Bullers Arms, Brixham

I really shouldn’t like this pub as much as I do given its location and style, but this visit was actually a pleasant experience. It’s well described by Ale Monster, below. The staff were helpful, and the regulars welcoming. One ale on, Betty Stoggs, which was very fresh and most enjoyable. I’d be happy to come back and include in a crawl.

This is a pleasant looking symmetrical building which is a privately owned free house that was previously owned by Scottish and Newcastle. The pubs name is quite a common one in Devon and Cornwall and originates from a General Sir Redvers Henry Buller VC, he was a local hero of the Zulu and Boar wars who was sadly used as a scape goat by the government and dismissed from the army after the failures of the British army during the Boar war. The interior layout is a little unusual as two rooms appear to have been knocked into one to form a U shape around the bar counter which is at the front of the room, this is directly behind the entrance porch which has two doors, left and right, presumably to suit the previous two room layout. The two sides do still have a different appearance and feel to them, the right side is a public bar which has an unused brick fire place in the right hand wall with a large mirror above, this is flanked by fixed wood settles, bare wood floor and a large projector screen on the back wall. The left side of the pub is more of a dining lounge where the bar counter has been built using half of the wooden hull of a small boat! This has Orlando BM4 written on its bow, opposite the boat (counter) is a real log fire place with a large mirror above, half a dozen dining tables with chairs, brown carpet and a pool table in the back left corner. There is half wood panel in both areas which is painted pastel green and there were various old prints on the walls. Regular ales are currently St Austell Tribute and Bullers Arms Bitter which is brewed by Caledonian. The house bitter was in good condition. Shame they have not realised the potential of being a free house and taken advantage of the open market for beer straight from local breweries. A decent pub located in a prime position in the middle of the harbour overlooking the full sized replica of Sir Francis Drakes Golden Hind. Something that stood out to me was how clean and tidy the pub was, I got the impression that it had been given a sympathetic refurbishment in the last year or so. As it is a free house it could do better with the beer selection. Some of the food offers on the outside chalk boards sounded very reasonable but I have not eaten here yet, I would pop in for a drink again but there are others nearby that I would consider first.