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116, Foregate Street, Chester, Chester, CH1 2HH
.jpg "Exterior. by Michael Schouten. Published on")
Traditional, comfortable pub on Highbury Hill, close to former Arsenal Stadium. Sizeable outside, paved garden seating area to rear. A proper locals' pub. Like being in someone's living room, with the TV for sports in the saloon bar, low background music in the public bar. Quiet corners where you can gather to chat, and a blazing fire in winter. No food served. They operate a strict over 21s policy.
Described by one of our contributors as "a gem of a pub to be savoured. Not many like this left." Recently extended their range of cask ales, to include a monthly guest. Seriously busy when Arsenal at home. An open mic night takes place every Thursday night from 8:30pm-11pm, and they have just launched summer Sundays live sessions featuring unplugged blues, jazz & folk musicians live in the pub every Sunday from 5-8pm.
One star - A pub interior of special national historic interest
Listed status: Not listed
A fiercely traditional inter-war pub which has kept most of its layout, furniture and décor intact.
A central bar counter serves two long, narrow rooms which connect at the far end – originally there would have been a partition here to keep the two sides distinct. The counter is inter-war, curves gracefully at either end, tapers elegantly and has fielded panelling. At the base of the counter is a stone trough. Both sides of the bar-back have illuminated top sections that read “Courage – Bank of Friendship – Courage”. Beneath these are leaded mirrors. These bar-back features look to be post-war. Since the pub’s exterior boasts four very old globular Charrington’s lanterns, we can assume that the pub was sold from one brewery to another at some point in its history. There are original wood-surround fireplaces in both rooms. Some small wooden drinking stools look like they date from the 1950s or even earlier.
Built by 1881 of London brick, it appears to have received an inter-war refit and new frontage of stone on the ground floor, half-timbering on the first floor, and crittal windows.
There are three exterior doors so it looks like the layout was two bars with an off sales accessed from the middle door. It looks like the partition separating the off sales has been removed and amalgamated into the left hand bar as indicated by the change to the trough around the base of the bar counter.
The carpeted right-hand bar has an interwar tapered fielded panelled bar counter curved at each end. The bar back has an illuminated top section ‘Courage Bank of Friendship Courage’ which looks very 1950s. The top part of the bar back has leaded glass mirrors which look more post-war than interwar; lower shelving lost to fridges. At the front right-hand side of the room is a wood surround fireplace with a glazed stone interior that looks interwar.
The bare wood floor left-hand bar has a vestibule, another interwar tapered fielded panelled bar counter curved at each end with a trough around the base. The top part of the bar back has leaded glass mirrors which look more post-war than interwar; lower shelving lost to fridges. The pot shelf is modern. There is a wood surround fireplace with a glazed stone interior that looks interwar but the hearth looks changed. There was reportedly a short partition in the rear part of this bar.
This Pub serves 2 changing beers and 1 regular beer.
Bank of Friendship, Highbury
Sports TV
Live Music
Garden
Games
Real Fire
Separate Bar
Smoking
Real Ale
Real Heritage Pub
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