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Beer of the Week (w/e 15th June 2025) with Tris39
on the Pub Forum
Detail Pages
The Old Fish Market, Bristol
Bristol
BS1 1QZ
Pub Type
Fuller'sReviews (Current Rating Average: 6½ of 10) see review guidelines
Quinno _ left this review about The Old Fish Market
Perennial GBG Fullers pub in a very attractive building. Many years since I was last here and it took a few moments for the memories to come back; a 2014 refurb probably attests to why it took longer than normal. The front bar remains somewhat cavernous but has some really good features, check out the lovely carved servery and mural; in the rear room is some tidy wood panelling. My ESB was excellent (NBSS 4) and only (!) £2.80 a half which these days in central Bristol is actually quite good. A nice bustling atmosphere on my late evening visit and I rather liked it.
May 2009
A pretty pub frontage conceals a cavernous polished-wood interior which awaits those who venture inside, alongside a good selection of Fuller's ales plus at least one, if not two guests. Like the majority of Fuller's outlets, the beer is usually in good-to-excellent condition. The interior is perversely the selling point and downfall of the pub. When quiet, you feel very isolated. When it's busy the atmosphere is good but the high ceilings amplify the noise and it can get difficult to hear your companions. It also fails to catch the late evening sunshine, which makes the inside seem a bit gloomy unless they get the lights on early. As mentioned elsewhere, a hefty walk to the traps so make sure you leave a good couple of minutes lag time! TV shows sporting events and there's a quizzer. Overall, I'd recommend the place if you're in the town centre but wouldn't necessarily say it's worth seeking out as an experience in the same way that, for example, the Bag O' Nails is. But if you're in a big group of mixed drinkers, this is a sure-fire bet for everyone to be happy for a couple of hours. Rated 7
On 19th May 2025
- rating: 8
[User has posted 5589 recommendations about 5570 pubs]
E TA left this review about The Old Fish Market
A nice Fuller’s city centre pub near the old City. It was a pleasant surprise given its location, with a good pub atmosphere despite the presence of tourists, and there was live rugby on the TV. The young staff were friendly and helpful, and the pub grub was a reasonable price for the area, even though the beers were above average price. Ales on were Oliver’s Island, Pride, ESB and Wimbledon Copper Leaf. There was also a reasonable range of keg. I’d be happy to come back.
On 28th February 2025
- rating: 7
[User has posted 3548 recommendations about 3512 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Danny O'Revey left this review about The Old Fish Market
nice Fullers pub in central drinking area, seems smaller inside unless I missed something
On 11th February 2024
- rating: 6
[User has posted 1556 recommendations about 1533 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Strongers . left this review about The Old Fish Market
The Old Fish Market is an imposing high ceilinged Fullers pub with long bar counter that faces the entrance. This bar supports two banks of five duplicate handpumps, Pride, ESB and Oliver's Island being on and When Hogs Fly and Cwth coming soon. Standard and premium keg was also available. Live sport is advertised and there are televisions dotted about, but these were off during my midweek visit. For those more refined there is jazz every Sunday from 19:00. The service was polite, but I wasn’t overly impressed with this place, and being from West London I’m a big Fullers fan.
On 2nd September 2022
- rating: 6
[User has posted 6133 recommendations about 6099 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Ian Mapp left this review about The Old Fish Market
Another cracking Bristolian Pub. Long and thin Fullers House - with some tables outside and a wonderful interior. Large, long bar. Nooks and crannies around the back of the bar. Chesterfields and other comfy seating.
Range of Fullers on - including a very good ESB.
Expensive.
On 7th June 2021
- rating: 9
[User has posted 1612 recommendations about 1589 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Pub SignMan left this review about The Old Fish Market
This is a large Fullers pub set in a grand old city centre building which, as the name suggests, was once part of Bristol’s fish market. The pub has a wide, but comparatively shallow interior with plenty of exposed floorboards, parquet flooring and a fabulous, ornate servery through the centre. The bar has a decorative but chunky wooden counter with a stone top and a high dark wood bar back studded with some pleasant mirrors. The entrance porch to the main bar area has an elaborately decorated wooden roof and there are large plain windows along the front wall which let in plenty of light – a real benefit for those who choose to sit at the high tables and stools that run beneath them. Banquette seating is available along the right hand wall with a few tables and chairs further back near a wall covered with chalkboard paint which has allowed the staff to write the full menu on it in large lettering. To the left of the bar, there is a separate room that looked to me like a more formal dining room area, with half panelled walls dotted with a few black and white photos around a space full of regular tables and chairs. Elsewhere, some board games were stacked up at the end of the bar and some TV screens were evident, but all were switched off in favour of some pop music, which played quietly in the background during my visit.
