The times, they are a-changing

At 'home' in Wales, in the small border town of Monmouth where I grew up, I have had the chance to revisit one of my favourite pubs of a decade or two (or three!) ago, The Vine Tree.

It is much changed. It is now proudly advertising itself as 'The First Smoke-Free Pub In Town'. In these parts, that's about as stigmatizing as being 'The Only Gay In The Village'. Doug, the moustachioed landlord of my youth, would have had nothing to do with such PC trendiness. However, it is probably a smart commercial move to get a jump on the competition, given that smoking in public places is shortly to be outlawed everywhere in England and Wales.

Actually, as pub 'makeovers' go, they haven't done at all a bad job on this. Yes, the furnishings are now a bit too cosy and living-room-ish for my preference, a bit more like a coffee shop than a proper bar; but I suppose it's in keeping with the new 'gastropub' image they're obviously going for (much the best food in town at the moment; I hope they can keep it up). Yes, it is now rather brightly lit, but not dazzlingly so; the spotlights have been very cannily arranged to provide consistent - but discreet - lighting throughout. Aside from this, the interior is just as it ever was; a long, narrow series of low-ceilinged rooms, with only fairly small windows at front and back, none within the body of the bar itself (it's in a terrace on the high street) - this, I think, helps to preserve some of the 'dingy' intimacy I expect from a bar.... even though you can now see where you're going in there.

Yep, rather to my surprise, I find that the 'new' Vine Tree holds a lot of promise - not just as a good 'foodie' pub in the old hometown, but more generally for the future trends of British pubs: it is possible to modernise without completely desecrating!

It's just unfortunate that the place is now indelibly associated in my memory with my breakup from my most recent girlfriend, The Artist.

Oh well, mustn't dwell on it. Hell, if I abandoned a decent bar just because I'd had a bad scene with a girl in it..... well, I wouldn't easily be able to get a drink in the West End of London, for a start!