Torrent Walk Hotel, Dolgellau

This is another old building just a few doors down from the Cross Keys and across the road from the Meirionydd Hotel and Unicorn. As you enter there is a huge fireplace on the left and a raised bar in the middle. To the left of the bar is a small room that I didn't go into. There were six hand pumps on the bar. One was unused and I was told that it normally has a Purple Moose beer on it. On the rest were Old Rosie Cider, Greene King IPA, Bass, Hobgoblin and Llyn Cwrw Glyndwr. I went for the Llyn beer (£3.10) which was in good nick. I thought the beer selection here was rather mainstream but this was about the only pub I've noticed in the area with a permanent cider. It's well worth a look, but I thought all of the Dolgellau pubs selling real ales were good in some ways.

In the narrow streets of the market town of Dolgellau is The Torrent Walk Hotel, an 18th century Grade 2 listed building. Inside we find a multi roomed interior with something of an old fashioned feel. The main bar area has fixed padded seating, black ceiling beams and is part carpeted, part quarry tiled. An attractive inglenook brick fireplace has several built in seats. Unusually, the bar tables have built in drawers. By the side of the small bar servery, a few steps lead up to another area with copper topped tables, fixed upholstered seating and carpeting and a large TV screen. Service is via a hatch to the main bar. Further round, past a Northern style drinking lobby, a door with etched glass denoting “Coffee Room” leads into a lively games room with a dartboard etc, which appears to be frequented by a younger crowd. In the CAMRA Heritage Pub On Line Guide, it’s noted as being “An Interior of Some Historic Interest”. Based on my recent early evening visit, this is clearly a pub with rooms rather than hotel and the atmosphere was clearly that of a pub rather than an hotel. 2 pumps on the bar counter were serving an excellent pint of Purple Moose Snowdonia ( £ 2.70p ) and the increasingly ubiquitous Hobgoblin. It’s a rather average place really, but if you’re staying in town – as I was – you might want to drop in. Pubs are a bit thin on the ground around here.