EGON TOASTE's Wassailled Hostelries Guide
2006
| TOUR (& Rough Location) |
SIGN of the HOUSE |
Notes * NB: This is NOT a critical review. See below. |
| Harlow North | 9th December |
£230 in The Hat |
| High Wych |
Rising Sun |
As ever an Excellent Pint. Obligatory Wet. Now doing
Real Dinners as well as Real Ale. |
|
Half Moon |
Done up - very nice ambience - food looked amazing
good |
|
| Gilston | Plume & feathers |
Refused |
| Gilston | Dusty Miller
|
A small but appreciative clientele |
| Eastwick | The Lion
|
Great Caic. Well recommended |
| Hunsdon | Crown 
|
Supplied their own conductor, good fun |
| Hunsdon | Fox & Hounds |
Refused |
| Stanstead Abbotts | Red Lion
|
Beer in the evening site has it wrong - a lovely boozer
and well worth a visit. |
Lord Louis
|
Kudos to the young lady who borrowed Sugger's box
- and the pianist who played it too. |
|
Jolly Fisherman
|
Great diners - well joined-in - partyyy! |
|
| Great Amwell | George IV 
|
Jolly friendly! Adnams sold, great finish to a very
pleasant outing |
| ASH VALE - |
14th December |
£ 223.77 in the hat smaller number done this year - ran clean out of time ! |
| Wareside |
Chequers |
Quiet early evening - very nice ale. |
| Wareside |
White Horse |
Great English Trad Menu |
| Widford |
Green Man |
As ever in very jolly spirit . A proper local. |
| Much Hadham |
The Bull |
Diners in very convivial mood. A lovely period pub,
intelligently restored. |
|
Crown |
A very fine local pub, exceeding good
craic. |
|
| Little Hadham |
Nag's Head |
Most pleasant - great to see an old friend or two
in good form. Sorry about singing to the pregnant lady, but we are really
obliged to Bless and Welcome the New! |
| Wellpond Green |
Nag's Head |
Very attractive refurb, with Rennie - style seating
and an impressive menu. Extremely generous builder's dinner party in excellent
voice. |
| Standon | The Star
|
Just too late to proceed further and just perfect
for a final wet, a proper practical local - do drop in early on May Day. |
| Hatfield Heath Tour: | 15th December |
£330.40
In The Hat Comments follow, but they were all good! |
| HATFIELD BROAD OAK |
The Cock |
|
|
Dukes Head |
||
| HATFIELD HEATH | Thatchers |
|
|
Stag |
||
|
White Horse |
||
| Hallingbury |
Sutton Arms |
|
|
George |
||
| SHEERING |
Crown, free house |
|
|
Cock free house |
||
| The Old A11 |
16th December |
£284.02
in the Hat Comments follow, but they were all good! |
| Birchanger |
The Three Willows |
|
|
Ugley |
The Chequers |
|
| Rickling Green |
Cricketers |
|
| Clavering |
Cricketers |
|
| Newport | The White Horse
|
|
| Henham | The Cock
|
|
| Elsenham | The Crown
|
|
| Manuden Ramble | 21st December |
£212.26 in the hat |
| Clavering |
Cricketers |
|
|
Fox & Hounds |
||
| Wicken Bonhunt | Coach & Horses |
|
| Stansted | Kings Arms. |
|
|
Queens Head |
||
|
Dog & Duck |
||
| Hazel End | Three Horseshoes
|
|
| Manuden | Yew Tree Inn  |
|
| SAWBRIDGEWORTH | 22 December |
£242 in the hat |
| Sawbo City |
Hand & Crown |
|
|
Bell |
||
Market House |
Refused |
|
|
King William IV |
||
|
Queen's Head |
||
|
George IV |
||
|
The Gate |
||
| West Road, Sawbridgeworth |
Three Horseshoes |
|
The Bull
|
||
| EXTRAS | ||
| Wassails sung as part of another event ... | ||
| Stanstead Abbotts | The Red Lion | New Years Day - Lunchtime |
| Sawbridgeworth | Rivers Orchard (a REAL wassail) |
6th January - 6pm onwards |
| All Pictures © 2003 GeeJay Grafix |
Stortfolk Website:
 |
 |
* Notes
All our comments are good -. If you want a crit, go see CAMRA or the Good Food Guide. If people are good enough to let us in to sing & collect, that says something about them already. All the pubs have an individual character and it's up to you, the hopeful traveller, to go and see if you like their style. All we offer is a hint or two.
Those who refuse because they don't like the look of us are
noted for this year only and will not generally ever be asked again. We're not
offended. It's the licencee's right to control visitors and assess the annoyance
we might cause to their patrons. We do not go where we're not wanted!
From experience, specialist restaurants and big drinking-halls with club-type
dance sound are not set up for a wassail and if it doesn't look like a pub,
we don't try.
Those who refuse because there's a live gig or an imprtant match in progress
will often be re-visited. When in a pub, we will very happily shut up if customers
ask us to (as we did when the gents on the Sheering Tour told Suggers to turn
it down because they were trying to have a serious conversation at the bar)
- you just have to ask.
