar itself is welcoming enough - huge windows allow the patrons to get a great view of the passers-by near the law courts, and the place is clean and tidy. However, once you get inside, it is immediately obvious that Veritas suffers from a similar problem to many other city centre bars - they are trying too hard to establish an 'identity'. Fair enough - i'm all for bars attempting something different, especially when chains such as Yates & Harvester are opening identical venues across the country, but the core purpose still has to be focused on those who wish to drink, otherwise you're just a restaurant who sells beer.

To prove my point with Veritas, before you get to the drinks bar, you have to bypass an ice-cream counter (pictured above) and a nacho station. When I reached the bar, the staff member asked me what I wanted to eat, and seemed put out when I told her I only wanted a pint. Later on, whilst I was sat at a high table, the barmaid came back over to try and 'tempt me' into buying some olives & nachos.

It might just be me, but i'm beginning to feel like the regular drinker is being sidelined for the food customers, which is fine if that's the business model you're aiming for. However, it's not what is expected for a CAMRA-approved pub, and results in the customers feeling disappointed.

Brewdog, White Cloth Hall

BrewDog are a fairly new chain of pubs originating out of Scotland - the newly opened Leeds venue is their 11th in the UK. They've certainly got an interesting public image - the brand is positioned as a controversial and rebellious choice, alienating themselves from CAMRA and the traditional cask-ale providers. All the promotional literature available online and in copious amounts in the actual venue itself shows BrewDog to be the 'outsiders' - sticking a middle finger up at commercially successful brands. Indeed, they have recently destroyed Tennants and Heineken bottles in shooting displays & ten-pin-bowling events - all carefully designed to show off their 'punk' side.

However, actually visiting the source of all this rebellion paints a slightly different story. The bar itself is in the historic White Cloth Gallery behind the Corn Exchange, attached to a Pizza Express, and is easily overlooked by people unaware of the location. When you enter the bar, the first thing you see is adverts for their own-brand ales being sold in supermarkets (more on this later), before being struck by the lack of atmosphere. Granted, I turned up just after work on a Tuesday, but there were only 3 people in the bar, all sitting on their own using iPads. The seating arrangement suggested a lack of conversation - rows of barstools all facing one way, not round in a circle. I get the feeling that a lot of the clientele are suited to this sort of arrangement, which is disappointing when I had such high hopes of finding a new exciting venue.

All that aside, the drink itself is excellent. I had the PunkIPA, which was beautifully fruity and strong, but there were other options that I definitely would like to try. Unusually for bars like this, there was a comprehensive drinks menu available, which showed the strength and taste of all their own-brand products - a real help for a relative novice like me. One major criticism though - the drink was served in a warm glass, which immediately causes the beer to become lukewarm - i'd have thought a company such as BrewDog would have been well aware of this.

Later that day, I sent a message via twitter to the bar, asking where I could buy the Punk IPA - the response came back as 'you'll find it in most big supermarkets'. This was probably more indicative of BrewDog's brand than any of the sweary literature & controversial marketing - the fact is, they're a hugely successful company who benefit from tie-ins with large corporate bodies, not some back-street ale-house who genuinely try something different. A true 'outsider' company would have promoted the availability in local beer sellers such as BeerRitz or Gerry's Spirits (as another twitter user thankfully mentioned), or even that they sold 'take-home' products themselves ! But no - they'd rather promote Asda and Tesco, which is disappointing but not altogether unexpected.

So, the visit was a definite success, as I've found some new beers I want to try. Thankfully, they have pointed me towards the supermakets, which means I won't have to bother going to this 'style over substance' fun vaccuum ever again...

North Bar - New Briggate

After a few mediocre bars, this challenge was needing a bit of a kick-start. What better way to inject some energy than to try out one of the most popular (and CAMRA-listed) bars in Leeds.
Surprisingly, despite having lived in Leeds for 10+ years, i'd never set foot in North Bar - I think I am naturally adverse to places that people keep telling me are great. Might just be pure stubbornness, but I prefer to make my own judgments...
..which is annoying really. As always, i'm the victim of my own ridiculous ideas - North Bar is fantastic, and is definitely a new favourite of mine.

Truly a beer-lover's dream, North Bar offers a variety of ales & lagers from around the world - the day I visited, there seemed to be an American event taking place - yet it's to the credit of the owners that this didn't overpower the atmosphere. I counted at least 20 different choices on tap, which had competition from one of the widest varieties of bottled beers i'd ever seen. I chose a pint of Jever (a German pilsner), which was served in an authentic stein. The bar itself was clean and welcoming, and the staff were as friendly as the reputation suggested.

