The Maple, Cleeve, Bristol

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Blackthorn _ left this review about The Maple

A recently opened pub on the site of the former Lord Nelson, I was initially unsure as to whether this should be added as a new entry or mark the previous incarnation as open. However, as the old building was demolished, and this is now a combined filling station, grocery store, hairdressers, office, restaurant and bar, albeit on the same site, I opted for adding it as a new entry.

Inevitably it’s all very contemporary inside and felt rather like an all-day restaurant/bar sort of establishment rather than your traditional pub, with the vast majority of the tables being laid up for food. Flooring appeared to be some sort of parquet wood strip although I think it may well have been linoleum, and there was some tiling on the floor by the bar counter. The counter itself is a good sized, curved around a corner and made of some sort of pine like wood, so this does suggest that drinks should feature more prominently. A storage rack curved around the top to hold wine glasses, and there were also a few pot plants in here with the foliage dangling over. There was a section of exposed brick walling at the rear, and to the left rough wooden planks had been affixed to the wall to make it appear more rustic, with orange padded bench seating running along in front of this. Elsewhere the paintwork was a rather vivid turquoise hue. The only area that wasn’t laid up for diners was just to the right inside the door, with a few small round tables and orange arm chairs, although there is also an outside patio area, but this was all just concrete and being immediately adjacent to the busy main road, wasn’t the most peaceful spot. To the right was a semi-open kitchen, and glazed white tiling on the wall. A couple of old black and white pictures showed two previous incarnations of the pub, not only the recently demolished one, but presumably the predecessor to that which looked rather like a couple of old farm cottages.

There were no real ales on tap unfortunately, although they did have Beavertown Neck Oil, Butcombe Original and Bath Ales Gem on keg. Ciders meanwhile were Thatcher’s Gold and Thatcher’s Haze. Overall, I’ve mixed feelings about this. On one hand it’s very much a restaurant/bar rather than your traditional pub, and I really can’t see it as anywhere I would go to natter away over a few beers. On the other hand, the owner is very much a forecourt operator with other sites nearby that do not have a bar. Presumably it was included following opposition to the demolition of the previous pub, even though that had been severely neglected by it’s previous owners and was in a rather sorry state as well as being far too large to be profitable, and for that he should be applauded.

On 13^th July 2022 - rating: 5
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