Issue date: 2/4/10 Section: Arts and Culture

Paupers boasts 16 brews, and plenty of old-English kitsch Photo: Joshua Freedman

Next to dogs, pubs could be classified as man's (and woman's) best friend. If you find the right one, a pub is friendly, dependable and always around, be it good times or bad.

If you're like me, once you stumble upon a pub that is adequate, you stick with it. If the staff turn up their noses when I'm hauling along library books, it's off the list. So are those establishments that charge by the pint as though we're all working on Bay Street. Beyond that, the criteria are pretty lax. Within walking distance is a perk, as is a towering plate of nachos.

But lately, my old-faithfuls are beginning to wear thin. When out-of-town friends visited recently, I realized just how narrow my pub choices had become. I needed to get back in the saddle, so to speak. Since then, I've started frequenting some new haunts - new to me, at least - around the city.

Recently, I stopped by Paupers Pub, a century-old building turned three-floor watering hole on the corner of Bloor and Lippincott. Once a CIBC branch, the building now embraces all that is old-English kitsch, from the stamped tin ceiling to the ornate wall-to-wall carpeting. There were even flower-patterned lamp shades over every table; if I didn't know any better, I'd say a few grannies handled the décor.

When it came to the main event of the evening, the taste testing, Paupers delivered a solid performance. Thursday night included cocktail deals, with amaretto sours and cape cods going for $3.50 apiece. In terms of beer, Paupers has 16 to choose from, and domestic draught like Moosehead and Wellington are $5 a pint.

Paupers is part of the Village Manor Family, which also includes The Madison further east on Bloor. The sister pubs share similar menus. Highlights at Paupers include sliders for $7, breaded pickles for $6 and the 'Annex Combo' for $25. The Supreme Nachos came loaded with veggies and cheese, but rang in rather high at $14.

Like The Maddy, Paupers channels a cozy atmosphere, but with fewer frat t-shirts and more cardigans sitting around the bar. But if you're with a larger group, the setting is a little too intimate. Even with only four around the table, the booth was cramped. Distance is also an issue; if you're venturing from campus, it's not the place to be stumbling home from in frigid temperatures.

Stop by Paupers for a good pint with good friends, but keep the more raucous nights on Bloor for Dance Cave and the like. - Meghan Lawson

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