The Leather Bottle, Ingatestone

Blue Scrumpy left this review about The Leather Bottle

One of two pubs in the centre of the village of Blackmore. The Leather Bottle has a couple of entrances. The one to the left takes you into a bar area, with the one on the right taking you into the dining area. Inside is essentially one large room, with the dining section taking up most of the room. Nevertheless, on my Wednesday lunchtime visit, there were no diners and only one other elderly local came in for a drink with his dog.

The bar is furnished in a modern style. There is a large wooden sheep in front of the fireplace and a metal giraffe's head on one wall. The walls are painted in a grey/brown colour, whilst the dining area has a rather garish wallpaper. A further seating option are 4 picnic tables to the front of the pub. A picture to the right-hand side of the bar details the history of the pub.

I was served by a new young barman, who was being taught by the landlady. Adnams Southwold Bitter is the regular beer. Guests were both from Bishop Nick's - Heresy & Anthem. There were another 3 spare handpulls. Adnams Ghost Ship was on keg and the cider was Aspalls.

Bar nibbles such as honey & mustard chipolatas were available for £5. Wifi was available, with the password on the bar and the pub hosts various charity events and an Adele tribute act was being promoted in the toilets.

I felt that the interior of this pub has been spoilt by various refurbishments. All looks promising from the outside, but the inside lack any form of character or atmosphere.

On 5^th October 2024 - rating: 5
[User has posted 3040 recommendations about 3038 pubs]