Birmingham

Campaign for Real Ale

Campaign for Real Ale

Birmingham Pub Trails - City Centre (Part 1)

City Centre (Part 1)
Starting at Birmingham New Street Station

  • Post Office Vaults
  • Pure Craft Bar & Kitchen
  • Colmore
  • The Old Joint Stock
  • Good Intent
  • Head of Steam
  • Wellington

Others to Try

  • The Briar Rose
  • Tilt
  • The Crown

All stops on ale trails can, of course, be taken in any order. Below is just a suggestion. We cannot always mention every pub, just a selection: but we like to think these are some of the many good pubs in the area chosen above.

Click on the Pubs section of our website and you will see detailed descriptions of each pub in Birmingham, including the ones below.

Arriving at New Street Station? Head out to New Street itself and you have many pubs from which to choose. At the New Street/Corporation Street junction turn left on to New Street. Further up on the left, just before you reach the (in)famous ‘Floozy in the Jacuzzi’ statue in Victoria Square, is The Post Office Vaults, often called ‘The POV’. This is a pub with an excellent range of eight real ales, with ten+ ciders and perries and over 300 bottled beers from around the world. This subterranean pub is a great place to visit for connoisseurs of beer. There is also free play bar billiards. Food is not served; you are welcome to bring your own and plates, cutlery & condiments are provided.

When exiting, make sure you go back up to the New Street side of The POV, then heading up the steps to the Pure Craft Bar & Kitchen, which is located in Waterloo Street. There are six cask and sixteen craft beer lines, including Purity beers (the brewery own the pub), plus a selection of 60 bottled craft beers. Gourmet food is available: all food is made with beer, and the menu has been matched to the beers available. The walls are adorned with modern art. There is also a cellar bar.

Now head for Colmore Row and enjoy the pleasures of the eponymous Colmore. Thornbridge Brewery has joined forces with Pivovar to convert and refurbish the former Lloyds Bank on Colmore Row as a bar. The Colmore incorporates a combination of Thornbridge beers on handpump, in draught & in bottle, with additional craft beers from Pivovar. The pub is welcoming to all, family friendly and serves bar snacks and pizza (including gluten-free) made with Jaipur IPA to complement the range of craft beers, wines and spirits, including no less than twenty gins. There is a pool table downstairs.

Walk towards the C of E Cathedral (St.Philip’s) and you should spot The Old Joint Stock, a flagship Fuller’s pub. Formerly The Old Joint Stock Bank, it is a Victorian Grade 2 listed building. Aside from regular and seasonal Fuller’s beers, the management supports the Locale scheme with two or three guests. The theatre hosts many performances throughout the year and also local comedians and live jazz. Good quality food is served, with now a changing menu.

Only a short walk from the cathedral is The Good Intent. An up-market refurbishment of a shop unit in the Great Western Arcade opposite Snow Hill station, the Good Intent is a "not-for-profit" pub operated by Craddock’s Brewery. The management tell us "The aim of Craddock's Good Intent is to establish a bar in the heart of Birmingham and to donate all of its profits to charities and good causes.” The pub has a ground floor bar with six hand pumps serving rotating Craddock’s Ales and Guest Ales from the Midlands Area alongside Keg products, Wines, Spirits and Continental/Craft Beers. From there part of the upstairs cellar can be seen (they also have a cellar downstairs) Additional seating is available upstairs, and there is a function room available for hire. Do not be alarmed by the frequent rumbling and slight vibration from below, it is only the trains going through Snow Hill Tunnel below the pub!

Talking of trains, your next port of call could be The Head of Steam. This is Birmingham’s addition to the Cameron’s Head of Steam chain. The pub features a large and spacious interior decorated in a 'steampunk' style. Plenty of seating and booths for people to enjoy a wide variety of food and drinks. Ten handpulls available, showcasing Cameron’s own beers and offerings from local breweries. Keg lines include international beers such as Delirium and La Chouffe. CAMRA discount is available on cask beers. Please note: tends to close early if not many customers in.

Finally, in the various next road (Bennett’s Hill), is The Wellington. Stalwart of Birmingham’s real ale scene, this city centre pub has the feel of a community local at the heart of the Second City. This pioneering pub offers 27 hand pulls over two floors, dispensing well-kept ale and three traditional ciders. A huge range of whiskies is available; the ground floor offering scotch, with the rest of the world represented on the first floor bar. The suntrap roof terrace is a hidden urban gem. Regular quizzes, folk nights and cheese nights are held. Food is not served but you are welcome to bring your own – plates, cutlery and condiments are provided.

Others to try in the city centre: The Briar Rose, Tilt (craft beer!-some of which is classed as real ale), The Crown.