TEMPORARY HOURS & BUSINESS OPERATIONS

UPDATED 14 SEPTEMBER 2020 

Calling all hoptimists! The Schooner is now fully open.

We’ve made a few changes, some out of necessity (is that hand sanitiser in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?) and others long overdue (say hello to matching furniture, new flooring and 5-speaker sound system!).

The first thing you’ll notice is Rob, Josh or Mike stood by the door dishing out hand sanitiser and ready to guide you around.

If you’re wanting to sit outside for a drink, our open-air ‘corral’ will be open from 2pm on Sunday, Tuesday & Wednesday and from noon Friday & Saturday. Outdoor seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis.

If you’d prefer to sit inside, indoor seating will be available from 5pm on Thursday & Friday,  from 12 noon on Saturday and from 2pm on Sunday.  Tables can be reserved online by using our Table Agent profile, the ‘book now’ button on Facebook, or look for the link at the bottom of our website (max 6 customers per table). Other tables will be left free for walk-ins.

Be aware we have had to reduce our indoor capacity by 50%. No children under 18 will be allowed to sit inside. Dogs must be kept on their leads. The local restrictions announced on July 31st mean that anyone sitting together inside must be from the same household or social bubble. All of this complies with the Rule Of Six.

We will close at 8pm Tuesday & Wednesday, at 9pm Thursday, at 10pm on Friday & Saturday and at 7pm on Sunday. Last orders are a half hour before closing time but to avoid queueing we will not ring the bell.

There’s no access to the fridges, but shop sales & growler take-outs will continue, plus the beer wagon will continue to roll on Friday & Saturday for local deliveries between 4-6pm. Visit our webshop, then either collect your takeaway beer from our doorstep during business hours, or if you live locally and spend a certain amount you can request free delivery. Full terms can be found on our M41 Beer Wagon webshop.

For now we will be closed on Mondays and all events have been put on hold.

All of these arrangements are temporary and are likely to change so please watch for updates on Facebook, Twitter and our website. We’re keen to hear what you think, so please contact us with your suggestions.

Right, those are the opening hours, what else has changed?

Most importantly, please do not come to the bar if you or a member of your household is unwell or awaiting test results.

It is up to all of us to help the NHS with Test & Trace. That means we will be keeping a log of all our customers. Any details we take will be kept secure and not used for marketing. Any records will be destroyed after 21 days.

If you’re outside then you’ll be served on the door. We can only let you in for the loo and only then when there is room inside to queue. If the weather changes, we may not be able to find room for you inside.

If you’ve booked a table or we can find room for you inside, we’ll tell you where to find your table and ask that you all sit down to review the menu. You can place your order by texting the number displayed by each table and collect your order from the hatch at the side of the bar. We’d prefer contactless payments when your drinks are ready to collect from the hatch – don’t forget to bring your empties back to the bar please!

All customers must be seated. You can reserve a table inside for any period between 1 to 4 hours. We will hold table bookings for 15 minutes before releasing the seats to walk-ins. If there are no walk-ins waiting when your table booking expires towards the end of the evening then you’re welcome to carry on using the table.

We have removed several tables and the ones that are left are arranged so that different groups sit back to back. Please don’t rearrange the furniture. Tables and chairs will be sanitised between uses. The maximum group we can seat inside or out is 6 people (when sat indoors this can involve only 1 household/support bubble due to the stricter lockdown restrictions that took effect on July 31st). No under 18s inside at this time please.

We will allow one person at a time upstairs to use the loo. One person at a time can queue at the bottom of the stairs. The downstairs WC will be locked unless there’s an emergency. There’s a detailed cleaning regime in place. Toilets will be sanitised regularly and closed briefly at those times.

We have limited space for queueing outside and we can’t have a crowd gathering out front. If you see a line growing outside then make a note to book a table for another time.

We’re excited to have you back at the bar, it has been a long time coming! We promise to do everything we can to keep you happy and comfortable.

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WELCOME

Welcome to the Prairie Schooner Taphouse, an independent bar and off-licence in Urmston. We’re named after the wagons covered in sailcloth which crossed the American West in pioneer days.

