Anchor Inn, Chepstow

Well described by Pub SignMan.As a lover of English Romantic Poetry, I was a touch saddened not to meet the shade of Wordsworth in the car park.Needless to say, the view of the Abbey was memorable. We made two Friday lunchtime visits, either side of a September week in west Wales:touristy,yes, but a warm welcome from behind the bar and decent beer-Kingstone's Tewdric's Tipple, and a couple from Otter and Wye Valley. Good garden.

This is a large pub, restaurant and hotel with an idyllic location next to the beautiful Tintern Abbey. The bar occupies a surprisingly small part of the building and can be accessed via the Abbey-side beer garden. It is a simple bare boarded room with standard seating along the front wall and the servery along the rear wall. Additional seating can be found to the left of the bar, including some slightly comfier looking options, but space is arguably at a bit of a premium and I can imagine the place fills up easily enough during the peak tourist months. Having said that, there is a restaurant attached to the pub and I suspect that some overspill might be permitted at busier times. The pub has its origins as a cider mill, with the monks from the neighbouring Abbey setting it up as such as far back as the 12th Century. As a reminder of this, there is a fantastic original mill stone in the centre of the room, set on a raised circular platform and adorned with a variety of decorative items, including a striking hare sculpture. There are also some tea rooms to one side of the bar, should the bar or restaurant not appeal. I arrived having just hiked up to the Devil's Pulpit and back and found it far too warm in the compact bar, so instead decided to relax in the garden which has well kept lawns and flower beds, but most crucially affords outstanding views to the Abbey. You can also clearly see the main road through the village from the garden, which I found reassuring in case I needed to make a dash to catch the infrequent bus service back to Chepstow. The bar has six handpulls which were dispensing Kingstone Classic, Wye Valley Butty Bach, Bath Gem and a real cider, with one turned pump clip and one pump out of service. The Butty Bach was in pretty decent shape and didn't stay in the glass very long. I also sampled their steak pie, which was a real hearty treat and very tasty. This is a decent pub that I think I enjoyed as much for the views as I did for the pub itself. It no doubt becomes a bit of a tourist trap in the summer months, but for a mid-week Spring-time visit it hit the spot. A reliable option should you be visiting Tintern.

real unexpected joy. I expected a bit of a tourist trap, as it is right opposite the Abbey. And it has tea rooms attached. However, its a proper pub. We visited at XMAS and it had a very understated but lovely christmassy feel. There were four hand pulled ales on and the Otter Claus was the best pint I have had this holiday period. Although we didn't eat - the food and service looked excellent. Recommended.

Official site of the Anchor - www.theanchortintern.co.uk

Official site of the Anchor - www.theanchortintern.co.uk