Inn on the Marsh, Moreton-In-Marsh

I can't say that I'm ever looking forward to visiting a Marston's pub. A lot of them tend to be bland, modern affairs. This one is slightly different and has more positive points than most. Situated on the main drag just to the south of the centre, it has a dark bar area with few windows, red painted walls and carpet. Furnishings are fairly worn. In fact, I nearly fell inside the one sofa. There is a fireplace with a fake coal fire at one end. But the overall effect is quite cosy. There is also a dining area situated in a conservatory overlooking the car park. On the bar, Razor Back is the regular beer. Guests were Old Hooky & Butty Bach with a fourth handpull unclipped. Hobgoblin IPA was on keg, with ciders being Thatcher's Gold & Weston's Stowford Press. A sign at the end of the bar stated that you could pay with cash. In fact, the sign should have read "cash preferred" or even "card payment discouraged", as the landlord was eager to make a point that he didn't appreciate the charges banks levied on card payments. Whilst I have sympathy with this practice, there are many pubs these days that are card only and many others that prefer card payments. The card machine was located a few yards away from the bar, with the landlord stating that he makes customers undergo the inconvenient walk to the machine so that they can appreciate the inconvenience he has to go to! Just put up a sign that reflects your sentiments instead of "cash payments accepted"! Maybe it was just his sense of humour, but he also lost some business from a couple with a dog who gave up getting served after waiting a few minutes to be served. He appeared after serving somebody's dinner to find them walking back out and uttered something sarcastic. Maybe he has grown tired of running pubs, as his customer service skills seem to be lacking now. There is a music theme to the pub, with a keyboard seemingly put to occasional use and a huge selection of LPs, which are played in rotation on a record player behind the bar. The cosy nature of this pub and the excellent LP selection are plus points here that I wouldn't expect from a Marston's pub. The service was not what I would expect though. I would still say it is worthy of a look though. Pay with cash and you may get much better service than most.

Chosen as it is in the 2017 GBG Guide. Four real ales on - two from Ringwood, a Hobgoblin and something else. I went for the RW Bitter and not only was it perfect, I also had change from £3. In the heart of the Cotswolds too. Stone floored bar area, real fire and dining conservatory. Trip blogged at http://bit.ly/2lCCUi6