For the fifth pub crawl on this site, I thought it only fair that we head south of the water to Bedminster.
First stop once was The Coronation on Dean Lane, a small pub which has weathered the slow gentrification of the area well, staying loyal to its locals and still stocking a decent and cheap selection of real ales and ciders – you can even get Natch in cans if you feel so inclined.
It’s an unpretentious, proper pub and I’ve often found it a good place to have a few quiet drinks before heading in to town.
Next up was The Steam Crane, the first of our North Street pubs and one of the newest additions to the area. Housed in what used to be The Bay, this bar follows the lead of The Old Bookshop and The Hare nearby by bringing some of the best beers of the moment to the people of Bedminster.
There is a good selection of craft beers, real ales and ciders on tap, with the prices edging towards the pricier end of the scale, but then the M.O. here is clearly different to that of The Coronation.
Patterned wallpaper, theatre productions and an impressive & well-received menu (the roast dinners in particular seem to be making quite a stir) mean that this bar already has high expectations for itself, which so far it seems to be reaching.
It’s not as relaxed as some of its neighbours, but the treats they had from Wiper and True, Wild Beer and numerous other exciting breweries mean that I’d have been happy to linger here a while longer, had we not had a pub crawl to be getting on with.
The third pub on our route was The Hare a few minutes down the road, which is now lush wine bar KASK – definitely worth stopping in to (perhaps via a food & booze pit stop at North St Standard )
We were then supposed to head next door to The Old Bookshop but due to it being so busy had to skip straight to the next on our list.
This place is well worth a visit though and is already well known citywide for its fantastic menu – whether it be its frequently changing tapas menu, tasty brunches or brilliant roast dinners.
The Old Bookshop still knows how to keep you well watered though, with plenty of good beers and ciders to choose from, in addition to some great cocktails. Their Bloody Mary is first rate too – which means you’re likely to see me ensconced in a corner one Sunday morning. Keep an eye to their gig listings too – they get some great acts playing but tickets are in short supply due to the size of the venue!
Final stop of the evening was The Spotted Cow, a well established favourite in the area and especially loved for its massive beer garden. It was fairly dark by the time we arrived so we had to instead take over an area in the corner of the pub, and I also found myself wishing we had arrived earlier to take advantage of their decent pub grub menu. There are plenty of events on here throughout the week, but I imagine the main reason this bar is so beloved in the area is due to its good food and that garden.
Of course, we didn’t have time (or the binge drinking audacity) to take on all of the pubs in the area, but the bars located further down North Street such as Tobacco Factory and The Hen & Chicken are more venues than they are pubs – however they’re still worth worth a visit for reasonably priced entertainment and decent drinks – they also tend to do food offers if you’re attending one of their events, so it’s worth checking their websites for details.
The last stop just past Tobacco Factory is the Bristol Beer Factory Tap Room, a nice lounge style bar which leads on to the brewery just behind it (tours and tasting sessions are available) – pull up a few at once of the long benches or in a cosy armchair and taste your way through the BBF range to see out your pub crawl.
If you’re heading in the other direction towards East Street or West Street you’ll hit a variety of very local pubs such as The London Inn, The Jolly Colliers and the local Wetherspoons; all cheap and fairly raucous but worth a visit if you’re looking for a good anecdote or some interesting karaoke to watch.
What are your top watering holes in Bedminster? And what do you reckon of the places I’ve listed above? Let me know!
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“Gentrification of the area” – the words send a chill through me – all heaven and all the angels protect us from that! But thanks for this useful review – The Coronation sounds good. Adrian
Yeah, I was wary of saying it but that’s the black and white of it and the inevitable result of Bristol getting more well known and more popular. The Coronation is a good shout, and The Hare manages to stay the right side of pubby too 🙂
There are some great pubs opening/being refurbished. It’s not quite Gloucester Road, but it’s taking baby steps.
Thanks for sharing. Nice pubs list I am gonna visit some of them soon 🙂
Glad to hear it ! Let me know how you get on 🙂
Hope that list is still actual, gonna visit Bristol and have a huge pub crawl 🙂
Hi Mark – it’s still accurate, let me know how you get on!