Bath Pubs

Hall & Woodhouse, a new gastro pub, will open on the 4th of June at 6:00 pm on the site of the former Bonhams auction house, located between Queen Square and Milsom Street in Old King Street.

Visit the Hall and Woodhouse Website (31st May 2010)

A group of squatters have moved into a closed-down pub in Bath in the hope of once again setting up a social centre. Members of the Black Cat Social Centre have taken over The Porter Butt, in London Road, which has been empty since late last year.

It is unlikely that the Porter Butt will ever return to being a pub - plans have been submitted by national firm Richer Sounds, which wants to convert it into a hi-fi and TV store. (2nd May 2010)

The Bath Tap, which has been closed for a little while now, is due to re-open at 3pm on Good Friday (the 2nd of April) as the Nineteenth House.

The Bath Tap, at 19 St James's Parade, was one of Bath's top gay pubs. The building, which dates back to the 18th Century, has housed a public house since 1849.

(26th March 2010)


The Litten Tree at the top of Milsom Street closed on the 22nd of November. It will re-open in plenty of time for Christmas on the 3rd of December at 7:00 pm as the Beau Nash after a quick refurbishment. (24 November 2009).

The owners of the Belvoir Castle are going to rename it as the Victoria Works despite a local residents campaign to retain the 19th century pubs name which was supported by the Duke of Rutland. (16th October 2009).

The Griffin Inn in Monmouth Street has now re-opened after its extensive refurbishment which has given it a distinctly up-market look. (16 August 2009).

A campaign has been launched in an attempt to prevent the new owners of the Belvoir Castle changing its name to The Victoria Works. The pub on the Lower Bristol Road is currently shut whilst refurbishment takes place. (31st July 2009).

The Assembly Inn Baths City Centre Local Charity Draw

A Rugby shirt signed by the Bath team has been gifted to the Assembly Inn by Bath rugby star Ryan Davies.

Not only will it feature on the wall next to the shirts of Duncan Bell and former scrum half Nick Walshe in the sports bar it will be used to raise money for the Help the Heroes Charity.

Customers at the city centre pub in Alfred Street will pay a £1 and try to guess whose names are featured on the shirt and the one with the most correct names will win first prize of a case of 500ml Bellringer bottles donated by Abbey Ales. All money collected will go to the charity.

The pub is well known for its support for TV sports especially Rugby, local and national teams alike and shows all the televised matches on its big screen.

Manager Michelle Spence says,"Since we installed the big screen in our sports bar we have seen a big increase in trade.The British Lions is a big draw and also the 20 20 cricket.We are now looking forward to the Ashes."

The Assembly is a recent addition to Baths only brewery Abbey Ales and joins the Star Inn on the Paragon the Coeur De Lion also in Bath and the Foresters at Beckington.

Alan Morgan MD of Abbey Ales added " Live sports on TV our pool, boules and touch rugby teams coupled with our popular credit crunch lunches have given us a good start in a pub that was closed for three months before we took it over. Michelle and her team are doing an excellent job and more charity events are being planned for the very near future." (20th June 2009)

The Rummer, a central Bath pub on Grand Parade, is being transformed into an Italian-style bar.

The lease on the building has been sold to the owners of the Real Italian Pizza Company in York Street, and the pub is now being refurbished ready to re-open in July. (3rd June 2009).

June will see Cheddar Ales throwing its first beer festival in the brewery. It'll be a beer lover's paradise that will bring together over 40 award-winning beers from around Britain to create one of the finest selections of beers ever seen in one venue. The star-studded range will include the majority of champion beers from the national CAMRA and SIBA festivals over the past three years, as well as Cheddar Ales own range of ales.

The festival will be based in and around the brewery, so you'll get the chance to see where the beers are made and to get close to the kit. There is also plenty of outdoor space to soak up any sun during the day, and there will be music, games and a barbecue.

All CAMRA members who can show a valid CAMRA membership card will receive a free pint on entry.

