The Original Oak

Called in here after the Skyrack. Beer seemed good and seemed a nice bar. The beer garden is nice to sit out in on a nice day, sadly it started raining while I was there. Would go back again.

Good in the summer with the massive garden. Always stick to bottles as they don’t put beers in nucleic glasses, so the head can go flat quickly. Food is general chain grub which could be better, but does fill a hole when needed.

The original oak is a place that you normally get to quite sozzled after making your way from Woodies, being just over half way on the Headingley mile (as have always known it) /​Otley run (and I mean in the sense of number of pubs rather than distance wise) and I’ve always thought it was a bit grotty. In the summer there is a great beer garden. Unfortunately, the «garden» part of it that used to be a bowling green is now lots of picnic benches, but each to their own. It really makes me angry about this pub that they don’t allow dogs in. It is a proper dog pub, with a massive outdoors area, but alas no. Hence the loss of a star.
Anyway, my experience of the Oak has usually been upstairs or outdoors and a little bit drunk.
So today when I met up with a couple of friends that were heading off upstairs for the Comedy night, we sat downstairs. In what I must presume is the original part of the pub. All oak panels and rooms within rooms. It was really lovely.
Only two real ales on., but a Leeds pale and an IPA, so not bad.
Dave and Julia got food, that wasn’t my thing (pies and gammon) so much. but they seemed to think was pretty good.
The oak has quite a lot going on (Quiz on Mondays, comedy on Thursdays other stuff that isn’t on their website!), but I must admit that coming in here on a Thursday when no pub crawls coming through was quite refreshing, but also not as amusing as normal. I do like to see random characters walking through an establishment.

I’m an adventurous sort. I like last minute surprises and trying new experiences, and so when the opportunity arose to whisk someone away to the Oak to see Josie Long, I snatched at it. Why’s this adventurous? Well, it was a surprise ticket for my cohort, but for me, a new experience as I’ve not ever really been to see comedy, nor have I seen Josie Long before.
So, you may or may not be aware, but the Oak does comedy. In fact, one of the longest running comedy nights in Leeds. And the upstairs gig room, complete with bar, is a a great and intimate space in which to see some stand up. You’ve to get in quick, as the best seats fill out swiftly, but those who don’t mind standing can arrive at their leisure.
The bar itself is pretty gargantuan, with several entrances, and probably the largest beer garden in Leeds. It’s truly humongous! Perfecr for summer, if you can handle the large groups of students. As for drinks, don’t expect much beyond the standard, although the staff were fab on my visit. I nipped outside to meet said comedian companion and they were more than happy to look after my drinks. Swift to serve and with a smile too.
What else can I say? I’m a fan. Cosy nook-​filled trad style pub, regular quizzes and comedy, and decent bar staff. Perfect! Perhaps more palatable away from Otley run season, but jolly nonetheless.

It is not a place for an old man like me, though, I enjoyed it.

For me the Original Oak is good for one thing and one thing only — a day of drinking in the sun! The massive outdoor area (when it’s fully opened up anyway) is perfect for a day’s relaxing in the sun with a few drinks. And when you start getting hungry, aside from the bog standard pub food, they fire up a bbq as well!
Of course, I say that’s the only real reason to go there because the rest of the time it’s pretty busy as the inside isn’t very big for the numbers you get in there, the drink isn’t great (and not that cheap either) and to be honest I recall the bar staff being pretty slow and not paying attention to who is actually next.
These sound like fairly large cons, but to be honest I still love sitting in the sun there so much I’m willing to only knock off the one star! Hopefully it will remain sunny tomorrow and I’ll be wandering down there.

The Original Oak really is the student hang out in the city. Anybody who is familiar with the Hyde Park or Headingley area will have visited this place for sure.
There’s nothing special about the décor, it’s just a traditional looking pub with plenty of cheap drinks and food — just what students want.
My friends used to hang out here a lot when we went to the university of Leeds. They must sell the most ‘snakebites’ ever as these seem to be the drink of choice among students!
The Original Oak is a staple student pub and probably will be for as long as the business carries on. If you’d like a relaxed, homely place for a few quiet drinks then you won’t got far wrong with the Oak.

If you ask someone to go for a pint or pub lunch in Leeds, all local residence would suggest The Original Oak first.
It is the largest, cheapest and busiest traditional pub in the area with a brilliant reputation. Wine is served daily from as little as 99p for a small glass of Blossom Hill and a pint from £2. Cheap as chips aye!
The menu serves all pub favorites with classics such as fish and chips, ham eggs and chips, sausage and mash and smothered chicken at a tiny weeny price of £2.99. You would think at such a small price the meals would be slightly dodgy. However they scrummy yummy yummy! (I rely on them for dinner at least once during the week!). In addition to the menu The Oak puts on a sunday carvery for £5.99 including a drink.
The décor is what you would expect of a traditional public house however a little larger than most going onto two floors plus an extremely large beer garden (with bbq’s during warmer months!)

The Oak really is the epicentre of the Leeds pre-​clubbing scene. Despite often being classed as a typical hangout for students, the place has an eclectic mix of both locals and students whatever the time of year, as every sort of person gathers in the newly refurbished section upstairs to enjoy a thrifty start to their evening.
Pints of lager for £2 and glasses of wine for 99p are undeniably amongst the main attractions of The Oak, especially on weekends when patrons follow their time at The Oak by heading for city-​centre hotspots, where they can pay upto three times as much for the same drinks. However, the best time to frequent this pub is perhaps during sporting events (especially The Ashes).
Hordes of crowds gather both inside the pub and in the famed beer garden, which usually has huge TV screens installed for special occasions; if the weather’s good, the atmosphere will be electric. This review will not be news to anyone who has lived in Leeds for a few months, even weeks perhaps, but if you’re new to the city and need to make friends, or simply fancy experiencing some witty Northern banter, The Oak is your place — this age-​old public house, truly reflects, more than anywhere else in the city, exactly what Leeds is all about.

Das Oak ist DER Pub in Leeds. Er ist immer einen Besuch wert. Der Pub ist immer gut Besucht und Abends kann es schon mal sein das man vor der Tür stehen bleiben muß weil der Laden überfüllt ist.
Die Stimmung ist immer gut und auf Kontakte braucht man nicht lange zu warten. Das Publikum besteht überwiegend aus jungen Leuten und Studenten.
Im Sommer ist der Biergarten auch immer gut Besucht. Und neben dem Bier und Alé gibt es hier auch sehr guten Wein.
Wenn man in Leeds ist sollte ein Besuch im Oak auf jeden Fall dazu gehören.

I love the Oak, me. It’s dead good. Sometimes the Kaiser Chiefs are in there. Or some Hollyoaks people. Mostly I like the fact that unlike the other people in there, I am not dressed up like a numpty, and I haven’t got ‘Headingley Face’. Also, you can get pink wine by the bottle, om nom.

Insanely popular, massive, studenty pub in Headingly. I can personally recommend coming here on A-​level results day — no just joking!
There is a huge beer garden, so it’s a good old summer venue, where you will definitely meet a lot of randoms.