A friendly cosy pub with a couple of accessibility problems
3
3
Date of visit: July 2015
I am a disabled person. I have experience of challenges around: accessing toilets and moving around.
I use or have experience of: disabled toilet
Overall Rating
Average
Friendly staff, a small number of low tables, an accessible toilet, and quite difficult to obtain entry in a wheelchair.
Disabled Access In and Around
Average
When I phoned the pub before setting off, I was assured that the premises were wheelchair-accessible. Well, that's not quite the case. The main entrance has two big steps. The side entrance has one smaller step and a very narrow door. It is very hard to get into the side entrance in a wheelchair, though not impossible. There are just a few low tables in the bar, most are very high and with stools.
Parking & Transport
Average
There are no step-free stations nearby. The pub is just off Oxford Street, so zillions of buses are passing nearby all the time.
Accessible Toilets
Poor
There is an accessible toilet. During my visit I found that some thoughtless person had stacked a load of spare chairs in it (see my photo below), which made a sideways wheelchair-to-toilet transfer impossible. Accessible toilets are NOT store-rooms! All the available space is required by a wheelchair for manoeuvring and for transfer to the toilet.
Staff
Average
The staff were helpful, jumped up to give assistance when I was struggling to get in the side door, and brought my drinks to the table. They lost two and a half stars for using the accessible toilet as a store-room for spare furniture.
Additional Information
One of the barmen had very beautiful hands. One of the TV screens was showing an ancient football match from the early 80s - intriguing. There is a food-and-crockery lift to the kitchen, with a sign on it saying "Do not enter car". As the space inside the lift is hardly enough for a small dog, this is a strange piece of advice: I was very amused.