The festival will run for the weekend of 12th - 14th June 2009. Opening hours are as follows:

Friday 12th June: 8pm – 11.30pm

Saturday 13th June: Midday – 11.30pm

Sunday 14th June: Midday – 5pm

Cheddar Ales is based at Winchester Farm, on the A371 (Cheddar to Wells) road about half a mile from the centre of Cheddar village.

Bath Cricket Club Cider Festival is a special one-day cider festival in the grounds of the Bath Cricket Club, part of the Bath Cricket Club 150th Anniversary Celebrations. Over 90 ciders and perries including award-winning ciders from Ben Crossman's, Rich's, Thatchers, Broadoak and Heck's (Somerset), Weston's and Gwatkin (Herefordshire), Gwynt Y Ddraig (Wales), and Mr. Whiteheads (Hampshire) - as well as hog roast rolls and cheese platters, and a range of soft drinks.

As well as the cider and perry, the Bath Cider Festival will offer the best in local entertainment. Somerset's premier Wurzels tribute band, The Mangledwurzels will be playing a full show, providing their own brand of Wurzels-flavoured, cider-fuelled Scrumpy & Western madness to help you drink up thy cider. The Mangledwurzels have played at all CiderFestivals.co.uk festivals across the country from Norwich to Swansea - and are guaranteed to entertain.

Bath Cricket Club Cider Festival Friday 24th July 2009: 7.30pm-11pm. Tickets and more details here

Bath rugby star Duncan Bell will officially open the Assembly Inn on Thursday 9th April at 8pm after full redecoration. The pub - situated in Alfred Street - is the latest acquisition of Bath's only brewery, Abbey Ales, who already operate two other pubs in the City centre,The Coeur de Lion and The Star Inn. (7th April 2009). Full storey

The Assembly Inn has been taken over by Bath's Abbey Ales, which also owns The Star Inn and The Coeur De Lion in Bath as well as The Forresters at Beckington. (7th February 2009).

The Bath Cider Festival featuring over 80 different ciders and perrys is back at the Bath Pavilion on the 12th to the 14th of February. Advance tickets are available from the Pavilion Shop. There is live music at all the sessions, with the Mangled Wurzels appearing on Thursday and Saturday. (2nd February 2009).

The Englishcombe Inn on Englishcombe Lane is the latest Bath Pub to close. A planning application has been submitted for changing the buildings use to a nursing home. The architecturally impressive pub is currently boarded up and a fence is being built around the site.
The pub opened in May 1934 and was built to serve the local housing estates built after the First World War. (1st February 2009).

Two more Bath pubs have come onto the market. Filos, on the London Road, is for sale at offers over £400,000, and The Jubilee in Whiteway is on offer for £600,000-plus as possible care home or retail/residential development.

The agent for both properties is James A Baker. (16th January 2009).

Dorset Brewery Hall & Woodhouse's planning application for converting the former Bonhams auction house into a bar, brasserie and restaurant called The Olive Branch has been approved despite opposition from local residents. (14th January 2009).

The three million pound development, located in Old King Street off Queen Square, will be the largest single investment ever made by the Dorset brewers, who currently run over 250 pubs.

The White Hart at Bitton, a few miles to the west of Bath, has been forced to call last orders for the final time. Peninsula Inns, which owns the pub, is currently having financial problems and is shutting it for good. (15th December 2008).

Bathwick residents and many others will be pleased to hear that the Castle, Forrester Avenue has just re-opened, after being closed for a few months. It is having an opening party soon, when it's been wired for sound, and beered for drinking. (27th October 2008).

The Bath Pubs website has had another facelift. A news forum will also be featured in the near future, where any registered user can discuss items and post news, comments and the like. (1st October 2008).

The St Christopher Inn on Broad Street has been re-launched as the American style bar Belushi's. (27th September 2008).

The Bear, which has been closed since January, re-opened its doors on the 8th of September as a bar and dining room, and it will also stage art exhibitions. The pub, which is 52 years old, is now putting a greater emphasis on food, using locally sourced ingredients. (10th September 2008).

