Pub of the Month March - Gateway
The Gateway
882 Wilmslow Road, Didsbury M20 5PG
Gateway
The Stockport & South Manchester CAMRA Pub of the Month for March is the Gateway on Wilmslow Road in East Didsbury. Mark Clayton tells you all about it.
The Gateway is an interwar road house pub originally built on the junction of Kingsway and Wilmslow Road for passing trade. Operated by Hydes for many years, it sadly became the ‘black sheep’ of their estate. I visited this pub prior to its sale to Wetherspoon’s and it was tired and outdated, with poor beer, few customers and no food. Unlike other pubs owned by Hydes, with many in the Stockport & South Manchester branch area making Pub of the Month. I also tried four or five in their 2023 Hyde’s Ale Trail – all were excellent.
Gateway
Hydes sold it to Wetherspoons, who were eyeing a replacement for their (leased) Milson Rhodes in Didsbury (2010 - 2016). One refurbishment and a deep clean later, we have the excellent premises we see today – spacious, comfortable, friendly, able staff, good food, a sizable beer garden, a cosy fireplace, usually busy and an excellent choice of well-kept fine ales. There is even a small car park, which was transformed into an extended beer garden during Covid.
Kevin Muldoon was manager for many years, earning three Pub of the Month awards before moving on to revitalise the JP Joule in Sale. A hard act to follow, but bright and cheery Adele Graham took over as manager after 2022 and kept up (and even improved), its high standards, in particular cellarage. The pub has continued to thrive, with a rotating offer of a wide variety of real ales on the eight hand pumps on the bar, a long menu and various offers throughout the week, including reduced prices on ale on Mondays and Wednesdays.
As well as the Pub of the Month award, the pub hosts CAMRA meetings in the large function room upstairs, and allows visiting brewers to take over several taps. To sum up, if it is hospitality and good ale that you are looking for, then Wetherspoons and the Gateway manager Adele know their business!
The award will be presented on the evening of Thursday 27 March, from 8pm. The Gateway is well served by buses (too numerous to mention) and is close to East Didsbury train station and tram terminus.