please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Unassuming one-room backstreet pub which looks like it hasn't changed since the 1980s. Neither has the piped music although it was good to hear The Mission's "Tower of Strength" again! Regular live jazz/blues. 15+ ciders are the main attraction here as the beer wasn't anything special (at least when I visited on Thursday). I tried the Theakston's Christmas Ale for £3.50 a pint; also on sale were St Austell's Proper Job & Cornish Best, Bath's Gem and Box Steam's Tunnel Vision. I might be out on a limb here but it doesn't seem quite deserving of its Top 20 place on BITE to me.
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All the recent reviews have said it all. Marvellous place for the cider drinkers amongst us. Ale choice was a bit ordinary but the Piston Broke I had was in excellent condition.
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A great range of ales and ciders served well. Around 15 ciders on offer together with 2 or 3 Real Ales. Friendly helpful landlord. . . and good ale . . . mmm did I mention the good ale?
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The Orchard was the first stop on a crawl of Bristol. It's a backstreet boozer located on a side street on Spike Island, near to the SS Great Britain and just a short ferry ride away from Hotwells and Clifton. A number of ales are served on gravity - Prescott Chequered Flag, Bath Gem, Box Steam Piston Broke, Otter Bitter & St Austell Tribute & Proper Job. But the real draw are the ciders and perries. Some are on handpull. But the majority are fetched directly from the cellar. There is a blackboard at the side of the bar displaying the full list, which comprised Westons Old Rosie, Thatchers Traditional & Cheddar Valley, Orchards Cider, Cornish Orchards Mulled Cider, Severn Cider Hendre Huffcap Perry, Dry Cider & Sweet Cider, Hecks Yarlington Mill & Blakeney Red Perry, Hancocks Dry & Sweet, Handmade Fire Starter & Springtime Surprise, Thistly Cross Whisky Cask, Wessex Medium & Dry, Beard And Sabre Cider, Haywood Farm Dry & Sweet, Gloucestershire Chisel Jersey, Dorset Nectar Medium, New Forest Dry & Sweet, Ham Hill Medium, Countryman Medium & Ventons Dry. With a long crawl ahead, I only had the chance to try two. But I'm sure I'll be back one day to get through some more. The bar itself is fairly simple. It is a single room, with a couple of tables out the front. It is clearly a music pub too. The landlord and barmaid were friendly and knowledgeable. A number of bar snacks are served, such as Scotch Eggs, which were very nice. Situated on a bit of a limb, being away from the main Bristol pub areas. But well worth seeking out.
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Superb spot...always my pilgrimage on a visit to Bristol...over 20 ciders and a good range of snacks. Get the feeling they don't want too many people to know about the place!
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A great harbourside pub near to S.S. Great Britain. The Orchard does good lunches, ales and a fantastic selection of ciders and Perrys. Great atmosphere and staff. Well worth finding!
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Great pub, I love my beer but always go for the cider at the Orchard. Love the black rat and the old Rosie.. Cider with a pork pie is a good combination. Great back street pub near to the ss great Britain..
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Visited this week and was somewhat disappointed with the prices. I was informed by more regular customers that the prices have escalated in the last 12 months several times to the point that some people have decided to decant to other nearby hostelries.
The cider selection remains the same, but paying �2.90 for rough cider like Black Rat is a bit steep, especially when the nearby competition is a lot cheaper. The CAMRA award the Orchard won was a great achievement, but can they do it again?
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Brilliant - nuff said!
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What a fantastic little pub! Found by accident looking for some parking for the football. Very welcoming locals willing to give their recommendations on the best ciders and lovely cornish pasties!
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@mark555
End of the day Mark this does happen in all pubs, unless it is tasted each day by staff. It's happened to me a couple of times but don't just drink it, take it back and politely tell them it's turned. They will be more than happy to change it for another cider and take the bad one off.
Done this several times myself here and never, ever had a problem .... funnily enough it usually seems to be Rich's Dry which is my usual favourite but I do notice when I buy it myself direct from Rich's, Ben Crossman, Roger Wilkins it never seems to keep as long as Thatchers so just one of those things with cider unfortunately. Hey-Ho. :-)
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@Cliftonclive
Agree, dry cider is very much an acquired taste. I'm not an expert but I know my ciders.
The day after drinking the poor Rich's Farmhouse here, I drank it again at Bristol Cider Shop and it was chalk and cheese. Brilliant - had to buy 4 pint take-away.
So I stand by my comments that, despite everything else being v.good, The Orchard were serving some out-of-condition ciders. It was February so throughput may have been slow.
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The best cider pub in Bristol by a long way with a very large choice.
All of the ciders i tried were very good , that included Parsons choice.
