The Turf Hotel, Exeter

This pub is well out of the way and only opens from March to October. It is easy to get to if you walk, cycle or come by boat. If you come by car you will need to leave the car three quarters of a mile away, but you will have a nice walk by the canal to get to the Turf. There is a road to the pub (has to be for deliveries), just no parking, but I did see a taxi waiting. When I visited they had Otter Ale and Otter bitter, Hanlon's Yellow Hammer, Branscome's Branoc, Exeter Brewery organic real ale. The landlord Clive's aim is to supply, where possible, local products. The local Devon ciders included the Turf and Green Valley Dragon Tears, and a local Red Rock Pilsner. The exception was Budweiser Original. The range is vast and I have probably missed some. I had the Otter ale the first night, and the Otter Bitter the second night. Both were excellent quality. The pub caters for all tastes with varieties of other drinks and even some delicious looking cakes. Delicious home cooked food. Friendly efficient service. Great location. Good range of well kept beers. This place is simply the best

One of the few pubs in the country to be inaccessible by road, this is in a prime spot on a narrow peninsula between the River Exe and the canal. Options for vising the pub are walking from the nearest car park which is about ⅔ of a mile away, cycling or by catching the Topsham ferry which rather conveniently moors at the end of the beer garden. The garden is a good size with plenty of picnic benches and there is also a smaller garden at the rear with three or four benches overlooking the canal basin. In spite of it’s inaccessibility, it was full to capacity on a recent sunny weekend with orderly queues for the bar snaking around much of the pub. Inside the pub is divided in to three rooms and has something of a nautical feel with plenty of light wood panelling, a sanded wood floor and a couple of nautical charts on the walls. The walls are predominantly whitewashed plaster with some cream wood panelling in places and a few old black and white photos. None of the rooms are particularly big, especially the central one which also included a food order point and a consequent queue of people waiting. I didn’t inspect the menu but did see a few plates of nachos, mussels and burgers coming out. We went for the barbecue option to save time, although this too was very popular and had a queue of people waiting. A Cheese Burger for £4 was a decent enough specimen with a thick slab of beef patty and a proper hunk of cheese. Sauces, pickles and such like could be added as desired although if you wanted a salad it was charged separately. Hot Dogs and Steak sandwiches were also available. Beers on tap were Otter Ale, Summa That and Branoc from Branscombe Vale and Hanlon’s Yellow Hammer. Ciders were well represented with Sandford Orchard’s Devon Red, Tricky Cider and Dragon Tears. Prices seemed steep though with an Orange Juice and Lemonade coming in at £4.