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William Cobbett, Farnham

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user reviews of the William Cobbett, Farnham

please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.

Younger crowd, clearly inspired to visit due to its proximity to the local college gives this pub it's gritty student-bar feel. Food prices seem reasonable and the portions larger than expected. Evening crowds tend to be "eclectic" in nature with a surprising range of ages. Not bad for a drop-in occasional visit, but does not cater for all tastes, although that is not in itself a bad thing. Would visit again during the day, maybe not so much in the evening as the clientele are not the kind that I would personally fraternize with.

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gin_and_tonic - 26 Aug 2012 13:06

Anyone who has visited and enjoyed the Hobgoblin in Reading will feel at home in the William Cobbet. Although more conventional in layout than the Hob, the Cob shares many other things in common.

Excellent Real ale - we couldn't resist trying the Cream inspired fff Brewery Pressed Rat and Warthog and were rewarded for our bravery. Walls and ceilings plastered in beermats and handpump badges. And the music of course - Zepp, Kansas and many guitar based makers of noise. And some wacky furniture, and even some records pinned to the wall.

Food was fine, basic but at prices to match. Bacon and Cheese Burger with chips at �5.95, although the "Double D" burger doesn't have the shape you might expect.

Close to the college, this must be popular with students as well as us old folk. Would happily re-visit.

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ramblethenlunch - 20 Jan 2012 16:50

I stopped going after having a few duff pints. Went in yesterday and discovered that the beers had been below par because the pipe cleaning system hadn't been working properly. The good news is that the ales were all lovely. Dark Star Hophead and American PA (yummy!), Stonehenge, Directors and Pride. Don't forget the wonderful imported German lager Warsteiner. It shows how good lager can taste when it's in the hands of a brewery who cares. The pub itself is delightfully old and has something to offer for people of all ages, although some pensioners might find it a bit lively on a Friday night!

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slickslinger - 7 Dec 2011 14:52

Revisited today after a couple of years of missing it. Still a wonderful place, anchored in its cosy style. Sincere real ales - tasting glasses if you like to try first; good food; unpretentious. This pub should be Listed (like they do for buildings, so they are preserved for our heritage and can't be taken away or spoiled by inappropriate changes). Definitely in my top 10.

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JonesTheBeer - 19 Aug 2011 23:04

I miss this place - it had (has?) its faults but whenever I reminisce about Farnham this is the place that pops in to my head. Had some great times here, and i wasn't even a student (mid 30s then , so it does appeal to some of us oldies)

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Upton_Parker - 21 Oct 2010 13:47

I love this place. Like a time warp. Good selection of beer and a great jukebox! I like getting stuck to the floor!

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misfithound - 20 Aug 2010 11:24

gents toilets are generally disgusting.

barmaids think they are goddesses.

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qazza - 14 Aug 2010 18:55

Its dark, its dirty, its full of nooks and crannys, its got an eclectic mix of ciliental, its everything a pub should be!

Good selection of ales. Ive had the odd duff pint there though.

Best (and by far the most interesting) pub in the town centre.

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VastGirth - 25 Jan 2010 12:53

As a student this was pretty much the only pub I would go to. To its credit it hasn�t changed over the years and still remains popular and attracts a good crowd on a Friday and Saturday night. On my last visit there was a good selection of ale on offer but I was slightly put off when my arm became stuck to the filthy table. Good place to drop by for a pint or two just for old times sake but probably best left to the students to enjoy. Long live the Cobbett!

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getmeonein - 26 Feb 2009 14:21

filthy dirty and smelly and some of the staff and management can be just plain rude BUT... it does offer arguably the best range of real ale in town and if your lucky enough to get a table it can be a cracking night. Just make sure you drink up bang on time (staff are happy to serve you at last orders but not happy for you to drink it!) and remember to wipe your feet on the way out!