This is a Fullers pub and three of their ales were available on the handpulls – London Pride, Oliver’s Island and ESB. However, the Moor Brewery were staging a tap takeover on my visit, which meant no less than six of their brews were also available on cask and I decided to sample their Comrade Games – a tasty 6% IPA that was perhaps an ambitious first beer of the day! The staff here were all very warm and friendly, especially the very helpful barman who talked me through the various Moor beers. I also stopped off here for some lunch and found the food to be tasty if perhaps a little pricey for the amount you get.
I really liked this one and thought it was a step up from many of Fullers similar London based outlets. My impressions may have been favourably influenced by the tap takeover, which meant the ale selection was considerably more interesting than it might otherwise have been, but the pleasant, comfortable surroundings, high cellarmanship standards and incredibly friendly staff meant this was a winning start to my crawl around the city.
On 4th January 2019
- rating: 8
[User has posted 3361 recommendations about 3361 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Real Ale Ray left this review about The Old Fish Market
Sometimes I get a bit of a taste for a Fullers London Pride, so this pub didn't disappoint. We popped in on Thursday eve and the pub was dimly light apart from the candles on the tables, which gave a good atmosphere. The service was quick, but did feel uncomfortable standing at the bar, so we got a seat. The barman didn't seem to like the idea of drinkers standing at the bar for some reason.
On 19th November 2014
- rating: 6
[User has posted 3684 recommendations about 3684 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Rex Rattus left this review about The Old Fish Market
This is another pub that has remained unchanged in recent years, being much the same as when the previous reviewer visited a couple of years ago. It's still a Fuller's pub with the usual range of ales on. The couple of pints of ESB that my companion and I enjoyed here at the end of the evening following the Pubs Galore tour of the city's best pubs, and a superb curry, rounded the day off very nicely and ensured a good night's sleep. The ESB was £3.85 a pint and seems good going to me (at least by London standards).
The pub itself is quite large, stretching around the old fish market into various nooks and crannies. The covered old courtyard is still there on the left, and provided something of a peaceful refuge from the noisy main bar area. As usual with these sort of places, the majority of furnishings are tall tables/tall stools, but with a good number of standard tables/chairs, as well as one or two sofas.
I would not put this pub near the top of my Bristol "to do" pubs, but it is a good enough pub, and provided a welcome nightcap after a hectic, but tremendously rewarding, day out with Pubs Galore regulars.
On 18th November 2014
- rating: 6
[User has posted 2606 recommendations about 2520 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Malden man left this review about The Old Fish Market
Highly visible as you cross the bridge into the city centre, this Fullers pub is a conversion of part of the port's fishmarket. The large main room has the attractive and highly polished bar on the back wall, wooden flooring, large windows to the frontage and on an end wall a huge detailed mural depicting dockside life years ago. Seating is at a mixture of standard and high tables plus a few sofas. To the side is a cobbled former yard, now roofed over and a quieter spot, the cavernous main room is very noisy due to the hard surfaces and high ceilings. This side room was more popular with those partaking of the pub's Thai menu, which looked and smelled very good. I wouldn't personally choose the end table at the front which is set on the former inclined entrance and so itself leans alarmingly. Decor includes old dock life B&W photos and a couple of Thai drapes in the courtyard.
To the rear is the corridor to the toilets which has a few tables too and then opens out a bit with a few quieter booths, probably the best spot for a chat away from the screens showing sports in the main bar.
A Fuller's house outside Greater London, so to a resident of the capital the beer wasn't going to set my pulse racing, however I had the guest, the more local Butcombe Bitter which was a decent drop. Pride, ESB and Discovery were the Fullers beers.
On 5th June 2012
- rating: 6
[User has posted 1710 recommendations about 1683 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
BobOs . left this review about The Old Fish Market
Good city pub with decent range of beers (Fullers ESB, London Pride, Discovery, Honey Dew and Butcombe's Bitter). I had ESB, Discovery and Honey Dew and all three were in tip top condition. The Thai food is delicious. Above average.
On 16th July 2011
- rating: 6
[User has posted 370 recommendations about 355 pubs]