The Imperial Arms, Farnborough

CLOSED. says for refurbishment( this sign has been up for quite a while now), however local press reports suggest that this pub may never open again

The Imperial has the basic ingredients to be a half decent pub; attractive exterior, pleasant location, decent layout and nothing too pretentious or over fussy but doesn’t really make the best of what its got. The interior has front and rear bars with a separate pool room inbetween. Décor is quite plain with a mix of tiled and carpeted flooring but not really much that catches the eye. A small patio outside has some cover and there is also a car park. Beer wise there is a selection of standard keg beers, lagers and cider and despite there being 6 handpumps (3 in each bar) the only ale is London Pride and it wasn’t the best quality I have ever encountered although prices seemed reasonable enough for the area. The rear bar has 3 TVs (with both Sky & ESPN), a dart board and a series of disco lights which suggests some form of regular live music / karaoke / disco although there were no specific avents advertised at the time of my visit. Although it was quiet, the customers that were there didn’t exactly show much in the way of restrained language despite the presence of a few kids in the bar which didn’t exactly endear me to the place. Overall the place is OK but given that the excellent Prince of Wales is barely a hundred yards away, I can’t see myself returning here unless future reports reveal a few more positive elements.

Just up the road from the Prince of Wales, not nearly as good though. Quite a rough crowd of mainly youths who tend to be playing on the pool table. There is a seperate room which makes things quieter.