please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Second stop in Berkshire today after a visit to the Barleycorn in Cippenham was this very unusual pub on the banks of the Thames. Getting here can be tricky. I approached from Bourne End, crossed the river using the railway bridge and wandered up the muddy towpath. I wasn't expecting to find it open, especially as TripAdvisor records it as closed. But notices on the railway bridge displayed its winter hours (3 hours on a Friday) and 6½ hours on a Saturday and on a Sunday. The building seemed like a large shack from the inside. There are flags on the ceiling. There are 2 separate rooms, with the bar in the front one. It smelt overwhelmingly of wet dogs and whilst there were around 20 or so customers, I seemed to be the only one not being accompanied by a canine. There were a number of kids too. Given its position, most of the clientele were in Wellington boots. The 3 real ales were all from Rebellion. They were Grumpy Cow, Mutiny At The Bounty & Winter Roy. They also had Old Rosie cider. Certainly one of the harder to get to pubs I have visited across the country. But nevertheless, I think it was worth the effort.
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looked more like a tea room from the outside and a den on the inside. friendly and nice enough place though and the Grumpy Cow was a decent enough pint.
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A fantastic location right next to the river. Very idiosyncratic place. Was here on a lovely day so sat outside in spacious garden. Rebellion Mutiny was excellent.
However - When asking for 2 Mutinys and a Grumpy Cow, I was served 3 Cows. Got into a debate with the barman who then poured me the correct beers. However by this time another barman had appeared and put his oar in and virtually accused me of not paying for a beer. All sorted out eventually but so unneccessary. Not the first staff comment on here I see.
Food unspectacular - Double dolly Burger -£6.95 - was cheap and when it turned up I found out why. Food not wonderfully hot, burgers tasted like they were out of a frozen caterers pack, chips could well have been oven chips, salad perfunctory. Not good.
The Bounty is a nice place to drink but customer service and food could be so much better.
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Looking forward to a Sunday evening drink at The Bounty after a long and very pleasant riverside walk. Have enjoyed many a great lunchtime or evening of merriment since the days before the footbridage when Dave collected us in his boat, ringing the bell on the tree to alert Custmers waiting for the ferryman. The bar was fairly busy and calming down after an exceptional 2nd of October 'Indian summer' day. The bar youth thrust a sprite in my Wife's hand without glass, any ice? a shrugging no. If he has removed the gobstopper from his gob in any kind of greeting it might have been worth explaning but we walked out. I feel really really Sorry Dave - for you!
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Looking forward to a Sunday evening drink at The Bounty after a long and very pleasant riverside walk. Have enjoyed many a great lunchtime or evening of merriment since the days before the footbridage when Dave collected us in his boat, ringing the bell on the tree to alert Custmers waiting for the ferryman. The bar was fairly busy and calming down after an exceptional 2nd of October 'Indian summer' day. The bar youth thrust a sprite in my Wife's hand without glass, any ice? a shrugging no. If he has removed the gobstopper from his gob in any kind of greeting it might have been worth explaning but we walked out. I feel really really Sorry Dave - for you!
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Decent pub. Dave looks after his beers - usually three from Rebellion. Limited opening hours (weekends only) in winter.
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Bollocks
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Thank the Fly for pulling down your ratings
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No...they all drink in the Fly mate
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SUSSEX COCK, I AM FROM BOURNE END
RU REFERRING TO ME AS A IDIOT? WHEN U NEXT IN THE FIREFLY?
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knowu2 and boy make screen threats! brave...and just as bright as paddy!
is there a large village idiot club around bourne end?
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sussexfox.....watch your f***ing back
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no boy.....very familiar turf m8!
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Hey sussexfox, suggest you zip it mate....dont go walking on unfamiliar turf ok
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Pintpaddy talks about 'great servive and hopitality' - but has posted rudely and negatively on BITE (24 times in the last month!) about the nearby/excellent Firefly. Does he work for the Bounty?
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Found this by accident yesterday. A great little pub with a very quirky interior. Good basic food and well kept beer. Had a very pleasant hour outside in the sunshine.
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Great Thameside pub, no bl**dy cars which makes it one of my favourite pubs & 3 or 4 Rebellion beers on tap, beer not cheap but kept well. Despite being here before I asked for directions in Bourne End & ended up in Cookham! Found the tow path at the Ferry pub & they rest they say is history.
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Fantastic family pub
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After nice riverside walk from Cookham me and the family popped in for lunch today. Although in a nice secluded spot across the river from Bourne End, the pub was surprisingly busy. We sat in the childrens play area allowing our son to play on the slides and swings. Wooden benches have seen better days. Interior of pub was very interesting with artifact from all over the world. Food was good traditional pub grub and served promptly. The beer range was 3 handpumps from Rebellion (Grumpy Cow IPA, Mutiny & seasonal called Green Shoots). They also had Old Rosie cider on draught, my wife's favourite. Definitely worth another visit.
