Benet St, Silver St and Barton Rd

Each time this establishment is refurbished it becomes less like a pub and more like a restaurant. Formerly just known as the blue boar, then the Ha-Ha bar at the blue boar, it is now just called Bar Ha Ha. You will be encouraged to take a seat before ordering drinks and food. the menu is far from traditional pub grub, including as it does beautifully presented ginger chicken, char-grilled salmon and Italian cured beef. Prices are certainly not cheap: starters £5-£10 (e.g. shredded duck pancakes), main courses £7-£15 (e.g. mushroom risotto), fish and seafood £ 7- £15 (e.g. mussels), "canteen" dishes £5-£8 (e.g. pork and leek sausages), extras £3 (e.g. chips, onion rings), puddings £5, breakfasts £4-£7 (including a choose-your-own option) and Sunday lunches (£7-£14). Gammon and egg cost £6.25, which doesn't include any salad or chips. Service is not included. Despite the prices, the place was bustling on our Saturday lunchtime visit. A special menu offers the "Detox Dinner", labelled as "Atkins friendly" offers a choice of haddock and chicken dishes for under £7. The interior has something of a 'changing rooms' look, with an open-plan kitchen, a distressed floor, wooden tables and a long metal bar to create a modern designer Italian feel. Hefty air conditioning means that the windows need to be open to stop you from freezing! Own label merchandising is online at www.hahaonline.co.uk.

This tiny Greene King pub is unusual in that it is split into two levels. The bare-board floor as you enter becomes lino as you descend a short, steep flight of stairs to the bar. The stark wooden furniture produces a cosy atmosphere especially when it is busy. Despite the sign outside which claims that food is available, it does not serve food. The sign also advertises bed and breakfast, but we can't verify it. There is a small amount of outdoor seating at the front.

The Cross Keys incorporates the former Gothic Cottage, a house of circa 1820 with windows and timber cusped decoration below the eaves of the low-pitched west gale that justify, if they were not the reason for, its name. The windows have four-centred heads and a pattern of frame and glazing of the same form. In mass and silhouette the building is a typical 19th century villa.

Source: Royal Commission for Historic and Ancient Monuments, 1957

After several years of uncertainty, the Hat and Feather has recently (Dec 2001) undergone a complete refurbishment. A sign outside now boast facilities such as: a cash point; a heated terrace; secure cycle park; projection TV and disabled access. The interior has changed significantly, with new upholstery, redecoration and a brighter feel. The front-most of two bars is similar in shape to its former incarnation and consists of a split-level seated area. Decoration consists of jars and bottles, and old books adorn a high shelf. The rear bar, however, is now twice its former size. A projection TV shows football on Saturdays and a pool table and giant connect-4 game serve as entertainment, and there is a large paved beer garden beyond. The menu contains baguettes (£4.00 - £4.50), jacket potatoes (£5.00 - £5.50), burgers (£5.00 - £7.00), main meals (£6.30 - £9.00), pizza (£6.75) and Sunday lunch (£5.95). The considerable size of the portions attributes for the higher-than-average prices. Service was quick and polite.

" The Hat & Feathers is now closed, boarded up, and for sale. "

The Panton Arms is a medium-sized Greene King pub, and used to be a brewery. As a result, "Greene King and Sons" is incorporated into the ironwork gates which lead into a large paved garden. This pub has two bars, which have changed little over the last decade, and are beginning to look a little shabby. The front bar has a pool table, while the rear, decorated with pictures of root vegetables and Victorian scenes, has plenty of seating and is where the food is served. The menu is posted on a blackboard, and consists of all the typical pub-food dishes. Prices range from £5.00 to £8.00. Sandwiches can also be obtained for £2.00-£4.00.

Quinn's, "the original Irish pub", er, well at least since summer 1997. Attached to the Holiday Inn, Quinn's isn't in Ireland and presumably isn't run by a bloke called Quinn. It is, we are informed, owned by Sean Quinn from Co. Fermanagh, who also owns the hotel (which is operated by Crowne Plaza, part of Six Continents Hotels). Sean Quinn also owns many pubs and hotels in Ireland, England and across the world, not to forget his multi-million pound concrete, glass and insurance industries. The pub has changed little since it opened. It is on two floors, the upper level being a balcony with views of the lower. Pictures of Victorian scenes decorate upstairs, which has seating partitioned into cosy areas. There is a large screen (rear projection) TV on the ground floor, and two more TVs are suspended from the ceiling for those upstairs. The lunch menu includes jacket potatoes (£2.50), burgers (£5.00-£5.50), sandwiches and baguettes (£4.50), main meals (£5.50-£6.00) and soup (£2.00). Service was fast, although the pub was almost empty on our Saturday lunchtime visit. Beer is typically priced for Cambridge.

