please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
I'd heard it was the (unofficial?) Adnams tap but my pint of Jack Brand Mosaic was distinctly average so it was hardly worth deviating from the High Street. Usual suspects on the other handpulls (Ghost Ship, Southwold Bitter, Broadside, Freewheel). Worst pint I had on our day in Southwold last week.
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This place has lost all the atmosphere it had the last time I was here due to a god-awful refurb. It's now all light and airy and lacks the character that it had before. The young bar lady wasn't exactly welcoming either. We had just the one each and moved on to the Lord Nelson, where character and friendly staff abound.
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nice pub, nice fish and chips , nice staff
however not long to go before they start selling a pint for a fiver !!
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The Sole Bay Inn is good enough for me, one of the best pubs in Suffolk. The beer? Perfect. You won't find a better pint of Adnams anywhere, which is as it should be. Those casks don't have to travel far, do they.
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Sad to hear of destructive refurbishment, but can only review what is here. Clean and light modern interior with shades of Farrow & Ball, a look which a number of town pubs are seeming to favour. Obviously a fairly broad choice of Adnams ales that are very well-kept, with some of the more experimental brews evident. Busy and friendly with quite a diverse mix of customers. Very pleasant without being outstanding.
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We went here in the evening on 4th Sept.The Adnams Topaz Gold and the Adnams bitter was very good.Tables outside on the street.A nice quick pint.
Excellent range of Adnams available.
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Scores out of 5
Beers on offer 4 - Beer quality 5 - Full pint? 3 - Service 3 - Clientele 3
Garden & view 1 - Welcome & staff 3 - Parking 1 - Toilets 3 - Comfort 4
TOTAL 30 out of 50 OVERALL RATING 26 to 30 = 6
Comment: The score for this pub doesn�t do it justice but with no garden and the parking situation it loses a bit BUT drink here if you are in Southwold. The beer is excellent as is the grub.
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What Adnams have done to the interior of this pub is nothing short of scandalous, they have ripped out a wonderful collection of old Southwold and seafaring memorabilia and replaced it with a hideous cafe bar interior with all the character of a motorway service station. Plus knocking down half the walls and installing a tasteless new bar. What a bloody disgrace.
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Not having been to Southwold for a few years, I was expecting a good pint in the convivial surroundings of the timeless Sole Bay Inn. But I was shocked to fine the heart had been ripped out of this fine pub and replaced by some sort of second rate wine bar. Who ever instigated this massacre should be hanging their head in shame. Admams I had always thought, although making occasional foolish decisions such as discontinuing brewing mild, had their heart in the right place, I was obviously wrong. I will not attempt another visit and urge others to follow my example.
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First visit for some years and was disappointed to find that the pub has been transformed from the characterful interior of yesteryear, complete with mini-arboretum, into a soulless gastropub type interior. Seems very inappropriate for a pub with so much history and within sight of the Adnams brewery. Having said that, the food looked very nice, the beer prices were the same as in the other nearby Adnams pubs and the pint of Broadside I had here was the best in town, which is praise indeed!
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We went here just before 6pm for a bite to eat.The pleasantly decorated bar had a few drinkers and some other diners in.The bar lady was friendly and said we could order our food even though it was not quite 6pm for their evening menu to start .Unfortunately i was driving so i was glad that two lime and sodas were only �1.30.There was a tantalisingly full range of Adnams available,so there should be -I could see the brewery out of the window.The Fish and Chips with salad was about �10.50 and made with Adnams in the batter mix - very nice and it arrived within 15 minutes.The Gents toilet was clean and tidy with soap, water and hand dryer.This pub should be good as it is only a stones throw from the brewery.
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Another visit to Southwold and another new pub for us, but this we thought was the best of those that we had visited. Busy, but still time for courtiousness, decent Adnams and seemingly the full range. Good stuff.
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I enjoyed an evening here. Good selection of beers and staff were very polite to me.
