Hole in the Wall, Torquay

Facebook page of Hole in the Wall - www.facebook.com

Facebook page of Hole in the Wall - www.facebook.com

Official site of Hole in the Wall - www.holeinthewalltorquay.co.uk

Official site of Hole in the Wall - www.holeinthewalltorquay.co.uk

All you would really expect from an historic seaside pub. Lots of seaside paraphernalia. Low ceilings. Extensive Menu. Used to be in the GBG but dropped out. TT Landlord an unexpected find and in good condition.

Just a short distance from the harbour, up an unassuming side street, this is a great little historic pub with a cracking interior that’s well worth taking a bit of time to explore. A corner entrance takes you into a compact public bar area with a couple of high tables and stools, leaded front windows and a whole load of excellent breweriana on display. The bar runs along the rear wall, leaving only a small amount of space to the front, where low stools serve a low ledge that runs beneath the windows. The bar has a lovely dark wood counter front, a pleasant mirrored bar back and an impressive collection of pint pots hung from the dark wood ceiling beams above. The bar turns 90 degrees at the left-hand end, where it runs towards the rear of the room through a flint-stone floored space with hard bench and chair seating to the left and rear. The walls are a mix of exposed brick, plaster and dark wood panelling and have been decorated with traditional paintings, an old clock, brewery mirrors and other such beer-themed items. Towards the rear, a small carpeted snug-like space offers additional seating under pleasant wood panelled walls, one of which has a fine stained glass pane with a central grapevine image. A doorway to the left leads through to a separate restaurant area - a large carpeted space with lots of formal seating, some decent partitioning and lots more traditional pub decor. An alleyway in front of the pub has a few picnic benches, but I can’t imagine you get much sun out there. One off-putting feature was the truly dreadful 80’s pop soundtrack that was playing in the background, although I had picked a table which turned out to be beneath a speaker, so maybe I was suffering more than others. I was given a warm greeting on arrival by the old-school, waistcoat barman, and had a choice of no less than five cask ales - Dartmoor Jail Ale and IPA, Exmoor Ale, Taylor Landlord and Butcombe Gold. I took a pint of the latter, which was in very good shape, and enjoyed supping it whilst watching people coming and going, including plenty of diners on this Friday lunchtime visit. I thought this was a cracking little pub that was doing a good job of surviving through a popular food offering, whilst maintaining plenty of separate seating space for those who just want to come and sample the ale. There were lots of nice touches here that spoke of a well run operation and with only enough time to check out a couple of pubs during my fleeting visit to Torquay, I’m really glad this one made the cut.

Plausibly claims to be Torquay's oldest pub, featuring low ceilings, very traditional furniture / decor and an unusual cobbled floor around the 'l'-shaped bar (apparently listed). Also has a restaurant in the adjoining building. The choice from a total of eleven handpumps - including Otter Bitter, Butcombe Bitter and Gold (£3.80), Dartmoor Jail Ale, Landlord, Tribute, Doom Bar and a cider - may be mostly similar in style but you can see why it's Good Beer Guide listed, and it's certainly worth a visit if in town.