De Poshoorn — Restaurant in Maastricht

In the UK, pubs are usually called 'locals' they're usually places that can be quite insular and the patrons are usually people who know each other or have been going there for years. Especially in smaller towns and cities. Going in such places, even for fellow Brits requires a healthy dose of caution. Sometimes the wrong thing being said or looking at the wrong person can lead to unhealthy outcomes.

So, it was with this trepidation I entered De Poshoorn, it wasn't my 'local' and it wasn't even my country so I had no idea what to expect. What I got was great service and a decent pint, it didn't take long to start to relax and it was there and then I decided to return the next night. I am not a pub regular for the reasons stated above but then I was in another country so decided this would be as good a way to spend my nights as any.

The next night I went in and it was packed! Packed full of Dutch people so the vibe was loud and friendly and no trouble! This might sound a strange thing to say if you're not British but a pub packed full of drunk Brits will always have an edge in the air, that it might 'kick off' at any moment for any reason but when I looked around, it just looked like a bunch of jolly people having a great time so I started to relax. I was sat next to an American chap who turned out to be rather friendly and agreeable and I just got drunk! For the first time since I was in the army and that was a long time ago.

The two times I went into the bathroom, I came out and saw two ladies from the bar staff and I went to them both times 'hiiiiiiiiiiii' as I gave them a big wave and they both looked delighted and waved to me back happily. It was a big difference from when I came in with my 'resting face' to that point in the evening where I was positively steaming and had my 'happy and relaxed' face on.

It was around that point of the evening my new American friend and I were debating if the locals could tell if we were British or American, he didn't think so whereas I said they could. Somehow, I asked the head barman the question and managed to sound sober and he said that they could easily tell I was British and my friend was American.

'That's down to their superior education system' I hiccupped 'well, superior to ours anyway' I said as we clinked our glasses to all the nuns who beaten us during our days in our respective Catholic schools.

I staggered home happy. Thankfully, where I staggered home to wasn't that far away but I had a great night in discovering the true meaning of cultural...

We stayed here for one night whilst visiting Andre Reiu. We were at the top of the hotel which we had to climb about 6 flights of stairs, whilst carrying our own luggage up the stairs. Didn't feel very safe as they were very steep and narrow and in our golden years.||Albeit, the room was large, with 2 single and 1 double bed with a settee and chair and large t.v. The bathroom was clean and we had plenty of towel etc as they were in the cupboard (Obviously, these were left there so staff did not have to keep going up and down stairs.||||Although, they offer free wifi we had to go back down into the bar to get a good signal but then we had to climb back up the stairs yet again, made us puff and pant, would not be good if you had young children.||Breakfast in the morning was not served until 9 am, however, we had use the side door and enter the pub through the front door. We explained that we had a train to get at 9.49 am. Twenty mins later they brought out the breakfast, it consisted of a small pot of scrambled egg, a bread roll, croissant and a slice of brown bread each and then a small pot of jam and a small pot of granola between the two of us with a large pot of Fro-marge plus tea/coffee and a small glass of orange. This cost us 11.50 euros each. You would be better off going up to Subway of to the bakers up the road. Personally a lot of bread does not agree with me and finished up taking most of it with us as we did not have time to eat it in the time. Not sure why they took so long in serving this up. It is not rocket science...

We stayed here for one night whilst visiting Andre Reiu. We were at the top of the hotel which we had to climb about 6 flights of stairs, whilst carrying our own luggage up the stairs. Didn't feel very safe as they were very steep and narrow and in our golden years.||Albeit, the room was large, with 2 single and 1 double bed with a settee and chair and large t.v. The bathroom was clean and we had plenty of towel etc as they were in the cupboard (Obviously, these were left there so staff did not have to keep going up and down stairs.||||Although, they offer free wifi we had to go back down into the bar to get a good signal but then we had to climb back up the stairs yet again, made us puff and pant, would not be good if you had young children.||Breakfast in the morning was not served until 9 am, however, we had use the side door and enter the pub through the front door. We explained that we had a train to get at 9.49 am. Twenty mins later they brought out the breakfast, it consisted of a small pot of scrambled egg, a bread roll, croissant and a slice of brown bread each and then a small pot of jam and a small pot of granola between the two of us with a large pot of Fro-marge plus tea/coffee and a small glass of orange. This cost us 11.50 euros each. You would be better off going up to Subway of to the bakers up the road. Personally a lot of bread does not agree with me and finished up taking most of it with us as we did not have time to eat it in the time. Not sure why they took so long in serving this up. It is not rocket science...