 A lovely traditional drinkerie! 
Supping Up In The Duke Inn
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Recommendation added: 12/12/2007 22:50
By: dewberry (YSUK rating +1061)dewberry has been thanked 4 times for this contribution
"The Duke Inn in Sutton Coldfield is a pub me and Mark will use occasionally when we've been shopping in the area. As they don't serve food, this pub is ideal when we're simply after a few drinks in the afternoon or evening.
The outside reminds me of an old railway pub with a lovely red and cream exterior and the gorgeous polished brass lanterns hanging outside; it looks really traditional to me with none of the chrome and glass bling which this area of Birmingham is favouring at the moment.
Stepping inside I always notice how *different* it is to all the other pubs we use on a regular basis. They've not long had an extensive refurb, but even before this I found the place was always spotlessly clean and beautifully maintained. Sometimes I think that the best pubs in terms of comfort and cleanliness are the ones which serve food, but The Duke Inn is the exception to the rule. The furniture is all extremely comfortable and of excellent quality with no rickety chairs or tables with “Leon 4 Jane 2K7” scratched into them!
The bar is very well stocked with all of the usual lager, beer, cider, spirits, wine etc… that you'd expect to find in a pub such as this. They have a top class selection of real ales available – so much so that I always end up driving when we come here so that Mark can sample as many of these ales as possible! His favourite is the Spitfire which he always says is fresh tasting and at the perfect temperature. I'll usually have a glass or two of Archers mixed with pineapple juice, but all my favourite tipples are available here (for the times when we're in a taxi) from Baileys to Jack Daniels to Pimms. When we popped in a couple of days ago I noticed they even sell Kahlua which is getting harder and harder to find in Birmingham pubs and bars.
Prices are pretty damned reasonable considering you're drinking in one of the more affluent areas of the City; as a whole the cost of drinking here is on a par with pubs in less upper class areas, and definitely cheaper than most other places in Sutton Coldfield! The Duke Inn doesn't tend to run lots and lots of promotions at any one time, but usually they will have one or two lagers which have had a pure and simple price cut for a certain period of time which I think is better than those 3-for-2 offers on drinks that seem to be the rage at the moment. If we're visiting during the week we'll spent an hour or two in here and this costs us less than £20 for our drinks which is a bargain by any standards.
The Duke Inn serves a nice range of baguettes during the week, although not at specific times so there's no way of guaranteeing something to eat until you get there. This is fine though as this pub is known locally as a pub which doesn't serve food so people just don't go here to eat – and, like me, see it as a bonus if one of their tasty baguettes is available. My personal favourite is the cheese and onion baguette which contains a perfect amount of filling (lots of cheese with just a bit of onion) although I've eaten tuna and sweetcorn here too which was also very good. The baguettes are priced according to the filling you choose, but start at around £2 which is great value for such a nice snack.
The atmosphere in the pub is always very grown up; this is one of the very few pubs around now who don't allow children on the premises and they also don't have any music playing so The Duke attracts older people and couples. I like it, the lack of music means that you actually have to talk to the person you're with which can be a bit of a shock to the system sometimes but it beats sitting in silence! The Duke shows Pay Per View football matches so on these days there can be a lot of younger people in; me and Mark will try to come here for the footie matches he particularly wants to see and there's never any trouble at all and although it's obviously noisier than other days it never gets overly rowdy. Unless one of the Brummie teams scores of course!
The Duke hosts regular quiz nights and darts evenings which are well publicised inside the pub. I've never actually been to one of their events, but apparently it's always brilliant fun. The pub can also provide you with dominoes, cards and a small selection of bar games to enjoy while you're drinking. Mark's had the odd game of darts with other customers, and I've had a go on the various lotteries and raffles organised by the pub – never with any success mind, although proceeds go to charity so I can't moan.
There's a pretty beer garden at the back of the pub which is available for smokers, the beer garden is great in the summer and can get quite packed as everyone moves from the bar outside.
Wheelchair access throughout the pub and beer garden is fine; my mum's been to The Duke with us a couple of times and has never had a problem getting her chair around the pub. All the staff I've seen have been great though and are very helpful so should you run into difficulties manoeuvring around then just give them a shout and I'm sure a chair or two could be moved to accommodate. Be aware though if you're visiting with people who have mobility problems that The Duke doesn't have its own car park, there's pay & display parking opposite but if this is full then the nearest place to leave your car is a few minutes walk away.
The Duke Inn is easy to find once you're in Sutton Coldfield. Head towards the Wyndley gate of Sutton Park, near the golf course, and then follow the main Clifton Road until you come onto the A453 Jockey Road. This will lead you to Birmingham Road and Duke Street (where the pub is located) is in a residential district roughly half way down this road.
The Duke Inn
Duke Street
Maney
Sutton Coldfield
B72 1RJ
Tel: 0121 3551767"
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