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ONE PUB ONLY?
Nascot Arms
CRAWLING FROM RAILWAY STATION TO THE GROUND?
From the Station head to the Southern Cross and then back on yourself to the Nascot and on to the Estcourt before a walk through town to the ground
SOMETHING A LITTLE DIFFERENT?
The Horns
|  |  Estcourt Arms
2 St. John’s Rd WD17 1PT Telephone 01923 220754
G Pat Lynch
F Traditional menu with three home - cooked daily specials 12 to 3 Mon - Fri, Rolls on Sat
MP SK BM
O 11 to 12 Mon - Sat, 10 to 10.30 Sun
The Estcourt, or Lynch’s, is a true traditional local in the finest sense of the phrase. On a street corner on the way from station to town it has two separate and similar sized small drinking areas off a central bar. It is a regulars’ local with a gentle Irish feel. Humour, a warm welcome from staff and locals, and high quality ales, means that this has been a home for real ale fans for an eternity. It is comfortable, having a TV to sit beneath and enough interest among the general chat of the locals to keep casual visitors well entertained. I was intrigued by the horse racing pictures in the bar. My lunchtime visit offered tranquillity and a sense of order in a very busy part of town. The Estcourt has been a personal favourite of mine over the years, redecoration has been sympathetically done and it is no wonder that many others have recommended it to this lucky guide writer. I should have stayed for the afternoons racing but duty and the write up beckoned me to move on.
UPDATE: The pub remains gloriously the same as ever.
BWV 18.5.06: Fuller’s London Pride, Tetley’s Cask Bitter, Vale Notley, Wyre Piddle Piddle in the Spring
BWV 31.3.05: Adnams Bitter, Fuller’s London Pride, Tetley’s Cask Bitter, Wychwood Shires | |  Horns
1 Hempstead Rd WD17 3RL Telephone 01923 225020 W www.thehornswatford.co.uk
G Denis Cook
F Good value traditional pub fayre 12 to 3, 5 to 7 Mon - Fri, 12 to 3 Sat, 12.30 to 5 Sun
MP TV BM D
O 11 to 12 Mon - Thu, 11 to 1 Fri - Sat, 12 to 10.30 Sun
The Horns is an attractive looking roadside local just outside the town centre, well out of the main pub crawling circuit. It is the best music venue in the town. Forget any town centre imitations, this is the real thing, and it offers good quality real ale as well.
The pub is large enough for music, yet intimate for the many that come during the day for a pint or to take in a meal. It is an interesting Z - shaped open - plan room with an excellent covered drinking area that one could erroneously imagine being created by removing the ceiling. The rooms have masses of music memorabilia of high quality. Mondays sees local bands, Wednesday Open Mic’, Thursday is the top band night that includes national names such as Georgie Fame and Glen Tillbrook. On Fridays Denis, the landlord and uncle of Norman, draws them in, leaving Saturday for another top band and Sunday for no less than three sessions where different fans come and go to listen to jazz, blues, cajun and music quizzes. A gig is never more than hours away and it will be quite exciting to be in the pub as bands come in to do sound checks and exchange stories. The pub holds up to 280 guests and this means it is often full. On a matchday there will be regulars but not of the Stella - drinking baseball cap variety because both are not welcome. It is not a typical matchday pub but should be in everyone's list of life time experiences.
BWV 18.5.06: Courage Best, Fuller’s London Pride, Greene King IPA | |  Nascot Arms
11 Stamford Rd WD17 4QS Telephone 01923 231336
G Craig Fabian and Olivia Caldwell
F Good value traditional pub menu. Barbecue in Summer 6 to 9 12 to 8 Mon - Sat
MP TV BM P
O 12 to 11.30 Mon - Thu, 12 to 12 Fri - Sat, 12 to 10.30 Sun
This is a village local near to the town centre. It has all the best qualities of such a pub. When I visited the regulars inside were enjoying what appeared to be a routine lunchtime, newspaper and pint session. The love of Watford F.C. is as infectious as the fish connections are curious. Above the bar is a statement relating to Watford's record transfers. Do the Watford fanzine writers harbour a “where’s the money gone” sentiment? More traditional are the photos of Hornet teams of the distant past. The pub has an attractive patio complete with vines and hanging baskets. In the “Top Corner Club” a bookcase with Rothmans, dictionaries and a Film Guide would keep me busy on matchdays when the discussion goes to footie trivia. This great local gets very busy on Saturdays.
