Royal Exchange pub Corn Market Worcester: 'cheapest pints'

With a heady cocktail of sport and music as its lifeblood, The Royal Exchange in Corn Market, Worcester city centre is perhaps one of the best places in the city to watch the world go, to sing, dance and make merry without breaking the bank.

Believe it or not, it is actually possible to pick up a pint here for a penny if you know how - but you must have a keen eye and come in on the right day. More about that later.

BUZZ: The Royal Exchange in Corn Market in Worcester lies on one of the city's busiest thoroughfares (Image: James Connell/Newsquest)

A comparatively small pub perhaps, the Exchange makes the absolute most of the space it has with big windows to people-watch and plenty of outdoor seating - enough for around 25 people, making it something of a sun trap in summer.

The grade II listed pub, which dates from the 1890s, is situated right on a busy corner. Crowds drift endlessly by, meandering along Mealcheapen Street onto Corn Market, New Street and towards Lowesmoor or City Walls Road.

PINT: Hugh Long enjoys a cooling pint as he says The Royal Exchange in Worcester is a great place to watch the world go by on a hot summer day (Image: James Connell/Newsquest)

Hugh Long, 69, has been coming to the pub for the last 20 years, one of the many loyal customers who keep returning year after year.

Sitting by one of the windows with a cooling pint, he said: "You can see the world go by. Everybody goes by here like a sort of funnel.

"It is one of my favourite pubs in Worcester. It's like liquorice - you get all sorts. Nobody bothers you and they have got all kinds of sport - racing, the Olympic and cricket.

"I'm an old bloke so I get on the bus for free and it's only £2 a pint. That's a pulling factor."

VIBRANT: The Royal Exchange in Corn Market, Worcester, prides itself on cheap deals for beers and premium lager and on its happy hour which helps it maintain a good trade off peak (Image: James Connell/Newsquest)

The pub is part of the Craft Union (Stonegate Group). Assistant manager Frankie Hassall, 28, is running the pub while Stacey O'Neill is on leave.

Miss Hassall says one of the pub's major draws is sport, including showing football games and racing with the commentary on.

She said: "We have always been known in Worcester as one of the cheapest pubs. The way we explain it - we're like a Wetherspoons but with a community feel. We know all the customers, most of them by name and what they drink. This pub is like everybody's front room.

"A lot of the customers who come in here, they come in here every day. They have a nice chat."
 

SPORTS: The Royal Exchange in Corn Market shows sports on several big screens and, because it opens at 10am, it is one of the earliest places you can go to enjoy a pint (Image: James Connell/Newsquest)

Miss Hassall said the pub attracted customers of all all ages with more retired people through the day, tradespeople popping in for a pint after work and a younger crowd at weekends, including students. 

A DJ plays music on a Friday and Saturday from 8.30pm, playing everything from the latest hits to timeless classics of yesteryear to roll back the years.

The DJs 'play it by ear', tailoring their choices to the audience on the night. Of course, there is always the chance for those with a good ear of their own and a strong voice to show off their own musical prowess with karaoke on the Sunday of a Bank Holiday weekend, starting at 7pm.

For the more cerebral among you, quiz nights are expected to make a return on Thursdays in September from 7pm.

Although Miss Hassall cannot think of any famous faces visiting in the time she has worked at the pub, she says the regulars are the Royalty of the pub. Photos of customers, some who have now sadly died, are displayed so people can remember them and celebrate their lives. 

FAMILY: Customers past and present and gone but never forgotten are remembered at The Royal Exchange where the staff pride themselves on remembering your name and what you like to drink (Image: James Connell/Newsquest)

"We have lost really nice customers over the last couple of years. They have all been like the royalty of the pub. The environment and atmosphere you get in here is amazing. It is so unpretentious. Everyone is so welcoming towards each other," she said.

The Exchange is open seven days a week and is one of the earliest places you can buy a pint in the city. 

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It is open between 10am and 10.30pm between Monday and Saturday and on Sundays between noon and 9.30pm.

Although the pub does not serve hot food, bar snacks are available. A free juke box containing 'every possible song' is there but as if that was not enough, they run 'penny pints' on Sundays.

Five 1p coins are hidden around the pub and if customers find one all they have to do is take it to the bar to earn their pint. "It's hilarious. The customers really get into it," said Miss Hassall. 

This is a pub where staff are determined to give their customers good deals. Pints of John Smith's, Carlsberg and Strongbow are sold for £1.95 during Happy Hour which is Monday to Thursday between 10am and 6pm.

A single vodka and coke will set you back just £2.15 and doubles are £3.90. This is possibly one of the reasons the pub does such a brisk trade in the day when some other boozers may be near enough deserted. 

All premium lagers are under £5 in the week and there are deals on shots - 5 Tequila Rose for £10 and three Sambucas for £6. With those prices, it seems the customers really are treated like Royalty.