The Elphinstone Hotel, Biggar

The Elph bar has been refurbished since I was here last, but remains much as it was before since there is little scope for change due to its diminutive size. It manages to fit two TVs, a dart board and a games machine into the limited space, however, as well as only a handful of customers, despite it being a Saturday night. On draught are McEwan’s 80 Shilling (at £3.25 a pint), John Smith’s, Guinness, Strongbow cider and Foster’s, Heineken and Kronenberg lagers.

This historic coaching inn in the centre of Biggar claims a history going back over 400 years. A plaque on the exterior front wall commemorates the 1940 visit to the town of General Sikorsky, the Polish Prime Minister in exile, to inspect Polish troops based nearby during World War 2. The hotel has a restaurant, a lounge/cocktail bar and a public bar. The lounge/cocktail bar tends to be dominated by diners or residents having a drink. The real drinking area, the “Elph Bar,” accessed by a separate door from the street, has more of a local pub atmosphere. It is small, as the name suggests, but popular, despite not being cheap at £3.25 for a pint of Guinness. Meals are also served there. The smartly dressed staff cover both the lounge/cocktail bar and the Elph, so you sometimes have to ring the bell hanging above the bar to summon them through.