The George Inn, Axminster

An outstanding thatched village pub dating impart from the 15th Century. The building is attached to its more modern neighbour on one side so it feels nicely tucked into a comfortable corner, and there are some bench seats at the front which don’t look out of place.  There is a car park at the back accessed from a side road. There are some detached cottages providing B&B, separated from the pub by a cobbled garden with plenty of nice al fresco seating. Inside is a series of rooms in a line, two dining rooms to the left of the door, then to the right 3 separate yet contiguous bar areas, the last, a lounge with comfy sofas and a big tv, being on a higher level. There is plenty of rough timber panelling, and the floors are flagstones. All very atmospheric, helped by structural timbers and original fireplaces. There’s also a skittle alley. Food is very good quality freshly cooked pub grub, plus a few specials. Four ales on: Yeovil Ruby, Cotleigh Night Owl, Dartmoor Legend and a dry tap that normally has a house beer. All the ales there were in absolutely perfect condition, a testament to the landlord‘s passion for his craft. There was also a real cider on tap and two boxed fruit ciders. The landlord was very sociable indeed and the locals follow suit. This is the best new pub I’ve found in a very long time and I can’t wait to come back.