The Old Crown Reviews Summary

Atmosphere & Setting

Pros:

• "Had a great Easter Sunday roast with the family in this beautiful old pub."
• "Lots going on out back too! Music etc."
• "Excellent atmosphere in covered outdoor area with regular DJ takeovers, plus live band performing when I arrived out back."
• "Great historic pub with decent beer selection and lots of nooks and crannies and big beer garden."
• "Enormous outdoor space with huge screens for sports, looks like they have live music also."
• "A very vibrant pub with a large beer garden, which was fabulous in the sunshine."
• "Lovely quirky pub with a fantastic beer garden."

Cons:

• "The venue was cold and draughty."
• "The only downside is noise from traffic outside and the pub downstairs."
• "The barman turned the music up so loud that conversation became impossible."
• "We went there to chat after a meeting but after one drink left to talk outside on the pavement as the noise from the loudspeakers meant we could only hear each other by shouting."
• "The oldest pub in Birmingham sadly seems to suffer from a pretty rough crowd of customers. Beer was good and reasonably priced; music insensibly loud making conversations a shouting match."
• "It can get too crowded sometimes and it can attract a weird crowd during peak times."
• "Quite loud at night time, so don't stay if you are looking for a quiet night in."

Service & Staff

Pros:

• "A nice place, friendly staff and reasonable prices."
• "Friendly place where you feel at home."
• "The staff were very attentive and the customers were friendly."
• "All the staff were very friendly and helpful."
• "The staff were helpful and the old building is very quirky."
• "The staff were brilliant - really helpful and friendly."
• "The staff were friendly and special mention to the caretaker & housekeeper. Two friendliest people we met on the whole trip."

Cons:

• "Waited 10 mins for a staff member to appear to check in"
• "Didn't bother to stay for food, menu is very limited, and not the cheapest for what looked average pub fare."
• "However, the experience was let down by the lack of service during a quiet spell."
• "Why didn't I complain when I was there as I have no idea who was in charge no one introduced themselves as owner or management."
• "had to hang around and wait for staff to appear to serve us breakfast"
• "Only downside is staff could work on their customer service skills."
• "I was a bit annoyed with the bar staff who evidenced irritation when I'd have to go back each time and top up my pint."

Food & Drink

Pros:

• "the breakfast was fantastic"
• "Always have good experiences here, love the Sunday roast menu it's the WINNER."
• "Known for having huge sandwiches so beware when you are ordering a medium."
• "Delicious Sunday lunch! In our party of 6 we had one gluten free and two vegan - everyone had a lovely meal."
• "Food wise again great choice, I had a chicken kebab and it tasted superb."
• "Also had the fish and chips, very tasty. And as a snack the olives in house marinade."
• "The food was as close to home made you will get in most pubs."

Cons:

• "Disappointed with the food. It wasn’t hot and the roast vedge came on a cold plate."
• "Beef very fatty and cold. Cost £17 for beef! Would have expected better for that price."
• "For cheese on toast and a mug of tea it came to £5... Well it certainly wasn't cheese on toast. It was cheese on warm bread."
• "Only downside is terribly undersized bar area for size of venue means inevitable long wait for service especially at busy times!"
• "The manager seemed a little put out by this. Possibly not a fan of vegetarians."
• "Burger came and was cooked to rare... Asked if the burger could be microwaved to be well done. It was microwaved, and came back medium rare."
• "Most unfriendly pub in Brum."

Accommodation & Location

Pros:

• "Comfortable beds and good family bedroom size."
• "The room we had for the night... it was certainly a great room. It has a wow factor."
• "The bathrooms are not far from the room and the shower was powerful and got lovely and hot."
• "Stayed overnight to catch an early bus - it's super convenient for Digbeth bus station. The room was quaint and comfortable."
• "Decent Airbnb room 8, spacious and comfortable and clean."
• "The rooms are great value for money considering you are so close to the bull ring and give you so much more than anywhere close by."
• "It's got to be the most characterful hotel ever, as well as being clean."

Cons:

• "The bar was very busy and lively which was great to see. The double bed in the room was not comfy and the mattress needs to be replaced very badly."
• "Away from the city centre, cleanliness leaves a lot to be desired. Booking on their site is absolutely useless since the table is not kept and in addition the kitchen is closed and you necessarily have to eat fried food in an external foodtruck."
• "The hotel is essentially a pub that stays open until 01:00 am and the rooms are right above the pub. There's very loud music and essentially no soundproofing, it's virtually like you stay in the pub."
• "Room was ok with the (lack of bathroom mirror bedside lamps coffee machine no pods) bring your own toiletries and have a shallow bath."
• "the mattress was horrible and uncomfortable"
• "Only two draft beers were available - very unusual anywhere, but particularly so in Birmingham where competition in the pub business is so fierce."
• "The only criticism I have... was that you have redecorated the toilets... It seemed out of character with the rest of the building, don't try to modernise it."