WITH the weekend having been very cold, Pub Spy decided to not venture too far from the warmth afforded by Berrow’s House.

The Mount Pleasant Inn on the London Road in Worcester is a small but friendly establishment.

A pub on the list to visit for some time.

The outside is a period property – my knowledge of architectural forms isn’t great but it’s an old building with character.

I’m sure any architectural aficionados reading this article will be able to put Pub Spy right.

I just love the painted frontage with sash windows.

I hope this is never updated to modern windows, even to make the building more energy efficient.

I entered through the narrow hallway, greeted by a pub with the feel of a cosy home, with William Morris-inspired wallpaper on some walls and carpeted floor

It was certainly a nice place to spend an hour to keep warm.

If it wasn’t for the plasma television on the wall in the corner with a handful of drinkers watching it nursing beers, it would feel like a step back in time.

The bar lady welcomed me but said they only do crisps and nuts for snacks, not hot food.

A bit of disappointment, as I was hoping for some energy to replace the calories lost keeping warm and walking from the news room to the venue.

I took my place at the small bar and ordered a glass of cola and a packet of chicken-flavoured crisps.

It came to around £4 so not bad for a pub in a prime location within Worcester.

Being in a cashless society, they only take card payments over £10 (but they do give you the change from the £10 if you spend under it, which I did).

It’s nice to see a traditional pub, which this is, serving real ale from pump optics.

I noticed I was probably one of the youngest drinkers in there at the time, something I like as very young drinkers tend to create for a rowdy atmosphere.

The pint of cola was cold and as it was draft, just the right mixture of syrup to fizz ratio with a pleasant taste.

I asked for nice and a slice but they did not have any lemons.

Never mind, but it is nice when bars offer a choice of citrus fruit slices with drinks – even better when they have cocktail cherries served on a little plastic sword.

The gents’ bathroom was clean – a proper urinal and not those energy saving, waterless ones found in some places which create a stench.

Proper hand wash facilities.

The back part of the pub was empty, which is a shame as they had an English pool table and a dartboard with proper oche Jim Bowen would be proud of.

Maybe the games areas is used in the evening time?

In summary a nice cosy pub, let down by a lack of hot food and a television being in a prominent place.

The situation would be improved somewhat if they made the decision to move the television to a back room, preserving the historical character of the front bar area.

Atmosphere: 6/10

Decor 8

Staff 8

Drink 6

Food N/A

Price 8

Overall 7