The Ship Inn

Successive Spencers from various corners of the world have reminisced with each other and slaked their thirst in this Public House in Porthleven Cornwall, since the early 60’s.  The ceiling in the bar used to be covered in ancient fiscal paper.  I searched in vain for a $A1 dollars note I stuck on the ceiling in the early 80’s, but unfortunately much of the historic collection of paper money has recently been removed, no doubt to go to a worthwhile local cause.  

Getting to the Ship Inn is an adventure.  In a raging south westerly storm, it’s quite a scramble along the sea wall to get to the pubs alternative and sheltered entrance, the main entrance being firmly secured against wind & waves, for good reason.  Windows at the front of the building have been stoved-in by waves.  Getting back along the sea wall to the shelter of the village, in similar conditions after a few beers, is positively life threatening.  Sadly, some haven’t made it and have been lost.  In the 1989 storm surge, I saw waves breaking over the Institute clock tower.  Not for nothing is the inner harbour entrance protected by storm boards the size of barn doors, stored on the harbour wall and able to be craned in place as the weather & high tide threatens.

Nevertheless, it was a fine evening when six of us, a mix of friends & relatives turned up for dinner and an ale or three.  We went in the front door.  It was crowded as usual and we had trouble finding a table for all of us but after a bit of negotiation with some fellow imbibers, we accommodated ourselves in a comfortable corner spot near the open fire (which hadn’t been lit yet).  The pub is never deserted regardless of the weather conditions and once safely inside there is no better place for a beer and a feed.  The interior is quite small with a number of small spaces connected by the bar.  Service is always cheery and one is never in a hurry to leave.

I had a warming bowl of broth followed by a veg. lasagne.  Suzy had real lasagne, as did the others; there is a wide range of excellent food available and not all fish dishes.

We had recorded the type & variety of beer etc that was available but Suzy accidently deleted the info from her iPhone (wots wrong with pencil & paper).  Anyway, this PH is an institution to the Spencers and a Free House so what is available now probably wont be in the future unless it’s well worth drinking.  I will be returning here for the next thirty years as I have for the past thirty; by that time I probable wont be able to make a run for it along the sea wall in those SW busters.

(thanks Mark for the use of the wave picture)

The Garibaldi

The Garibaldi is in Hedsor which is a short walk from our house, either along the road out of Bourne End or across some muddy fields.  Apart from the pub, Hedsor has a community hall and a huge garden/food/gift centre called Flowerland; there are a few houses.

Since it's not on the main road and pubs close down all the time here, we thought we should give it our custom.  We had been here once before, but they had run out of Guinness and also had a power outage, so it wasn't a great visit and we thought we would give it a second chance, this time for lunch; and what better time than a wet and miserable Friday afternoon.

The building is about 200 years old.  It's pretty small inside but cosy with the typical low ceiling and some comfy sofas. Traditional pub food is served and of course Sunday roast. I had scampi and chips and Neil had chicken soup. It wasn't exactly haute cuisine but the price was right.

Not a huge choice of wines available but I had a passable Pinot Gris. Lagers are Fosters, San Miguel and 1664. Bitters are Abbotts, London Pride, Adnams and Doon Bar is to come. They also have Strongbow cider on tap.

Friendly proprieters who encouraged us to come to the quiz night (Thursdays) which we jmay just do one day. All in all a very pleasant place to spend a wet Friday afternoon.

The Old Success Inn

“It’s a bit gloomy”, I was told, referring to the only pub in town.  Suzy was stuck in Singapore so I ventured alone to Sennen Cove in Cornwall and what better way to while away a cold & windy Saturday night than with an ale or three and catch up with old friends in a warm pub.

Sennen Cove is within walking distance of Lands End with all the inherent windswept ruggedness of the landscape and the local inhabitants.  Legend has it that many years ago, Sennen Cove was a poor & isolated fishing village, surviving on pilchards & mackerel and some would say wrecking & scavenging; that quaint Cornish custom of lighting false signal fires on the headlands to deliberately drive sailing ships onto the nearby reefs & shoals , then rowing out and nicking anything of value.  The locals would then celebrate their “success” back at the pub.  (It is not recorded if the pub also welcomed the shipwreck survivors).  The other version of the legend refers to the success of catching a boat load of fish, but why let the truth get in the way of a good story.

The pub, the village and the people now seem strangely at odds with the new surfing culture sweeping Cornish beaches; (apparently started by some Australians) with Sennen Cove subjected to ski-lodge type buildings & a large sea side carpark; but I went into the pub anyway as it was almost next door to my lodgings.  Drinks were at London prices (they don’t get many shipwrecks these days); service was immediate as there were few people there even at 1900 on a Saturday night and the food appeared unremarkable with a lot of fish dishes.  Apparently it’s heaving with surfers and live music on a Saturday night in summer.

I didn’t eat at the pub as the offer of home cooked Shepherd’s Pie, back at the house, was too appealing, even for a closet vegetarian.  Larger Beers available are Carlsberg, San Miguel, Carlsberg Export with Bitter Beers: Tribute, Tinners; HSD, Guinness.  Blackthorn Cider & Cornish Rattler if you like apples in your drink.  Wine on tap from Australian, Sth African & Californian vineyards gave Chateau Cardboard a whole new meaning.

With all the history, I thought this Public House unremarkable, although a pleasant enough place when the Cornish weather is blowing dogs off chains.

The Spade Oak

We love the Spade Oak. Whether you take the 15 minute walk along the river or drive there it's sufficiently off the beaten track enough to get a little surprise when you stumble across it.

Inside it's large but cosy. An open fire and wood burning heaters with lots of comfy chairs and lounges make it most comfortable even in the nastiest weather. They have a lovely long bar which is quite a feature. 

 

The menu is currently being updated but there is still enough to choose from even for pseudo vegetarians like Neil. He ordered mushroom risotto but received two mushies on a plate with a piece of bacon and not a grain of rice in sight. This was quickly rectified though and when he received his risotto it must have been good by the looks of the very clean plate. He also got a free beer for his trouble so he was happy.

I had fishcakes. The menu is usually a little more upmarket than other pubs but they also have usual pub fare like burgers etc.

The wine list is mainly European with some Chilean and Australian. Neil enjoys the Doom Bar bitter beer which is from Cornwall. Other bitters include Hobgoblin (but only for Halloween), London Pride and Brakspears. Lagers are Fosters (seems to be omnipresent), Staropramen, 1664, Peroni, Grolsch and of course Guiness.  They also have Strongbow and Aspall cider. There is a fine selection of single malts.

Dogs & cats are welcome in the bar and the staff are very friendly.

The Christmas dinner menu looks YUMMY but is expensive almost 50 pounds a person.