The Slug and Lettuce, formerly a cafe, reuses a building which used to be part of a large department store. One of a growing number of "trendy" new pubs, it has the usual wooden floors and walls painted in a variety of bright colour s, and adorned with modern art and large mirrors. Darkwood chairs, tables and benche s and pot plants finish off the look. A long thin entrance with a long bar down one side opens out into a larger interior with tables packed quite densely. It was busy with Saturday lunchtime shoppers on our visit and this made it noisy, drowning out th e quiet background music. The food includes salads (£4.00-£8.00), sandwi ches (£5.00-£6.00), main meals (£7.00-£10.00), light snacks (£1.00-£5.00) and desserts. Wine, hot drinks and cocktails (lounge drinks) are also available. The service was quick and the food well presented. Newspapers and no smoking areas are both available.

The Alma is a spacious, dimly lit pub. A spectacular fish tank in an old red telephone box is this pub's main feature, although the fish appear to be made of plastic. Other than this, a quiz machine, a projection TV and a pool table serve as entertainment. The pool table is situated on a slightly raised platform on which bands occasionally play. The walls are wood panelled on the lower half, and a mirror and various mysterious objects adorn the upper half. The upholstered furniture has seen better days. Food includes spuds (£2.95-£3.50), sandwiches (£2.75-£3.25), extras (£1.50-£2.25) and specials (£4.50). Our food was tasty and portions were very filling. Although quiet on our visit, this pub can be lively in the evenings. Monday night is quiz night; Tuesday is curry night.

Probably one of the best-known pubs in Cambridge, The Anchor is a very busy pub situated by the river offering some of the best views in Cambridge. Recently taken over by Greene King, their changes have been minor. The interior is on many levels. Entering from Silver Street, the street-level area has a wooden floor, a fire and some soft seating. Downstairs is a long bar, and down again leads to some seating and an exit onto a riverside beer garden, past which punts glide in the summer months (punts can be hired from an adjacent platform). In the winter months this bar often floods. The upstairs bar (now called the Riverview bar) has seating in alcoves, with some window seats overlooking the mill pond. The walls are decorated with old photos, and shelving around the alcoves is filled with bric-a-brac. At the end of the upstairs bar is a food counter. The menu includes: soup (£3.25), ploughman's lunch (£5.50), salads (£5.50), specials (£5.95), cod and chips (£7.50), jacket potatoes (£3.95) and side orders (£2.00-£2.50). Food is served daily from 10am (or 11am on Sundays). At peak times, a tannoy system announces the readiness of your order, otherwise service is immediate. In the evenings, it is often frequented by young, foreign students, while at lunchtime it is popular with tourists. Although the games machines have been removed, this pub now sports its own cash machine.

" Just writing to let you know that The Anchor pub has a new website. Also the description is a bit out of date (it's a Greene King pub now), "

In less than ten years this pub has been refurbished three times, once due to fire. The most dramatic is the change in April 2000 from a small, dark, smoky pub to a Hogshead-branded establishment, with a habitat-style decor - it even has sofas. Available space has been greatly increased by moving the kitchen upstairs and the bar to back wall, out of the way. The only remaining features are the fruit machines. The floors are wooden, with stone tiling around the bar, while the walls are painted in bright yellow, blue, green and cream, Little has changed since 2000. Food is served between 12pm and 9pm, from a menu including snacks (£2-£4), sandwiches (£3-£6), jacket potatoes (£3.50), salads (£4-£6), pasta (£5.50) as well as main dishes for (£5-8£). Particularly good value is the selection of the main courses which were offered at 2 meals for £6.95;. The is also a wine list. A sign advertised a forthcoming "super quiz".

The Coach and Horses is now an upmarket restaurant, called the "Wok 'n' Grill". Here's the old review from 2002. The Coach and Horses is a large pub with a gorgeous traditional wooden interior and stone-slab flooring. It is divided into small areas (each on a different level) by wooden beams and partitions. The walls are of a tastful pink and biege, and the soft furnishing, real fire and the lack of fruit machines gives it a warm atmosphere although fairly loud background music was playing on our visit. The walls are decorated with pictures of coaches and horses (suprisingly) as well as horse tack and carpentry tools. The pub also has a courtyard and garden, both with seating. The food, although from a very large menu, is relatively expensive. Jacket potatoes and filled baguettes cost around £ 5, while more substantial meals (which include rabbit) range from £ 8 to 17. Starters are £ 3-7, snacks £ 1-6 and potatoes £ 4.50-6.00 There is also a selection of 'specials' on blackboard. Service was quick and friendly, and the food was of good quality.

