The Church Inn, Uppermill

1) Range of ales � probably the best in Saddleworth. In addition to the regulars such as Boddies, Thwaites, Stella and Carling, you have a choice of between 4 to 8 cask ales plus a scrumpy, all brewed in-house by the Saddleworth micro-brewery. There�s a good range too. Golden bitters dominate but there�s usually an IPA and a mild, and if you�re really lucky, their flagship �Shaft Bender� chocolate stout. Sweet cider lovers will enjoy the �Ruby Tuesday�. Rating 8/10.
2) Quality of ales � good. Rating 8/10.
3) Price of ales � standard beers 6/10. In-house Saddleworth Brewery ales 9/10.
3) Range of food � Rating 8/10.
4) Quality of food � None of it has seen a chef � it�s straight from the freezer into the microwave / fryer. But not bad all the same. The �Combo� starter, jumbo cod main course and mixed grill, are all huge. Other portions sizes are average. Rating 6/10.
5) Price of food � average. Rating 6/10.
6) D�cor and cleanliness � good all round with a warm, cozy feel to the place. Rating 9/10.
7) Staffing � a bit of a let down. Full of young, attractive girls but mainly of the �dumb blonde� elk. Not particularly bright, helpful or sociable. But not bad either. Rating 5/10.
8) Ambience, character and range of activities � Nice, pleasant place. Avoid early tea times � full of mum�s in their 4x4�s who can�t be bothered cooking tea � they take their kids their and let them run riot around the place. Likewise, Friday night�s can be a bit like �student city�!
9) Overall rating � 6/10.

27 Feb 2010 16:50

The Buffet Bar, Stalybridge

When I rate a pub I split my mark out of 10 into 5 categories; 1) Range of ales; 2) Quality of ales; 3) D�cor and cleanliness; 4) Staffing; 5) Overall ambience, character and range of activities. I never rate it based on the customers as it only takes one or two idiots to spoil things for everyone and that is by no means the fault of the pub. So here goes.

1) Range of ales � probably the best in Stalybridge. In addition to the regular Boddies, Flowers, Guiness, Strongbow, Stella and Carling, you have a choice of between 4 to 8 cask ales plus a scrumpy, although there is a heavy bias towards medium golden bitters whilst other ales like IPA, mild, porter, chocolate stout or flavoured beers only get an occasional look in. Rating 8/10.
2) Quality of ales � mediocre. Rating 4/10.
3) D�cor and cleanliness � d�cor is good with lots of railway memorabilia but the cleanliness is nothing short of filthy throughout. Rating 4/10.
4) Staffing � by far its biggest let down. Too many staff who think the place is all about them and not the customers. Tables are never, and I mean NEVER, cleared or wiped. When they become littered with meal plates, empty glasses and rubbish, customers have to take them back to the bar, where they will continue to litter the bar top often until the end of a shift! One chap on a Friday night, just stands behind the bar like a stuffed manikin and doesn�t move or talk to anyone all night. He just pushes the on/off switch on the glass washer every 40 minutes or so. The staffing has to be seen to be believed. Rating 0/10.
5) Overall ambience, character and range of activities � the place oozes character. It�s a bit like entering a pre-Dr Beeching time warp. Rating 7/10.

27 Feb 2010 15:57

The Buffet Bar, Stalybridge

We had another go at Rail Ale Trail on Saturday. Sadly Stalybridge Buffet wasn't up to much. Good choice of beers but 3 were cloudy to middling, 1 of which I took back only to be refused an exchange. The tables were littered with empty glasses and food plates. Don't the staff know how to wash up? And you can't even enjoy a pint and a smoke when doing a bit of train spotting anymore. Network Rail insist you retire to the car park in order to indulge in such pleasures. What is the world coming to?

9 Jan 2008 16:42