Royal Castle Hotel, Dartmouth

This is an impressive 17th century building overlooking the quay and river that is a privately owned hotel and free house, it has two very different rooms called the harbour bar (modern) and the galleon bar (traditional) that are both open to the public. As you enter the hotel there is a hall way that leads to the reception area towards the back of the ground floor, on the left of the hall is the harbour bar and on the right is the galleon bar, naturally I was drawn to the more traditional galleon bar which has real ale on hand pull and spirits while the harbour bar has continental lagers and wines. The galleon bar is long and narrow with a small brick bar counter on the left at the back of the room and three fire places, one stone fire place in the right hand wall at the front of the room, a large cast iron stove with working spit opposite the bar and a large inglenook fire place at the back of the room in the right hand wall. These three features and the low beams made a very cosy atmosphere, on the walls were old rifles and shotguns, brass pots and pans, horse brasses and old paintings. A plaque on the front of the building reads “This old coaching inn has been famous since Drake first sailed.” Regular ales are Dartmoor Jail Ale, Sharpe’s Doom Bar and Bays Gold. There is no changing guest which is a shame in my opinion, I found all three ales to be well kept but a little pricey, probably because it’s first and foremost a hotel bar (GBG 2011). A great traditional place to have a drink, the galleon bar feels olde worlde and has plenty of character. I did not bother with the modern harbour bar as it didn’t look like my type of place. Both bars have different menus, but I had already eaten so I did not even look at the food. The place was busy with regulars who were in for a drink despite the slightly high prices which I think says a lot. Definitely worth a look for a drink.

Lovely location, and lovely atmosphere. A great place to while away a couple of hours

Official site of the Royal Castle Hotel - www.royalcastle.co.uk

Official site of the Royal Castle Hotel - www.royalcastle.co.uk