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animalbicyclevehicle - 2 Dec 2008 15:16

cool juke box good ale, packed on fri and sat night with friendly people, nice out door area, all round good pub

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anonymous - 9 Mar 2008 10:49

surely a Farnham Institution...superb jukebox if you like old R&B,Americana etc.Nice to see Aspalls and Thatchers ciders and the occasional barrel of scrumpy

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wolseley - 16 Dec 2007 21:44

Love Love Love this pub! One of my favourite "in town" pubs, like to come here at the weekend as the place is always packed with people of all ages. Good range of drinks, only complaint being that it can be quite pricey....

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walker87 - 14 Nov 2007 16:57

This place has all the elements of a great pub. But the apathetic & arrogant attitude of senior staff is definately not that of hospitality industry employees.
Landlord beware; Your sitting on your laurals (But then, with a fresh influx of students every year, why should you care?)

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tno - 19 Aug 2007 09:48

This pub is truely the best pub in town...any day of the week its always buzzing...good symple food at lunch...a pool table,juke box upstaires and downstairs all sorts of little sections of the pub to sit or stand in depending what mood your in. All the staff are fab and welcoming and officiant..probably cos they love working there, theres a cocktail bar outside at the weekends not to menchan a huge beer garden that the on occasion have events like live music and beer and cider fests...this pub has got it all!! And i agree..a huge mix of people everyone is welcome!!! Loving it!

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jo_sarg - 30 Jul 2007 14:55

This is a cool pub, a lot of students come here so can get packed but there is a garden out the back and pool room upstairs.

Nice chilled out atmosphere.

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Jo984 - 28 Sep 2006 15:23

Been coming here on and off since 1989, was and still is a great pub, usually busy in the evening but with the rear garden & 'other' bar there's always somewhere to stand. Good staff, crowd & beer. Recommnded.

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Harlap - 14 Jul 2006 14:35

This is a truly great pub slj, and a seminal one in my growing up. I've been drinking here since Iwas at College nearby and we loved it. It is a bit skanky in places and the bar staff could shower a bit more often, but whether you want to spend a summers evening in the garden, a winters night in the back room or a autumn afternoon playing pool upstairs this pub has got the lot.

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shauntobewild - 17 May 2006 13:30

As a 50-something , I brought a coachload of similarly aged friends to see Wishbone Ash at The Maltings next door. So assume that we are all pretty dull and boring - but we do like a good pub. Anyway we all thought that this was a truly GREAT pub - brilliant atmosphere, good music, good staff, plenty of interesting people to talk to. I remember this place from my under-age drinking days, and if anything it has improved over the last 30+
years. Should be preserved as a national treasure! PS Wishbone Ash got a pretty good rating too

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slj - 14 Apr 2006 10:20

One of the great assets of this pub is the rich cross section of different people who use it - you see all kinds in here! I always get into an interesting conversation with someone I've never met before, and usually bump into an old friend as well.

The bar staff are excellent - bags of personality, cheerful & efficient.

We like sitting outside in the warmer months, and we ADORE the jukebox!

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LunchLadyDoris - 7 Mar 2006 20:27

Yeah, I really enjoy visiting this pub. Plenty of excellent beers, a very wide choice. Friendly bar staff and a good laid back atmosphere. A large variety of people visit this pub, everything from, unfortunately yobs to the middle aged. Took several visits to this pub to realise that there was an upstairs hidden away. Then to find FOUR pool tables upstairs (only 50p a game with �2 deposit). It does get rather too busy at weekends however where it becomes so smoky that avoiding suffocation is difficult. But overall, I enjoy my visits here.

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Beater - 16 Feb 2006 09:44

About the third pub on our crawl of Farnham.

Trad., interior, blazing fire (very welcome on a freezing cold day) and obviously "youf" oriented, but none the worse for it.

Friendly bar-staff-ladies.

Friendly laid back atmosphere. I liked it a lot.

Excellent pint of Pride and a jolly commendable jumbo chilli dog.

