Paris Gates, Halifax.
A traditional pub with rooms at the bottom of Paris Gates, under the old mills. Timothy Taylor's on the bar, something hot from the kitchen, and en-suite rooms with their own front door.
Halifax gets busy. There is a match at the Shay, a gig at the Piece Hall or a wet half-term at Eureka!, and everywhere fills up at once.
The Shears is six minutes on foot from the Shay. That makes it a base as well as a pub. Have a drink, eat, then go up your own steps to your own room.
No taxi at closing time and no ring road in the morning. The rest of the year it is simply the local at the bottom of Paris Gates.
Timothy Taylor's is the regular. It comes over from Keighley, and cask beer being a live thing, it gets a cellar somebody watches. Lagers, stouts, wines and spirits stand alongside it.
Pub food, eaten in the bar, in portions that mean it. Ring before you set off and ask what is on. If there are a few of you at the weekend, say so and we will hold a table.
En-suite, each with its own door to the outside. You come and go at your own hour rather than through a bar full of people. Television and DVD player, tea and coffee, breakfast in the morning.
Being tucked below the town is the best thing about the address. The Shay is six minutes on foot. Eureka! is a short walk the other way, and the station about fifteen.
The Piece Hall and the town centre are up the hill. That climb is the only effort involved, and it is easier on the way out than on the way back.
The phone is quickest. Somebody usually picks up, and if the bar is busy, leave your dates here instead and we will come back to you.
What a room comes to depends on the night and how many of you there are. Ask when you ring and you will get a figure on the call, before anything is held.
Opening times move about through the week. Worth a quick call before a special trip.
A satnav tends to stop at the top of the lane. Keep going down past the mill until the cobbles run out at the brook, and we are the building in front of you.
The Timothy Taylor's and the walk to the Shay are as listed by CAMRA and local visitor guides.
Give the pub a ring instead on 07123 456789.