The Red Lion, Odd Down, Bath

As soon as I walked in I saw the Sizzling Pub branding and realised this was not going to be pretty. It wasn’t. The pub is a large estate-type establishment on a main road in one of Bath’s more charmless suburbs. It sits on a corner by a very busy road junction, and has a car park at the side. There is an awful lawned garden-cum-ashtray at the rear, a smaller seating area at the front with benches, chairs and views of the roundabout, and a malodorous covered smoking terrace which frames the back door. The interior is every bit as awful as others in this abominable chain. When we arrived it was overrun with school-age children, misbehaving and their elder – relatives? - encouraging poor behaviour. There was a sign asking that children be removed by 9pm, but I wonder how many of the parents could read it. There is a single L-shaped bar with a variety of seating styles. Food is mass-produced, cheap and cheerless. There were several TV screens showing live sports, and there were gaming machines for all age groups. Humanoids in various states of inebriation lay, sat and stood around, and teenagers were carrying trays of cheap shots to their associates. The barman was inept, taking an inordinately long time to produce a pint of over-gassed Doombar in very poor condition while completely failing to hold a conversation. The Doombar was nearly undrinkable. I am unlikely to return.

The Red Lion page at Sizzling Pubs site - www.sizzlingpubs.co.uk

The Red Lion page at Sizzling Pubs site - www.sizzlingpubs.co.uk