27th September 2024
Ian Rogers
Although situated a little away to the South from the Town Centre on the finger of land between the River Yare and The Pleasure Beach, the walk or bus ride is well worth it.
Found just beyond the old town walls near Blackfriars Tower the pub which dates from 1865, sits on the junction of Blackfriars Road and Mariners Road. You enter by the single door beneath a tiled panel above featuring two welcoming Black Friars, this leads into the main bar area, with the bar to the left ahead.
An array of handpumps fills the bar and there are usually at least 9 real ales available at any time, providing a good range of beer types, mainly from local breweries.
At the time of visit the following were on;- Ampersand Windrow 4%, Mr Winters Vanilla Latte 4.5%, Ampersand Bidon 3.9%, Humpty Dumpty Quayside 4.5%, Ampersand Fast Fashion 3.4%, Archangel 4.5% a Belgian style collaboration brew between All Day brewery and Three Blind Mice brewery, Wolf Woild Moild 4.8% , All Day Kite 4% and Lacons Yarmouth Strong 7%.
In addition to these guest ales, Pharez the owner since 2020 along with his partner Rachael , also brews out in the back courtyard his own beers, which will usually be given a name relevant to the pub.
So at the time, Blackfriars Tavern Blessed Bitter(unfined) 4.3% and Blackfriars Tavern Pious Peanut Stout 6% were on.
Prices are displayed on the pump clips and are generally about £4.10 / £4.20 for session ales with higher prices for higher abv beers such as the Peanut stout at £5.40 and Lacons Yarmouth Strong at £5.90. CAMRA 50p vouchers can also be redeemed against pints.
For cider and perry lovers there is usually an extensive choice of between 40 to 60 to choose from, these are mainly still ciders served from boxes although a few sparkling ciders are from bottles.
Cocktails are also advertised and some keg products such as Carling, Strongbow, San Miguel as well as tea / coffee etc are available.
To the right of the bar is an archway which leads through to another area which is also caters for a multitude of games – darts, bar billiards plus a number of board games to play if required.
At the end of this room is a large screen listing beers, ciders and perries together with prices.
On the wall are some shelves with empty bottles of Belgian beer, each bottle has a number attached and if you wish to order, just state the number and a matching bottle will be retrieved from the cellar.
To the right of the screen is a door leading to the toilets and also another door to the outside courtyards where the brewing takes place.
Food is also available, mainly consisting of homemade pies or chips, but it is best to consult the menu on the day.
In 2024 The Blackfriars Tavern has won both the CAMRA Norfolk County Pub of The Year award and also East Anglian Pub of the Year as well as Norfolk Cider Pub of the Year. It has also been included in the Good Beer Guide 2025.
Important Information:
Blackfriars Tavern, 94 Blackfriars Road, Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, NR30 3BZ
Tel: 01493859853. Web: Blackfriars Tavern
Open Daily: 12.00-23.00
Food: generally available until 20.00
The nearest train station is Great Yarmouth served by Greater Anglia with services from Norwich.
From here it is approximately 25 minutes to walk directly to the Blackfriars Tavern.
First Eastern Counties bus routes 2/3/3B run approximately every 15 minutes from Market Gates Bus station Stand F and is a 3-5 minute journey. Market Gates is a 10 minute walk from the Railway Station.