I Think cider , especially dry is an acquired taste so , whilst there is nothing wrong with it.It may not suit everyone's palette.
Beer range is better than a lot of pubs , and although I did not try it on this visit ,quality has always been good in the past.
Food is the sort of food , choice, and quality that a pub should sell.
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Found The Orchard by chance on a walk around the docks.........
choice of real ales check
choice of real ciders check
welcoming check
Pies and pasties not microwaved check
...Selection of baguettes check
Proper non Brake bros menu check
Live music check
Quality background music that you didn't have to shout over check
Open fire check
Dogs welcomed check
No kids check
Whatmore could I ask? Longer visit!!
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Eh no.
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AEM has returned
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How to comment on this landmark without generating hate-mail...
It does look naff from the outside, but is most certainly clean, warm and friendly on the inside.
It is Cider Heaven. And the pasty's are brilliant.
The booze was as follows...
Gwatkins Perry. Bloody marvelous. Amongst the best I've ever drunk.
Rich's Farmhouse. This was difficult. The polypin on today was tart and sour. Not undrinkable by any means, but on the sour side.
Wilkins. Sadly, the same as above. A bit sour.
Tricky (medium). Stunning! Really lovely cider, server in perfect condition.
This is not a pub you will ever just happen to walk past. But it is a pub you should make a point of visiting.
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The Orchard looks a bit naff from the outside but is clean, warm and friendly even with it's naff decor in this single rectangular room pub.
Thatcher's Chedar Valley, trad and Black Rat on handpull plus Sheppys and Thatch gold on keg cider plus Pride, Otter, Bellringer and Bath Ales Festivity were available on my visit in the main room. However the revelation was that they had 17 (yes 17) further different polypins of cider that were avaliable from pollypins they draw off in a chilled cellar room behind the bar!
The pub was quite busy on my visit on the 27 Dec 2010 (20 plus in).
Filled rolls excellent. Selling lots of pasties but can't vouch for these!
As it is a bit dark it can be an intimidating walk from the Cottage at night for those that brave the harbour path! (ish!)
7/10 (10/10 for the choice)
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This was was my first visit to this little pub which is just round the back of the SS Great Britain. I always like pubs which have a couple of good beers; daily newspapers; local chat and fresh rolls at the bar. I had a pint of perry which,whilst good,probably did me for the rest of the day!! I would imagine that this place once belonged to a major brewer so it just goes to show what can be done when it is becomes a proper pub again!!
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Although it's not that easy to get to, it's still worth a visit by 500 Bus or the harbour Ferry, especially during the day. Good selection of food, Beer and needless to say, Cider.
Only negative side to this place can be on a Saturday when Bristol City FC are playing at home cos' it's rammed full of City Fans on their way to the match.
My workmate lives nearby and says it can get a bit rowdy on an evening. Perhaps this is why there's a notice across the road asking patrons not to sit on the wall drinking?
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First time i've visited this little place,and although being impressed with the cider selection which was immense the ale choice left somethin to be desired,friendly enough service though and a reasonable enough pint of Otter,6/10
P.S. Not quite sure if the street name requires an extra "g" between the n and the o ............:-s
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Although not in the GBG, we found this by accident after visiting Brunel's big ship. Very good welcome, and the Bath beers were on form (including Rare Hare which is rare here!) Interesting food menu reasonably priced including rabbit stew in cider!!
Places like this make me wish I drank cider but I daren't...last time I did I bought my wife an expensive necklace!! (See Forresters Arms, Dunster!)
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We paid a quick visit after leaving the SS Great Britain and only had time for the the one pint each. Fanatastic small pub, great beer, knowledgable and friendly chap serving. Just a shame we couldn't stay for longer....
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Still as good as ever, nothing's changed since winning CAMRA National Cider Pub 2009 at all which is nice.
Some nice guest ales of late too inc Wickwar Station Porter which was in perfect condition and oiled the innards nicely.
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Excellent, friendly little pub. Heaven for cider drinkers, but also caters for ale drinkers like me with 3 beers from Bath Ales etc. Good value comfort food. Essential if you're visiting the SS Gt Britain. This is Wallace & Gromit's local. 10/10 for the pub and 10/10 for the cider/beer.
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Our best pub find of the year!. With over twenty ciders plus Otter Amber and many other decent beers all in one place what could possibly go wrong!.Left a happy bunny, they mailed my liver back later!. Great food too. Never did find the SS Great Britain which is close by I'm told , come to that could'nt find the docks either! Who cares.. the pub is entirely worth the trip! Will definitely visit again soon..if I'm ever allowed out again that is!
