The Plantation, Canford Cliffs, Poole

Previously The New Beehive, this slightly eccentric building is a pub with B&B and a restaurant, owned by Upham Brewery. It sits in its own grounds in an up-market residential area, and it has car parking and a garden, both of which are in the shade of massive trees, giving it a rural feel. The building has ne-Gothic features but is 20th Century in origin. The right hand side of the bar has a large bow window, plain furniture and ‘distressed’ wood panelling and counter on one side, which would look OK if it hadn’t been made to look cheap and nasty by the laminate flooring. The other side is carpeted and has tables and chairs. The food is expensive and a little pretentious for a pub, but the beer is in excellent condition and actually quite cheap for the area. There is also a reasonable selection of wine. Two ales were on draft, plus a cider. Both ales were, predictably, from Upham – I had the Punter, which was in very good condition, most enjoyable. There is WiFi, but it wasn’t working properly. The staff were young, friendly, efficient and easy on the eye, while the locals were middle-aged, high income – you need it to live around here. Having said that, they go out of their way to welcome visitors and are actively trying to create the sort of pub you want to find as a destination of choice. They host regular live jazz events, mostly at weekends. It’s off the beaten track and difficult to include in a crawl, but it could grow on you if you enjoy a decent pint and live jazz.