The Black Venus, Challacombe - pub details
Address: Challacombe, Barnstaple, Devon, EX31 4TT [map] [gmap]
Tel: 0871 951 1000 (ref 27672) - calls cost 10p per minute plus network extras
Pub facilities/features:
- Food served, Real ale
Pub suggested by mada on 15 Jan 2006
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> Current user rating: 7.0/10 (rated by 7 users)
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user reviews of the Black Venus, Challacombe
please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
5 most recent reviews of 6 shown - see all reviews
| Very much a foodie pub. But very good food. Decent range of ales, including Cotleigh Golden Seahawk which was well kept & tasty. SA162 - 1 Sep 2011 18:54 |
| This pub is supposedly the best pub in north Devon, according to some sort of award it has received. Believe me, it isn't. As stated by the previous reviewer the ales were far too cold, presumably having come through the python, and hazy (I'll be kind and call it a chill haze) The food was expensive, and to repeat the previous guy, piled with veg and very little meat / fish etc. The menu is vast, which suggests that freshness is not high on their list of priorities, and the wine list basic and mundane. The service was poor, slow and sloppy, with little attention to detail. Otherwise OK Dr_Pangloss - 9 May 2009 16:41 |
| Not so sure I would agree with previous reviews. This place is more of a restaurant relying heavily on meal sales than wet. Urged to sit down and eat the moment we walked through the door. Not really encouraged to stand at bar and sample the ale. Cotleigh Seahawk was on as was Hound Dog and Cousin Jack. The Seahawk is obviously a good pint but served far too cold and quite cloudy. No one seemed to realise this but us, but there you go. It was the same story for 5 days. One point to mention was the price of the ale.. we noticed overnight that the price had shot up to 2.70 from the previous night as did the bar olives. They were 1.75 on easter friday, but next day, as they were flying out the door, went up to 2.50! I can understand a rural pub maximising profit but not really acceptable. Although this is a website about beer, a note about the food as this 'pub' pushes it so much... Huge amounts of veg, nothing out of the ordinary, big carrots, cauli, potatoes to fill up the plate, and then the meat or pie. Curries were popular, so pick that option instead.. we did and it was nice... but you would want it to be at £9.25 a head. Lovely location, great interior with beams but don't expect top ale as they seem to do a roaring trade with wine. When there are more tourists eating than locals drinking.. be warned. We had no choice as miles from anywhere else. pewterjug - 15 Apr 2009 14:14 |
| A seriously GREAT pub attentive service, excwllent food and fantastic beer ,all to be found on Exmoor. My local conurbation which is sadly Croydon dearly misses having a pub of this superb quality.10/10. slerpy - 26 Jul 2008 21:30 |
| Our ' local' when staying at our caravan nearby. Excellent food, mostly sourced locally and a bargain pint in 'Cousin Jack' Gets very busy at weekends and in holiday season so get there at 6pm opening or leave it until after 8 if you want to eat as they do not take bookings. allinh - 15 Dec 2007 17:19 |
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