 Pubs in Topsham, near Exeter, Devon. |
When visiting, please treat the pubs and town responsibly. Thanks!
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B: The Bridge
Atmosphere: The one the Queen visited, views over
Clyst River. Ancient building with pre-WW2 rural pub decor. No bar: service
from a passage door or small internal window. Two rooms, one with open
fireplace, plus riverside seating, Malthouse, and invitation-only parlour.
Note the opening hours (12-2pm lunchtimes and 6-10.30pm, 6-11pm Fri/Sat,
7-10.30pm Sun). Malthouse: summer and special events.
.Beer:
CAMRA-recommended free house, large and changing choice of British real ales
from the barrel.
Games: No.
Food: Ploughman's, pasties,
crisps.
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St: The Steam Packet
Atmosphere: Massively under-rated pub
by the quay. Comfortable and well-kept, always with a peaceful and friendly
atmosphere, this is the oldest purpose-built pub in Topsham. Interesting deco
glass-and-wood walls just inside the entrance. One long public bar, and an
atmospheric lounge with kitchen range, dining tables and nautical
memorabilia.
Beer: excellent,
including well-kept Bass, Wadworth 6X and Adnams.
Games: darts, fruit machine.
Food: pub lunches (excellent English menu - roast lunches
etc), coffee, varied crisps, snacks, etc. They'll do hot pies and pasties right
up to closing time; the only pub in Topsham to do this.
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De: Denley's
Atmosphere: Nice minimalist wine bar style -
moody lighting, lots of glass and mirrors - with plenty of seating round the
open-plan bar. Can be crowded on the frequent music nights (there's a talent
night every Thursday), but otherwise it's middling busy - enough customers for
friendliness without being excessively packed.
Beer: Branoc, Summathat, nicely kept;
Cobra.
Games: No.
Food:Essence of India (formerly Saffron)
is at the rear of the premises, a 150-seat restaurant (one of the largest
Indian restaurants in Devon): it won the Exeter Curry Chef award for 2007.
There is customer car parking at the nearby Rugby Club on the Exeter Road. If
you don't want to eat in Saffron itself, an excellent and inexpensive range of
its hot snacks (chicken shaslik, tikka, poppadums, kebab, etc) can be ordered
from the bar.
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S: The Salutation
Atmosphere: Very nice coaching inn
frontage (the arch provides covered smoking area). Divided bar at front: bar,
front room, open-plan snug, darts area. Restaurant at rear, paved beer garden
(lovely in summer) at side. Currently (March 2008) new management have settled
well - "new menu, new style" - check it out.
Beer: good standard range, Bass or Speckled
Hen real ale.
Games and
entertainments: Darts, pool, e-jukebox, TV music channel on sometimes.
Hosts frequent live music.
Food:
Lunches, nice bar menu: nachos, home made burgers, haddock smokie, etc, with
pleasantly refurbished .
WWW:
Eat
Out Devon entry
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Dr: Drakes Wine and Ale
House
Atmosphere: Very
popular, friendly (and often very crowded) 'mixers' pub that attracts varied
customers, although local sports fans congregate here for major televised
events. Main bar subdivided by rockery-style pillar fireplace, snugs at front.
Regular live acoustic music on Friday evenings.
Beer: excellent real ales. Otter, London
Pride, alongside a good general range.
Games: darts (tournaments hosted), pool table, TV projector
for sports events. New WiFi games machine and jukebox.
Food: Upstairs: Kaptan's Indian Cuisine:
open evenings as restaurant and takeaway: beautiful wood-panelled dining room,
with adjacent lounge with comfortable deep sofas. Drakes also does a broad
mainstream menu from 11am-3pm: all-day breakfasts, home-cooked-style lunch
specials, etc.
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P: The Passage House
(usually just called The Passage)
Atmosphere: One of the 'river pubs'.
Friendly pub which over the past few years has encouraged a varied clientele
rather than the fusty yachts-and-money set of a some years back. In summer, you
can sit outside, either by the street or in a paved dining area by the river
(nicer at high tide; mosquito bites can be a problem). Fireplace in winter. If
the weather's not so good, the single central bar can get crowded, but
overspill to table seating in the restaurant areas is no problem outside dining
times.
Beer: Various real ales
straight from the barrel, including Otter, Flowers IPA, Adnam's
Broadside.
Games:
None.
Food: Popular two-room
restaurant with fresh local fish a speciality.
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E: The Exeter
Atmosphere: Since mid-2004, the Exeter has been
under new management, who have vastly tidied up its external and internal
decor. Despite the thatched roof, I think the only one remaining in Topsham,
this is a comfortable modern-style pub with one long room divided into bar and
pool table sections. A friendly locals' pub at the Exeter end of Topsham, it's
essentially a rural pub that has evolved, with the latest technology but a
continuing active community. Covered outdoor smoking area.
Beer: I highly recommend the Exeter's
beers. The current landlord is enthusiastic about real ales - Teignworthy
Beachcomber is regular, with two others always on, in an excellent and changing
selection - and the Exeter has just gained a well-deserved entry in the 2008
Good Beer Guide.
Games: Pool,
darts, Euchre (a card game traditional in Devon), games machine, and big-screen
TV for sports events.
Food: Good
range of pub snacks, etc..
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Lo: The Lord Nelson
Important note: this is a 'pub restaurant'
only! They won't serve you a drink unless you're having a
meal.
Atmosphere: Despite the
sign, the Nelson is in essence a licensed restaurant. It's rather fashionable
to scorn the Lord Nelson, but not everyone wants to eat in a ordinary pub.
Taking it at face value, as a polished open-plan Berni-style restaurant with a
very cosy atmosphere and wide repertoire, it does what it does very well. It
couldn't be handier for the bus, and has a big customer-only car
park.
Beer: Good, I hear; I had
wine when I ate there.
Games:
obviously not.
Food: Varied
menu, mostly English-style, including a well-presented carvery. Excellent-value
daily specials (take a doggie bag - the portions are colossal).
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G: The Globe
Atmosphere: Very nice traditional general-purpose
pub, a coaching inn. A small entrance bar, a sitting bar further in, a large
wood-panelled back room, a dining section, and a beer garden, sort of (outside
tables, some in a covered alcove, in an area partitioned off from the car
park). Service is very friendly. Big fireplaces lit in winter. Folk Club on
Sundays.
Beer:
CAMRA-recommended. The regulars, Bass and Doom Bar from Sharps, are always
good, as is the changing choice of West Country guest beers.
Games: They have dominoes if you want;
there's also a skittles alley, hireable for functions only.
Food: Extremely good, large range, traditional
English meats with Continental influences (restaurant section, or table
snacks).
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Li: The Lighter
Atmosphere: Good: very popular spacious
pub, wood-panelled, with eating sections. Summer is especially nice, when you
can sit at the outside tables on the Quay. At daytimes, it's handy for the quay
bus terminus and Antiques Centre. It can be very crowded at weekends. But it's
spacious enough to accommodate everyone, and overall it's an extremely friendly
and pleasant pub to drink in.
Beer: Good real ale range, varying with season, from Badger
Brewery: Badger Best, K&B Sussex, Fursty Ferret, Tanglefoot,
etc.
Games: Fruit
machines.
Food: Cooked meals,
buffet and sandwiches (I've not yet tried any).
When visiting, please treat the town responsibly. Thanks!