A light, attractive student pub which has benefited heaps from its refurb.

The Venue
Refurbishment work started at this Brain’s pub at the end of last year and has massively improved the look of The Flora. It’s open and bright and, with the all-wood bar in the middle, it sports pale wood flooring and ochre and cream walls.

The pool table is plonked squarely at one corner of the bar, so it becomes a feature in itself. There’s another room at the back with its blue walls adorned with colourful paintings and a big silver-framed mirror. A corner of the bar also pokes out, meaning you can order without getting up off your seat, if you can catch the friendly landlady’s eye that is.

Perhaps The Flora’s best feature is the pretty white-walled beer garden which is a dog-leg behind the pub and boasts a patch of grass and a covered area. It backs up against some houses which, fortunately, are occupied by sympathetic former Brain’s employees.

The People
This pub is aimed at students and students are indeed the bulk of its customers, although it does have a small, loyal local following too.

The Food and Drink
On tap there’s Guinness, Strongbow, Carling, Stella and Fosters and there’s the whole range of Brain’s beers: Bitter, Smooth, Dark, 45, SA and Reverend James. In bottles you can choose Heineken, Beck’s, Corona, Budweiser, Bulmers and Welsh Orchard Gold cider.

Cocktails are a measly £2.49 and you can get two for the price of one. Don’t expect fresh fruit and careful preparation at those prices. The wine list could be improved: the Pierre Javert house red costs £6.95 a bottle, but overall there’s not much quality on offer. Food is served till 8pm and includes jacket potatoes, sandwiches, pizzas, burgers, grills, student sharing platters (£6.95) and traditional pub fare like Glamorgan sausages and mash for £4.50.

The Last Word
The Flora is hitting just the right note with the large local student population and is a serious rival to The Woodville up the road.