Royal Oak Hotel, Leominster

This is a substantial former coaching inn with far more space than present trade can justify, so there has been a very sensible diversification: the left hand side of the ground floor is taken up by an Indian restaurant, which, if the smell is anything to go by, serves some very tasty food. I had booked a room here and visited several other pubs both here and in Hereford before arriving for a final beer of the day in the comfortable lounge, with the highlights of the night's Champions League football on the TV over the fireplace. There seem to be plenty of rooms, and I paid only £25 for my single with en suite bathroom. On the bar are four hand pumps with ales on three of them, an interesting choice from local Mayfields Bonfire Bitter, plus Wadworth 6X and Adnams Old Ale from further afield, the other pump being empty. I had the Bonfire beer, which was enjoyable but not as good as some I had earlier in the evening. The bar is centrally placed in the room to the right of the foyer, with a dining area towards the front (high backed leather chairs), some leather sofas and pouffes near the TV and a quieter area down a step or two to the rear, with more sofas and pouffes. It's OK here, but being a hotel rather than a pub puts it at a disadvantage from the drinker's perspective in a town that can boast gems like the Chequers and the Grape Vaults, to name but two.