The Garden Bar Terrace

 If an ‘underperforming’ rating in my pub blogger 2023 year end review (citing lack of activity as the main justification) wasn’t bad enough, I have been jolted into action by being pointed in the direction of this The Great British Pub vlogger (I think that’s what they are called) has done a Tamworth pub crawl and there are a couple on there that I’ve not yet done, I’m wracked with guilt that I am letting down you my loyal followers. The vlog is entitled ‘Can you have a good night in Tamworth’? and, after visiting an impressive nineteen pubs, I think he concluded that you can !! NB This publication encourages responsible drinking !! 

I’m proud of the fresh content on this blog however I’m braced for accusations of having more repeats than tv channel Dave as I have visited The Garden Terrace Bar before, firstly when it was Corey’s and again when it subtly changed its name to Korey’s You won’t be surprised to hear that once again the pub has not changed one iota….

…if you compare these photos to the pictures in my posts from both Corey’s and Korey’s you will see no difference. 

My recent visit took place on a Saturday afternoon, whilst I waited to be served I watched one of the pub’s many screens which was showing Soccer Saturday and I cringed as the reporter uttered the phrase ‘struggling Birmingham City’ as though that was the name of the club !! 

I made the rookie mistake of letting a bloke go in front of me at the bar, it goes without saying that the first words out of his mouth were ‘Can I order some food’? Naturally he hadn’t got a table number so went to find it and it’ll come as little surprise that his table was one of the furthest from the bar and contained numerous family members. ‘Can I change the garden peas for beans’? was the next request and I was incandescent with rage when it was followed by ‘Do you have a children’s menu’?!! I did notice that the choice of dishes for youngsters bizarrely included plain rice and korma sauce, whatever happened to chicken nuggets or fish fingers?!! 

Not only was the pub unchanged, the news coming through on the sports channels was predictably familiar Blues were losing, Manchester City were winning whilst over in Saudi Arabia Max Verstappen had once again qualified in pole position though nobody seemed particularly bothered, the crowd appeared disinterested whilst Christian Horner seemed to be more focused on sending text messages!!

There were a large number of children running around the pub presumably fueled by generous helpings of plain rice and korma sauce, one little madam seemingly recognised my displeasure as when she ran past she stuck her tongue out at me !!

A young gentleman of no more than twenty was stopped by a bloke who recognised him. Now call me old fashioned but when I was younger and a ‘grown up’ began conversing with me I’d generally blush and respond saying as many please and thank you’s as I could muster, how times have changed. ‘How’s your Dad’ he was asked, ‘He’s all right, he’s currently on the roof as Mum has made him clean the f*cking windows’. I shook my head in despair!! 

One recent addition on what I believe is called a mezzanine floor is a couple of dart boards…

….I believe the kebab muncher from Warrington Luke ‘The Nuke’ Littler may have inspired this though I doubt even the pub’s Challenge 21 would be put into operation were he to pay the place a visit cos he looks older than Methuselah!! 

I know I may have mentioned this on a previous post but whilst the pub is in the centre of Tamworth the gents toilets must have a Nuneaton postcode because they are so far away. To make matters worse I can only assume the cleaner has attention to detail issues, check out the loos…

…cross your legs fellas !!

The menu was interesting, in the section entitled Indo British was the little known fusion dish chicken tikka balti pie and chips, I’m not sure if you’ll find the recipe in Madhur Jeffrey’s famous cookbook!! 

Whilst Lollipop Chicken sounded interesting I’m not sure The Child Catcher in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang could have used them to entice youngsters into his carriage!! 

A note stated ‘Report any intolerances to staff’ I wasn’t sure whether I had to inform the barmaid that I don’t like villa fans !! 

I called it a day after a solitary pint of Atlantic Pale safe in the knowledge I’d be back again in a few months following the next name change !!