Coach & Horses, Hilsea, Portsmouth

Coach & Horses page on Greene King website - www.greeneking-pubs.co.uk

This impressive, unusual 1930s building stands on the site of an earlier pub of the same name. It is now at the junction of 2 busy main roads, which creates a wedge-shaped site.  The pub’s car park stretches around 3 sides of the pub, which is also the shape of a wedge but with the sharp tip cut off.  The car park is narrow and can be quite hazardous to exit at busy times.  Inside, the public rooms follow the wedge’s exterior to form a single horseshoe-shaped bar with three separate serving areas.  At one end is a collection of TVs and gaming machines adjacent to a lounge area with a rather odd-looking electric replica fire protected from the drunken masses and their ridiculous offspring by a thin sheet of Perspex.  There is a pool table, and the pub offers various evening events such as Free Pool Night, quiz nights, Games Night, karaoke and ‘live entertainment’, though in this pub that could mean anything from stand-up comedy to public stoning.  The remainder of the bar is mainly dedicated to those foolish enough to pollute their innards with the industrial by-product that Flaming Grill pubs (of which this is one) try to pass off as food; the dishes had names that include words like ‘challenge’ and ‘combo’, which isn’t a good start. Even the paper menus, which had clearly been on the tables (presumably because the latter are too sticky for the  former to fly away) for a long while, had the decency to look embarrassed.  On the plus side, the staff were friendly and helpful, if a little slow to engage.  There were 2 ales on draft, GK IPA and Band of Brewers, both predictably lacking in flavour.  There is little to recommend this pub other than as an architectural curiosity or a source of free WiFi, given that there is better food and ale to be had in many other places nearby. 

It is a pub but seems to geared more towards a "Harvester" type venue with emphasis on food, which seems to be standard [but pricey] pub grub fare Bog standard choice of beers available, John Smiths, Fosters etc. I had IPA at £2.25 which was pleasantly served by barman, who waited, without prompting, for it to settle before topping up to full pint, a nice touch there