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Otter, Butcombe Brunel, Arbor Slumberjack (6.9%), plus ciders galore! Three on handpump plus 19 (nineteen!) on gravity, incl perries. Plain square bar area, tiled floor, practical rather than architecturally attractive, but friendly service, and most tolerant of the inauguration of a friend�s one-week old into Briz�s hop & apple (&pear!) society � welcome to the world Little Fish!
Some well-priced stuff to soak up those dangerous abvs � pasty �2.50, bangers & mash �4.50, mutton broth �3.50.
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Gotta be a "10" rating for this place. Good atmosphere, clean, tidy, friendly staff, nice cider, perry and beer too. The food is excellent also.
Shame I don't live nearer, as I would be in here seven days a week, instead of using the place on days off and on the way home from work.
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Well with over 20 Ciders to choose from where could you go wrong.... If you don't know your ciders...very wrong.
I absolutely loved the atmosphere of this city pub (tucked away from the thronging crowds) but scored it as 9 because a bit of early guidance on the Cider would have scored it a 10.
Cheap food too.
Very interesting local clients, sometimes a bit rowdy, but fun.
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Yes really impressed with choice of beers , cotleigh buzzard , Butcombe Brunel , gem , otter amber , now worth going out of your way 4
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Very busy on a recent Monday night visit, with no room in the pub, or the beer "garden" at the front so several people were spilled out on to the pavement. That may have been due to the Irish band that were on, I wouldn't imagine it's usually so busy at the begiining of the week.
Good choice of ciders as others have said. I noted Happy Daze, Thatcher's Gold, Natch, Thatcher's Traditional, Cheddar Valley, Black Rat and Mendip Magic but I'm sure there were others.
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Enjoyed our visit here mid week for the real ales. Both Otter Amber and Cottage Goldrush in good condition. The food was great and ever so reasonably priced. Chicken curry with rice and naan for �3.50 and it was a good plateful.
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Called in here on a weekday afternoon and again on Friday lunchtime. Nice to find a pub that's clean and tidy and in the case of Friday, nice and busy too.
Good choice of cider as well as a couple of real ales on as well. Food selection is good too, with specials and various other daily offerings.
On the down side, and I guess because we visited during the working week, parking was a bit tight to say the least, but still worth the visit!
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Hopback Summer Lightning seems to be a permanent fixture at the bar these day's so well worth a visit if that wonderful brew is to your taste and when I tried it was in perfect condition. Cider list seems to be getting ever longer and more varied - if you count the sweet/medium/dry variations of each type on sale why it must be 25+ now on tap !!!
Also one thing I didn't comment on (and don't usually because pubs are for drinking mainly) is the food here, it's got better and better in recent months and is cheap in price no-nonsense pub grub that compliments a cider nicely. For me, one of the best pubs in Bristol and one that remains true to the traditions of the good old British boozer.
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Friendly landlord, three ales - Otter Head, Bath Ales Gem and Cottage SS Great Britain, the best thing about this pub is the choice of 18 (Yes Eighteen!) ciders.
MrKiA - 12 Jul 2009 17:41 |
I agree that this place isn't really worth coming out of your way for unless it's cider your after. 2 ales on, with the Otter in tip top condition. Seemed friendly enough to us non-locals. Just OK really.
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smallish pub , with nice interior , tables outside , as said before plenty of cider to choose from , bar staff friendly , 3 ales ,gem, otter ,cut'nblaster were the latter two were fine , not unfriendly but customers odd cross section of people tra la la's ,and the oi polloi , not enough choice of Ale to make me go out of my way to go here , but that said I can understand why you'd like it if your an Applehead . 7/10
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Called in over Christmas due to the GBG entry and BITE recommendations and was pretty pleased.
Pub itself feels like a pretty basic 'no frills' affair - it's designed for drinking!
Lots of cider on offer (with advice offered if you ask!) and also some real ale, 3 I think including a rather nice Wickwar brew of which I forget the name - blame the two ciders I had beforehand.
It was pretty quiet when I went in but so were a lot of the pubs that day over Christmas - I'd like to visit again on a sunny afternoon.
For now, I'd certainly recommend if you like cider and ale!
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Usually "13" ciders on these day's a_e_m, they must have had a rush on that day. :-)
Far better of late, menu vastly improved too as well as the beer/cider range since Hugh was moved onwards from the helm here. Champion CAMRA Winter brew Wickwar Station Porter has been a constant regular of late too, yum-yum!
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Seems the previous landlord has moved on but the place hasn't diminished. Now 8 ciders and 4 ales(wickwar right flanker,Bath festival gem,Bristol beer factory Red) with the Red good but rather cold. Barmaid a bit "Bristolian" and friendlier to the locals but reasonably welcoming and efficient. Still worth the ferry or No. 500 bus ride.
