Veeno, Bristol

Official site of Veeno - www.theveenocompany.com

Official site of Veeno - www.theveenocompany.com

Not a pub in the traditional sense, this describes itself as an “Italian wine cafe” which I suppose sums it up fairly well, although they do nonetheless have a couple of drinks on tap and you are certainly welcome to stop for a drink without having anything to eat. Situated just across the river from Temple Meads station, it’s a handy spot for any commuters or the numerous workers from the nearby office blocks – which perhaps explains why it was very quiet on a recent Saturday afternoon visit. The front of the pub is given over to some sort of deli area where you can peruse and buy various Italian delicacies – pasta, pesto, sun dried tomatoes, and so on as well as bottles of wine, a rack of which formed a feature “wall” separating this lobby area from the rest of the pub. Staff were all very friendly and authentic (i.e.; Italian) although you did get greeted and shown to a table as soon as you arrived rather than being allowed to approach the bar. Decor wise it’s quite contemporary with dark wooden laminate on the floor, a mixture of black and maroon paintwork and some rather fake looking exposed brick walling. Full height windows run along the front and side of the pub making the most of the outlook. The bar area has a number of black leather stools and high ledges to sit at, whilst the caged in restaurant area was alongside and featured a map of Italy on the wall as well as various food and drink photographs. The menu followed the Italian theme as might be expected with various sections including cheeses, hams, bruschettas and platters. There were no real ales on tap unfortunately, or in fact any sign of beer at all come to that. The draught options were Peroni and the Italian Menabrea which was pleasant enough but seemed pricey at £5 per pint. That said, one of the bottled options weighed in at the equivalent of £9.73 per pint! The only cider was the bottled Rekorderlig which was a little disappointing. I know Italy’s not really known for cider, but surely they must do something. In fact a quick Google search has just shown me that Tesco stock one called Montano – so why have a Swedish one? Overall I’d say this is a pleasant enough spot if you want some charcuterie, but It’s not going to be a destination of choice for any pub aficionados.