Augustus John

This doesn’t look like a student pub. it is too old fashioned really. The interior looks to me like a pub designed in the 80s, but I could be wrong. Booths like they have always look a bit scruffy and dated but they are usually comfortable places to be seated.
It’s all beers, ciders and pizza. Only had time for one of them and you can guess which. A good selection of ales from which I picked a winner, Liverpool Organic Cascade. Really nice.

beer is top notch here, always something new to try and good service. very studenty feel although that makes sense being in the centre of campus. a regular night starter for our uni society.
great during the day too, but atmosphere definitely related to point during term!
always leave wanting more ale, but only really during term

The Augustus John, or the AJ as it is known, is situated on the outskirts of the city centre within the Liverpool University Campus. It isn’t like your usual student bar being rather old fashioned inside rather than modern and trendy looking.
The inside is quite dark and shabby. The AJ is long overdue a refurb. But at the same time this makes it quite comfortable compared to the brighter and more clinical looking bars in the area.
The clientele is a mix of students and middle aged locals, all of whom seem at ease and are friendly. The bar is large and serves a good range of beers, spirits, wine, alcopops, soft drinks, ciders and shots. The prices are inexpensive and they often have offers on various items.
There is an area with pool tables but this is usually pretty busy and can be difficult to get a game. They also have an outside area with picnic tables which is useful during the summer.
The AJ is a good place to start an evening out and then wander down into the city centre. It isn’t anything special but its a decent place for a quiet drink or 2.

There’s something strangely uncomfortable about the Augustus John, like it’s somehow ever so slightly itchy. Maybe it’s the rubbish layout, gloomy interior or the metal-​faced, black-​clothed customers. Or maybe it’s just because I’m witheringly bitter about no longer being a member of the university and if I fancied an afternoon pint here now I’d have to walk across yards and yards of student-​populated concrete. The horror.
The AJ is a decent enough, if shabby, place to stop over for a few drinks but I wouldn’t want to stay there a whole night. Especially not now. My jealousy would probably dissolve me from the inside-​out.

Located in the midst of University of Liverpool’s student district, is the Augustus John pub (or AJ’s otherwise known). This is usually a place where students come to let off a bit of steam after a hard days work; it is very convenient as meet up area too.
There are a few benches outdoors which is ideal for group meetings and a couple of pints thoough indoors can be a bit glum. It has a very social aspect about it. There is always the chance of bumping into someone you know, being located in a communal atmosphere it is. A game of pool also is popular amongst students and normally sets the vibe.
I shared several times with friends at the AJ, especially during the post-​exam period. It brought back many memories and charm.

The Augustus John can sometimes appear quite unappealing due to it’s tired exterior and dark interior. However once you scratch through this coarse outer shell, the Augustus john or ‘AJ’ as it is locally know is a great hangout for students. It’s location on the campus of Liverpool University makes it a fantastic alternative to the somewhat over priced and soulless Saro Wiwa bar in the University Guild.
The décor inside leaves something to be desired, but this is easily looked over when you see the wide range of draught beers and bottles on offer. This pub is primarily aimed at beer drinkers and has a good selection of ales with guest ales often in residence.
The AJ is certainly not the place to bring a date, instead take a few mates for a pint and a game of pool. When the weather is good the ample outdoor seating spaces are great for basking in the sun in between lectures. The bar staff aren’t the friendliest I’ve ever met but the low priced drinks more than compensate for this.

What a crowd the AJ draws in, usually crammed with students and slightly more oddly with older rockers and Goths (cue long black leather coats in the height of summer), it’s a place where the term ‘characters’ certainly applies.
More like a working mans social club than your average pub it’s got a worn down-​I don’t give a damn– drink your cheap drinks and like ‘em! charm about it. Slap bang in the centre of the student campus it’s somewhere I’ve spent many a pre-​library pint and it’s the little beacon of light at the end of a long slog in lectures.
Pretty much, the AJ is like home, if your home is a quirky siren of Dragonforce and cheesy pop rock power ballads. Always friendly, and most importantly, always well stocked, it’s the kind of pub where you can sit off on the benches outside in the sun and drink away your last exams sorrows with all your mates and plan the inevitable bar crawl across town.

Good old AJs. I’ve spent many an hour here, both in and out of uni. However, my most memorable occasion was a few years ago when I was the producer of Cinderella, a Christmas panto that we were putting on at the uni. Due to high demand, we had deemed it sensible to have a matinée performance on the Saturday, something that had never been done before. As most people know, the university tends not to be open over the weekend, but we had told the Guild that we were having a show and therefore could everything be opened up for us.
The one problem being that whoever had spoken to the staff had foolishly assumed that by saying the show was at 2:30pm, they would realise that we would need to be in and warming up by 12:30pm. Alas, no such luck. After waiting outside in the cold and calling every number available and banging on the doors, we had no choice but to hustle the cast into AJs and use that as our warm up area. And they were very good natured about it. Alcohol and fraught nerves do not mix well, especially when trying to organise pantomime horses and dames in the middle of a pub.
Suffice to say it all worked out and although the show got off to a late start the kids loved it and that was the main thing. And we were all so pissed at this point that we didn’t really care…
AJs is also good in the summer for the use of the several picnic tables outside, where you can take advantage of what little sun we have and wait for mates to finish exams. Typical old fashioned pub interior and usual prices for a student-​influenced pub, this is a great place to waste time when you’re meant to be in uni!

This is an excellent pub if you’re not bothered about atmosphere! There is none.
The beer, however, is superb and they know how to serve it. We visited during the Liverpool Beer Festival at the nearby Cathedral Crypt/​
Beer was excellent and a good selection. Spoiled by someone on his way in who fell and pushed over most of a table of beer, but can’t blame the venue for that!
Update, Feb 2012
Finally got to visit during daytime and it was a revelation. The pub was still full of mainly students, but was extremely welcoming and a very pleasant experience. There was a wonderful choice of seven or eight real ales on the handpumps plus two ciders. On asking, I found that there were another five or six ciders and perries available! No wonder this has just won the CAMRA Liverpool area Cider Pub of the Year for 2011.
The only problem I have found with this pub was when we got in a taxi from Lime Street and I had to direct the taxi driver as he didn’t know where it was!