The Acorn, Kinson, Bournemouth

This large town pub could be quaint and welcoming, but somehow it isn't. It sits on the corner of a busy high street area, and it has a small seating area to the front with tables and chairs. Inside, there are three main bar areas served by a single counter. On the left as you go through the main door is a small, dreary saloon which also serves as the way to the ladies' lavatory. The public bar is carpeted and is also quite dismal, and there is a games area at the far end with a pool table and a collection of offensive drunks. In the centre is a large chimney breast with exposed brickwork, currently stacked with firewood. There are exposed fake beams, and the wallpaper is well beyond its use-by date. The whole pub feels grimy and unwelcoming. The staff were fine, but the locals were fairly obnoxious, mostly those too idle or inebriated to make their way to the nearest Wetherspoons. Those still capable of coherent speech talked mostly about sex and football, showing Lilliputian vocabularies in Brobdingnagian mouths. There is an enormous TV in the public bar showing BT Sport, and there is free WiFi available. Three ales on, I had a pint of Harry Chapman's Bitter, a reasonable session ale but not that well kept. I felt uncomfortable here and am unlikely to return when on my travels.