Failand Inn, Bristol

Official site of Failand Inn - www.failandinn.com

Official site of Failand Inn - www.failandinn.com

A large pub on the main road through Failand that looks as though it has probably been extended at both ends at some point. This has resulted in a remarkably long pub, essentially split in to two bar areas. On entering through the main door, you can turn right in to what appears to be an area more geared up for dining. We didn’t investigate this, but it seems to extend down through the original part of the pub and on in to a lighter area at the end with high ceilings and a large glass frontage. Perhaps this was some sort of barn at one point. To the left of the entrance door is a smaller, more traditional bar although this again leads on in to a larger room where many punters were dining. Leaded windows looked out on to a small outside patio area. First impressions were not good as the young barman completely ignored us for a couple of minutes whilst he was pouring drinks for somebody in the restaurant. This is bad enough when there’s a whole bar full of punters waiting to be served, but when it’s just us and we’re stood directly opposite him, there’s really no excuse. The pub itself has a traditional country inn decor with red patterned carpet on the floor, red velvet cushions on the wooden seats, red velvet drape curtains and even red wallpaper on the lower third of the walls below a wooden rail. Besides this there were plenty of ornaments around the place such as old jugs hanging from the beams and numerous plates over the walls. It doesn’t feel nearly as cosy as some pubs though – perhaps it’s a little tired and dated, and the relatively high ceilings probably don’t help. The food offering seemed popular, although we didn’t try it ourselves, or inspect the menu. There was a specials board, but this was listing fairly traditional food such as baked salmon, steaks, curry and roast chicken, mostly at around the £9/£10 mark. There were also steak and curry nights advertised. Beers on tap were Butcombe, Butcombe Blond, Doom Bar and Courage Best. The solitary cider was Ashton Press.