13th January 2026
The vote for the Beard Friendly Pub of the Year 2026 is now open. The list is below, but other suggestions are welcome including pubs, bars, taps and bottleshops
Vote by responding to this post either below the line or via DM or Messenger. There is no vote on Twitter/X this year.
Current leaders are the Shirkers Rest & Tom’s Tap & Brew
Beard Friendly Pubs of the Year
Cock Tavern, Hackney
Burton Bridge Inn, Burton
Pop’n’Hops, Cardiff
Shirkers Rest, South London
The Pocket, Islington
Tom’s Tap, Crewe
Pressure Drop Tap, Tottenham
Kings Head, Bristol
Beard Friendly Pub of the Year refocused for 2026
The Beard Liberation Front, the informal network of beard wearers, has said that the annual Beard Friendly Pub of the Year has been refocused for 2026.
Key Points
1 The vote remains about encouraging people to visit their local pub, bar or tap during January. While it notes Dry January, there are in 2026 plenty of low and no alcohol options available.
2 While the focus is on beards, in 2026 most pubs and bars at least tolerate beards. We aim to find hostelries that are welcoming to all, providing a friendly, ‘pub is the hub’ environment or what Donald Trump would call ‘Woke’
3 There will be no vote on Twitter. The platform is not a suitable location for the Beard Friendly Pub of the Year vote. People will be asked to respond on Blue Sky and Facebook
4 There will be two separate votes covering London, and the rest of the UK with separate winners for both categories
5 The list that we ask people to vote on is carefully selected but very far from exhaustive, and other suggestions are most welcome provided they broadly fulfil the criteria above.
6 Voting open until the 14th January. The winners will be announced on 15th January
Kmflett's Blog 
Tom’s Tap, Crewe