The Bartons Arms
High Street, Aston Newtown
One of the finest examples of the gin palace in this or any other city. Modelled on the Jacobean splendours of nearby Aston Hall, it was built on the cusp of the Victorian and Edwardian eras in 1901. A magnificent stained-glass window sheds light over a tiled hunting scene, strangely incongruous in inner-city Birmingham. Oakham Ales are on tap and you can have any food you like, as long as it’s Thai.
The Craven Arms
Upper Gough Street, city centre
Situated just off from the tower blocks of Ladywood and the boutiques of the Mailbox – also housing The Archers’ studio at BBC Radio Birmingham – Upper Gough Street is home to the Craven Arms. Once inside, you might find the Grundy brothers sharing an amicable pint from an impressive range of Black Country Ales in this handsomely restored local with open fires and a shelf of books to be borrowed or bought.
The Wellington
Bennett’s Hill, city centre
Serves real ales from all over the Midlands in peak condition. Up to 15 are numbered on an illuminated screen. You can bring your own sandwiches or phone for a takeaway.
The Shakespeare
Summer Row, city centre
A little haven next to a four-lane highway at the point where the city centre bleeds away into the Jewellery Quarter. The garden is an oasis within a haven. Well-kept beers gush from wood-and-brass handpumps. There’s a wide range of wines and whiskies and the food’s good, too.
Prince of Wales
Alcester Road, Moseley
Home to an expansive tented garden heated by a huge log burner in winter. Various sheds offer fine wines, rum-based cocktails and a range of Cuban cigars. They all feature in what landlord Keith Marsden, current British Institute of Innkeeping licensee of the year, calls “a proper Victorian boozer”, with a well-stocked public bar and two cosy snugs.