On the west side of the road, the Coach and Horses is a two storey building with cellars and attics, walls of plastered timber-framing and brick, and tile-covered roofs. The north part of the main range was built early in the 17th century; soon afterwards it was enlarged by the addition of a small gabled wing on the west and a long south extension. In the 18th century a square staircase-bay was added in the re-entrant angle; then single-storey annexes were built round the wing, involving the removal of the lower walling, and against the stair and the whole re-roofed, and last, in the early 19th century, a large extension was made to the northeast. The walls have since been extensively faced and underbuilt in gault brick. The road-front is largely of the 19th century and modern but retains an early 18th century timber dentil-cornice at the eaves supported on reused 17th century curved brackets. The large chimney-stack of red brick in the back wall of the south extension has a plinth, pronounced weatherings and a 19th century heightening. In the doorway into the single-storey annexe to the W wing is a reset early 18th century panelled door with strap-hinges. The windows have for the most part been renewed. Inside the north room in the main range has a large blocked fireplace in the back wall, exposed wall-plates and a longitudinal charmfered ceiling-beam. The middle room has the east and south walls lined with mid-17th century panelling, four panels high, with a frieze of guilloche ornament; on the W wall is some early 17th century panelling carved with arabesques. The south room is lined with 17th century panelling, four panels high, with a plain frieze, and the overmantel comprises four enriched panels flanked by Doris pilasters. Both the latter rooms have 18th-century stone fireplace surrounds and exposed longitudinal ceiling-beams.

Source: Royal Commission for Historic and Ancient Monuments, 1957

This pub has hardly changed since its enlargement and extensive refurbishment in the late 1980's. This large Greene King pub was reopened by the master of Corpus Christi College in 1992. It is said to be the pub at which Watson and Crick discovered the form of DNA, an occasion marked by a blue plaque. The interior has the carefully crafted appearance of having been slowly cluttered over time, although it has looked like this from day one of its reopening. It certainly seems cosy on a winter afternoon. The pub is divided into 5 rooms, each with a traditional pub decor, and has two bars. The RAF bar to the rear of the pub has writing burnt into the ceiling with cigarette lighters dating from WWII. By contrast, at the front is a no-smoking area, which before the renovation was a lawyer's office. These rooms surround the picturesque heated courtyard, which offers plenty of seating around octagonal tables. The beer garden, which is overlooked by college rooms, is lit by coloured bulbs. Food is served from a counter close to the rear bar. The menu is typical pub food (e.g. fish and chips, steak and ale pie, lasagne) all priced at £5.95. The portions are very filling. Popular during the day with tourists, in the evenings this pub employs doormen.

The Eagle Inn was originally called The Eagle and Child. It only included two of the three sides that surround the beer garden. The north side (RAF bar) was built or rebuilt in the 19th century and has been much altered. The west side dates circa 1600, and is of two storeys with cellars and attics, has only the east front visible; this has an open gallery (visible from the beer garden) of circa 1800 on the first floor, supported on thin cast-iron columns and a later forward extension of the north ground floor room. Beside the central chimney stack are paired staircases to the cellars, to the gallery and to the attics that are entered through 19th century doorways.

Source: Royal Commission for Historic and Ancient Monuments, 1957

The Granta occupies a picturesque location next to a mill pond. There is extensive outdoor seating, including a forecourt, a decked beer garden and a balcony over the Granta (river) and Coe Fen. In summer, this area is prettily decorated with hanging baskets. Punts are available from the lowest level. The interior has wooden and carpeted floors and wooden furniture including some benches. The decor has a sporting theme with rugby photos and shirts adorning the walls and rowing blades suspended from the ceiling. Entertainment is provided by a quiz machine and live music is advertised for the first Thursday of every month. Since our last visit in 2003 we were quite disappointed by the food, however, it now seems to be much improved. The menu includes light bites (£3.45-£4.15, e.g. baked camambert with chutney), sandwiches and wraps (£3.45-£4.15, e.g. cumberland sausage), main courses (£5-£9, e.g. fish & chips), side orders (£1.25-£1.95) and desserts (£3.15-£3.45, e.g. sticky toffee pudding). A roast is available on Sunday (£6.15). Pizza is also served, and can be ordered to take away.

