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Chat about:
Tutbury & Hatton on Tuesday, 14th April 2026 with trainman
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Haunch of Venison, Salisbury
Salisbury
SP1 1TB
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 7½ of 10) see review guidelines
Strongers . left this review about Haunch of Venison
Haunch of Venison is an attractive and historic pub with old wooden beamed ceilings throughout. A small wood panelled bar sits at the front with a black and white tiled floor and seating around the walls to the left where a burner sits in the fireplace on the left-hand wall. In the front right is a snug where 11 of us piled in for the pub crawl group picture that was kindly taken by the polite barmaid. She was running the bar where two Hop Back and two Downton cask ales were available alongside premium keg and the Alpacalypse that has an amazing font handle, a cross between a nuclear explosion and an alpaca’s head, marketing genius. This pub is worth a visit just to gaze at the bar that is packed with history and character. Some stairs to the left of the counter lead up to a small room at the rear that was full of diners, and the stairs continue up to the first floor where there’s an L-shaped restaurant that is just as interesting as the bar below. Yes, it gets a bit cosy in here due to its small size, but visiting places like this is what Great British pub crawling is all about, loved it.
On 15th April 2026
- rating: 9
[User has posted 6601 recommendations about 6563 pubs]
Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about Haunch of Venison
Somehow never visited here on previous visits to the city, and didn't have enough time to properly explore this fascinating Camra 3* pub interior of outstanding historic importance on this occasion either. However, both the small bar and even more compact snug to the right-hand side of the entrance are full of interest. The two pairs of old-style wheezing beer engines are somewhat hidden away in different places behind the counter, with Hop Back's GFB and Summer Lightning Back on one, along with New Forest Ale and Moby Dick (£2.75, half) from Downton on the other set. Also has a couple of heritage founts with brass taps once used to dispense wines and spirits. Must leave enough time to have a proper look around next time!
On 5th April 2026
- rating: 8
[User has posted 9090 recommendations about 9090 pubs]
Steve of N21 left this review about Haunch of Venison
I’m sucker for a bit of history in a pub, so I absolutely loved this CAMRA's national pub interior listed 14th Century building, spread over five distinct different areas. The slight problem is however, that none of the said areas are particularly big and it doesn’t take a lot in each section for it to be standing only. The main bar room has seating to the left and the small servery to the right. Then there is an additional room beyond the bar to the left and two further rooms up the staircase, that are primarily used for dining. But the most interesting feature is the very small snug to the right of the serving area, known as the horse box, which is accessed through a small door which is actually outside, before you enter through the main door of the pub, You could probably get four to six people in here comfortably or in our case eleven blokes on a pub crawl very uncomfortably.
Four hand pumps secreted on the two backs of the bar were dispensing Hopback Summer Lightning and GHB and Moby Dick and New Forest Ale from the Downton Brewery. A must visit when in Salisbury.
On 31st March 2026
- rating: 8
[User has posted 2340 recommendations about 2186 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Quinno _ left this review about Haunch of Venison
Has had a light refresh in the intervening years so the varnish now gleams brighter and there’s less of a dusty and sooty ambience – retains its *** CAMRA rating. Bonus ball is that it opens before midday, so an ideal start point for a crawl. 2x Downton and 2x Hop Back at the bar, ours weighing-in on the NBSS at 3, 3, 3.5 which is fair enough for early opening. Did notice that the one we didn’t try, Summer Lightning, coughed and spluttered through the pump and came out hazy, yet they still served it; so not quite the big win here it could have been (and GBG listed too, tut-tut). Still, you’ll not want to miss this one and starting here at 11.30am means you get to enjoy the interior without the attendant squawking of tourists.
