The Castle Inn, St. Ives

My partner and I have been visitig St Ives for eight years always for the music festival.The Castle pub as always been our favourite.Everyone serving behind the bar are extremley friendly and welcoming.The pub stocks a excellant variety of real ales & ciders from the keg.Over the years we have come to know a few of the regulars and like the staff make you feel very welcome.If you go to St Ives at any time of the year we highly recommed you visit this pub. Well be back in 2011, thank you Castle Inn. Allan & Sue South Wales.

Attractive high street pub with some great stained glass windows along the front. A traditional interior with a beamed ceiling and what appeared on first impressions to be a flagstone floor, although may well have been more modern tiling. The walls were largely wood panelled and there was a plasma in the front bar, although fortunately this was on silent showing the football results on our visit. The barmaid was friendly and offered a sample of the farm cider (7.1%!) without being asked. Beers on tap were Adnams Broadside and Bitter, Directors, Bombadier and London Pride. Beers from barrels racked up behind the bar were Broadside (again) and Heligan Honey. There was also keg Dark Mild from Courage. Ciders were Strongbow and Cornish Orchard Farm Cider (also straight from the barrel).

In such a touristy harbour town as St Ives, the Castle seems to have a wide appealing approach that fortunately doesn't too far towards the coach party brigade. The exterior is quite bright and alluring and the spacious, open interior has all the trademark old world low ceilings, flagstoned floors, old paneling and basic furnishings that you would expect. The maritime theme is fairly underplayed with just the occasional lifebelt and foghorn among the various nick nacks, certainly nothing too pretentious or obviously overbearing. The coloured paneled glass makes for a spectular frontage and bathes the interior in a kind of green hue.There is an unobtrusive darts area to the left of the bar 3 Ales (Betty Stoggs, Abbott, Bombardier) and a Real Cider (Cornish Orchard) served direct from the cask (despite the approrpaite hand pumps located on the bar). A hefty collection of beer mats are congregated behind the bar and across the ceiling beams. Like many pubs in Cornish towns, they display a list of banned patrons so the local trawler brawlers appear to be kept at bay. Well worth seeking out.