please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Reasonable enough, friendly kind of a place - though the ale was okay rather then good.
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Very popular at weekends, food dominates, the ale sampled was expensive and was in poor condition and a comment to this effect was greeted with profuse denials which was disappointing since they didn't even try it to disprove my comment. Not likely to return for a while after this I am afraid.
odbod - 22 Aug 2014 12:21 |
The Rai D'Or was my last stop in Salisbury and is a Thai restaurant that serves real ales. There is a bar area, with stools and a couple of tables, whilst the rest of the pub is very nicely decorated and set out for diners. The 2 ales were not at all mainstream - Downton Cerberus & Moles VFM and this is clearly a CAMRA favourite. So ale drinkers are obviously encouraged. Much busier than many of the other local pubs, despite the slightly inflated prices.
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Had a table booked for the Thai food on a Saturday night - Its is still just about a pub/restuarant and not a full blown Thai conversion and while we were there, a few groups of people came in for a drink only and they where treated with equal friendliness. The beer range was understabably limited but good enough and remarkably cheap!! I had several.
A quick note on the food - yes, I know it's not 'food in the evening' but as it is the main thrust of the place I thought I'd mention it was very nice but not gourmet by any definition - more like a chinese takeaway style, but the portions where huge and it was very very tasty and I would most definitely return.
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Good choice of beer and the one I had was well-kept and reasonably priced.
Delicious dinner, too, but it definitely felt like a pub. Loved it!
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Some of the best Thai food I've ever tasted in a cosy pub setting; a great find. Owner is warm and happy to chat, service is spot on, beer is fresh. Value for money, good atmosphere, couldn't recommend enough!
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Pretty quiet when I visited on a Thursday tea time. Landlord was very friendly and came to chat with me at the table, which some might think forward but as he seemed a nice bloke I didn't mind! Only two real ales to choose from but, as he explained, that means they turn over more quickly and thus stay fresher and the pint of Elderquad that I sampled was, indeed, very good.
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I only managed to get into this pub for one pint before closing time so didn't really get a detailed impression of the place. It's a fairly small L-shaped pub with a slight 'cafe-bar' vibe. Two handpumps - one had a Hophead clip turned inwards, the other was serving Downton Port Stout. My pint of the latter was excellent.
The pub doesn't open until 5pm, a fact I only discovered when I attempted a return visit the next day. From my brief impression of the place I would say it is definitely one to include in any crawl of the town.
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What a find! Being new to Salisbury exploring new pubs is great fun. This place is a real find, wonderful combination of fine ales and fine Thai food. Agree with Roger B about the identity, but its a small place and at busy food times it is hectic for drinkers. Go early evening b4 7 or later after 9.30 and its wonderful. A firm favourite of ours already. Great food, good local ales and welcoming staff. "Wolvesfan" comments should be ignored when he makes silly remarks like the pub looks like a public lav! He must visit some odd public lavs if they look like this! Just look at the pubs pic and judge for yourself.
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Thanks for that little 'Summery' of the Rai D'or, Roger B,....Unfortunately the outside of this building will always remind me of a public 'Bog'......that includes the inside as well.
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Odd place. The ale was excellent-Tetnang and Honey Blonde from Downton. The landlord came over and introduced himself(a little too directly maybe), he told us that our 2nd pint would have 50p off if we were CAMRA members but i didn't see this posted up anywhere. The food eating dept was booked out it seemed. But something about the atmosphere wasn't right. The "is it a pub or is it a restaurant?" stigma maybe??
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Very nice pint of Downton "Elderquad" but nowhere to sit as we werent eating, 7/10
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The Rai d�Or (loosely translates as Ray of Golden Light) is a 16th century building that recently reverted back to its original name. Previously it was a music and bikers pub called the Star and like a few pubs in the area, it has its origins as a brothel (some may say that some pubs in the area haven�t changed much). The Rai D�or seems to be caught in an identity crisis which has been raised by several previous eviewers. The Pub / Thai Restaurant combo works well enough in several similar places I have visited but not here, mainly because the management don�t really seem to know what their best options are to keep both drinkers and diners satisfied. As it happens, my visit was just before they had started serving food so I had the luxury of a hassle free table although the waft of the cooking was both intrusive and equally tempting. The pub�s interior is pleasant enough with lots of trellises, potted plants, orchids cramming the windows sills and a wonderful inglenook fireplace. It must be said that there were only 2 or 3 other people in the pub so it was a bit soulless at the time. I don�t know what the normal beer selection is and they were running stocks down ahead of a refurbishment but I noted Stonehenge Summer Solstice and Apple Blossom as the ales available as well as Addlestones Cider. Its promotion of local beers is to be commended and as an ale lover the pub is well worthy of a visit although until it sorts out its identity, it isn�t really a place that you can easily spend a great deal of time without feeling a bit uncomfortable.
