Oh dear, now this one is hard work. I have been to Maine Road but once, and on that occasion,
I didn't drink anywhere near the ground. Before the match I slurped Robinson's in Stockport, while afterwards I hit a few of the many fine pubs of Manchester city centre.
So this ain't much use as a guide to Man City drinking. I do know that Maine Road is a bloody long way out from the centre, and isn't terribly easy to get to. Both times last visit we got stuck in heavy traffic. In fact, after the match, so slow was the progress of the bus we caught that we ended up getting off and walking back into the centre. It took a while.
So, allow plenty of time for your bus or cab from the centre. Given this, drinking near the ground might seem an
attractive option. Yes, but… Man City is an intimidating place to go, and both sides have enough nutters to make it a
less than relaxing day out. I don't think there are that many pubs near the ground - although the famous 'curry mile'
on Wilmslow Road might be an interesting option if you have the time - and I've heard that many of the pubs you will find
won't let away supporters in. That said, there are one or two I've heard about that might be alright, but obviously I can't
recommend them here without trying them first. In the meantime, I point you towards the Internet Ground Guide and the Away Guide.
Working on the assumption that someone may be looking for a drink in the city centre before or after the game, I may as well briefly list the pubs I know there. Try and get some of the local beers, Holt's or Hyde's. What follows is, therefore, not so much a Manchester City pub guide as a city of Manchester pub guide.
There are three pubs next to each other on Portland Street, just around the corner from Piccadilly bus station, where you trip to the ground may begin or end. They're of varying quality. The Old Monkey is a scuzzy Holt's pub, where the beer is variable but the service is unchangingly poor. Then there's the Circus, which I don't think I've ever actually been in. It's one of several pubs that claims to be the smallest in the country, and once it's full, they shut the door. It's always shut. My favourite pub round here is the Grey Horse, a small pub selling excellent Hyde's mild and bitter. It is a basic place, but never less than friendly.
Around the corner, by what used to be the coach station, Paddy's Goose on Bloom Street provided an opportunity for a swift half while waiting for the bus to Burnley, but is otherwise unexceptional.
Off Deansgate on John Dalton Street is a smart, large and new Holt's pub, the Ape and Apple. Stupid name, decent pub.
The Crown Inn, on Deansgate itself, is an unremarkable pub, selling only Tetley's, if I recall correctly, but it was ever so friendly on my visit.
The Lass o'Gowrie on Charles Street is supposed to be famous, and it brews its own beer, but I don't know, as it was shut when I tried to get in. Similarly, is Peveril of the Peak, the much tiled pub on Great Bridgewater Street, ever actually open? It's been shut every time I've tried to pay a visit.
At least the last time I was around these parts the Britons Protection, a little further on down Great Bridgewater Street, was open. This is a nice, ornate pub, smart but cosy, with beer from Jenning's as well as Tetley.
When everywhere else was shut we fetched up in the Rain Bar, also on Great Bridgewater Street. This caused quite a stir in beer circles by being one of these huge trendy new bars, a great many of which have opened in Manchester in recent years, but one that is nevertheless committed to selling proper beer. It's owned by Lees and it sells their beers. You couldn't call it cosy, but then it's not supposed to be, and the beer's alright.
Pressing on to Castlefields, where the museums are, you have a couple of options. I used to like the White Lion on Liverpool Road, which sells some decent beer and food, but on the last visit the service was so poor - and the beer was in plastic glasses, too - that I felt I was no longer able to overlook the horrific Man U mural. Pretty much next door the Oxnoble is okay - worth a quick one if you're passing. In the same category is the nearby Pig and Porcupine. Hopefully they're not still selling beer in poncy elongated glasses. In mitigation, it did used to appear on Coronation Street.
Back in the centre, slightly tucked away on Kennedy Street, the City Arms, with its Tetley sign, might seem unappealing. But as well as this bland Yorkshire brew, they sell a great range of guest beers, and the staff are jolly friendly. Excellent pub.
