Longbenton, located betwixt Four Lane Ends and South Gosforth is predominantly used as a commuter station the DSS and Freeman hospital and other that those and a medium sized house estate I can’t really imagine why else you’d need to visit Longbenton.
Pub wise there’s a social club literally right next to the station however we’ve already played our Social Club card in Howdon so, coming from town, if you hop off the platform through the main exit and walk straight in front of you, through the little precinct of shops and you’ll stumble across The Charnwood.
The Charnwood has all the potential in the world to be a really good local pub, it’s nicely decorated inside, even looks like it could have been fairly recently refurbished with a large lounge and family area for food as you walk through the main doors and a bar area with pool table through the back. However it sadly appears to be the pub that time forgot.
We found it a little surprising that as we visited at around 6.30pm on a Saturday night and it was absolutely deserted, well aside from one man asleep at a table in the corner and a few people milling around playing pool.
The barmaid was really friendly and chatted with us for a little bit as she served our drinks (your average offerings of Carling, Guinness and cider) no real ale and wine appeared to come in three forms; red, white or rose. That being said it was a surprisingly pleasant and super chilled glass of white so I can’t really complain on that front.
It just seems bizarre to me that a put that on first appearances seems pretty well kept, it certainly hasn’t been the most run down we’ve visited on the tour so far, yet so weird that in the middle of a sizable housing estate it doesn’t attract more visitors. A little research on Facebook says they specialises in Chinese Food, which is weird when the decor would suggest homely good of fashioned pub grub but gets good reviews all the same. Our visit just left me feeling a little bit sad and wonder how long it could be sustainable as a business for much longer.
Contact:
1 Charnwood Ave, Longbenton, Newcastle upon Tyne NE12 8PT
Tel: 0191 270 9975
