Gold Bar @ The Harbour Hotel, Bristol

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Blackthorn _ left this review about Gold Bar @ The Harbour Hotel

This is very much a hotel bar rather than a pub in the traditional sense, but it is nonetheless open to non-residents and has a (very) small range of drinks on tap. It’s also a quite impressive building, possibly a bank in a former life as this was at one time Bristol’s financial district, and it makes a calming and welcome respite from many of the more frantic bars nearby.

The front entrance initially takes you in to a small vestibule where you can go right to the bar or left to reception. It’s worth taking a small detour by going straight on though, in to the enormous and very impressive function room with a large glass roof and plenty of ornate architrave. The bar area itself is divided in to three or four small rooms, with the one containing the bar counter probably being the smallest of them. Décor wise it’s difficult to pin down the style, with some beautiful remnants of the old building remaining, but also a sort of New York retro glam look to much of what they’ve added. Flooring is some type of elegant parquet wood, whilst there is much natural stone in evidence on the walls and more very impressive architrave and plaster cornicework on the ceilings, much of which has been attractively painted. Seating was a mixture of some very jazzy sofa’s, red leather arm chairs and red leather stools, and the whole feel was quite elegant and refined, although not in a stuffy way, with some contemporary artwork on the walls and a riot of colour to liven the place up.

Their website mentions a range of craft beers, although I didn’t see much evidence of this, at least on tap where the sole beer offering was Meantime Pale Ale on keg. Something more local would have been nice I would have thought, rather a missed opportunity to showcase some of the excellent local breweries around to their out-of-town guests. Unfortunately there was no cider on tap, just bottles from Annings, who are at least based in the south west. Otherwise the menu seems to concentrate mostly on cocktails and spirits. Overall I quite liked this for what it is, we had an enjoyable and relaxing half an hour with a cocktail, but if you’re after a more traditional pub, then this won’t be for you.

On 14^th September 2021 - rating: 6
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