The Bath Ales Beer Festival Racenight, combining the best of racing and beer is happening on the 22nd of August at Bath Racecourse. Gates open at 3:30 and the first race is at 5:30. There will be live music from a Rolling Stones tribute band after the last race. Details at www.bath-racecourse.co.uk.
(9th August 2008).

The Bear on Bear Flat seems likely to re-open in August. It has been closed since February, with a note in the window claiming "staff illness". The pub, famous for the life-size polar bear statue above the door, has a new licensee and is currently undergoing refurbishment. (4th July 2008).

The Weston on the Upper Bristol Road reopened on the 21st of April after an extensive refurbishment. It now has a more sophisticated atmosphere with restrained decor and no TV screens. Food is served every lunchtime and every evening except Sunday. (27th April 2008).

Campaigners have won the first round of their fight to stop the Belvoir Castle pub on the Lower Bristol Road being converted into three houses. The owners of the pub, GRS Inns, have withdrawn their planning application because of local opposition, though they may review the situation in the future and resubmit a revised application.

The 100 year old Old Spot Inn in Cotswold Way, Dursley has been judged CAMRA National Pub of the Year. (14th February 2008)

Bath brewery Abbey Ales has added a third pub to its growing pub estate, The Foresters at Beckington. The pub which situated in the conservation village has been given a complete refurbishment by Abbey Inns an off shoot of the brewery which already runs The Star inn on the Paragon and The Coeur De Lion in Baths city centre.

The Barley in Bathwick is holding a mini beer festival from Friday the 26th of October to Sunday the 28th of October. There will be twelve guest beers, three guest ciders, and live music on Saturday night.

The Barley - 32 Bathwick Street, Bath, BA2 6NZ. Tel 01225 464845 (25th October 2007)

The Old Green Tree in Green Street has been awarded the accolade of "Town pub of the year" in the new Good Pub Guide. (18 October 2007)

Bath and North East Somerset Council are reviewing their alcohol and entertainment licensing policy three years after it was first introduced. If you are interested in having a look at the draft, or would like to comment, visit this part of BaNES's web site here. (4th September 2007)

We now have a local news section, thanks to the publishers of the Bath Chronicle. (13 August 2007)

The Raincheck Bar has relocated to Bradford on Avon, where it will open on the 28th of July. The bar will be located in the cellar of the refurbished Swan Pub. (27 July 2007)

The Bath Pubs website has been completed refurbished with updated software and a new look. We hope you like it! (22 July 2007)

The Weston will re-open after a £250,000 refurbishment in a few months time. Punch Taverns are looking for a new licensee to run the pub, which will offer quality food. (12 July 2007)

The Star Inn on the Paragon is staging its annual Cornish Beer Festival, starting tonight and finishing when the beer runs out. Beers featured include Spingo Special, Cornish Blonde, Heligan Honey and Organic Lizard Point.
(5 July 2007)

The Dark Horse in Northampton Street closed in May 2007. It will probably be converted to residential use. (7 June 2007)

The Crown and Anchor in Weston High Street has been refurbished and there is now the Welcome addition of an Indian Restaurant (The Shaad) upstairs. All the ingredients of an excellent night out. (12 May 2007)

Beer enthusiasts will be able to enjoy a wide range of beers from across the UK and Europe, during a two-week festival at the King of Wessex, Wetherspoon’s Bath Pub in James Street West.

The beers on offer will include six award-winners, seven beers not brewed before 2007, fruit, coriander, ginger and organic beers, as well as foreign beers.

The festival will run Monday April 23–Monday May 7, inclusive.

Customers will be able to enjoy the beers in special third-of-a-pint glasses, which will be available in the pubs for the first time.

The beers on sale will include Brakspear Organic (from Oxfordshire), Caledonian Top Banana (Edinburgh), Elgood’s Black Dog (Cambridgeshire), Highgate Highland Whisky Ale (West Midlands), Jennings Snecklifter (Cumbria), Mauldons Cuckoo (Suffolk), Sharp’s Doom Bar (Cornwall), as well as Anker Gouden Carolus Ambrio (from Belgium) and St Georgen Bräu Keller Bier (Germany).

