PaulRobinson
9 months ago
I know a lot about London pubs, and this made me smile.
If you want to see the kind of old layout he’s talking about, almost any Sam Smith pub in London will do - they pride themselves on keeping it traditional - with the best and most striking example probably being the Princess Louise near Holborn. Just don’t expect any beer names you recognise - it’s a brewery pub that only sells stuff made by Sam Smiths (the beer), or branded Sam Smiths (the spirits, the snacks…)
Most of the others still exist, but I think have been refurbished quite extensively and not in a way he’d like.
However, there is some hope. Newer bars are opening that are trying to tap into a less sports-focused vibe. Some focusing on food, some on entertainment, quite a few on a wider range of more unusual beers (the “Tap” chain near train stations and just down the road from Farringdon for example).
Of course the dominant player in the mega pub “hall” space is Wetherspoons. Caverns - low-ceilinged cathedrals almost - to cheap beer and Brexit politics. They’re cheap, and so attract clientele who are price sensitive. That leaves more room in all the others for those of us who value something else, I guess.
The pub trade in the U.K. though is in trouble. It’s interesting that Europe’s largest consumer lobby group is based in the U.K.: CAMRA. It’s most interesting that the CAMpaign for Real Ale, started to protect traditionally brewed cask ale from being obliterated by the sorts of breweries that thought beer should be tankered like petrol, has had to change it’s target.
CAMRA basically thinks the war for Real Ale has been won. The rise of microbreweries has meant a plentiful supply of good quality beer is secure. But the pub is not. So now it’s become a bit more CAMPUB, and campaigns to save the business of public houses itself, the traditional bar games (skittles or bar billiards, anyone?), and the communities that sit in them.
The architecture is important, the interior should be considered, the screens have a place in some - but not all - pubs.
But it’s the people that matter, and at the moment the industry is in a mess.
It’s remarkable so many pubs in this article still exist. I don’t think many of them will survive another 60 years, perhaps not even another 10.
Enjoy them while you can.
DrBazza
9 months ago
Pubs used to be 11-3, and 6-11, give or take, whereas High Street restaurants, that can often also serve alcohol and family friendly, are 11-11, so it's not much of a surprise that they're converging, slowly to the same business model: there's not a pub in my area that doesn't do food, or coffee, or indeed breakfast. If you have a building that needs heating 24 hours a day, having revenue for most of that time is going to help, so a small number of those additionally offer free wifi for the WFH types, which actually seems to be beneficial.
Some of those pubs local to me, that have been purchased and gutted by smaller boutique brewery chains, have been turned into something indistinguishable from a coffee shop - the dangling light bulbs, brickwork, copper pipes. Coincidentally, I'm off to my local #1 CAMRA pub later, and it is much like the article describes. A typical pub. Dark wood, central bar, low ceilings, two bars (saloon and public), darts, and one tv screen. And it will be full by mid-afternoon through to the end of the day, which is unusual for pubs now.
It just seems like the main problem for pubs, and in fact, most of British industry, is costs, and that seems to be the exorbitant cost of electricity at the moment.
specproc
9 months ago
A lot of the problems started under Blair. Licensing for music was a horrible policy move. The smoking ban necessary, but brutal for pubs; ditto a crackdown on underage drinking.
In my forties, and I feel that my generation was the last to enjoy a particular pub experience which is now a rapidly receding memory.
PaulRobinson
9 months ago
The smoking ban caused a small bump - and we suddenly realised all the pubs had stinking toilets that the smoke had masked - but I think it actually resulted in both better environments for a wider audience, and a massive benefit to public health, particularly in working class communities. Long term, I think it led to a better pub environment for more people.
There have been consistent and regular crackdowns on underage drinking for well over a century - I don't recall a particularly large crackdown in recent years, but the licensing has changed: the Police now have more leverage over whether a publican and their property should keep trading than they did before, and that's meant a lot of idiot landlords who didn't give a damn about the social problems their idiocy caused have been forced out of the industry. Those who run a tighter ship stay in business.
By far the biggest shift seems to me, generational attitudes to drinking. When I was in my early 20s, I was in the pub pretty much every night (and many lunchtimes), and I wasn't alone, and was drinking with colleagues and friends who were the same age all the way up to retirement age and beyond.
The people I work with today in their early 20s might go out twice a month, and even then might only have 2-3 drinks all night. They're more likely to go to the gym in the evening, or to head home and watch Netflix or read their Kindle than to go to the pub.
It's interesting that low alcohol drinks are the biggest growth sector, and I've seen 0% beer on draught a little more in recent months. It might seriously help the sector if we just accept getting sloshed every night isn't good for people, people are realising it, and that you need to cater for that.
cromka
9 months ago
Nonalcoholic beers have gotten so popular and so good in Poland that pretty every pub has at least some on tap and many more bottled. Unfortunately they aren’t any cheaper than regular ones at all, and with beer now regularly priced at 16-22 PLN (roughly 4-5 euro), going out has gotten ridiculously expensive. From my observations, going out is not as common as it used to.
I don’t know what the problem is, but I have a feeling that it’s slightly more convoluted and part of a broader generational changes, as you noticed yourself.
gwervc
9 months ago
I don't know about the UK but in my country it's not uncommon to have pints priced at 8€, which is 0.5% of the minimal salary. It is a really pricy way to spend time.
dukeyukey
9 months ago
€8 (£6.80) is more than most pints even in London, and quite a lot more than the £4.50 I usually pay cos I've been here a while, and know the cheaper places. But even then, £4.50 adds up fast.
helsinkiandrew
9 months ago
> So now it’s become a bit more CAMPUB, and campaigns to save the business of public houses itself, the traditional bar games (skittles or bar billiards, anyone?), and the communities that sit in them.
Isn't it the case that the "pub scene" is healthy - revenues and number of pub employees hasn't decayed significantly, but the number of pubs has. A big part of that is people preferring the larger pubs - going to Wetherspoons for a cheaper pint from a wide range of beers (perhaps with food and sports) than a cosy local that is more expensive and has a limited range.
Unfortunately I can't see CAMRA being able to do much about the economics of a small traditional pub vs the current rental or sale value of the building its in.
woleium
9 months ago
Pictures of the Princess Louise can be seen here, for those interested https://www.londonpubexplorer.com/central-classics/the-princ...