Butts Close

You'll find this place buzzing at virtually any hour – and we mean any hour, given they never actually close. The sort of pub where you'll bump into everyone from early-morning dog walkers nursing a coffee to late-night revellers who've made questionable life choices. The beer's decent, the atmosphere's properly unpretentious, and the staff seem genuinely unfazed by whatever walks through the door. It's not trying to be anything fancy – just a reliable local that happens to cater to Hitchin's more nocturnal tendencies. The location on Bedford Road makes it a natural gathering spot, and the fact you can rock up at 3am on a Tuesday speaks to a certain commitment to hospitality that's rare these days.