August 2012
Salisbury’s most ‘tourist tick-box’ pub, which is claimed to be around 600 years old and is listed in CAMRA’s list of heritage interiors. Situated over a number of floors, the ground floor houses the small main bar whilst the first floor mezzanine holds a small drinking area which is also home to the mummified hand (to the left as you reach the top of the stairs, in a glass fronted hole in the wall). Up another flight of stairs is a restaurant area. The ground floor area is very attractive, with a solid pewter bar, oak panelled walls, chessboard flooring and a real fire. There is an interesting sign above the bar advertising live eels – one assumes that these are no longer available. There’s also a tiny snug (the ‘horse box’) accessed through a door – not obvious to find! Drink-wise, an unadventurous three ales (for Salisbury) were on; Hop Back, Courage Best and a Ringwood, alongside a number of single malt whiskies. Beer quality is ok but nothing to write home about. Prices for the beer come in (perhaps unsurprisingly) as the most expensive of the day. Seating is at a premium most hours. I enjoyed it here as a tourist and would make a point of popping for a quick half to take in the atmosphere (when quiet). Whether I’d make much of an effort to drink here if I were a local is a different matter. Rated 7
On 30th January 2024
- rating: 8
[User has posted 6002 recommendations about 5982 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Pub SignMan left this review about Haunch of Venison
This is a fantastic multi-roomed heritage pub in the centre of Salisbury, set across three levels. You enter through a small front porch with some nice etched glass double doors, into a very cosy front bar with a chequered tile floor, beautiful full height wood panelled walls with the odd bit of exposed brick and timber here and there, and a small servery to the right. The bar counter uses the same panelling as the walls, beneath a fairly high canopy with a ‘Live Eels’ sign on it and topped with a few decorative barrels. The nice mirrored bar back houses the handpulls in two banks of two and there’s a very nice old beer font at the right-hand end of the bar. The front right corner acts as a cosy little snug, with its own small doorway and enough space for a lone table and just a handful of customers. The rest of the room has hard bench seating to the front and rear, supplemented by a few low stools. A fine brick fireplace dominates the left-hand wall, with a lit stove inside on my February visit, beneath a nice decorative carved mantle. A few traditional paintings, books, clocks, lamps and the like add to the traditional, historic feel of the room and this aesthetic continues up some steps to the rear, where another seating area can be found. It’s another cosy space with standard tables and chairs, darker wood panelling and a second lit fire on the end wall. A staircase to the right leads up to a first floor dining room, which I didn’t explore on this occasion. Sadly, I was unable to locate the pub’s most famous feature - a mummified hand supposedly belonging to a customer who had been discovered cheating at cards - but I had seen it on a previous visit 15 or so years ago and I’m told it is still on display somewhere, after being stolen a couple of times in the past.
All four handpulls were in operation when I visited, offering a choice of Stonehenge Danish Dynamite, Butcombe Original, Exmoor Stag and Wye Valley HPA. A bored looking barman served me a well-kept half of the latter at £2.20 and I enjoyed this whilst chatting to a couple of the jovial locals who were surprisingly knowledgeable about the pub’s history.
I suspect this place feels like a bit of a tourist trap during peak season, but visiting on a relatively quiet Monday afternoon, I feel I really saw this place at its best. It’s a pub that rewards repeat visits, as the multiple rooms and plentiful features take time to fully explore. The beer choice has improved since I was last here too and their regular listing in the Good Beer Guide suggests the ale quality is consistent. I really enjoyed this visit and would say it’s a ‘must do’ when visiting the city.
On 21st February 2022
- rating: 8
[User has posted 3387 recommendations about 3387 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Gill Smith left this review about Haunch of Venison
A quick visit here found real ales from Hop Back, GFB and Summer Lightning, plus Exmoor Fox which we chose and was fine. Very busy pub which seemed popular with locals giving a friendly vibe. Would have loved the time to explore the rooms in this old inventory pub but so many places to go to in a short time.
On 12th May 2019
- rating: 7
[User has posted 1339 recommendations about 1222 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Blackthorn _ left this review about Haunch of Venison
An old and attractive looking pub in the heart of Salisbury, it’s equally attractive internally and consists of a couple of quite small rooms, along with an upstairs restaurant area, although we did not investigate this.