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Visited last month and enjoyed it enough to return while on holiday here over Cheristmas and New Year. Enjoyed Blindmans Aardmans Modelmaker which seemed to be on every time I came in. Friendly local feel to the place. Lovely sarnies.
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Now back in the 2009 Good Beer Guide and deservedly so.
Some interesting guest ales on of late too with the excellent Pilton Pop being on in my recent visit.
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black rat dangerously easy drinking!! really good traditional english boozer hidden away..excellent!
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Now 3 regular *real* ciders in Thatchers:- Trad, Cheddar Valley & Black Rat + the usual changing guest cider. With Trad @ �2 a pint surely the best priced cider in the central Bristol area?
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Surprised to see no one else has reviwed since I did,a brief recent visit found only 2 ales,Bath Gem and excellent Bath Dark Hare. Most punters were on cider (it was a hot day),both real and fizzy.
A good welcome again from shaved head barman and pleasant regulars. Place tidy. Rating unchanged.
I URGE YOU TO VISIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Visited on a Friday teatime and found this neat and tidy pub healthily full,indeed I don't think there was a seat vacant. Propped meself by the bar to find Bath Gem,2 Castles Witches Brew and Wychwood Hobgoblin on and all selling well for �2.40 a pt,20p off between 5 and 7. Box Steam Brewery scheduled to be next on,an old ale called "Dark and Handsome" at 4.7% for CAMRA old ales month. 3 scrumpys available all around the �2 mark. Filled rolls and hot pies available. Spotless bogs.
Pleasant landlord and staff. Friendly regulars,especially Simon with the beard and wearing the jumper-Simon thinks real ale should lose its stereotype of being associated with men with beards and wearing jumpers!!! CLASSIC!
Well worth the hike. Little to fault on my visit.
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@ Bob_Sherunkle
Can confirm that pub is now open all day and no longer closes @ 3:00 pm. HTH.
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Had planned to visit the SS Great Britain; was so disgusted at the entrance fee (�10.50!!!) that I decided to go for a pint instead. Happened upon this smashing traditional boozer and was instantly impressed with the range of proper ciders and ales and the friendliness of the staff. Also liked the fact that there was no big screen telly on despite it being the day of the England/Australia match (why can't more pubs just dig out their old portable for special occasions instead of allowing those nasty great screens to dominate?) An added bonus was folk dancing performed by ladies in sensible shoes: very entertaining!
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Can't disagree more with the last two comments, but if you're planning a special trip out to it then may be worth a bit of planning as I believe that they close at 3 p.m. some days. (Please correct me if I'm wrong as I don't want to do the place a disservice!)
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Like you TWG I keep forgetting this hidden gem and every time I return I wonder why. Usually 3-4 ciders on draught in fact and now including one guest cider. Recent ciders have been Old Rosie, Hecks Kingston Black and champion cider of Britain 2007 Janet's Jungle Juice. And unlike the stupid Apple cider barge around the corner that caters for yuppies and twits @ almost �3 a pint all the ciders here are around the �2 ish mark - superb!
Beer is always in good condition too and the food is very cheap and very good, superb range of sandwiches too. I'm determined never to forget this pub again and as it's a nice sunny day today ... why not I ask myself.
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This is somewhere that is easily overlooked, and I confess that having never managed to get to it when I lived in Bristol 12-9 years ago, the Good Beer Guide finally persuaded me last weekend.
And there were no disappointments. A simple, but clean and decent local (no obvious residential community nearby but it seemed to have drawn a goodly crowd all the same), the Orchard was a classic. 4 interesting ales from South West brewers on (mine was in great shape by the way), and a cider too. Friendly efficient service from the barman, and it was great to go out on a balmy afternoon and sit on the seats, wall and wall opposite (as some were) and relax.
Maybe on a wet inhospitable day this would seem like a less obvious choice but really, for you traditionalists, this one is worth seeking out.
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Great pub. One of the best in Bristol for cider and good for ale too. Staff are welcoming.
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I wasn't able to sample any of the tempting range of handpumped "real" ciders on the grounds of my own health, but next time I am pub-crawling Bristol I shall forego the beer (and the beers here were very good) for a cider session. Highly recommended.
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Proper pub properly run. Great choice of ciders and beers. Has saved me from several wasted weekends by the simple expedient of closing during the afternoon.
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Dont know why it took me so long to get round to this one as I have spent many a pleasant hour here in the past. Tucked in a back street Nr the SS Great Britain is this tiny Free House run by Bob 'Scooter Boy' Merchant and his Wife Ali. There are a lot of savoury characters in here and the quiz night used to be very well attended. The Thatchers Cider here is good and very popular and several Ales on offer too. Food is good and good value. Well worth sniffing out especial for a lunchtime session.
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