Pub Crawls with Jezza

It's been a while... sorry about that... but let's not dwell on the issue as I have a new post for you all!

Inspired by a recent Exposed magazine post about dogs in Sheffield pubs, I decided it was time that I did a post on the subject too. 

Our Jez is a retired racing greyhound which means he didn't have a normal doggy upbringing and our house is the first house he's ever lived in. And he'd certainly never been on a pub crawl!

My husband and I decided to make it our mission to mould him into the perfect dog to take with us on a day out to the pub and we've pretty much succeeded. Once a quivering wreck in busy environments, Jez actually gets giddy whenever we tell him we're going to the pub... and that he's coming with us!

Over the last 18 months or so that we've had him, we've sussed out how to make him as comfortable as possible in the pub. He's a boney thing and he needs a bit of protection if he's going to be sitting on hard floors all day so we take an old yoga mat for him to lie on. This also helps to keep him calm - it's his bed and he knows to lie down on it when it comes out of the bag. We also take a load of treats, his food (in case we're out for longer than expected - which we generally are) and a water bowl (which we tend to fill up with iced water - he just loves crunching on ice cubes!).

City Centre

Initially we weren't sure that we'd ever be able to take him into town - it can get really busy and some of the pubs and bars seem unlikely places for dogs. But we've found some brilliant places and we regularly enjoy a pub crawl in town! These are the pubs and bars I can recommend to other dog owners...

The Great Gatsby
Yep, the busy party bar is dog friendly - I'd stick to the day time/mid-week evenings if I were you though!
The Rutland Arms
The carpet is always welcomed by Jezza's boney arse and chef Rico sometimes has dog treats, such as pigs' ears, on the menu.
Brewdog
The Sheffield Tap
The Three Tuns
More carpet.
Head of Steam
Devonshire Cat
Note that dogs are only allowed in the carpet free zones.
The Bath Hotel
The Red Deer

Kelham Island

I'm pretty sure there isn't a pub down Kelham Island that doesn't let dogs in, but these are our favourites.

Shakespeare's
Kelham Island Tavern
Gardener's Rest

Out of Town

The Broadfield
The Cremorne
Hop Hideout
That's right - not only can you drink in, but you can take your pooch in too!
Picture House Social
As long as your dog likes stairs (a lot of greyhounds don't) then you'll like PHS.
New Barrack Tavern
Wisewood Inn
Hallamshire House
The Closed Shop
Hillsborough Hotel

Recommendations from others

The Greystones
Norfolk Arms
Sheaf View
The Blake Hotel

Can anyone recommend any more? Just let me know in the comments. Cheers!!

Hump Day Social - Sheffield Beer Week

Just a little note re an event I'm organising.

Hump Day Social 

Venue: Various in Sheffield city centre
Date: Wed 16th March
Buses: to West Street 6, 10, 10a, 51, 52, 120, 271
Tram: Blue or Yellow trams to West Street
Time: 6pm
Cost: Free entry

Celebrate Hump Day with a mini city centre pub trail hosted by Sheffield food and drink blogger Clare Tollick (@feastandglory). Kicking off at 6pm this event will take in six pubs and bars. It will be a great way to meet up with like-minded beer lovers from across the city, and we’ll be asking attendees to keep it social online too. Using Twitter, Facebook, Untapped and Instagram let’s share the beers we try whilst spreading the word about the fabulous venues we’ll be visiting! Join from the start or at a venue along the way. Register your attendance by tweeting the event organiser, Clare Tollick, at @FeastAndGlory

Itinerary: The Red Deer 6-7pm / The Bath Hotel 7-8pm (Tiny Rebel tap takeover) / Anchorage 8-9pm / The Devonshire Cat 9-10pm / The Old House 10-11pm / Brewdog 11-12pm (Five Points tap takeover)

UPDATE - We've negotiated a few tasty deals on food and beer for all Hump Day Social attendees. For more details just speak to Clare on the night!

Catch Up

Ok, ok, it's been a while.

But I am still here - eating, drinking and writing.

Just not here.

Rather interestingly I've started writing a monthly column for Sheffield Star. 

For other foodie news I recommend you check in on Mr Pickles' blog once in a while. We've also got a monthly column in City Magazine (page 27).

Now, here's a plate of food... just for the sake of it.

A Trip to Trippet's

Day four of our 'staycation' and we fancied trying somewhere new for lunch. Trippet's Lounge Bar was the obvious choice - with a menu of little plates and a good wine list is sounded right up our street.

We started off in The Bath where I finally got to try the Thornbridge I Love You, Will You Marry Me? - which is amazing by the way. It's a strawberry beer, but, unlike a lot of fruit beers, this was really natural tasting and not at all sickly!

Onto Trippet's and we had a lovely time. You know the kind of experience where you smile throughout the meal and leave the place with a great big grin on your face? Well that's what happened to us. The food, wine and service was just perfect.

We were so impressed that we recently returned one Friday night - so that we could take advantage of the live jazz in the bar. And, once again, we had a brilliant time - Trippet's has quickly become one of my favorite places to be right now.

A wander down Abbeydale Road

Day three of our 'staycation' saw us take a wander down Abbeydale Road. We've always loved this area of town (we used to live down there about 15 years ago) and the antique shops and Asian supermarkets can keep me entertained for hours!

Come lunch time we fancied something healthy and light so we eschewed our usual haunts on London Road and headed into Nether Edge. 

Homemade by Thelma's caught our attention and I'm rather pleased it did because the food was spot on. Fresh, light and packed with flavour.

Gav went for a Moroccan lamb quesadilla.  

And I had a cheese omelette with a couple of salads.

We then went to see our mates at Hop Hideout and have a couple of beers.

It's such a lovely little spot to enjoy a beer or two - the selection available is just brilliant and there's always something new for me to try.

Later that evening we treated ourselves to a meal at Peppercorn - which was as good as ever - but, as I didn't take any pictures, you'll just have to take my word for it...

A trip down Kelham Island

Since I've started drinking more beer, Kelham Island has become one of my favourite places to while away an afternoon. So on day two of our 'staycation' we headed down there for a few pints.

We kicked things off with a celebratory breakfast of smoked salmon and scrambled eggs - coz we were on our holidays! We even had a glass of fizz with it!

We then headed down to the Kelham Island Tavern where I discovered the amazing M&T News - the monthly magazine of the Sheffield Omnibus Enthusiasts Society. I was just blown away by the level of detail in there!

A lunch at Craft & Dough was as good as ever. I think pizzas are just perfect with beer - tasty and filling.

We rounded off our day at Shakespeares which is probably my favourite pub right now - they just ALWAYS have at least three new things on tap/keg that I want to try. And this time I also dipped into the bottle menu with the Tripel Hopped Duvel.

Back at home we carried on the fun with a Blubus Maximus, which was too sour for my taste, but Gav enjoyed it.