A pleasant walk into Trumpington leads you to the Green Man. It has changed dramatically since our 1998 visit. The karge interior is bright and airy, with an IKEA feel. The floor has wooden, carpeted and tiled sections, with some soft-seating areas and other tables set out for diners. Some original features are visible, such as old supporting pillars and beams, which contrast with the modern wood and glass partitions. On the walls hang spot-lit contemporary artwork. Fruit, quiz and games machines look somewhat out of place in this setting. On our lunchtime visit, moderately loud easy listening music was playing on a loop. Around the pub is a large beer garden with some well kept flower beds. The staff of smartly uniformed, and the pub has a family atmosphere - there is a special children's menu. To the rear of the pub is a restaurant which has a different menu (£12.95 for three courses, £7.95 for two) from the main pub menu. The pub menu includes starters (£4), main courses (£8-15), puddings (£3-4.50), lighter bites (£4.50-8), jacket potatoes, wraps and baguettes (£3-6). The food is good quality and the service is quick.

The Green Man is a late mediaevel house of much interest, but the structural timberwork inside is no longer visible. It has walls of timber framing and brick and tile covered roofs. The building was constructed in the 15th century with a ground floor hall open to the roof in the middle and a cross wing at each end. In the following century a floor was inserted in the hall, and the south wing was extended eastward; the north wall of the extension has been rebuilt since and a further extension made in modern times. A large bay window was added on the roadside of the hall and a small annexe on the southwest corner of the house in the early 19th century. The inn was modernised and most of the mediaeval work concealed in 1954.

Source: Royal Commission for Historic and Ancient Monuments, 1957

The Mill is the only Tap and Spile pub in Cambridge. Situated by the river, it is particularly popular in summer because you can sit outside on Sheep's Green (with the hardship of plastic glasses). The interior, which has changed little over the years, has wooden furniture and a part wooden, part tiled floor. Pictures on the walls have a brewing theme, even including a barrel tying display. A sporting feel is produced by photos of college teams and a single oar on the ceiling. There is a fruit machine, a cat, a large white poodle and a small TV for entertainment. The Mill serves scrumpy, a wide selection of real ales and also fruit wines. The lunch menu includes light bites (e.g. soup) for £2-£3, hot main courses (e.g. lasagne, chilli, fish and chips) for £4-£6, salads £4.50-£5), burgers (£4.25-£5), big snacks such as baguettes for £3-£4, jacket potatoes for £2 and hot drinks (£1;-£1.50).

For a few years, there were two Rat and Parrot pubs in Cambridge. Now there is just one. This pub opened on 13th December 1999 and is the only three floored pub in the city. It is light and airy, with the upper floors overlooking the glass-fronted entrance in which a two-storey plant is positioned. Most tables are large, seating five or six people, and there are also some sofas. The ground floor is part tiled, part wood, while the upper floors are carpeted, around which are dotted large pot plants. One wall has a large mural, while from the others hang mirrors. There is also a small pavement beer garden facing onto the busy Downing Street junction. On previous visits waitress service is provided for both food and beer, however on our most recent lunchtime visit we ordered at the bar. The menu includes starters (£ 3-5), dishes to share (£6-£8), sandwiches and wraps (£3.75-£5.25), main courses (£5-9), burgers (£6), side orders and desserts (£3.50-£3.75). Hot drinks are is also available for £1.70-£2. The meals are well proportioned, and service is good. Food is served 12pm-9pm on Sundays, 11am-9pm Monday to Thursday, 11am-8pm on Fridays and Saturdays. The pub was relatively quiet on our Saturday lunchtime visit, but it is popular the evenings.

Entering from Barton Road, you will see a long thin bar with a healthy selection of beers. Since our previous visit, the entrance porch has been removed giving a more space around the bar. This pub is made cosy by its wooden interior and partly tiled floor, giving it an 'Old World' atmosphere, with seating divided into small groups by the fabric of the building. At each end of the building is a real fire. Some tables are made of barrels. There is a juke box and various quiz machines. Around the walls hang photos and sketches of Victorian scenes. Quiz nights are held on Tuesdays. Upstairs is a Georgian-style function room with a large dining table. There is a large beer garden and car park. The weekday menu has main dishes priced between five and seven pounds, including meaty dishes such as duck breast, as well as starters and desserts. Although food is served daily, there is a restricted menu on Saturdays. Daily specials are listed on blackboards near the bar. On our visit, main courses were available for £5-£6 (such as chilli, liver and onions, lamb), soup, salads, jacket potatoes (£4) and baguettes (£3.75-£4.95) were available, priced between three and five pounds. Sunday roast is advertised at £6.95. The pub was doing a roaring trade on the Saturday lunchtime of our visit.