UPDATE: There have been many innovations since Craig and Olivia took over the tenancy. The beer list includes guests but impressively there was a full range of Greene King options that included their Mild. The garden has a plasma screen for the big match games. Wireless internet access encourages lunch time office use. The pub itself, however, is totally unaltered.
BWV 18.5.06: Greene King Abbott, IPA, Prospect, Ruddles Best, Triumph, XX Mild
BWV 31.3.05: Bateman XXXB, Greene King Abbot, IPA, Ruddles Best, Tanners Jack, Wadworth 6X | |  Southern Cross
41 Langley Rd. WD17 4PP Telephone 01923 256033
G John Ross and Joan Bayliss
F Good value, freshly prepared eclectic menu 12 to 9
CP BM D
O 11 to 11 Mon - Wed, 11 to 11.30 Thu - Sat, 12 to 10.30 Sun
The Southern Cross is a traditional roadside estate pub on the outside and a grand modern comfortable pub on the inside. The four year old rebuild has been very well done and has managed to avoid the pitfalls of many similar town centre design errors. I like the choice of beers, which caters for many tastes. The place also offers masses of different sections so you feel that you can have small group conversations without the “barn” effect. The lunchtime visit found streams of office workers; many women included; walking the mile or so from the town centre for ale, wine and lunch. The evening gives way to students and regulars of all ages. There are no TVs, loud music or footie shirts on Saturdays. It is a proper pub on a grand scale, serving 476 different ales over two years! I will return to see if the pile of board games does result in fervent competition in the evenings.
UPDATE: The total has risen to 648. It is even more popular and also has a reputation for always having a mild option. The pub is a football free pub during the World Cup to unashamedly attract “Top Totty!”
BWV 18.5.06: Caledonian Deuchars IPA, Dr. Bob’s Magic Potion, Marston’s Merrie Monk, Maypole Bitter, Theakston’s Mild, Wells Bombardier | |  White Lion
79 St. Albans Rd WD17 1SJ Telephone 01923 223442
G Jim Murray
F Good value traditional home - made pub fayre 11 to 3 Mon - Sat
MP SK JB P D
O 11 to 11 Mon - Sat, 12 to 10.30 Sun
The White Lion is unashamedly an old fashioned pub with a genuine wish to stay as it is, thank you. It is located on the main St Albans Road, near the station, but definitely outside the town centre pub circuit. Jim has continued the family traditions that have been in the pub since 1979.
The pub has two entrances. The main entrance leads into a small bar area around which the locals gather to chat with mates. This bar then opens out into a curiously and fantastically dated lounge. This room has been subdivided into two by what can only be described as the sort of red leather benches found in an American diner. One can look over the seats into the other half of the bar where food is being served to lunch time office refugees. Beyond this are an excellent conservatory garden and the kitchen. Jim assures me that as the pub gets refurbished he replaces things like for like, including the floral carpets and 80’s pub seats. The best bit of the pub is through the other entrance. Here is a smaller bar that is split into two levels, one having a pool table, the whole being wood - panelled in the library style. The pub is instantly friendly. It will have few Hornet fans on matchdays, nor do away fans come to that. The beer is consistently good, so too the food. Sky football is shown on the big screens on the lounge but Jim knows how to keep a good ship and it really is a locals’ experience. Live music of the gentle variety is found on Saturday nights. In true local style the pub also runs darts teams and a weekly, free to enter, pub quiz on Tuesday’s.
BWV 18.5.06: Courage Best, Fuller’s London Pride, Greene King Abbot, IPA | | | WATFORD CAMRA | | 
VICARAGE ROAD
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LOCAL BREWERY
Tring Brewery Company Limited
81-82 Akeman Street
Tring
Hertfordshire
HP23 6AF
Tel: 01442 890721
www.tringbrewery.co.uk | | WETHERSPOONS
The Moon Under Water 44 High Street Watford WD17 2BS Opening Times: Mon-Sat 9am-midnight; Sun 9am-11pm
Colombia Press 72-74 The Parade High Street Watford WD17 1AW Opening Times: Mon-Sat 9am-midnight; Sun 9am-11pm
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