GAVIN AITCHISON is enjoying the new look at some well-loved pubs.

THERE seem to have been as many paint pots as pint pots in York’s pubs in recent weeks, with refurbishments galore. Everywhere you look, pubs have been closing for a refit or reopening after one – so it’s about time we caught up with all the comings and goings.

Let’s start with two pubs that reopened on Thursday: The Nag’s Head in Heworth and The Marcia in Bishopthorpe.

The Nag’s Head is scarcely recognisable from the pub it was, says landlord Jim Melsom. It has been extensively refitted and redecorated inside and out, giving it a much smarter and more modern appearance.

It had felt very dated of late, resembling pubs of the 1980s and 1990s says Jim, who has been landlord here for 12 years but who also worked here briefly in the 1970s.

The biggest change is in the raised area and conservatory, which have been turned into comfortable and homely dining rooms. The conservatory has been re-roofed too, so it feels more obviously a part of the pub.

The bar room has also undergone big changes, with new booths and new furniture throughout. A bar billiards table is likely to be added soon as well and there is also a new back-bar and new beers, including Theakston’s Black Bull.

Jim says regulars who have seen the work have been stunned, and he’s confident the refurbishment will give it much more appeal.

“It’s far better than even I expected,” he says. “When I walked in it was like walking into a new bar.”

About £150,000 has been spent all told, and as well as the changes inside there are new signs outside, adding up to a welcome boost for an area of York that has lost a fair few pubs in the past decade or so.

Across the city, The Marcia, too, should enjoy a boom in trade after a £136,000 refurbishment. Licensees Gary Penrose and Linda Welch have worked with Punch Taverns on a project that they say will give the pub a new lease of life and accentuate its “country pub” appeal. Like The Nag’s Head, it reopened on Thursday.

Just off Leeman Road, meanwhile, The Jubilee is also back in business. Last time I was here barrels were floating around the cellar, during the heavy floods of last autumn. The deluge put the pub out of action for several months but it is open again now. I popped in midweek and had two excellent pints of York Brewery’s Guzzler, at just £2.40 each.

Hopefully the pub can turn over enough real ale to maintain such quality, as the recent loss of The Junction nearby makes The Jubilee’s role as a local even more important. It remains a pub that few would feel compelled to travel far for but it caters well for the surrounding streets.

Another pub to have thrown open its doors again is The Judges Lodgings in Lendal, which has been renovated by Thwaites Brewery. They have added it to their “Inns of character” group of pubs, an apt category for a building that has an illustrious history dating back to 1710.

I had an excellent half of Wainwright, the palest and most praiseworthy of the Thwaite’s beers, and savoured it in one of the indoor alcoves. The large outdoor area remains a good bet when the sun is shining.

Finally for this week’s quickfire resurrection tour are two pubs due to reopen shortly. Work is ongoing at The Cross Keys, on the corner of Tadcaster Road and St Helen’s Road and it sowner, The Spirit Pub Company says it should reopen next week, boasting more real ale and more food. And the Carlton tavern in Acomb Road will close this Monday, before reopening on June 28.

Shorts

• Treboom Brewery in Shipton-by-Beningbrough is hosting the Brewery Beats drumming and arts festival from noon to 8pm today.

• The Jolly Farmers in Leavening has a beer festival from Wednesday to next Sunday, including the World Yorkshire Pudding Eating Championships on Sunday.