Unfortunately, North Bar has the reputation of a 'student favourite', which may put some people off visiting - this would be a mistake. I'll even forgive the slightly higher prices (£3.60 for my pint, some were £5+), although this would make any more than a couple of drinks be an expensive session.

Without doubt, this was the highlight of my challenge so far, and I look forward to showing it off to others when they come to visit.

The West Riding - Wellington Street

The West Riding on Wellington Street is overshadowed by a 'gentlemen's club' next door - you know the ones, inexplicably named after a colour & an animal (blue leopard, red panther, yellow armadillo..), yet deserves to stand alone as a decent venue in it's own right.

The pub itself is compact, with a confusing array of table and chair heights - barstools are positioned alongside cosy lounge chairs, making conversation awkward in a larger group. Despite this, there was a good number of office workers taking advantage of their lunchtime break to enjoy a pint and a read (there are plenty of newspapers available for all to read).

For a pub of this type, I expected to be greeted with a large selection of local ales, yet sadly there was only one guest brew available (Golden Pippin again...).

In a strange twist, the barmaid was telling me that the pub is reputedly haunted, and recently they held a series of seances to try and understand the unusual noises & unexplainable occurrences that have happened over the years. Sadly, that is by far the most interesting fact about a pub that has gone through numerous name changes (Bar 36, Bar Work), yet has failed to capitalise on it's prime location.

Absolutely fine, yet nothing to convince any punter to return.

The Town Hall Tavern

Today was a rare occurrence, where I was able to get out of the office for an hour to have a relaxing lunch with a friend.  Fancying something nice to eat, we went to the newly renovated Town Hall Tavern on the Headrow. To be brutally honest, the Town Hall Tavern used to be known for being a rough place - where people due for a court hearing over the road used to come for a last drink of freedom.  It's taken a long time to turn this reputation around, but the new owners have done wonders in making the Tavern a pleasant little gastro-pub in the centre of the financial district.
The interior is welcoming and clean, with plenty of seating inside. There is a good selection of Timothy Taylor ales, and a tasty solitary cider (Stowford Press), but the real treat was the food. All cooked on-site, the meals are filling & perfectly prepared. We both had the Scampi, but there were 4 or 5 other choices that we could have easily chosen.
Overall, a beautiful little pub that deserves real recognition in an ever-changing marketplace.

The Victoria Family & Commercial Hotel

After yesterday's low point, I needed a real treat to pick me up, so it was with some trepidation that I headed for the Victoria Family & Commercial Hotel on Great George Street. To be honest, i've never been overly sure whether it was a hotel, pub or restaurant, so I was pleasantly surprised to find a warm and welcoming pub behind the old exterior.

The inside of the pub itself is huge - 3 separate drinking areas, and a massive seating area for diners. The decor is very outdated now, and there's certainly a level of disrepair inside the main bar - one family complained that there were snails under the table, whilst the carpet was worn away to a thread where I was sitting. Despite all this, my experience was totally positive - I took advantage of their lunchtime offer of a meal and a pint of Nicholsons Pale Ale for £7 - the food was well cooked and tasty, with a decent selection available. Good range of beers too, although the barman was confused over the different offers.

Very positive indeed - i'd certainly return here in the future.

Parkrow Bar & Brasserie

I expected some lows during this challenge, but certainly not on the 2nd day.. Due only to the fact that it is near my bus stop, I ended up going for a drink in the Parkrow Bar & Brasserie. This bar has annoyed me for some time, mainly due to the constant flyering along the Headrow. However, I went in open-minded, especially as it was advertising 'happy hour' between 4-7. If I had more time, I'd be looking into the Trades Description Act, as there was certainly nothing happy about this place.
Despite this being peak time for bars, and it screening the tennis from Wimbledon, there can only have been 5 or 6 people in the whole bar. There was no atmosphere at all, and even the bar staff looked bored. So, I finished my Coors Light (when did £2.50 become a discounted price for a pint?) and left quickly.
Sadly, due to the odd business model of having 3 pubs in one building, if I want to do this challenge properly I'm going to have to go back to try the Bierkeller and Shooters Sports Bar, but it certainly won't be for a long time.

Challenge Accepted !

