The Lost & Found, Clifton, Bristol

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Blackthorn _ left this review about The Lost & Found

A recent opening on what at one time the site of the fairly short lived Bottelino’s Italian restaurant and cocktail bar, this is now run by Marstons but still has very much the feel of a trendy bar rather than your traditional pub.

Internally it’s largely all one open plan room with large windows at the front to make the most of the outlook over the busy road. There is an area at the rear which is segregated slightly, and I assume this is intended more for dining. The flooring was pale wood strip whilst the ceiling had been painted black. All the cable trays and air conditioning ducting were left visible as is the vogue in most places these days, but at least these had been painted black too so blended in somewhat better than is often the case. There was a small amount of wood panelling on the right, but this didn’t really fit in with the rest of the décor. Seating was a mixture of small brass tables with three armchairs arranged around them which seemed an odd number, higher tables with four stools and some Chesterfield style bench seating. A long marble topped bar counter on the left hand side and a band were setting up at the rear.

Despite two banks of three hand pumps on the bar, none were in use. This seemed odd for a Marstons establishment and since they’ve gone to the trouble of fitting them I assume that they will be used at some point. The barman said rather vaguely that he thought they were going to be doing an IPA. Service at the bar seemed rather haphazard, despite numerous staff milling around only one seemed to be preparing any drinks which were all cocktails, involving lots of herbs and setting fire to something on a stick balanced across the top of the glass. The solitary beer therefore was keg Shipyard Pale Ale. Ciders were a rather disappointing Aspall’s Suffolk and Symonds Founders Reserve, the latter of which was declared to be off due to a “problem with the line”.

I’ve mixed feelings about this. One on hand it’s quite a smart new establishment, the staff seemed friendly and genuinely interested to see what we thought, and the menu looked pretty good, if a little pricey perhaps. On the other hand, the lack of service at the bar and the poor drink selection let it down.

On 24^th April 2018 - rating: 5
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