The Amington

This was one pub visit that I feared I'd never make. The pub, in its previous incarnation as The Amington Inn/Joba's curry house, closed a few months ago due to numerous licence breaches leaving the pub with a very uncertain future. Fortunately it has been taken over by the Flaming Grill chain and it is now a pub/restaurant.

To be fair it was probably the best thing that realistically could have happened to the place as, while the curry house was great and extensively used by us both, the bar at times resembled a wild west saloon.

We had been watching the pub's transformation over a few weeks (with an application of bright orange paint to areas on the outside of the pub being one of the more startling items of note) and eagle eyed Shelley noticed that it looked like it might be open. We gave it a try on our way into Tamworth for a curry..

Technically the pub wasn't open, it was a 'preview night' for friends and family of the pub's employees, and we didn't fall into either camp, however we were told that as long as we didn't want food we were okay to stop for a drink.

The pub had changed quite a bit though in many ways the changes were improvements. It is now open plan rather than being a lounge and two bars. The emphasis is very much on food and it is very family friendly which is obviously not a good thing but it is actually not too bad.

First things first, they serve two real ales with me opting for a pint of Marston's Pedigree which whilst not being the greatest pint I've ever had was certainly passable. The décor is also okay with the walls adorned with photographs in and around the local area.

Many of the pub's original features have remained including the carpet in the main area, I am hoping it got fully cleaned as I've lost count of how much times I must have spilt mango chutney on it when it used to be a curry house.

It will be interesting to see how much of an actual pub this will become as family diners are obviously their target market, however the fact that Sky Sports has been installed and there are both Quiz Nights and Darts Nights mean that the humble pub goer has not been forgotten.

On reflection it's probably a six and a half out of ten pub if I had to give it a mark. At least the pub isn't lost which nowadays is something of a blessing. The location of The Amington means it is a handy stop off point on a walk into Tamworth town centre, but, are we likely to use it much? Probably not as I'd rather have a flamin' curry house than a Flaming Grill !!