Bit of a sneaky one this, as I wasn't planning on starting til Monday. However, an unexpected trip into Leeds coupled with some rubbish shopping meant that I had time on my hands. So, to start off the challenge, I chose a pub that most people walk past without even noticing it is there. Tucked away down a small alley opposite HMV is The Ship Inn (http://www.theshipleeds.co.uk/), a tiny yet welcoming pub that caters for harassed shoppers & bored men. Once you go inside, there's some token effort to keep up with a maritime theme, and the menu looks like they offer some standard 'pub grub', yet the real selling point is the amount of ales & local brews on tap. Excellent selection for beer drinkers (although sadly only one cider....), with a good range of darks & light ales. I went for a pint of Golden Pippin (by Copper Dragon - 3.9%) which i'd never tried before, but definitely goes on my 'must revisit' list....

Overall, not a wasted journey, but I doubt I would make the effort to go back to The Ship - there just wasn't enough to warrant a repeat visit. Still - not a bad start to the challenge.

A new challenge....

Ok - i'm the first to admit that I have new ideas, get fully involved with them for a few weeks, and then forget about them totally. However, a blog is something that I really want to keep up - it's a good way for me to keep track of what i've done in the year, and also it might be useful for others to read. So, i've been looking for ways in which I can relaunch the blog and make it more interesting.

For a while now, I've been looking for a challenge - something along the lines of the Dave Gorman / Danny Wallace books I read years ago. I started thinking about the things I enjoy as hobbies - football would be the obvious choice, as it lends itself to challenges (the '92 club' are a good example of this). However, it's expensive to do, and it would mean I miss Brighton games, so that's not an option.

Then, after a chat with some people in a pub the other night, the ideal challenge came to me. Why not visit every pub in Leeds and try to find out which are the best ones? For years, i've been going to mediocre pubs, drinking standard lager, just because they are the well known ones. There's nothing better than finding some 'hidden gems', and introducing other people to a genuinely nice drinking experience. Also, it means I might be able to find some different drink choices.....

I've got no idea how many pubs there are in Leeds City Centre, but i've got time and a will to succeed, so nothing can stop me !

Quick note at this point - the definition of a pub is tricky. It can't just be anywhere that serves alcohol, or i'd end up in bloody Pizza Express again. Also out for now are swanky bars - just because they serve Becks and have a few seats, it doesn't make them a pub. So, for starters, pubs are traditional drinking establishments - anyone that focuses on the drink rather than dancing.

So, the challenge starts here.... Check back later for the first entry.....

New blogs coming soon.....

First game of the season - Hull City v Brighton 18/08/12

After the 'spectacular summer of sport', which seemed to consist of England failing miserably in a major competition once again, before Team GB surprised everyone by being quite good at sports no-one usually watches, it's time to get back to real competition once again. Yes - the Npower Championship kicked-off the 2012/13 season this Saturday, and I took Kyle along to see our beloved Brighton start the annual disappointment much earlier than usual.

The Humber Bridge

Hull itself is a terrible place to visit - a typical Northern town desperately trying to reinvent itself as a tourist attraction, but only managing to reinforce a sense of sadness & despair. As the old saying goes - you can't polish a turd, but you can roll it in glitter.

It's often better to face away from the pitch when Brighton are playing.

We stopped off at a reasonable pub (the Three John Scotts - a bog-standard Wetherspoons, not really worthy of a place in the Good Beer Guide), and then made our way to the ground. The KC stadium was one of the original 'new breed' of out-of-town football stadiums, and is starting to look particularly shabby in places. Once inside, it could have been any stadium in any city in the world - there was nothing to make it stand out.

New signing Tomas Kusczack

The football itself was a strange one. Brighton played well enough - new signings Bruno and Bridge were excellent in the full-back positions, whilst Crofts and Bridcutt bossed the midfield throughout. However, there was no penetration at all, and the forward pairing of Mackail-Smith & Barnes looked starved of possession. Hull showed no style, and were content to chase possession for much of the game. Things changed when Kazenga Lua-Lua was introduced, and his pace & tricks started to worry the Hull defence. However, despite this, Hull capitalised on a loose ball, and Jay Simpson scored a late winner. 

Horrible foul on Craig Noone - not even a yellow card.

Kusczack watches the play

Luke Campbell - Hull's gold medal winning boxer

On the balance of play, Brighton deserved the win, but I think we'll play a lot worse than that this season and still get results. Priority has to be a new target man though - you can't play two small strikers when we've got such good quality crossers of the ball.

Still, a good day overall.

Hull City 1 (Simpson 85mins) vs Brighton 0

First match of the season

The whole point of starting this blog was to have a way of following my little obsessions. As people who know me will be aware, the largest obsession I have is with football. So, when I found out that one of Team GB's olympic football matches would be at Old Trafford, it was an easy decision to go along.

