Evening all

[Elm Park Kid]

There's been a lot of information here so let me clarify

1 - If' you're wearing colours than the only place you can drink in the town centre is the 3 Guineas. Personally I quite like the pub, it has a wide selection of ale and good food but it is a bit expensive (£4 pint and £10 main meal). If you're driving though you probably don't want to go into the town centre as the stadium is a good 30 min bus ride away and there is literally no free parking within range. Going to any of the main car parks will set you back the best part of a tenner and the bus will be (i think) £4 each

2 - You can park for free at the World Turned Upside down - which contray to an early post is about a 15-20 minute walk from the ground. It's a Crown pub so there'll be 2 or 3 reasonable ales on and your standard cheap carvey. It gets very busy after about 1:30, and it can take a long time to get served at the bar after this time. Otherwise it's not a bad place to go and i'm up there at least 1 in 3 games.

3 - You can park at the Holiday Inn, which is about 10-15 mins from the ground, for a realtively small amout. It has a bar there as well, though i've not been there myself so can't comment.

4 - There's some pubs just within walking distance on the otherside of J12 (as mentioned the Swan). It will be at least 30 mins walk but the traffic home should be better than 2 or 3.

5 - If you're really into your ale then there is the Nags Head just outside Reading town centre (RG1 7XD ‎). It's won the CAMRA regional pub of the year award for the last 3 years and has something like 8 real ales on constant rotation as well as real ciders. Away fans are welcome, there's a bus directly to the stadium from the pub, and will do a full english breakfast up to 1pm (pie after this time). It has some car parking but (and here's the downside) to guarantee a place you'll need to get there before midday.

[Extended-Phenotype]

Ignore everyone else and go to Sweeny Todds. Unless they have said "go to Sweeny Todds", in which case don't ignore them and go to Sweeny Todds.

F/cking 'Carvery'. Plodding round little aluminium bowls of fingered tepid veg covered in sneeze, slice of this dry meat, slice of that. Oooh, I think I'll have a nice slice of... no you won't. It's never nice. It's shit. It's just a restaurant for people too stupid to read.

Actually, I've never been.

[southbank1871]

*Sweeney Todds

Oh dear E/P.

[PieEater]

Good info from EPK there, I'll just add that the Holiday Inn is packed, shit service and really expensive. There's no real ale and food is limited to a burger and chips.

[SLAMMED]

When did the Madejski stadium become the SJM

[ITFC_Keane]

Thanks everyone for your comments. We're now going to The Bird in Hand in Henley-on-Thames. We'll take our chances on parking when we get to Reading. We'll be at Henley for opening time and it's a good place to stretch the old legs. We're coming from Colchester so will be avoiding the motorway services and doing my usual Oxford run.

Cheers for all your help though.

[royalZILLAAA]

nice, comes and asks for advice. Goes right on ahead and ignores all advice and plans his own thing. A man after my own heart.

[Big Foot]

Thanks everyone for your comments. We're now going to The Bird in Hand in Henley-on-Thames. We'll take our chances on parking when we get to Reading. We'll be at Henley for opening time and it's a good place to stretch the old legs. We're coming from Colchester so will be avoiding the motorway services and doing my usual Oxford run.

Cheers for all your help though.

Traffic can be quite gruesome going across town on a Saturday afternoon - hope you get stuck in it and miss the match entirely.

[maffff]

Maybe I annoyed him by pointing out their defencee is still shit.

[bobbybottler]

The Bird in Hand in Henley-on-Thames

Where in Henley is that then?

I know the B-i-H at Knowl Hill, and there's one (maybe closed now) in Peppard.

I was unaware of a third Bird.

[St Pauli]

We're now going to Henley-on-Thames.

Watch out for a rather wealthy but idiotic twenty something texting a woman he's going to 'meat her', then being surprised when this doesn't secure a 2nd date and resulting bum action, only to start a thread asking internet geeks and divorcees for dating advice.

[maffff]

I was unaware of a third Bird.

A-well-a, everybody's heard about the bird
Bird, bird, bird, b-bird's the word
A-well-a, bird, bird, bird, b-bird's the word
A-well-a, bird, bird, bird, b-bird's the word
A-well-a, bird, bird, b-bird's the word
A-well-a, bird, bird, bird, b-bird's the word
A-well-a, bird, bird, bird, b-bird's the word
A-well-a, bird, bird, bird, b-bird's the word
A-well-a, bird, bird, bird, b-bird's the word
A-well-a, don't you know about the bird
Well, everybody's talking about the bird
A-well-a, bird, bird, b-bird's the word
A-well-a, bird

[ayjaydee]

Fell out with the Swan first game in the Prem when we went for our usual pre match pint and nosh only to be told there was a £10 charge to park. I explained I had a car park permit for the stadium and only wanted to eat and drink as we had done for the previous two seasons. Landlord told me to pay or leave so I took the latter option. Feck him and his pub , never been back there since.

The Farrier further up the road does basic "Hungry Horse" type grub and there is often a smattering of away fans in there.

[Extended-Phenotype]

*Sweeney Todds

Oh dear E/P.

[On High]

The Bird in Hand in Henley-on-Thames

Where in Henley is that then?

I know the B-i-H at Knowl Hill, and there's one (maybe closed now) in Peppard.

I was unaware of a third Bird.

Greys Road, Henley.

One in Sonning Common has closed again.

[melonhead]

the two older lads like 'English' food if possible, which means fish and chips, a carvery or a ploughmans, basically.

http://www.sweeneyandtodd.co.uk/

THIS^^^^


sit downstairs too

[Philly Flyer]

The Bird in Hand in Henley-on-Thames

Where in Henley is that then?

I know the B-i-H at Knowl Hill, and there's one (maybe closed now) in Peppard.

I was unaware of a third Bird.

Greys Road, Henley.

One in Sonning Common has closed again.

The B-i-H is a brilliant pub and has several excellent,well looked-after guest beers. It does food at lunchtimes but not in the evening;never eaten there so can't vouch for the quality. IMO the best pub in Henley but parking near it will be tricky on a Sat lunchtime; the car park off the Greys Road will be busy and there is bugger all off street parking. Might be better to take some of the advice re Reading pubs that do food previously offered by other Nobbers.

[The Cap]

Reading4eva wrote

The World Turned Upside Down isn't far from the stadium. Literally 3 minutes walk away. Cheap carvery, friendly for away fans.

3 minutes? This means that they're either serving some under the bar rocket fuel that I haven't come across yet or you've got jet propelled walking boots mate?

[Wipped]

It's a good 20 minute walk if you're a fast walker.

[When Hicks went up...]

Eatin's cheatin.

Get yourselves along to the best pub in Reading...the Nag's Head. 12 real ales and 12 ciders. And they run a bus to the ground and back.