Pub review: The Draughtsman at Doncaster station is a little gem

There has been a much-appreciated resurgence and revitalisation of old refreshment facilities at Yorkshire stations in the last decade, with neglected rooms rediscovered and sensitively refurbished and then given a whole new sense of purpose. Several sleeping beauties have been given the kiss of life, Harrogate, Sheffield and York among them, and their little sister in Doncaster. They all have one thing in common – they are all splendid architectural gems. And here, a room that somehow survived the station’s makeover back in the Thirties gleams like a good deed in a naughty world. It’s all green and cream tiles, a place which – probably – functioned as a first class or ladies’ waiting room. There’s an L-shaped small bar, a little nook opposite, with a couple of tables, and several ledges across the way, where you can sit on stools, and plug in your laptop or recharge your phone. That’s it. You can just about swing a cat. This isn’t cramped, its cosy, the size of a compact parlour. There is also a dedicated seating area outside.