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Popped in Saturday last - it may not be to everyone's taste and if you prefer gastro pubs then good luck, you have many to choose from locally.
The Bounty reminds me of pubs in the 70s and 80s - old fashioned, quick hospitality, good beer, handsome portions of food served fast without fuss and clean but primitive WCs.
Two Bounty burgers with chips and salad, two pints of great cask ale, a seat in the sun by the river with like-minded folk, a few water gypsies, old seadogs and the whiff of ciggie smoke for less than 20 quid - priceless.
Like a real pub should be despite the best efforts of the interfering zealots at the local authority.
Does live music occasionally and I agree with tpfirt, if you don't like it, you have no soul.
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If you don't like the Bounty, you have no soul. Usually has three Rebellion beers on, reasonably well kept. Very un-pretentious pub, everyone welcome, dogs, kids, walking boots.
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The word "quirky" appears in some reviews including that in the GBG, and it certainly is. A strange place with its front terrace right on the riverside, the main front area has the bar and a raised area for the bar billiards table. Walls and the ceilings are covered in flags. To the rear is "The Bounty Bar", an unusual room which had me feeling like I'd entered the pub's private area, especially as there was some ironing/washing left on a table. A shelf in here has books and videos (VHS!) for sale; the pub also sells greetings cards, and ice creams.
A sign over the entrance says "Welcome to the People's Republic of Cocksmarsh.....The Laws of Common Sense Apply" Another board also announces that muddy boots, dirty hounds and children are welcome.
Rebellion beers, Grumpy Cow...cheers abteilung for clearing that one up, it had me confused....Mutiny and Blonde. The Blonde was a little too cold resulting in a haze but it was drinkable. �3.20 here, probably the going rate for a riverside location.
The front terrace is a sunny and popular spot and I expect it gets rammed at weekends and holidays.
Overall, I'm not sure, its certainly different but I prefer a more pubby pub if you know what I mean.
Closed in winter during the week I understand. I'd suggest phoning first especially as there is no direct vehicle access.
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A really friendly pub so close to the Thames I nearly fell in it! The pub management don't mind muddy boots, dogs or walkers using the toilets (according to the sign at the front). A quirky pub selling the Rebellion beers and given them additional names, like Grumpy Cow instead of IPA, when I went it was very busy. No road access and so the beer apparently comes by boat. I will return again and again.
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Superb, individualistic pub in lovely riverside location - good locally-brewed Rebellion beer, "interesting" decor (!) and excellent food in generous portions. Well worth a visit - and the station's only a 10-minute walk away!
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An excellent summer pub. quite ramshackle but nice rebellion beers, bar billiards and friendly staff make this pub well worth a visit.
The decor is 'eclectic' (imagine the goonies running a pub) but it suits the place perfectly....we especially liked the 'Saxon' artifacts!
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Utterly brilliant (once I'd found it - Beer Guide decsription as Cookham is very unhelpful !). Characterful and unpretentious, exceptional Rebellion beer, good music and OK if pricy food (but what do you expect given location. Child-friendly as well. A real gem.
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Dropped in yesterday evening, walking from over the river using the footbridge alongside the railway bridge. Signposting not very good, but plenty of people had worked out how to get there ! The place is full of character in a slightly shabby way, with a selection of local Marlow-produced real ales - excellent on a warm evening. Didn't try the food so can't comment on the quality, but hope to do so next time (when I hope to come by train so as to fully sample the ales and/or the real scrumpy cider).
I also suspect that P.Finn has got the wrong establishment - it simply isn't the sort of place that someone would drive to from London specifically to dine out at, not least because there is no road access (and the walk on a January evening would be a scary experience in itself).
Richard
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I find P. Finn's comments about this establishment slightly odd as I take it they visited in January (based on date of post), yet the pub closes from October through to Easter. Also, the food you mention is not the typical fayre of the Bounty, plus the majority of tables at the bounty are outside (hence closing in the winter).
I think you may have visited another establishment, maybe the one on the other side of the river?
anonymous - 11 May 2008 20:31 |
So what was the beer like? Have you ever heard the word 'pub'. P-U-B. Look it up in the dictionary.
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I had the misfortune to eat at this establishment today and sadly after taking the time to drive from London with my partner to eat at the 'Bounty', the culinary experience was, in my opinion, like eating in a 'cafe' in 1960s England.
I have had the privilege of eating in some of the most interesting and good value restaurants throughout London, in fact this was the first occasion that I have ventured out of London to eat for some time. The reason why is on so many occasions when traveling through the English countryside one is always confronted by a certain attitude, that is, now you have the privilege of being in rural circumstance you have to put up with the most appalling, over priced, undercooked, dreary, sludge on offer.
Just to highlight some of the of what was served to me and my partner.
I ordered a very basic 'chicken/vegetable soup'. It arrived after about a 25 minute wait, served on a table that had not even been cleaned, by a boy who was about as interested in serving food as he was doing a tour of duty in Iraq.