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The surly barman pulled me a pint of Regatta which was the consistency of soup and smelt horrible, then seemed to think I should be grateful? Not exactly impressive and a shame, could be a good pub
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Went there last weekend with a family group of nine and we all thoroughly enjoyed it. Food was more than adequate at a decent price, and there were SIX Adnams ales on handpump so all the men were happy. As a previous reviewer said, it was superb sitting out in the sun looking across towards the brewery, and the children had fun drawing pictures of the lighthouse.
Yes, it's been modernised. Yes, it's a bit too much chrome and polish. Yes, it's changed from the old days, but what do you expect. Let's be honest, it's well known as Adnams flagship pub, and it's definitley aimed at the tourist. I don't know what it's like on a wet Thursday evening in November, and I don't really care. Also, I haven't been in when the "luvvies" walk in, but the staff were certainly friendly enough towards us. If this sort of thing is not for you, by all means go to the Nelson or the Kings Head (both excellent pubs, by the way) but don't knock this place. It does what it does very well.
Sorry folks - rant now over.
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I seem to remember the pub was a lot different in 1997 when we came last and not as good. It was OK and the beer was fine (Adnams Broadside). Food was OK, invetiable garnish and oven ready chips with the pie. Was going to use as the main watering hole for our short break but defected to the Nelson
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Yes, I preferred the old version of the Sole Bay, we used to say that as it is the nearest pub to the Brewery it sold the best pint of Adnams - probably not true.
After visiting frequently in my bachelor days I went back recently with the family in tow and, yes, I was disappointed with the cafe style appearance ( although the missus commented on how 'clean' it looked). Never mind, I had a lovely pint of Broadside and we all ate some lovely fish and chips.
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Very disapppointing and pretty rude staff; if you are not one of the Summer Theatre crowd it is hard to get served, in fact even if you have just ordered and a luvvie comes in the bar staff will instanhtly break off getting your order! Not a good advert for Adnams (do they ever fo mystery shopping on their pubs?) and there are of course plenty of other places you can choose instead.
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Having known the Sole Bay pre-makeover, I would have to say I preferred the older version. Days of Nut-Brown, Champion Pale Ale and Old Ale with the old-style pump-clips are fondly remembered here. It was a real shock to come here after the re-fit to find a cafe-bar style interior, although the exterior remains picturesquely old-fashined, despite the addition of the long wheelechair ramp down the side (no criticism of the accessibility arrangement, jist that it looks less "rustic" on that vista than it used to.
Having said all of that, it was still a pleasure to re-visit the Sole Bay yesterday, get a pint and sit on the front benches in the sunshine, reading a book and glancing up regularly to take in the site of the best beer factory on Earth just yards away across the green.
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Stopped for some light refreshment May 25th, after touring Adnam's new brewhouse just across the Green. It was (and they were) friendly and welcoming, and though the surfaces are hard, and not comfortable, the Best Bitter was excellent.
This was a first visit, so I hadn't known it pre-scrubbed up, but others later commented and contrasted rather negatively with the Admiral Nelson.
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I was "grubbed up" for years and has only recently been "scrubbed up" to cater for the new set of visitors.
Still a nice place to have an ale, particularly out the front, but it's lost much of its charm in the name of progress!
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Not my fave pub in Southwold but nice all the same. It's perhaps a little bit too clean and polished. Maybe needs grubbing up a bit !!Anyway, of course it's Adnams and I was lucky to be able to sample the range. By normal standards, this is a nice pub but by Southwold standards, it's a little disapponting. 7.5
anonymous - 29 Mar 2006 15:33 |
Visited 30 April 05. Adnam's pub (would it be anything else in Southwold?) near the lighthouse.
Surprisingly, for all the handpumps available, Adnam's full range was not on, which was a little disappointing. However the Broadside was good, and my crazy girlfriend rated the Tally Ho 7.8% as the best ale she had tasted.
Apparently the bar has recently been refitted, and was far too bright and clinical for our tastes. I think the pub should be renamed Sole Less.
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