BITE user comments - dougsmith
Comments by dougsmith
Open again, wow, and its still a brewery owned pub. Not much has changed, except they dont have the normal ales on anymore - spitfire and Bombardier have gone. There is a sign of some new paint, but not very friendly. I was the only one in the pub. Well comments - could be only early days and might improve, time will tell. Will pop in again and see whats on offer, but I think the current landlord is throwing away his money trying to upgrade this brewery owned pub, after all, how many landlords have tried over the past 8 years since Ian Blackmore sold it to Punch? Its been a white elephant for 8 years.
23 Sep 2008 16:26
mmmmmm, new ownership, well, an effort has been made to get this pub up and running away from being a brewery owned pub. Prices are good, but they only had one real ale on - what a shame, not badly kept. Heres the crunch line - BARFLY'S, yeah, they are here in their droves. Not the place to drink, far better pubs in Sherborne. What a shame, the best situated pub in Sherborne and its surrounded by riff raff and job seeker types. I wont be back in a hurry.
23 Sep 2008 16:19
The Marston Inn, Marston Magna
This pub has recently changed hands - wow, and attitude..!!! Popped in for a pint, tried Spitfire, absolutely rubbish, had to send it back. Tried Guinness and after sending three pints back, managed to have one that was below average. Hardly anyone in the pub, where have the old regulars gone now? Very unfriendly and no attitude at all. Horses / ponies running around in the beer garden, bit like a zoo. An attempt to clean this place up was noticed. Wont be back in a hurry.
23 Sep 2008 16:12
Doing my rounds again - popped in and had a pint of Butcombes, very well kept. Seems they have changed the basic pub menu to a great steak menu - wow, a 20 oz T bone aswell - my favorite. Did not have time for a meal, but menu is very reasonably priced considering the price of steaks these days. Friendly Landlord made me feel welcome. Great, no hooray henry's, just normal folk in having meals and a pint. Will definately be back.
23 Sep 2008 16:04
Popped in for a pint recently, not been in for a while, and found the ales great and well kept (had some 6x). However, the place is crowded with hooray henry's, what a shame they look down on the normal folk that pop in for a pint. Menu looks good, but unless you have a big bank balance during this credit crunch time, its way over the top. For a country pub its far too expensive for my pocket. I wont be back in a hurry thats for sure. The Landlord is very friendly but the Landlady is rather snobbish and unfriendly.
23 Sep 2008 15:54
Sorry, forgot to mention - previous comments say the pub only opens at 4pm. It opens at noon every day (6 days a week, but only opens at 4pm on Mondays). Closes between 3pm and 4:30pm on weekdays with exception of Mondays. I have noticed most other country pubs in the area are either closed all day on Monday and some on Tuesday. At least this one is open on Monday nights for a swift one on the way home from work....
9 Apr 2008 10:01
Great to have this pub open again after three years. Good Ale's and the tradition of having Butcombes on tap for the past 20 years (plus), has been maintained. They had some teething problems when the new cellar install was done and the Ale's were coming out too cold. This has now been rectified and the Ale lines have been separated from the lager python. Well worth a visit. Food is good too. The views are to die for.
9 Apr 2008 09:55
Well, popped in again recently and found the place all closed up - looks like the most recent landlord managed to last nearly 2 years, 20 months longer than any previous tenants since Ian sold it to Punch. Wow, its good to see how these property development companies mess up pubs, give them all back to freehold managers, then pubs may get somewhere again. A bit of a shame, as many locals said the place was always busy on Friday and Saturday nights - pitty about the O.A.P. neighbours that moaned about the noise and smokers outside.
4 Mar 2008 21:41
After reading Dick Stiltons comments on the pubs in Sherborne, I decided to pay them a visit myself. Dont often go pub crawling, but it was worth a try. Started off in the Britannia, then the Digby Tap and followed up in the half moon. After the Halfmoon, I visited the Cross Keys. Prices of beer and lagers - well more expensive by far compared to the Tap and the Britannia. Nice pub, but first impression of the loud music and walls plastered with T.V. screens indicates it is a youngsters hang-out. Polite bar staff and good decor. This is the type of pub one would certainly end up in a fight in on a Saturday night. Doug Smith, Sherborne
6 May 2006 14:49
After reading Dick Stiltons comments on the pubs in Sherborne, I decided to pay them a visit myself. Dont often go pub crawling, but it was worth a try. Started off in the Britannia, then the Digby Tap and followed up in the half moon. All I can say is it is similar to a Weatherspoons, bar staff boring, decor great for this type of pub. However, not having bar stools against the bar made it seem like a cattle auction going up to buy beer. Prices of beer and lagers - well more expensive by far compared to the Tap and the Britannia. Doug Smith, Sherborne
6 May 2006 14:43
After reading Dick Stiltons comments on the pubs in Sherborne, I decided to pay them a visit myself. Dont often go pub crawling, but it was worth a try. Started off in the Britannia and passed through to the Tap. As usual, the Tap has good beer and is a sound pub. Obviously being the only free house in Sherborne, the prices are good. Well done keep it up. The only thing that got me down in the Tap was the "upper class" customers bragging about their new ventures and fancy holiday homes abroad. Oh, how posh...! Give some of their money to charity - ha ha ha
6 May 2006 14:37
After reading Dick Stiltons comments on the pubs in Sherborne, I decided to pay them a visit myself. Dont often go pub crawling, but it was worth a try. The Britannia has been a dive for over four years since Ian sold it to Punch. However, I found the new landlord and landlady very pleasant and interesting. The Spitfire beer was second to none. As for Dick Stiltons comment, it's the first time I have seen a guinness poored corectly (allowed to settle etc). They do know the difference between the beers and lagers. In fact, they now sell four types of real ales and the customers were all commenting on how good the beer is these days. I have not seen this pub so busy since Ian Blackmore had it four years ago. Well done to the new owners, I will be back again. Doug Smith, Sherborne
6 May 2006 14:30
The Digby Tap, Sherborne
Popped in recently, not much has changed. Still got a good selection of ales. Tried the Yeovil Ale, very nice. Prices still the best in Sherborne, the pub was busy as usual. mmmm, yeah, still full of hooray henry's, but I suppose as the beer is cheap and there is a good selection, I can put up with the garble. Will be back soon.
23 Sep 2008 16:33