Now, i'm no Man Utd fan - far from it, but i've always enjoyed going to Old Trafford. It's a wonderful old stadium, which has been expanded and enhanced without losing that feeling of history. There's not a bad view in the ground, and you really get a sense of a true football stadium, not like these soulless new builds being launched all the time (Yes Cardiff and Manchester City - this is directed at you).

The event itself was good - we'd been warned about the increased security before arriving, but I don't think anyone realised just how bad it would be. I got to the ground at 4:30, which was half an hour before the first game kicked off. There were loads of queues opposite the ground, and I waited 45mins for a bag check to be conducted by an officious jobsworth Scouser, in which he placed my bag in a sealed plastic container for me to take into the ground. I then had to put my wallet, keys and mobile in another plastic bag, and hand it to the stewards before entering. I'm all for good security - no-one wants to be blown up after all - but this was pure overkill and utterly pointless. The stewards didn't know what they were looking for (they challenged my bag because it had a corporate logo on, but missed the flick-knife I keep on my key-ring....), and there were no signs directing us where to go.

My ticked entitled me to see two games - the first of which was United Arab Emirates vs Uruguay. UAE looked a trick and skillful side, but ran out of stamina after around an hour. Uruguay, who had the racist cheat Luis Suarez in their side (roundly booed with every touch - well deserved), were dull and formulaic, but ended up winning 2-1.

UAE celebrate Matar's opener

United Arab Emirates 1 ISMAEIL MATAR (23'), Uruguay 2 RAMIREZ Gaston (42'), LODEIRO Nicolas (56')


 The main event was Team GB, captained by Ryan Giggs, against Senegal. 

The teams line up for the national anthems

I'll be the first to admit that I know very little about Senegalese football, but their players seemed to be under the impression that points were awarded for the amount of times you can kick your opponent. Fouls ranged from the niggly to the violent, with one particular one on Neil Taylor being as bad as i've seen in the professional game. Still, it seemed to work for them, and the game ended in a 1-1 draw. Team GB looked poor, and I can't help thinking that the 3 'over 23' players were poorly chosen. The team needed speed and domination, and Giggs, Bellamy & Richards can't provide that any more. In my opinion, we should have looked for a pacy winger (Adam Johnson or Shaun Wright-Phillips) and a clinical striker (Bobby Zamora).

Butland takes a goal kick

Team GB 1 BELLAMY Craig (20'), Senegal 1 KONATE Moussa (82')

Still, despite all this, it was nice to get back to seeing some football again. Roll on 18th August.....

Subbuteo World Cup 2012 - The Results

Quick blog entry tonight about the Subbuteo World Cup held last weekend in Manchester. I was there for both days, and saw the very best players in the world compete for the trophies. Not only that, almost all of them took the opportunity to beat me as well.

I'll do a full review soon, but these are some of the results along with my pictures of the event...

The main event was won by Spain's Carlos Flores, who beat Massimiliano Nastasi of Italy 5-3

In the Veterans category, Italy's Francesco Mattiangeli beat Spain's Vicenc Prats Salat with a golden goal after a 2-2 draw

The Ladies event saw the Belgian Delphine Dieudonne beat her team-member Emile Despretz 5-1

All of the youth categories were won by Italy

U19 Bjorn Kegenbein beat Luca Battista 4-2

U15 Matteo Ciccarelli beat David Gonzalez with a golden goal after a 3-3 draw

U12 Marco Di Vito beat Nicola Borgo 3-0

Malta line up against Japan

Victorious Belgians

The Spanish U15 team

A winning Spanish goal

More to come....

Ted: Toy Story for the Hangover generation....

I promised myself that this wouldn't turn into just another film review blog. However, I was lucky enough to get a free preview ticket to Ted - a new comedy starring Mark Wahlberg & Mila Kunis, and produced by Seth MacFarlane who is the brains behind Family Guy - so I thought i'd share my review anyway...

I'll admit, I went into this with fairly low expectations. For those of you who haven't heard of the film, it's based around the story of a boy (John Bennett) who makes a wish to have his teddy bear (Ted) come to life. When the wish is granted, they become best friends, and grow up together. The film picks up the story when both John and Ted are in their late 30's, living out life as stoners & deadbeats. Despite the fairly standard plot-line (failing relationship, 'comedy' best friend, odd cameos), this film really blew me away. I can't remember the last time I laughed so much in the cinema - some of the one-liners had me crying with laughter. I won't give away too much, but there's one specific fight scene that is possibly the funniest thing i've seen in a film for years.