We specialise in real ale from local brewers on our four hand pumps as well as eight craft kegs. We also have a selection of real cider, fine wine, fizz, single malt whisky, small-batch gin, vodka and rum plus old-fashioned soft drinks which are sourced from independent producers as much as possible.

We have a large selection of American, Continental and local beers in our fridges to take away, or you can take a relaxing tipple in our drinking parlour free from loud music and sports TV. See what’s on tap on Twitter or download the RealAleFinder app for your phone.

Find our calendar of events on Facebook for details about our weekly quiz, tutored tastings, live music nights, DJ sessions and Bring Your Own Vinyl.

‘One of Manchester’s Ten Great Beer Shops’ Manchester TimeOut

‘One of Manchester’s Best Booze Shops’

‘One of the best beer selections in the whole of Greater Manchester.

If you’re thirsty – this is the best place to come in Urmston by far’ Manchester’s Finest

‘LocAle Pub of the Year 2016 & 2019’  & a ‘Pub of the Season 2016’ Trafford & Hulme CAMRA

Awarded CAMRA’s LocAle  and ‘Great Beer Found Here’ accreditations

Good Beer Guide 2018/2019/2020

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What we do

Four hand-pulled real ales. Usually local and ever-changing: we often have casks from Blackedge, Brightside, Cloudwater, Dunham Massey, Marble and many other local breweries from the burgeoning Manchester beer scene. You can find out what’s on tap through our updates on Facebook or Twitter.

Eight craft kegs on tap.  You can rely on us to serve Hogan’s draught cider, local IPAs from the likes of Burton Road, Pomona Island, Shindigger etc plus whatever else takes our fancy. We have dedicated fonts for sours and fruity beers, with frequent Continental and American imports too. Outstanding Beers of Salford make a cracking German-style pilsner and Outstanding’s Stout is superb as well (‘better than the black stuff,’ we’ve been told by customers).

Bottled & canned beers from around the world & from around the corner. Although we work direct with as many local producers as possible, we also offer many fine Continental and American beers too like Augustiner, Dry & Bitter, Evil Twin and assorted Trappist brews. These are all refrigerated and ready for you to take home for a 10% discount, or crack open a cool one in our drinking parlour (corkage is included in the price). At last count we have over 150 beers and ciders in our fridges. We welcome special orders plus sell gift vouchers and gift boxes.

Cider, perry & fruit ciders.  We have Hogan’s Ciders on draught and bottles from the likes of Dunkerton and Manchester’s own Moss Cider. All as traditional and natural as possible.

Wine & fizz. A small but choice selection, by the glass or by the bottle. The Argentinian malbec and Marlborough sauvignon blanc are particularly popular.

Whiskies. Only from true independents like Springbank, Kilchoman and Arran, mainly from distilleries we have personally visited ourselves.

Small-batch gin, rum and vodka.  We stock the best gins from many Manchester distilleries (Faith  & Sons, Fenney Street, Manchester, Three Rivers & Zymurgorim). All are served in balloon glasses with Fever-Tree tonic as standard. Faith & Sons vodka, an aged white rum and Admiral J’s spiced rum round out our spirits selection. We sell all our spirits by the bottle to take home, POA. We sell all our wines and spirits by the bottle too, so if there’s anything on the menu you particularly like we can send you home with a bottle at our off-licence price or specially order a case for you at a 10% discount.

Gluten-free and low-alcohol beers. From Brew Dog, Jever and Estrella.

Soft drinks. We stock fizzy drinks by Fairtrade & organic producer Karma along with pure fruit juices, ginger ale, sugarfree cordials and sparkling spring water.

Nibbles. Traditional bar snacks including Fiddler’s crisps from Lancashire and as well as luxury mixed nuts, bombay mix  and sweets.

Free Wi-Fi.

Our ‘meet the brewer/distiller’ nights, brewery takeovers and other events are announced on Facebook and Twitter.

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What’s on

COVID-19 ANNOUNCEMENT

All events at the bar are cancelled until further notice.

