Gardeners Arms could be a gem of a pub with a little investment

The better-known is the Garden Gate in Whitfield Place, a palace of red-brick and sculpted tiles, frequently listed among the most architecturally significant pubs in the country. Once threatened with demolition during a massive wave of regeneration, the pub was saved through a public campaign which now sees this Edwardian gem surrounded by the low-rise homes which replaced the tight-knit slums which had stood here since Victorian times.

Though less well known, the Gardeners probably has a more steady stream of traffic past its front door than ever reach the Garden Gate, marooned in its housing estate.

It’s no great leap of the imagination to suggest that curiously-named Beza Street takes its name from 16th century church reformer Theodore Beza. It carries traffic towards the M621, while the sprawling City South retail park brings shoppers here in their droves. And while my wife and daughter spent an hour on Saturday afternoon browsing the fabrics and furnishings of The Range, I nipped across the car park for a pint and live football at a pub I’ve not visited for the best part of ten years.

Little seems to have changed in that time, and given that it is owned by giant pubco Enterprise Inns, it’s quite likely that nothing much has been done to improve the fabric of the Gardeners for generations. It would certainly benefit from some investment. The outside looks shabby and worn; inside there is evidence of damp causing wallpaper to bulge away from the plaster. There’s a slight malaise in the air, a feeling of neglect to which even a modest investment could make a marked difference.

But this doesn’t extend to the staff, who are clearly doing a fine job of keeping this old pub moving forward.

As an outsider, I’m welcomed warmly and quickly served with my pint. Sometimes, particularly at little locals’ pubs like this where everyone knows one another, incomers can be treated with a little suspicion – and I run an extra risk when I take out my notebook and start scratching a few lines of my scribble. Here, even if they notice, no-one says a word, and I’m left to enjoy my drink and the football in peace.

The Enterprise business model can make it tough on tenants to offer cut-priced beer, the pump prices being dictated by the cost of buying casks though the company, rather than directly from the breweries. But The Gardeners is somehow managing to keep a pint of hand-pulled Tetley down below £3 – perhaps not at working men’s club level, but at least competitive in the suburban market.

The pub is a little knot of beamed and low-ceiling drinking spaces clustered around a panel-fronted bar. The decor is a mix of styles – some panelling, some bare brick, all crimsons and creams. In the snug to the left of the front door, banquettes make effective use of the rather limited space.

The Gardeners has quite the feel of a locals pub, though the years of changes and demolitions nearby have left it with no obvious heartland from which to draw its customers. Even so, an attractive family-friendly beer garden, part grassed and part flagged, underline its community credentials.

FACTFILE

33, Beza Street, Hunslet, Leeds LS10 2BG

Type: Popular and lively locals’ pub with Sky Sports

Opening Hours: 11am-11pm Monday-Saturday and noon-10.30pm Sunday

Beers: Cask Tetley Bitter (£2.90), plus Tetley Smooth, Carling, Strongbow and Guinness

Wine: Basic choice

Food: Packaged snacks only

Children: Welcomed

Disabled: Slightly tricky access

Entertainment: Big screens with Sky and BT Sports coverage plus games machine and dart board

Beer Garden: Attractive grassed area to the side - plus outdoor shelter for smokers

Parking: On-street spaces outside, free car parking available at the shopping centre next door

Telephone: 0113 271 2971

Website: None