Spyglass & Kettle, Southbourne, Bournemouth

Pub SignMan left this review about Spyglass & Kettle

This is a large seafront pub and hotel, set just across the road from the beach. Entry is into a porch with some armchairs, leading straight into the bar area ahead and dining rooms off to the left. The dining areas occupy a series of bare boarded front rooms and a carpeted conservatory-style extension which offers excellent views across to the beach and the Isle of Wight. There’s a mix of standard tables and chairs across these areas, along with some smart padded banquette seating around parts of the perimeter. The bar is located on the left-hand side of the building and has a long, dark wood counter and a simple mirrored bar back. This part of the pub features lots of high tables and stools, with standing space in between and some comfier seating options tucked off to either side. The whole pub is divided up by a mixture of retained and more modern partitioning walls, some finished in tongue and groove panelling, with a variety of fancy wallpapers, timber cladding and plain painted walls elsewhere. Decor is quirky and eclectic, with teapots, incongruous artwork and local photographs dotted throughout. Background music was playing at a low volume.
Three cask ales were available – Greene King IPA, Abbot Ale and Rocking Rudolph – with the latter being surprisingly enjoyable and in decent nick. I found the staff to all be very friendly, especially the cheery manager who found us a table on a busy afternoon, and the food proved to be of good quality and in plentiful supply too.
I thought this was just going to be a drab, pack-'em-in style Greene King eatery, and whilst it does have the large, rambling interior and food-led feel, it was nevertheless characterful enough to make it feel like a proper pub. We were won over by the food and service, which I can't really fault, but the beer was decent too, albeit from a range of pretty standard Greene King brews. A case of expectations definitely exceeded -0 you can definitely do a lot worse than this one.

Date of visit – 31st December 2024

On 28^th April 2025 - rating: 7
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