Close to Victoria Station, the Crown and Anchor on Cateaton Street, by the cathedral, is something of a classic pub. It's a big place, having been recently extended, and done up twice, once just before the IRA bomb, and once after. Although it's big, it's always heaving. The cheap beer might have something to do with it. Holt's prices are consistently lower than anyone else's, and so the pub attracts an all day crowd of old blokes studying the racing pages. I remember when widespread dissatisfaction was occasioned by the price of mild rising to over a pint. I swear there's a queue outside here at ten to eleven.
Nearby Sinclair's, AKA the Oyster Bar isn't quite so cheap, but it's a Sam Smith's pub and a lovely old building. This pub has the unusual distinction of having been moved twice as a result of redevelopment, and it looks happier in its newest location than in its former windy, rubbish strewn square. The Wellington is the adjoining pub, but it isn't worth the visit.
If you have the time, a great area to hit is the Northern Quarter around Rochdale Road and Victoria Station. This area is filled with interesting pubs. The Beer House on Angel Street is an essential stop, being pretty much as advertised: a house selling lots of beer. It has a big single room, and generally offers ten or more beers to choose from. This has often included something from Moorhouses's. Plus there are lots of foreign beers, if you like that sort of thing. It's recently changed hands, but I'm led to believe that, although the excellent jukebox has sadly changed, the beer range remains as good as ever.
Off Rochdale Road on New Mount Street is the Pot of Beer. This is an odd, drab little pub, and hard to find. Service was lousy on my one visit. But some people like it, they sell some interesting beers, and apparently they specialise in Polish food too.
Far preferable in my book is the Marble Arch on Rochdale Road, an old-fashioned looking, highly decorated boozer. Nothing old-fashioned about the beer, though. They've brewed their own beer for a while, and now their range is all organic, and even vegetarian and vegan friendly. Beware of the floor, which slopes up from the bar. Leaving can be hard.
Somewhere around here is another Holt's pub, the Crown and Cushion. Big place, very basic, and I've never found it again.
Some people rate the Bar Fringe on Swan Street, which poses as a sort of 'brown bar', but I don't understand it. Smithfields, also on Swan Street, is a far grubbier place. Apparently they offer accommodation. Hmm. The beer, from a changing range, is however, okay.
On the more traditional side is the Hare and Hounds on Shudehill, a tiled pub with a piano. It usually sells Holt's and, as though you'd choose it, Tetley. It's close to the Arndale Centre, and is the nearest of this cluster of pubs for the city centre.
Near here, the city centre Hogshead, on the High Street by Arndale, isn't actually that bad. It was one of the early Hogsheads, and they don't seem to have lost their commitment to selling good beer, albeit at a price, and reasonable nosh.
Oh, I do like the Castle on Oldham Street. Boy, this place is basic, and the bar staff are no nonsense. More tiles, here. The front of the pub is really cramped, but there's more room at the back. It's a Robinson's pub - rare for the city centre - and they usually have on a good range from that brewery.
With all this quality around, you really don't need to bother with the Wetherspoon's. But, if you like that sort of thing, of course they're there in the centre. The Moon Under Water on Deansgate claimed to be the biggest in the country, or something, when they opened it, although it doesn't feel like any more of a hanger than many other places. Meanwhile the imaginatively titled Wetherspoon's on Piccadilly was, I found on my single visit shortly after opening, already grubby and a bit rough.
Similarly handy but never brilliant, the Waldorf on Gore Street provides a convenient stopping off point on the way up to Piccadilly Station. It's been a while, but they always had a mild on. Under the station itself, the Bull's Head sold a decent pint of Burtonwood's on my last visit.
Away from all of these, the Sand Bar on Grosvenor Street wasn't much my sort of place, although it's strategically placed at the point where the city centre runs out and the long trek to Maine Road begins. It's a café bar, although at least they sold decent beer, including something from Charles Wells.
And that is the best I can offer, I'm afraid.