The main bar at the front of the pub is quite small with only room for about four tables. The walls and fully wood panelled making it reminiscent perhaps of an old hotel drawing room, and there was also an attractive beamed ceiling and black and white chequered tiling on the floor. Top the right was an even tinier snug, which although accessed from the pub porchway rather than the main bar, also had access to the bar counter. A large fireplace off to the left had wood carvings built in to the mantle which was an attractive feature and contained what looked to be a wood burning stove was off to the left, although the fact that it had an engineer’s notice on it declaring it unsafe and not to be used perhaps indicated that it was just a gas replica. Padded bench seating was around much of the perimeter, and the beer engines were unusually free standing behind the bar counter, rather than affixed to it. There were also some old whisky and brandy barrels up above the bar, and a good selection of whisky behind it. A second room up a few steps at the rear was equally compact and looked equally cosy.
Beers on tap were GFB and Summer Lightning from Hop Back, Courage Best and Exmoor Fox. Cider choice was disappointing though with just Symonds Founders Reserve, which rather marred what would otherwise have been a truly excellent pub.
On 28th December 2018
- rating: 8
[User has posted 2113 recommendations about 2011 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Bucking Fastard left this review about Haunch of Venison
Exquisite traditional pub and on the CAMRA national inventory of historic pub interiors.It's a very old building and at the entrance to the right is a seperate etched glass door to the tiny HorseBox,formerly a Ladies Snug when only blokes were allowed into the main body of the pub.There is bench seating,room for one table and bar access.
The rest of the tap room is covered in wood panelling,there is a welcome log burner while the bar is unusual,with spirit taps on a raised arch,with more along one wall possibly for wine although not used as such these days.4 handpumps are also attached to the side cabinets rather than on the bar.
Up some steps there is a charming back lounge,again with it's own fire and the mummified hand of a card cheat locked behind a grill to the original bread oven.That sort of summary justice would certainly stop premiership footballers diving these days !
On the first floor there is a restaurant and the food options are drawn from a bar menu available downstairs and an a la carte menu in the restaurant ,although these dishes can be enjoyed downstairs.Slightly expensive but well cooked.However the bar rooms retain a pub atmosphere,despite some muzak playing at modest volume.
On my trip the ale selection was regulars Hop Back Summer Lightening and GFB and Courage Best (why?) with a guest Exmoor Fox.My first Summer Lightening was fine despite being end of barrel but the second pint from the new barrel hadn't been given enough time to settle and condition which was a shame.
If in Salisbury you must pop in here,it may attract tourists but there is so much charm and history ,terrific when quiet .
On 17th December 2018
- rating: 8
[User has posted 3137 recommendations about 3137 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Real Ale Ray left this review about Haunch of Venison
Pretty quiet on our Friday afternoon visit, still we were slightly out of the mid summer tourist madness. The small amount of tourists on our visit, had taken themselves upstairs to the restaurant for a bit to eat. This gave easy access to have a good nose around. I noticed there was a large amount of small taps in clusters along the back and side of the bar area. The barman explained that many moons ago, that they would have been connected to flasks containing various spirits, most probably gin and this was a fast way of dispensing the spirits. Four handpumps Exmoor Gold, Courage Best, Hopback Summer Lightning and Hopback GFB. We went for the Hopback GFB at £4 a pint.
On 21st May 2017
- rating: 7
[User has posted 3745 recommendations about 3745 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Moby Duck left this review about Haunch of Venison
This pub is certainly worth inclusion on any crawl of Salisbury, very interesting interior as previously described, it is quite tiny so getting here about half an hour after opening on a Thursday Morning was probably a good move.Four beers were available, Courage Best ,Ringwood Best and two from Hopback, my choice of Hopback GFB at £3.60 a pint was nowhere near the most expensive of the day and even further from the cheapest, it was however quite acceptable and I would include this pub on a return visit to Salisbury.
On 8th August 2014
- rating: 7
[User has posted 2306 recommendations about 2269 pubs]