The Steam Crane, Bedminster, Bristol

The Steam Crane is a decent sized pub that has a mural covering all of its frontage. Once inside there is a large single room which is bare boarded,there are a few settees to the front right with chunky wood tables and chairs elsewhere. There were four real ales on the bar,i had a drink of Bath Ales Gem,which was a decent drink,but very expensive,so no surprise that the pub was empty on our Saturday dinnertime visit. There was some background music playing. This is a decent and smart pub but, i think it is overcharging for the area. Pub visited 23/1/2016

very smart plenty of choice Tuesday 5 o clock start

A large and imposing pub that has had numerous changes of name over the years, it was at one time part of the Firkin chain but has been countless other things since, most of which have been fairly short lived. The yuppiness from the Southville end of North Street is gradually spreading along the road, with other recent openings and renovations nearby. Nonetheless it was slightly disconcerting to find two bouncers on the door on a recent visit, and even the friendly barman was wired up with an earpiece, although quite why this was necessary when the pub was almost empty I’m not sure. It now has something of a retro feel to it, with sanded wooden boards on the floor, flock wallpaper and dark red wood panelling on the lower part of the walls. The front area of the pub is perhaps more intended for dining with many of the tables laid up for food. At the rear, the retro theme continues with a number of vintage radio sets scattered around as well as a few old clocks and other paraphernalia. Seating was a mixture of old leather sofas, Chesterfield arm chairs and wooden chairs with velvet cushions whilst a couple of tables had been fashioned out of old cable reels. An old tiled fire-place was to one side and a table had a stack of board games on. A few pencil drawings of Bristol scenes completed the décor. There is a courtyard garden at the rear, although we did not investigate this. Food is offered, and although we did not study the menu in detail, it looked to be a very concise offering of the bar snack variety, and we noticed a few burgers coming out which looked pretty good. There was an eclectic collection of beers on tap, and these included Thriller and Equinox from Glastonbury Ales, Red Willow’s Mirthless, Brain’s Zitrus, New Bristol Brewery Supernatural IPA and Weird Beard’s Decadence Stout. A board also listed a light ale from Wiper & True, although I did not spot this on the bar. Ciders were also well represented with Stowford Press, Addlestones, Ashridge Devon and Ashridge Blush on tap plus a box of Crossmans on the end of the bar.