Formerly the 'Red Cow', this pub (just off the market square) has recently undergone a refurbishment completely changing its atmosphere. Gone is the dingy Victorian decor, tatty furniture and unhelpful staff. The walls now sport pictures of flowers, and sections of bare brick and a steel bar give it a stylish look. The floor of laminated wood, the secondhand furniture (slightly rickety chairs and melanine topped tables) add to the feel. As well as a small amount of seating outside the front of this establishment, a basement provides a more modern bar with low lighting, leather sofas, a TV and cozy nooks, which also serves as a venue for DJs and live music in the evenings. The all-day menu consists mainly of stone baked pizza (£2.50 - £7.00); wraps (£3.75), burgers (£6.00) and salads (£2.00 - £6.00) are also available. Beware of the strange ordering procedure: food is ordered from the main bar and in exchange the punter is given a wireless device. When the food is ready it flashes and buzzes to inform you that your order, along with crockery and cutler, must be collected from the separate bar (with an impressive open-fire oven). Coffe and a variety of cocktails are also served. On our visit this pub was busy with Saturday shoppers having lunch.

" On Tuesdays, there is a two-for-one offer on pizza. "

Formerly the Spread Eagle, this pub was renovated and renamed in 2005. The interior is much darker than before, with burgundy walls, and dark wooden tables and (very comfortable) upholstered chairs. Towards the back of the pub is a piano, and between the toilets (labelled 'for him' and 'for her') is a metallic Snug Bar sign. The pub specialises in cocktails, with half the menu dedicated to its range of vodka, rum, tequila, gin, champagne and whisky-based drinks. There is a large selection of wines, (125ml, 250ml or by the bottle), liqueurs, and draft and bottled beers too. Non-alcoholic beers, hot drinks and juices are also on offer. The food menu includes a range of appetisers served for one (£3-£4), two (around £7) or a group (raound £9). Main courses include a selection of beef or lamb burgers (£7-£9), steak (£16), salmon (£13), and ciabatta (£4). Desserts cost around £4. The pub has more of a restaurant feel (which is reflected in the pricing) and you are served both drinks and food at your table. The staff were very friendly and eager to help.

" The Spread Eagle has been renamed the Snug, and is under new management. It looks pretty good inside with leather sofas and tasteful decorations on the walls, though apparently not quite finished yet. It is going to do lots (90) cocktails (but will be "unpretentous") and have some ales on tap etc.. It is going to do food too, haven't eaten any yet but the menu looks good, standard pub food with some more unusualy stuff too. Staff seem friendly and enthusiastic, and place looks like it will be good. "

While perhaps not so ornate as the other Trumpington pubs, the Tally Ho has two bars, a couple of outside tables in front with further seating in a small beer garden to the rear which leads to a car park. Food is of the tradition Greene King 'cheap and cheerful' variety. The menu includes main meals £3.50-£4.50, jacket potatoes £2.00-£3.00 and sandwiches (some toasted) up to £2.00. The pub in wood-panelled throughout with plates and whiskey bottles decorating a high ledge above. The ceiling is constructed from wooden beams and the floor is carpeted (with a small area of lino around the bar). Furnishings include wooden tables and chairs (some upholstered) and the walls are adorned with pictures having a nautical theme. Bar billiards, fruit machines, a juke box and a TV provide entertainment. The clientele are mostly elderly locals giving the pub a friendly feel.

This large pub is divided into three areas: a small front bar with a very low ceiling (6ft), a larger more modern bar behind, and a family room/restaurant to the rear. A large pleasant beer garden, with flower beds and (on our visit) a bouncy castle, gives the pub a family feel. The interior is carpeted with wooden and upholstered furniture; some of which has seen better days. From the wall hang photos of rowing scenes, and mugs and plates decorate the ceiling and picture rail. The menu consists of baguettes £4.00-£4.50, jacket potatoes £4.00-£4.50, main meals (+ specials) £5.00-£11.00, starters £3.00-£4.50, desserts £3.00 and Sunday roasts £7.00. For entertainment, there is a Juke box and fruit machines, and quizzes are held on Monday nights.

A good walk down Trumpington Road from the centre, this pleasant pub has outdoor seating, with a car park in front. Since our last visit in 1998, this pub has changed tremendously. Gone are the fruit machines and juke box. Instead, the new interior has a restaurant feel. Some of the tables had cutlery set out on them. The lunchtime menu is small, consisting of jacket potatoes and thick sandwiches which can be accompanied with a side serving of chips. The evening menu has main courses from around ten pounds upwards. The walls are adorned with military themed pictures. On a pleasant day, consider walking back to town along Hobson's Conduit, just off Long Road, which can be muddy, but is very scenic and much quieter than the busy Trumpington Road.