The cast are all excellent - MacFarlane gives a great vocal performance as the titular Ted, whilst Mark Wahlberg and Giovanni Ribisi are both outstanding. However, top billing should be given to the amazing Mila Kunis. Now, I absolutely adore her anyway, but Kunis was at her best in this, playing the overlooked girlfriend who is being sidelined for a foul-mouthed teddy. She plays it perfectly, bringing the right amount of cuteness / emotion throughout.

It's hard to find anything negative about this movie - if I analysed it enough, I suppose there's a chance that some of the references (Susan Boyle, Jack & Jill, yes, even Peter Griffin) might date the film very quickly, but this can be easily overlooked by the sheer number of laugh-out-loud moments. Respected critic Mark Kermode says that a comedy should make you laugh at least six times, else it has failed. Using this formula, Ted has enough laughter for at least 5 films, if not more.

Despite my love of the 'classic' films, comedies are my real guilty pleasure. If i'm in the right mood, there's nothing better than watching movies like The Hangover, Jay & Silent Bob, I Love You Man etc. After tonight's viewing, Ted will be a staple of my late-night movie watching for years to come....

The Dark Knight Rises - a review.

So. The Dark Knight Rises. Better than Batman Begins, not as good as The Dark Knight. Possibly my third favourite Batman film of all time (for those of you wondering, my second favourite is Batman: Year One - an animated film from 2011 starring Eliza Dushku). However, none of this really matters. We could spend time discussing a clunky formulaic plot (a race against time while a bomb ticks down to zero? Really?), almost inaudible dialogue, and an unbelievable bad guy who was actually quite a decent chap who then inexplicably started killing people. We could also talk about another fantastic performance from Gary Oldman, a career-high for Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and a criminally short turn from Cillian Murphy. However, all of that would take focus away from the most important discussion point of all - the ending.

By the way - spoilers coming up....

Let's make one thing clear, the ending was amazing - lots of twists, fantastic acting all round, and a genuinely emotional scene with Gary Oldman. But, there's two key things that just didn't sit right with me.

Firstly - Robin. This one really pissed me off. I mentioned this above, but Joseph Gordon-Levitt was excellent throughout the film - truly engaging, and a perfect balance to the hyperbole and action taking place with Batman and Bane. However, he is playing Detective John Blake, who reveals towards the end that his middle name is Robin (before paragliding into a waterfall like some sort of Oxbridge student in a gap year...). So, Christopher Nolan is setting him up to be a new Robin within the Batman universe? Fair enough, but at least tie it back to the canon that already exists. All fans of Batman and DC know that Robin is Dick Grayson (or Jason Todd, Tim Drake, Stephanie 'Spoiler' Brown or Damian Wayne). Why then suddenly throw John Blake into the mix? Would it have been too difficult to have Detective Blake say to the solicitor "I should use my given name - Jason Todd" ?? The whole Robin thing seemed shoe-horned in for no reason at all. If rumours are to be believed, Christopher Nolan is not returning to the franchise after this film, so all he's done is make it really difficult for the next director to pick things up from where we left off. No matter - with the way Hollywood is going these days, we'll get a reboot in a couple of years anyway, and have to watch a young Bruce Wayne see his parents murdered yet again....

Secondly - the scene in Florence. At first glance, this was a lovely little scene that made people cry a bit. Loyal butler Alfred got his wish, and Bruce Wayne ended up all happy and content. Bollocks. Once you start looking at it a bit deeper, it's not a big leap of the imagination to start challenging all aspects of that whole scene. Let's take it step by step. Batman is dead. Yes, he enabled the auto-pilot (that Lucius Fox was 'too busy' to do), and yes, he's quite agile, but a nuclear bomb exploded on top of him. No escape, no handy ejection seat, nothing. Also, we saw this whole device in Nolan's greatly over-estimated film Inception (it's like Stephen Fry - it was stupid people's idea of what 'clever' is meant to be....), where people were living out dreams as if they were real. Alfred saw what he wanted to see - I could go on for ages about symbolism & staging, but the most obvious device was Selina Kyle dressed in a light-coloured outfit, when throughout the whole film she's only ever seen in black.

Overall, it was enjoyable, and made the trilogy a solid piece of work. It didn't blow me away though, and was nowhere near as good as Avengers earlier in the year. I see that the Sunday Times gave it a 2 star review this morning - bit harsh, but I see where they are coming from.