The soup looked as if it had been scooped from the bottom of a sink, tasteless and of the appearance of having been retrieved from the 'leftovers' of bits and pieces of chicken that had been found in the kitchen. Needless to say this painful experience cost me almost four pounds. A comparable tin of 'Baxters' chicken/vegetable cost 75pence.
My second course was a 'Baguette' filled with a with what could only be described as a slimy and acidic tuna content, probably from an industrial tub of tuna specifically supplied to the catering trade, (very worrying). On top of this delightful concoction, was a 'cold' melted cheese that of course, was like a snakes skin.
What more can one say! Oh yes a side salad of lettuce and red onion with a few 'corn puff' crisps to make the plate look full.........come on this is the staple diet of kids on a council estate, not a restaurant situated in such a high profile circumstance as yours. And the cost, six or seven pounds. Hardly what one would call value for money.
In some of the best cafe's in central London this type of 'baguette' would cost no more than three two four pounds. How does the "Bounty' management justify such outrageous prices for what can only be described as 'junk, tasteless food'.
Who on earth serves crisps with sandwiches in this age of 'enlightened' food. Come on guys, wake up!
My partner's meal was the 'Roast pork" served cold of course, with a platter of vegetables that were reminiscent of 'fifties' school diners, cold, over cooked and as tasty as a piece of cardboard in hot water. Needless to say she could not eat them.
We left the Bounty with the 'dogs' enjoying the atmosphere, feeling a bit sick, literally!......with an hours drive back to the culinary sanity of London and the delights of knowing that the 'Bounty' was in dire need of a mutiny.....and captain Bligh was in need of a decent meal.
In an age of food revolution, i.e Jamie oliver......Gordon Ramsey etc. etc. isn't about time you joined the fold and sorted it out. The location is a 'Gold mine' but seriously they serve better food in my local working mans cafe'.
yours Sincerely
A concerned lover of decent food for decent people at a decent price.
P.S.
I do not have a problem with your establishment, but with the pricing. If you wish to charge top prices then you have to give high standards of service, quality food, well cooked and well presented tasty food.
This is and was my 'Kitchen nightmare'. Really guys its taken me nearly four hours to get rid of this nauseous taste in the back of my throat as a result of the food I ate today.
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When the weather is warm it feels like you're holiday sitting outside. Great selection of tunes playing and the beer was of good quality. The landlord was also very welcoming - I would recommend a visit but leave the car at home and get ther train, you'll want to stay for more than one.
anonymous - 7 Sep 2007 13:49 |
very nice and welcoming pub great beers too,just moved down to the area and was made very welcome by Sue and Dave
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friendly but you have to wait for a really long time for food, even when just moderately busy
anonymous - 9 Jun 2007 15:18 |
Great pub in the summer. Sit outside, watch the world go by. Pity the inside isn't bigger as it would be a good all year round boozer.
Good Ales. I understand good food too.
If you have a dog bring it with you!
anonymous - 12 Oct 2006 23:00 |
You'll always get a warm welcome at the Bounty. Dave and Sue are great people and the rest of the staff are always friendly, not to mention Dolly (great lady). You may wait for the food but it's worth it and to some degree the Bounty is a victim of it's own success. When it does get a bit quiet on a Sunday night Dave has been known to get the guitars out for an impromptu session - he just loves talking about music (especially sixties). There are plenty of strummers around for a fun end to the evening. It's a fun, friendly pub.
anonymous - 14 Jul 2006 17:41 |
bloody crowded in the summer... if you want to relax and have a pint by the river you could probably find better, but its an ok place to get a good view of the hordes down at Bourne End's redeveloped waterside... I can't believe people buy those houses, it must be like living in a goldfish bowl.
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Due to its location a nice summer number.
anonymous - 26 Dec 2005 16:30 |
Brillant place. Park at Bourne End Station and walk. Cycle or walk along the Thames path or arrive by boat.Beer not bad, food not bad. As the sign says in the rePUBlic of Cock Marsh," common sense prevails".
Enjoy!
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Great eccentric pub by River Thames. The beer which was once suspect, is now well kept. Can sit outside and Watch the boats sail by in the summer. Can be busyy at daytime weekends but splendid for visit in evenings and during week.
tucan - 26 Jun 2005 21:32 |
On our last two visits we've waited over 1 Hr 15 mins to get served.
If/When you complain you'll either be ignored or they'll partly refund your bill.
Visit at your own risk
David - 20 Jun 2004 14:59 |
Go there by boat, or walk across the bridge. A real eccentric pub, down by the river, nice old English food, proper bar billiards, kids toys outside, good beer good service. An occasion
guy - 13 Feb 2004 22:10 |
great (but small!) riverside pub. Good beer, excellent food. Perfect place to spend a summer's afternoon/evening.
Giles - 11 Dec 2003 13:44 |
