BITE user comments - man_versus_horse
Comments by man_versus_horse
Portland Roads Hotel, Portland
In response to VT's comment below, I think 'gutted' would be a more appropriate choice of word. I remember it as quite a charming pub a couple of years back, but now the place is full of tat, loud (well too loud for a pub anyway) music and widescreen TV. What the hell do you need a TV in a pub for??
Only one ale on, but the booze was of a good standard, oh and the staff all seemed very friendly which made up for the place to some extent.
30 Dec 2010 22:56
Visited on Friday, and good as ever until another member of staff turned up and decided that the whole pub should listen to music aimed at 7 year old girls at 110 decibels. Promptly departed.
10 Jul 2010 19:27
Oh dear it looks like the landlord has been self reviewing again.....I think we can disregard the last three eh?
30 Mar 2010 22:35
I'd heard great reports about this pub, but after finally checking this place out it seems I've missed the boat (or paddle steamer).
One substandard ale on, and sky sports blasting out. That seems to be the order of the day here now. Disappointing.
25 Mar 2010 23:27
The Ship and Castle, East Cowes
The Goddards Winter is as expected and the crowd is of an enthusiastic nature. Recommended.
20 Mar 2010 18:07
Currently developing a taste for the home brewed 'whisky ale' very palatable. Would like to see more microbreweried ales here.
20 Mar 2010 13:10
We visited the Red Lion last night and were made to feel very welcome. A marvellous pub to visit early evening when the place is filled with locals, rather than later when the pub is infiltrated with grockles and eaters (good god that's us). The ales were well kept (we sampled the Goddard Special several times to make sure). An exceptional pub and well worth a trip out. Landlord 'Flight leutenant Jack Saxon' is the best host this side of the Bombadier club.
20 Mar 2010 12:46
Generic ubiquitous bar. Service ok and ale range acceptable, but don't bother going out of your way for it.
20 Mar 2010 12:10
Very sad news that this is now closed, a truly legendary pub. I wish I'd had more opportunity to support this place...
24 Feb 2010 20:21
Bland family dining type pub - feels like drinking/eating in McDonalds. The reviews below seem pretty good, so I'm guessing that this has gone down hill recently, which is a shame as this could be a nice place.
Ale was awful (probably my own fault for choosing hobgoblin) and the food was dire.
20 Dec 2009 17:27
Does anyone know if this place has recently changed hands? The thing is we came here a couple of months ago and the food was probably the best pub food I've ever experienced, but after revisiting today we found the food to be terrible. We even ordered exactly the same thing...so I can't understand how the quality can go to cock in such a short space of time.
Only got to sample one ale as I didn't fancy hanging around - quality was ok.
20 Dec 2009 17:14
I had an identical experience to my esteemed colleague in booze, Jonnysaint.
That's not to say it's always this way, on a previous visit the inhabitants were charming.
29 Oct 2009 20:22
Friendliest pub on the island and excellent booze....spent the evening bashing a papier-mache croc with a stick, and being rewarded with fruit flavoured sweets. That beats Sky sports anyday.
Top 5 island boozer.
28 Sep 2009 18:04
Messy pub full of neanderthals (the uninteresting variety). Waited 10 minutes to buy a drink, but gave up in the end and found an infinitely better pub round the corner (The Quarterdeck - not listed on here for some reason, but highly recommended).
28 Sep 2009 17:57
Looks like the message below comes hot from the Old Ship Inn press office. If you're going to write your own reviews at least make it sound natural.
Good pub anyway though...
27 Jul 2009 00:50
As a music venue this is excellent, but as a pub it's utter rubbish.
Congratulations to the drinkers below who managed to order Ringwood Best and Solar Power. On the numerous occasions I've been in now there have been no ales on.
Not a problem though, I just nip across the block to the Goat & Tricycle between bands.
1 Mar 2009 15:07
I'm a bit suspicious of the 2 posts below. Both profiles have only submitted one review, which is a bit fishy.
14 Feb 2009 22:15
The Old Mill House Inn, Polperro
This is a nice little boozer, a bit too modern for my tastes, but very friendly, homely and good ale.
Cat + Wifi is a bonus too.
14 Feb 2009 15:23
The Noughts and Crosses, Polperro
Damn, this place was closed, really wanted to visit from an anthropological perspective.
14 Feb 2009 15:20
My 2004 edition of the good beer guide recommended this one, so I gave it a lash despite the unappealing exterior.
We had coffees (it was 10am afterall) which were cups of brown milk.
The guide states that this place is 400 years old, but there's no evidence of that now - it looks like it's been refurbished and it's now devoid of any charm or character. Awful. Really need to buy the new guide.
14 Feb 2009 15:14
Excellent pub, a real gem. They do a marvellous food offer on Mondays too.
28 Nov 2008 18:33
Popped in here on the way to check out the Bridge - very impressed. Probably the friendliest pub I've been in for ages.
I've got a horrible feeling they're about to be bought out though. I dread to think what the new owners are going to do to this gem.
30 Oct 2008 18:33
Right, this is my new favourite pub. Just pipped the Square and Compass.
30 Oct 2008 18:30
The one saving grace for this pub was the attractive signage outside, they've now removed this and stuck up yellow plastic looking boards. Obviously now trying to appeal to the McDonalds/KFC crowd.
RIP
16 Aug 2008 10:44
Come on folks - give this place another chance. I love the Blue Raddle too, but at least you can find a seat here, and the ales are better too.
2 Aug 2008 21:07
The Sailors Return, East Chaldon
Looks like we should've gone for the ploughmans as our pies were diabolical (and very overpriced). I think this is only the second time I've ever been driven to complain about the food. The beer wasn't great either, but then I didn't fancy hanging about to try the other ales, so I can't really comment.
