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The Somerset House, Bristol - pub details

Somerset House

Address: 11 Princess Victoria Street, Bristol, Bristol, BS8 4BX [map] [gmap]

Tel: 0871 951 1000 (ref 32023) - calls cost 10p per minute plus network extras

Nearest train stations Clifton Down (0.8 miles), Redland (1.5 miles), Sea Mills (1.7 miles)

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> Current user rating: 5.3/10 (rated by 9 users)
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other pubs nearby:

Bristol Fringe Cafe Bar, Bristol (0.0 miles), Quadrant, Bristol (0.1 miles), Clifton, Clifton (0.1 miles), New Emperor Court, Clifton (0.1 miles), Albion, Clifton (0.1 miles) - see more nearby pubs

user reviews of the Somerset House, Bristol

please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.

5 most recent reviews of 13 shown - see all reviews

Ex barman Charles Franklin has just been convicted of raping a customer on the floor of this delightful pub, presumably after closing time. Got a nine year spell in chokey
Charming place. Give it a miss
cellarbuoy - 21 Jan 2014 17:04
Although this has been a Clifton Village stalwart for many years, it has recently undergone an extensive renovation and there is now much more of an emphasis on food. In fact the signage outside has been changed to say “Pub & Kitchen” and the loos have been shifted upstairs to make way for the open kitchen where you can see the chefs hard at work. Apparently there are also plans afoot to open a Champagne & Gin Bar upstairs which will no doubt suit the local well heeled residents.

As soon as you get in to the hallway there is now glass partitioning in to the front bar which gives it a more open feel. This is the larger of the two bars and seems to be used for a mixture of drinking and eating. The tables are mostly small round and metal with bar stools to sit on. This didn’t strike me as particularly comfy to eat at, but nonetheless at least one of these was reserved. A large brick chimney breast with a wood burning stove was a prominent feature with a few rifles hung above it. The flooring is dark boards and this continued down a couple of steps in to the rear bar with a wine rack partition between the two areas.

This rear bar is very much more geared up for eating with a table for fourteen reserved on our visit. As previously mentioned an open plan kitchen is off to the right and this was adorned with strings of garlic and chillies. To further emphasis the foody nature of the pub, an industrial food mixer was a decorative feature next to the kitchen counter. To the left is black button back bench seating, there is some exposed brick work on the walls and elsewhere is the usual shade of gastro-pub green paintwork. An arched ceiling with a skylight at the top has been painted in a contrasting cream colour. The tables here came complete with retro “3D” binoculars which was an unusual feature.

To menus were offered, a regular and a specials. These offered a decent selection of dishes, with most of the mains being somewhere around £10 - £15 on the regular menu and £15+ on the specials menu. I enjoyed both my starter of Lime Bay Crab on toast and a main course of Pan Fried Brill, Scallop and Prawn tagliatelle. Slightly less successful in my opinion was a desert of Apple Doughnut with Mulled Cider and Toffee Sauce. Not there was anything wrong with it, it just wasn’t as good as I expected. Three courses for two and a bottle of wine came to £80 though, so this is clearly a cut above your regular “pub grub”.

Beers on tap were predominantly from Caledonian with their Deuchars IPA, Flying Scotsman and Golden XPA. The only other beer option was their own Somerset House Ale. Ciders were Symonds Founders Reserve and Scrumpy Jack.
Blackthorn - 12 Aug 2013 20:26
Cold and uninspiring pub, very strange how the seating is arranged, makes the place seem empty and a bit bleak

hammers101 - 28 Jul 2011 08:37
small rather uninspiring pub in clifton,courage best,theakston best and london pride served straight from cask,i opted for the latter which was a bit flat and �3.40 a pint ,cute aussie barmaid,annoying wine bar bavkground music,6/10
fat_beer_badger - 9 Apr 2011 16:10
As the memory of the previous incarnation of this pub fades, I am warming to the new one. It�s a pleasant enough place in the heart of Clifton village. It�s reasonably small and on two levels with a sandy colour scheme reminiscent of a Moroccan restaurant, and a few chunky wooden tables. Finding somewhere to sit can be difficult though, with only a fairly limited amount of seating available.

Beers were all dispensed from barrels racked up behind the bar, although the choice is not as inspiring as you might expect. On this occasion they were Courage Best, Doom Bar and London Pride. Ciders were Blackthorn and Scrumpy Jack.
Blackthorn - 23 Nov 2010 10:32

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