I drive through Otley every day on my commute and am struck by the number of pubs there. Is it good for a night out? I'm thinking of a meal followed by a few decent real ales in a couple of pubs. Any suggestions? Also where should I steer clear of?

Personally I would steer clear of the Cross Pipes

Beware they are a strange lot and dont like outsiders much.

This one's a pretty good one, got me loads of hits when I put "the old cock" in its meta tags too



Nice independent pub with loads of guest ales, and its a proper pub too, sells beer, thats it, its a pub.

dont bother with meal,just have a good ight on a pub crawl.start in the square near black bull,bay horse

bay horse cheap doubles

If you're into decent beer, no music, no lager swilling chavs then get into 'Old Cock', find a pew and proceed to work your way through a fine selection of quality proper beer!

If you're not, then Bowling Green...it's a JD Wetherspoon house, so gets busy, if you can get through the throngs of smelly smokers blocking the doorway, and step over the mountain of tab ends on the floor...!!

Now then...feel like I could be the man on the ground for this one...Mrs otleyrhino describes this quaint Yorkshire town as something like the 1980's tv show Northern Exposure!...but she is an offcumden!

Still a good night out to be had tho...quite a few recently refurbished and we are blessed with decent Real Ale pubs.
Eating wise I would use somewhere like The Roebuck...out above the hospital...or The Fleece on the Bradford road out of town...nice gastro pubs. Really nice curry house called Jewel of India at top of Bridge Street..recommend that.
Pubs wise I would say start in market square...Black Bull, Black Horse are ok, Main drag I would go in The Whittakers..nice refurb job..The Witherspoons is good, The old Cock fab and I traditionally end up in The Junction. Horse and Farrier good too.
I currently avoid the bar opposite the police station...too young and also The Bay Horse...beer not great at the mo.

Really ?

Haven't been in for a while, always used to be a favourite though, and what better excuse ...

I like the sketches...but yes...really...For 35 years I would always start a night at The Bay Horse until last Christmas.. to be fare I have not been in for two months, but the beer was not up to scratch.

The Junction is my favourite - good selection of real ales & they do halves of lager for you.

I always like The Junction, another proper pub, feels like a proper pub, like The Old Cock they feel like they've been there a long time (but neither of them have, as a pub anyway), unfortunately the crowd that I call mates are serious boozers (unlike big girls blouse me) and they prefer the Weatherspoons purely on price, price isn't an issue for me when I can only manage two pints before the headaches kick in, but to them its a big issue - just seems wrong handing over cash to a PubCo though.