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I agree with emilywu that to get a table in this pub you need to book a day or so in advance particularly mid evenings when the pub is usually full and especially later in the week when the pub is extremely busy. I have spoken to the landlord who has confirmed he is happy for drinkers to have a table if they tell him that is all they want to do and have booked so he knows who is coming and he can plan accordingly for the evening as he usually has to turn some diners away since space is limited (but never ale drinkers who can always find a spot in the bar area). Make sure your intentions are noted in the diary but it may also be politic if your group orders a starter or two to share even if you are not planning to have a full meal. Note also that he usually knows many of the customers who are mostly flexible about squeezing up or even moving to a smaller table when they�ve finished eating � but he wont mind if you are not one of the those people so just be honest and tell him. He�s in the CAMRA Good Beer Guide for 2009 and gives a discount on the beer to CAMRA members on production of the membership card.
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Very popular bar restaurant and a good place for women to go to even on your own. Great atmosphere and good value too. The bar prices and the food is less expensive than most other pubs and much better than restaurants. If you want to get a table always book, even on the day, as it can be often full any day of the week. But if you only want to drink there is almost always somewhere to sit or perch in the bar area � everyone assumes that tables are usually booked at peak hours so ask if you need one. Best suited to laid back people who like a relaxed atmosphere.
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A pub and Thai restaurant in the same two rooms - it just works as a concept, it is certainly a vast improvement over its former incarnation as one of the roughest pubs in Salisbury. Pub style in one smallish room round the bar with a more restaurant setting in the other larger room although customers were eating in both. Well kept beers from local microbreweries, Stonehenge and Small Pauls plus scrumpy from Addlestones on the three handpumps with Budvar, Blackrat cider and Fosters on keg. Bottles from Singha, Tiger, TsingTao and Chang as befits a south east Asian restaurant. Busy with both drinkers and dinners when I visited, the only staff I talked to were chatty and friendly.
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Always a good pint, food is superb and reasonably priced, very friendly and welcoming.
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Went back for a second visit, nearly 18 months after the first, and the EXACT same thing happened as last time: we were asked to vacate a table that wasn't marked as 'reserved'! And then the people it was mysteriously 'reserved' for, never showed up anyway! The Management should invest in some 'Reserved' signs. Must say though: wonderful beer and wonderful Thai food.
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Yes I agree with comments below.As soon as I'd finished my(excellent) Thai meal was given the bill presumably because people were waiting for a table. VERY rude!! Won't be going back.
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Excellent real ale and thai food, but not happy being given the bill before we had finished.ie sod off we need your table.
anonymous - 28 Oct 2007 16:28 |
Good range of beers. Excellent Thai food. Very short opening hours and slightly eccentric service (like suddenly tell you your table is 'reserved' when you've already been sitting at it a couple of hours and have spent loads of money there!) but still worth a visit for the food, drink and overall character.
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The local Camra rag contains an advert for the pub detailing its opening hours. Saturday lunchtime it says it is open. Walk out there - as dead as dead can be.
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Unusual pub which felt a bit more like a restaurant than a pub and was very quiet on a Saturday early evening - I felt slightly out of place just having a couple of pints and no meal, although when I next visit Salisbury I might make a point of eating here. Two ales from the Downton's range were available on my visit - both served in good condition although I found them a bit bland. Would be a nice place for a leisurely evening with your other half.
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Stonehenge beers and excellent Thai food. Nice atmosphere. Cosy pub.
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excellent food and great beer in a relaxed freindly atmosphere
terry Grace - 17 Nov 2004 08:53 |
Quirky but compelling little pub which serves inexpensive fine local ales (Stonehenge brewery) and, if you so desire, delicious and authentic Thai food. Pleasantly informal and laid back with an eccentric edge.
Darren - 9 Aug 2004 19:21 |