In addition, to celebrate the first day of the festival, St George’s Day, the pub will serve Manns St George & The Dragon Ale (from Wiltshire).

Tasting notes about all of the beers will be available in the pub. (14 April 2007)

A new photo gallery has been added to showcase The Pubs of Frome. (10 March 2007)

The Royal Oak on Pulteney Road is closed for refurbishment until the 26th of February. (10 Feb 2007)

The New Burnt House Inn on Odd Down, the first pub that most visitors to Bath from the South see when they enter the City is to be demolished. The pub, which dates back to before 1871, is to be replaced by 18 flats. It is expected that the pub will be knocked down before Christmas. (23 November 2006)

John Bradshaw, of The Farmhouse on Lansdown Road retires on the 24th of August after 30 years as its landlord. The pub has been the centre of Bath's jazz scene. Wadworths are closing the pub for refurbishment. (23 August 2006)

The Slug and Lettuce at the top of Broad Street has closed. RSVP has now shut after resolving some planning issues, and will reopen shortly as... The Slug and Lettuce. (14 August 2006)

The Marlborough Tavern is now open again after its refurbishment. It looks good too. (28 July 2006)

The Marlborough Tavern is currently closed for a major refurbishment. It should reopen around the middle of July. (08 June 2006)

The Garrick's Head, next to the Theatre Royal, has re-opened after being closed for a year. The new landlords, Amanda and Charlie Digney, transformed the King William on the London Road when they took over, which bodes well for the Garrick's. (14 April 2006)

The Midland has been renamed as the Metropolitan, and DYMK has become the Cork and Bottle. (9 April 2006)

Sam Wellers in Bath city centre, which has been closed for nearly a year, officially re-opens on Friday. The pub is located on Upper Borough Walls. The new landlord is Mike Hoskins, who used to run the Saracens Head. (6 April 2006)

The Roundhouse, one of Bath's most central pubs located almost next to the Pump Rooms, still remains closed. The pub was only recently renovated, but it has now been shut for a few months and it currently has an estate agents sign in the window.

Rumour has it that a chain of sandwich shops is interested in the building, which is unfortunately quite believable given that the site is right in the centre of the main tourist area. (12 February 2006)

Yesterday we attended the launch of Andrew Swift's and Kirsten Elliot's new book, The Lost Pubs of Bath. This is the keenly awaited final book of their Bath Pub Trilogy, and the also the biggest book of the series at nearly 400 pages. (29 November 2005).

Bath has been named the "Top Town" for real ale in The Real Ale Pub Guide 2006, a trusted independant guide that annually reviews thousands of pubs and breweries. It especially highlights the Old Green Tree (Green Street) and the Bell (Walcot Street) as pubs not to miss. Other pubs singled out in Bath for real ale fans include the Pig and Fiddle (Saracen Street), The Hop Pole (Upper Bristol Road), The Dolphin (Locksbrook Road), The Pulteney Arms (Daniel Street), and the Salamander (John Street). Country pubs mentioned include the Old Crown at Kelston and the Wheatsheaf at Combe Hay. (3 November 2005).

The Pulteney Arms changes hands on Tuesday 18th October with Ash McMorris taking the helm. After being dominated by welsh landlords for 25 years, Ash maintains the celtic theme but brings his Irish conviviality to bear in this well renowned Bath pub supported by a great team!

As Bath's top rugby pub Ash intends that The Pulteney Arms will cement it's strong links with the sporting fraternities of Rugby, Hockey, Rowing and Cricket. It will close for a few days to give the place a facelift and further details of this and other events can be found on the new website www.pulteneyarms.co.uk which also goes live on Tuesday!

PS - the famous Pulteney Arms Yorkshire Puddings and Giant Baps will be back soon! (17 October 2005)

The Royal Oak on the Lower Bristol Road is re-opening as a free house on the 5th of August after being closed for a number of years. The new landlords, John and Becky Whinnerah, were until recently in charge of the Hobgoblin. (29 July 2005)