Let’s Get Quizzical on Tuesdays with quizmaster Rob. Prizes for the teams with the highest and lowest scores, plus everyone has a chance to win the rolling cash jackpot. £1 per person entry, maximum six players per team please.  Between 8-10pm.

Every First Wednesday: Urmston Brew Club.

Every Second Wednesday: Board game night (18+) with Dale.

Thirsty Thursdays. Follow us on Facebook or Twitter to hear about live music, street food or tasting events, often with brewers or distillers on hand.

Bring Your Own Vinyl on 2nd and 4th Thursdays, hosted by Dave Garland of Music For The Soul. Bring a record to share on our turntable, or take your pick from Dave’s selection. Theme nights are announced on Twitter, but you’re welcome to bring any music you want to share.

DJ nights. TBA

Meet the brewer/tap takeovers most recently featuring Cloudwater, Magic Rock and Track.

We’re members of the Urmston Partnership and every so often you’ll find us selling bottles around the corner in Eden Square alongside other food & drink suppliers.

We also take bottles and cans to Urmston’s Artisan Market on the first Saturday of every month.

Do you belong to a book club or other group looking for somewhere to meet? Planning a birthday or other celebration? Contact us in order to reserve tables for group bookings. We are no longer able to hire out the entire premises.

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Where

We’re at 33 Flixton Road (on Urmston’s high street) between 72 Tattoo and Urmston Carpets. We hope all of our customers will walk, cycle or take public transport to reach us. Plan your journey using the travel tools at Transport for Greater Manchester.

We are a few doors down from Urmston train station which is on the stopping service that links Manchester Oxford Road & Deansgate stations with Liverpool Lime Street. To reach us by train from Manchester Piccadilly, you’ll need to take a connecting train to Oxford Road station.

Buses on routes 15, 22, 23, 245, 255, 268, 276 and 278 all stop nearby.

We have no car parking spaces at our premises. The private lane to the side needs to be left clear for deliveries and our neighbours, so please don’t pull in or try to park behind our building. On-street parking along Flixton Road is limited to 2 hours until 6pm Monday-Saturday. There is a large multi-storey car park behind the Eden Square Sainsbury’s off Croft Bank’s Road which offers three hours of free parking during the day and is free after 6pm.

Accessibility. There is one 6-inch step into our premises (no handrail). We have a portable ramp we can bring out for wheelchair users. There is a fully accessible WC on the ground floor.

To get in touch, send an email using the form below. Be prepared to dig out our reply from your spam folder.

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Press

We’ve had a few mentions by Manchester’s Finest in print and online, praising us for both our bar element and burgeoning bottle shelves. They rate us as one of Manchester’s Best Booze Shops and also say ‘If you’re thirsty – this is the best place to come in Urmston by far.’ We’ve been named one of TimeOut’s Ten Great Manchester Beer Shops.

After hosting a meeting of the local Trafford & Hulme CAMRA branch, we were featured in the December 2015 edition of the Opening Times.

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The local Trafford & Hulme branch of CAMRA voted us runner-up best newcomer for 2015.

We were mentioned by Tony Naylor in his blog for The Guardian in July 2015 in an assessment of pubs that don’t do food. He pointed out how Manchester in particular has seen “a remarkable recent growth in suburban bars that exclusively specialise in great beer.” His verdict on the micropub trend? “Stock high-quality, unusual drinks and that, in itself, can turn a pub into a destination.”

Tony Naylor also mentioned us in his 2015 piece for Olive Magazine titled Why We Love Craft Beer, in which he encouraged readers to ‘treasure the distinctive atmosphere of food-free bars…try Urmston’s Prairie Schooner.’

We’ve also been featured on the Urmston Independents blog and have been profiled by the Manchester Evening News along with several other independent businesses in the neighbourhood.

Here’s our press release for the September 2014 edition of the local CAMRA Opening Times.

Another preview piece appeared in Manchester Confidential in October 2014, again before we opened and still had a prototype of our logo floating around on the interwebs.

For all the media coverage, we’re most interested in hearing what our customers have to say which is why we’re on TripAdvisor. We welcome your reviews there and on Facebook as well, along with the Micropub Association, Beer In The Evening and Pubs Galore.