Hello from Byker...
Hello pub pals.
Hope you’re all well and that 2026 is being kind to you all.
It’s been a minute since our last mailer, but if the constant rain is good for anything, it’s finding time to sit in front of a laptop and catch up :)
2026 has proved to be a nice and steady affair in the pub so far, punctuated with a few trademark super busy days when we have seen a little bit of sunshine. When we have had the masses though it’s been such a great crowd. We sometimes get stuck behind the bar and it can feel very frantic, but the moment we’ve stepped outside it’s been a brilliant, chilled atmosphere. So thanks as always to anyone that’s joined us recently, busy day or not.
Even though the weather has not quite been as kind as last year, we’ve been hard a work in the gardens with pub pal Pete giving them a brilliant glow-up. We’ve added new fences, built planters, filled them with a mix of flowers and climbing plants, stripped out and replaced some of the more tatty hedging and generally tidied things up. Work is still ongoing and although it’s all looking fab, it’s quite hard to get a good photo while its grey and overcast. So watch this space for a full reveal, or maybe come and enjoy the space with a nice drink, if there’s a break in the clouds.
As always at this time of year there’s a some new faces in the pub too. We’ve been very lucky to find some brilliant new team members that have fit right in. You may have met them already but if you’re in the pub please say ‘Hi’ to Gary, Bella, Harry, Molly and Greg.
Speaking of Harry, in a one-Harry-in one-Harry-out scenario, we said goodbye to supervisor Harry last month as he moved to the nation’s capital to find fame and fortune. He’ll be sorely missed but three years at the pointy end of Free Trade summers is a good shift for anyone.
So what’s happening?
Well, it’s always hard to organise big events in what is usually our busy period, for fear of them being drowned out if the sun is out. So right now we’re just trucking on and trying to keep things as good as we possibly can.
We’ve a few food vendor updates for the next few weeks, as Hake are taking a small spring break, so that’s given us the opportunity to bring in some new faces on Fridays.
Coming Up…
Friday 15th - Bubba’s BBQ Smokehouse (Ouseburn Smokehouse BBQ, part of the original Longhorns Team). From 4pm
Wednesday 20th - Fire and Dough Pizza. From 5pm
Friday 22nd - Hizzy’s Pizza. Brand new pizza company by friends of the pub. From 4pm
Monday 25th - Hake Seafood. From 2pm. Belgian Beer lineup TBA.
Wednesday 27th - Fire and Dough Pizza. From 5pm
Friday 29th - Hake Seafoods. From 5pm
On the bar we’re trying to keep the same great variety in the lineup as always, though as many of you will have noticed over the years, during the busy periods we have to double up some of the more popular products to keep things moving smoothly, which can reduce choice.
There’s been one change to our core lineup recently with Nightingale Cider taking over our permanent sparking cider line, replacing Oliver’s. Oliver’s fans don’t worry though, they’re a near permanent fixture on our cask cider list.
Right now we’ve a very tasty lineup which includes beers from Burning Sky, Woodshedding, Left Handed Giant, Rigg and Furrow, Thornbridge, Buxton & more.
As always we’re committed to providing a great lo/no selection and also permanent GF beers on tap. At the moment you’ll find a Jumpship 0% Pale Ale, Left Handed Giant Lemon Radler at 2.5%, Woodshedding Lager at 2.8% and a Cask Thornbridge Pale at 3.4%, all perfect for midweek treats!
T-Shirts are back in stock and we’ve even made the webshop live again for postage and collection. It gets a bit confusing when it’s busy to keep it live, so it’s no coincidence that it’s happening while the weather is, er, less than optimal.
There’s good stock of our bright white tees and a chance to pick up some of the lesser seen Blue version, and even some sweatshirts
That’s about it for now. Really just taking the chance to say ‘hi’ while its here.
We’ll do our best to keep you up to date with any other pub happenings that appear, and hope to see you all soon.
Team FTI x
