Shakespeare Tavern, Bristol

Used to be a very pleasant old school boozer, nice and dark, lots of nooks and crannies with old fellas supping pints and giving you the latest on their old hounds hip operation at the vets. Have very fond memories of watching the World Cup matches in here in '98 before going over to the Thekla. Went back in here for the first time in a few years last week and now it's all lit up, the nooks and crannies seem to have been reduced to a minimum…at least the two rooms remain as well as the wood boarding. Ale has taken a turn for the better (even if it is Greene King). There’s always a pub you know that “isn’t as good as it used to be” after a makeover and for me it’s this one.

The Shakespeare Tavern is a traditional pub a short walk away from the brash barn drinking houses of the harbour waterside. It benefits from a grand frontage, being a former Georgian merchants house which was converted into an Inn in the 1770’s and as it’s a grade II listed building, the frontage is likely to stay this way. The entrance is up some steps from the roadside and past the couple of outside tables on the small balcony area out front. Inside it’s a two room pub. I only ventured into the front room which is a traditional wood interior with panelled walls and wood flooring, bar stools along the bar and then wooden tables and chairs along the front wall. It has a large fireplace to the left and then a carved wooden staircase off to the right. This is a solid no frills drinking pub and you will not be disturbed by noise from TV’s or fruit machines in here because there isn’t any. The only let down is the beer choice as, although there are four hand pumps on the bar, it’s a GK house and three of these were IPA, Abbott and OSH. The fourth pump is a guest, but this was unfortunately off during my visit. Fortunately the IPA I did have was a very well kept pint. This is a very good traditional pub, and if it was a Free House with a better beer choice than the ubiquitous brews from Bury St Edmunds, it would be up there with the best pubs in Bristol.

Traditional pub interior, decent beer.