Caboose, Salisbury

Official site of Caboose - www.caboosesalisbury.com

Official site of Caboose - www.caboosesalisbury.com

Fairly nondescript boho-feel room with lots of hanging brass knic-knacs and a loud juke box pumping out varying but pretty decent tunes. 6X & Ringwood Best on handpump.

Single odd shaped room with the counter at rear housing four pulls, one with cider, the other three with beers from Box Steam. A basic old boozer with traditional furniture mainly wood tables & chairs, the usual fruit machine, screen and piped music also appear. Could be worse.

Decided it was time to tick it off after seeing two ales and a cider on (Box Steam Funnel Blower was execrable and was replaced by Camelot Ales of the Round Table which was almost as bad ). Incredibly basic interior, though an upright piano and papers were positives. Noted that the dart board had the wrong numbers. This place is pretty shoddy and it really doesn’t merit any attention. November 2011 Popped my head round the door to see what was on – spotted a couple of ciders (no ale) but was scared off the by the inhabitants, who didn’t seem to be overly welcoming of the friendly face to counter their own. So I moved on. Having seen other reviews elsewhere it appears I am not alone in finding this. Unrated.

This was my first stop off the train, the other two nearby didn't look remotely inviting. It was rather quiet at lunchtime, just one other punter inside chatting to the young barman and someone outside in the side alley having a smoke with his pint. An opened out pub with evidence of the previous layout in the two differing floor finishes, part boarded and part terracotta. A central island has an enclosed stair leading to rooms to let above yet still discharging into the middle of the pub, I assume there is another fire exit. The bar is to the rear, two openings form the knock through with various brass and copper artefacts on the beams as well as kettles and jugs hanging from the rather shabby ceiling which has evidence of more than one persistent water leak from above. Seating is at a few light wood tables but strangely there was a sofa and armchair, clearly from the same suite and looking rather "lived in" to say the least. Even if you fancied sitting on these there were no adjoining surfaces to perch your drink. Possibly they were purely for the resident cat and elderly dog, the latter of which was clearly struggling with the heat. Décor included apart from the brass collection, pictures of the eponymous cats, a plastic carry out container on a hook and one of those old "Guide Dogs for the Blind" plastic dog collection models. A piano on a return wall has an unusable dartboard above it, other entertainment is advertised in the form of live music on Sunday evenings. Food is available, all I saw advertised were pasties, pies and cheese and onion slices, not sure if full meals are offered. Four handpumps, two were in use, Box Clever Soul Train (£3.60) plus Black Rat Cider. I've been in here before, many years ago, on a football trip, it was busier then but still shabby and tatty I recall. I didn't find it unwelcoming, just a bit dreary and in need of some proper TLC.