It's a shame, as I really want to like this pub.
2 Aug 2008 21:04
Why on earth would anyone want to come here? If you're anywhere in the vicinity surely you'd just head up the road to the Standard or Ship?
Unless of course you'd rather sit about watching Sky Sports with a load of drunken dung-eating chavs on 'disability' benefit.
6 Apr 2008 18:39
Drunken duck's description below is spot on, but to me all those things add up to a fantastic pub.
Amazing beer, shabby but beautiful traditional interior, animals, no phones, friendly folks either side of bar - this place is pretty much perfect.
The only down side is if you're not feeling sociable you do feel a bit exposed in the main bar, however you can always sit in the emptier room next door.
A 10 without doubt.
6 Apr 2008 18:34
Smugglers Inn, Osmington Mills
I forgot to say, the staff may as well be working on a conveyor belt - no visible personality...and the food is pretty poor.
6 Apr 2008 18:24
Smugglers Inn, Osmington Mills
I agree that the setting is amazing - however as a rule of thumb with pubs, if the setting's great then the pub is likely to be rubbish. This unfortunately is a prime example.
In theory the pub should look great, and outside it still does, but inside they've managed to eliminate any charm or character and make it look exactly like a generic family eating pub. Seriously disappointing.
The food is rather over-priced for what you get and at peak times they don't serve snack food which is a bare faced attempt to make you buy something from the expensive full menu.
If you're ever here visiting the lovely beach, don't allow yourself to be lured in by the charming exterior and instead head straight for the far superior tea room next door.
6 Apr 2008 18:21
Yeah, I've always found the service to be really slooooow - but it's actually amusingly so. There can be 3 kids working behind the bar, all looking at the books or pretending to be busy, and completely ignoring the customers waiting.
The children serving are nice enough, but I much prefer to be served by adults.
The pub itself is ok, food is average, the main problem for me is that the interior looks far to much like a generic family eating chain-pub, especially the restaurant section.
The location however is PERFECT. Just be patient, buy your ales and sit by the stream.
24 Mar 2008 09:55
I love the bar area and the garden - pity about the ugly restaurant section in the middle.
Food could either be improved a bit or reduced in price. The beer however, has always been superb.
A great traditional pub, and a well deserved 9/10.
24 Mar 2008 09:47
Just re-reading my review below about the food and realise I may of given the wrong impression. The food is exactly the kind of thing I want in a pub, good, simple and functional - not a load of flashy rubbish.
23 Mar 2008 14:14
Excellent traditional pub.
We went in on a Saturday lunch time, the pub was packed but the place still felt cozy and the environment was very relaxing. The staff were friendly and the locals exceptionally so. It all made for a very warm atmosphere.
The food wasn't exactly exciting, but it was pleasant and reasonably priced.
23 Mar 2008 14:11
This pub is very much a family dining affair, so if that's your thing, then fine.
We just wanted a snack so opted for the baguettes, for �7 we were expecting something special, but what arrived was very sub average. The food on the other tables looked OK, but again very expensive.
Also, this is a badger pub, so don't expect much quality in the way of beer.
Looking on the bright side, the decor is attractive inside.
23 Mar 2008 13:00
I was passing by on the 19th March and they were closed. Is this operating under unusual hours?
The comments below sound promising, except for the no live music rule. That top room had the potential to be a perfect venue (with the right music).
22 Mar 2008 09:58
Lovely, quiet pub off the beaten track - food used to be great too, but haven't been for a year or so.
10 Mar 2008 22:16
This used to be a great pub with quality food but is now under new ownership and the quality of the food has gone down somewhat.
My other gripe is that there were kids taking orders and serving food, don't get me wrong they were nice enough, but it's just something I really don't like. I'd much rather deal with adults, I just find it feels a bit cheap when pubs and restaurants take advantage of child labour.
8 Mar 2008 01:20
This pub is getting better and better.
I don't normally like Fullers ales, but I'm undergoing an epiphany due to this place. The 'Discovery' is beautiful.
Staff very nice and welcoming too.
7 Mar 2008 00:23
I must admit to being rather distressed when i found out this place was being refurbished but it could of been a lot worse.
Anyways, from my experience, the beer is still superb. I usually stick to the Flashman's Clout though, so can't vouch for the Tom Brown's.
All in all, I'm still really fond of this place, staff seem friendly enough to me.
7 Mar 2008 00:15
Yep - best pub I've found in Weymouth so far. I'm very partial to Ringwood Ales and you can't beat a Ringwood Ale in a Ringwood pub, they must keep it well as it always tastes so much better.
Love the interior, very charming and cozy.
7 Mar 2008 00:02
The Square and Compass, Worth Matravers
My favourite pub in the world - perfect, what more can I say? Just wish it was a bit nearer.
Well worth traveling to for the Beer, Pumpkin and Scarecrow festival in November.
6 Mar 2008 23:56
This is basically a restaurant rather than a pub, which is a shame as it could be a great place in the right hands. I wouldn't recommend going in just for drinks, as another reviewer mentioned you just feel like you're in the way.
The only ale (Riverhouse Ale) is certainly nothing to get excited about, and the quality seems changeable.
The food isn't bad however, but the place lacks atmosphere these days (terrible bland background music / generic Brewers Fayre style menu etc....)
6 Mar 2008 23:51
Back to man_versus_horse's profile
The Riverhouse Inn, Upwey
I've probably been a bit hard on this pub in the recent past....whilst it's certainly not a drinkers pub and they have rather ruined it's outward appearance with ugly signage. They do seem to do consistently good quality and interesting food.
5 Aug 2011 20:26