Could'a and would'a stayed all day (to attend to the other 2 or 3 real ales on)- if we had not had our civic duty to satisfy by going to visit as many pubs as we could in Farnham!

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Renfield - 30 Dec 2005 13:06

Nice on weekday nights, to crowded on weekends.

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fallendragon - 3 Nov 2005 15:43

not bad, good in the daytime when its quiet and easy to play pool. evening it gets too small and its near impossible to play pool!

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anonymous - 26 Sep 2005 12:12

Busy pub, mainly full of farnham students, 3 ales normally on, juke box is huge

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anonymous - 7 Aug 2005 22:50

yeah, not bad....lot of heavy metal on the juke box, but, hey, what's wrong with that. pool room upstairs is an ideal place to have a violent confrontation with some aldershot pikeys.

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tanderson7 - 7 Apr 2005 16:05

This pub is poor. I was dragged there regularily when i was a student on the excuse that it was near to the station. The place is always packed so you can't move and is almost always incased in smoke. Also if you're very lucky, you'll enjoy a fight in the back yard, and then try pitifully to avoid blood and bits of glass as you fumble through the crowd of drunken students puffing away bellowing to their mate mearly 1 meter away. Escaping upstairs to the pool room is no conselation- because it will take hours to get a table. Thank god i hardly ever bought the drinks in that place.

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ginmarinthedon - 19 Jan 2005 16:43

there was a superb band on the other week called blimus they rocked the cablecar

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dave the extroidinairy bear - 3 Nov 2004 19:52

The cobbett is the best pub in farnham. its lively and fun with the biggest cross section of drinkers u will ever see in 1 pub. keep up the good work peter

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Jessica Rolfe - 19 Oct 2004 14:09

A pub that is crap in so many dimensions it is difficult to know where to start. How about: cramped, charmless, dirty, noisy and VERY smoky. A truly awful pub, only redeemed by the cheerful attitude of the staff (althought how they stay cheerful in such surrounders is one of human nature's little miracles).

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Paul - 15 Oct 2004 09:23

Lovely old beamed pub in a great location. However the staff are arrogant, the beer is poorly kept and the glasses are dirty. I would visit The Lamd almost next door instead

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Jonathan - 20 Sep 2004 13:30

I must admit to being one of the students who frequent this age old establishment. However, having lived in Farnham two years now it still remains my favorite pub in the town. Cosy, warm, inviting, bags of character and great beer.

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Chris - 6 Sep 2004 16:15

Good pub.
You do get a lot of students but for a complete mix of people and a general good night you have quite a lot under one smallish roof.
4 pool tables, pinball, fruit machines, and TABLE FOOTBALL!!

As other people have said the jukebox is great and have a fantastic selection of anything you could want to listen to.

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anonymous - 9 Jul 2004 10:40

A very nice friendly pub with good pool tables (only 50p per game) and sexy female bar staff! Especially Emma

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Lewis Richards - 22 Jun 2004 11:35

Best pub in Farnham.

Unfortunitly like all pubs in Farnham at about 11.00PM they want you out of there as quickly as possible.

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anonymous - 11 Mar 2004 12:24

We've been drinking here off and on for twenty years. It's very friendly and has a great cross section of customers. The jukebox is the best I've ever seen.

The only thing I don't like is that on the dot of 11pm they turn on 160 watt fluorescent lighting and start hassling you to leave.

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jackie_sunshine - 2 Mar 2004 18:19

Upstairs offers 4 pool tables and another juke box. An excellent choice of drinks and fantastic bar staff. Hopefully this comment will get me a free pint.

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anonymous - 18 Feb 2003 11:32

Lively pub with a great juke box, with everything from Van Halen to Van Morrison. Mix of all generations and all sorts of people turn up. The local college provides quite a few customers and so does the Surrey Art college. Also get quite a few punks and bikers. Is always a great laugh no matter what night. Thoroughly worth a visit.

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anonymous - 18 Feb 2003 11:20

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