Three Wise Monkeys, Colchester

A prominent street corner pub just opposite the castle, it’s a large venue split across two floors, and whilst the upper floor is perhaps slightly more intended for dining, it’s certainly not exclusively so and there was also a bar counter here where you could order drinks. Their website also mentions a live music / function room on the top floor and a cocktail bar in the basement, although we did not investigate these. We sat upstairs as we were eating, and this was a large open space with high ceilings and a slightly industrial look perhaps with visible cable trays and exposed filament light bulbs. The flooring was wood strip, whilst there was much exposed brickwork as well as large windows on two sides. Black bench seating was around the perimeter, and the large bar counter took up one wall at the end with green tiling behind. The downstairs bar appeared to have a broadly similar style although we did not study this in any detail. The menu was very much of the slow cooked meat and barbecue style ribs, burgers, etc. and we opted for the barbecue pulled pork with smoked sausage and a jerk chicken with pulled chicken and chorizo along with side dishes of sweet potato fries and a slaw. Both dishes were pretty good, generous portions and very tasty, if a little on the expensive side perhaps. There were four pumps on the bar counter, but numerous more taps behind it and it would seem that they focus on craft beer with an extensive menu displayed on boards next to the bar. Although it wasn’t immediately clear which were cask and which were keg, the selection included Colchester No. 1 Best Bitter, their own Three Wise Monkeys Ale, Magic Rock Ringmaster, Wild Card Jack of Clubs, the Norwegian Little Bro IPA, Tiny Rebel Cheeky, Gipsy Hill Beatnik, Tiny Rebel Cwtch, Beavertown Gamma Ray, Hop House 13, Other Monkey Red Ale, Kona Longboard, Blue Moon Belgian White, East Coast IPA, Wickwar Platform 6.1 and Belhaven Elephant. Although the majority were shared between the upstairs and downstairs bar, there were some differences so you may want to check both, although the selection at either should be enough to satisfy most people. After that lot, the only cider was a very disappointing Aspall’s Suffolk. Overall though, I thought this was a decent enough pub with a lively, buzzy atmosphere and I would be happy to return if in the area.