The Britannia, Guildford

Decent quick visit to this pub today. Five different Shepherd Neame beers on offer, as well as many other drinks (obviously) showing the olympics as well. Downside was bad background music and immature staff.

Situated close to the River Wey, which runs through the centre of Guildford, on the south side of town is The Britannia, an inviting looking brick built building with a slate roof, resembling at first glance, something of a country pub. Inside is a rather roomy single bar that is perhaps bigger than we might initially expect. There’s a rather modern, generic feel to the place with a longish bar counter, opposite which at the far side of the room, standard tables and chairs are laid out for diners. Several pillars break up the floor area, but it’s a rather nondescript interior with little of note or specific interest. Just inside the door on the left, a small area appears to cater for drinkers. The walls here are decorated with photographs of barges, reflecting the proximity of the river. There’s a few seats outside at the front, but, unfortunately, any views of the river are rather obscured by the car park in front, which I gather occasionally floods. Live music is advertised for Thursday evening and, on Saturday October 22nd, we were promised the long awaited return of the Charlie Farley Sunday Four ( one day early, presumably ??), but it didn’t feel like the type of place where you would have expected live music. On my recent Saturday lunchtime visit, there was a rather transient impersonal feel to the place, with several family groups in for lunch and several younger groups, seemingly students. There was no real pubby feel, nor, apparently, any regular customer base. It’s a Shepherd Neame pub – now much more heavily represented in Surrey than they used to be. There’s 4 pumps, but, on my visit, only Bishops Finger at 5% ABV and £ 3.25p was available. When I politely expressed my disappointment and surprise at the lack of choice, the young barman explained that it had been a “heavy night” last night with other beers running out. Somewhat gloatingly, but hopefully tongue in cheek, he added that there had been “more people leaving more drunk than they would have expected”. Taking all in all, it’s a reasonable pub, but it’s not worth specifically going out of your way to visit