The Bear, Horsham

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Located in Horsham’s Market Square, this is a decent sized pub that reopened in 2023 after a period of closure and a refurbishment. The pub has a fairly simple layout, as the front door leads you into the main bar area with the servery along the back wall. Seating is available to either side, including some tightly fitted banquettes in booth-like spaces created by the front window bays, whilst a few regular tables and chairs fill the rest of the space. There’s a small brick fireplace to one side and the walls have three-quarter height wood panelling with plain uppers and a few uninteresting bits of décor. The servery has a smart wood panelled counter front and a rather uninspired bare brick bar back with glass shelves. The room extends into a rear left space that had three or four more tables with high stools and not a great deal of natural light, although the door to the beer garden had been left open, which helped brighten things a little. The garden isn’t much to write home about – it’s essentially just a concrete strip with limited seating and high walls on both sides.
Perhaps the pub’s biggest draw is its ale range, which comprised Firebird Parody and Two Horses, Harveys Sussex Best and Surrey Hills Shere Drop. I thought this was a pretty decent selection of local brews and opted for the Two Horses, which was in reasonable nick and served to us by a pleasant barman. The pub had an eclectic mix of customers on a Friday evening, ranging from a group of old dears huddled under the leaded front windows, to some dolled up young ladies filling most of the rear room.
I can’t say there was much here to make this place stand out from the rest in Horsham’s surprisingly crowded town centre pub scene, but the presence of some well-kept local ale was definitely a real bonus point. The refurb has potentially robbed the place of some of its character, as it feels a bit empty and ill defined, but it’s a solid enough option to try if you fancy a change from the town’s more established pubs.

Date of visit – 12th July 2024

On 31^st October 2024 - rating: 6
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