The Kings Head, Bristol

This definitely seems to have gone down hill recently. There was a distinct smell of pee at the front of the pub, which is actually the opposite end from the loos, so it wasn't coming from there. And I got charged £6.70 for a pint of cider and a small glass of orange juice and lemonade.

22 Feb 2016 16:17

Westbury Park Tavern, Bristol

Better known to many as “The Kebab & Calculator” from the BBC TV Series The Young Ones, this is an unusually shaped, circular pub consisting of one single room wrapped around a central island bar. There is a limited amount of outside seating but the outlook is not that great being opposite a busy junction and a supermarket.

Although it’s carpeted throughout other than some tiles leading from the door to the bar, the décor divides it up somewhat with cream paintwork on the walls in the front half of the pub, and floor to ceiling wood panelling in the rear, giving it something of the feel of an old hotel drawing room. There was an old tiled fire-place to one side, although whether this is still used I’m not sure. Sport seems to fixture fairly prominently here, with a plasma screen and a large projector showing rugby and cricket matches. There was a pool table at the rear as well as a darts board.

The menu looked to be a fairly typical “pub grub” affair with options such as Steak & Ale Pie, Scampi & Chips, Hunter’s Chicken, Bangers & Mash, etc., and these were mostly priced around the £6 - £8 mark, although many of them were also available as part of a “2 for £10” deal. There was also a specials list printed on a separate piece of paper, and unusually these seemed mostly cheaper than the regular options coming it at around £6 or just under.

Beers on tap were Butcombe, Gem and Doom Bar although there were a further three pumps on the bar that were not in use so there may perhaps on occasions be more than this. Ciders were Blackthorn and Summersby.

2 Jun 2014 10:59

The Red Lion, Milton Bryan

A good sized pub in an attractive village setting, this was taken over by the friendly new owners in February and has since had something of a makeover, which judging by the smell of paint must have been completed quite recently. There is a garden area adjacent to the pub as well as a car park.

Inside the pub is split in to two halves, with the larger half being very much geared up for dining. The drinking half appeared bereft of the usual tables and chairs, with the seating being all low leather sofas and low wooden tables, so not necessarily the most comfortable or practical seating in my opinion. Décor was similar throughout with a mixture of freshly painted plasterwork and exposed brick. The plastered areas had pale green wood panelling on the lower part of the walls, whilst the flooring was a mixture of flagstones in front of the bar, carpet in the restaurant and wood strip in the bar. There was also a certain amount of exposed woodwork such as the odd beam and support pillar.

The restaurant had a freestanding dual aspect brick fire-place with a pile of logs ready for the colder weather (it was actually somewhat chilly in there on a recent end of May visit, but they kindly turned up the heating) as well as another brick fire-place and wood burning stove in the bar area. A large beer barrel was opposite the bar, perhaps for vertical drinkers to rest their pint on, and a nearby plasma screen was showing a tropical fish screen saver which looked very similar to what my dentist uses in order to try and relax his patients.

Food wise, the menu offered half a dozen or so choices which were perhaps a step up from your usual pub grub. It included options such as Burger, Fish & Chips and a Curry but there were also a few more adventurous dishes and another three or four options chalked up on a specials board. Main courses were mostly in the £10 - £13 range. My starter of Scallops with Crispy bacon and a Pee Puree and a main course of Smoked Haddock on a bed of Creamy Mash with a Mustard Sauce and a Poached Egg were both decent and tasty dishes which I thoroughly enjoyed. Other main courses on my table consisted of Monkfish wrapped in Parma Ham and a Lamb Shank all of which were similarly well received. In a nod to trendy dining fashions, the starter was served on a slate tile and the milk with the coffee came in a miniature milk bottle.

Regular beers on tap were all from the Greene King stable, with their IPA, Abbott Ale and Old Golden Hen. The guest on this occasion was Timothy Taylor Landlord whilst the solitary cider was Aspall’s Suffolk. Overall I quite liked this pub, but at the end of the day it’s not really that “pubby”, so it depends on what you’re looking for. Having said that, they were advertising a forthcoming pub quiz, so it’s clearly not all about the food.

29 May 2014 07:41