The Rising Sun, Isleworth

This pub is in a state of flux. It used to be a really nice family pub with good food and a superb atmosphere. Since then, it has undergone many changes of management, which has made it oscillate between poor and really awful. Currently, it�s rather mediocre, the good choice of food has disappeared in favour of bulk standard pub food (and when the kitchen is working), and the beer (bitters) has become extremely variable. Some people now drink mainly bottled beer as you�re never sure of what�s going to come out of the taps. A particularly nasty problem is that they have an insect problem. Little flies constantly hover around the bar and seating areas, and it�s not uncommon to have several land on the rim of your glass and enjoy themselves at your expense; they seem to prefer Fullers London Pride to other drinks. Staff attitude is that they can�t work out where they�re coming from � so everyone just has to endure it. (March 2006)
This is a better pub in the Summer, because the windows are open and there�s a small seating area outside; The inside seems to get so full of smoke that sometimes its difficult to see from one end of the pub to the other. Its supposed to have air conditioning, but it either doesn�t work very well or the staff don�t seem to know how to operate it. It has two plasma screens for watching the footie, and this is great when there�s a big match on. The sad thing is that the sound system seems to have only two settings � very loud or off. If there�s football on, there�s no quiet corner where you can bring the Missus or the girlfriend for a pleasant night out. All this is a shame, because it used to have a really good clientele, with professionals (doctors, surgeons, nurses from the University hospital, and large crowds from SKY TV, and Gillette etc. used to frequent it regularly. The more regular crowd these days seem to be either retired, unemployed, or labourers, many with an �A� level in English bad language.

The arrangement of the pub is that it�s a little like a doughnut. The bar area is in the centre and accessible by all those in the front bar. The rear sections consist of a seating area with soft sofas & chairs, and a small area that was perhaps meant for serving food. Most people prefer to sit or stand around the bar area which is not unusual, but when the bar area is surrounded by people with their backs to the rest of the room, it makes ordering difficult, the pub look unfriendly and the crowd rather intimidating.
There is a small car park to the side and rear adjoining a paved area which at one time could have been a beer garden. All this is a shame, because this pub has a lot of potential, and if just half the people to whom this pub has lost its appeal (over the past few years) returned, then this would again be a very busy place.

9 Mar 2006 14:55