Blue Boar, Abingdon

It was only me and the two bar staff in Blue Boar on a recent midweek evening. I got the feeling that this is more of a late night venue and signs in the toilet advertising upcoming pay on entry events backed this up. By the entrance are a couple of high tables on the oche of the dartboard on the left wall. The board is used because they are advertising for dart players. At the rear is a jukebox and an empty conservatory that I assumed to be a dance floor. The bar is found down some steps to the right of the entrance. The bar counter along the rear wall faces some seating and at the far end is an area with sofa and another dartboard that is denoted as the ‘staff only area’, which I found very odd. Standard keg and San Miguel were available on draught. The service was polite, but I’ll not be returning.

Shut for a brief period of time, but now re-opened, it's hardly a destination venue, especially with the variety of establishments that remain in Abingdon's town centre. No real ale - of three handpumps, two had clips reversed with a third unclipped, so a bottle of Wychwood Hobgoblin it was. Brighter and bare-boarded from before, it's at least had a makeover, but in this current guise it's only here to tick if you're a completist.