Weston-Super-Mare Pub Crawl

Yep

Weston-Super-Mare is the "seaside heart of Somerset" according to the tourist board.
Forget all your overseas holidays in amber list destinations - Weston has sunshine, beaches, a big wheel, amusements, chips and a pier.

As enjoyable as wandering along the seafront in the lovely weather was, we were here for the pubs.  And there were an awful lot of them according to whatpub, although many looked to be dubious ramshackle establishments dishing out Carling to the sunburned Brit seaside massive.

Wanting a spot of lunch, we opted to head to the entry in the Beer Guide that called itself a 'taproom and kitchen'.
The walk to this took us inland, passing this bit of public art...

A little way further on we found our pub with a fine crenellated rooftop...

Fork and Ale (18 Walliscote Road, Weston-Super-Mare, BS23 1UG - web)
Opened in 2019, the pub is operated by Epic Beers who in turn own Pitchfork and 3D.
A handy blackboard on the way in listed 5 cask ales from those two brands and we managed to try most of them during our lunchtime visit.

It may have been kitted out in a modern town centre bar kinda way, but I really enjoyed our visit to the Fork and Ale.
A great veggie hotdog...

And great well kept and tasty ales.  The 3D 'Java Joe' was probably my favourite, whilst this one was the most topical...

You need two pints of this twelve weeks apart to really do the job

A little while later we found ourselves in somewhere whatpub declared was the "top provider of quality real ales in Weston town centre".

Well, not really 'in it', but in the alleyway leading to it.
Hence, one of my dubious pub photo's, this time with no visible pub in it...

Brit Bar (118 High Street, Weston-Super-Mare, BS23 1HP - web)
I'm not sure whether they were open inside or not, but customers were all seated on picnic benches in the courtyard and alleyway, enjoying the summery afternoon.

We were met with one of the potential downfalls of table service: a finely remembered list of the five ales they had on, omitting who brewed them, what they were or how strong they were.

"What was the second one called?"
"Which one's darkest?"
"Who brews the first one?"
"Er, can you read them all out again?"

A printed beer list would have been good.  Even when the staff provide all the info it inevitably goes straight in one ear and out the other.
But we did indeed end up with some fine beers here.  A best bitter from Great Western Brewing Co and a 'Ghost Town' milk stout brewed by another local, Twisted Oak.
 

Next up we had a bit of a walk, heading westward from the centre into residential streets.  It didn't look to be a likely destination for a pub and, indeed, our next pub looked the least pubiest from the outside...

The Bear (66 Walliscote Road, Weston-Super-Mare, BS23 1ED - web)
This was previously the Balmoral, before being reopened in 2012 as the Bear, with a spacious ground floor bar and accommodation above.
I opted for the nicely regional 'Somerset Best Bitter', brewed by Bason Bridge Brewing Company.

I'm not really sure I enjoyed the Bear, but I guess it would be much better with a crowd of merry folk within.
Nice Bear pic in the gents though... 

We failed to complete all the current Beer Guide entries due to the micro pub being closed whilst we were in town.
As a consolation we decided to call into the Duke of Oxford which had the promising sign of a 'CAMRA discount' sticker in the window.  (I forgot to ask for my discount - I always do).

The Duke of Oxford (27 Oxford Street, Weston-Super-Mare, BS23 1TF - web)
Apparently, this corner pub, just a short way from the seafront, had sat closed for a long spell before being recently revived in 2016.
It's a bit of a bistro - cafe-bar - pub hybrid - all very modern in style.  Lots of art, various bric-a-brac and quotes painted on beams.

There were two beers on cask, both from Quantock Brewery.

My pick - a 'Talisman CF277' won my beer of the day award.

Onward, to the seafront and to 'Spoons!

Cabot Court Hotel (Knightstone Road, Weston-Super-Mare, BS23 2AH - web)
The Cabot Court was well and truly in a state of chaos.
Just after we arrived and settled at a high table the staff began guarding the door, telling all-comers that they were full.
The hard-working staff couldn't keep up with the app orders.  Not helped by the busy, fair-sized, outdoor area and the proliferation of cocktail jug orders.  A growing collection of drinks on trays was building up at the end of the bar waiting for delivery.

Our food (35 mins) beat our drinks to the table (40 mins).

I also managed to press the wrong button on the app and ordered myself a half pint as the drink included with my meal.  A mistake I haven't quite got over.
But in hindsight, as it was an Exmoor 'Beast' (great beer on good form) it was probably a good thing it was only a half.

We needed somewhere a little more relaxed and preferably with a faster drinks-to-table turnaround... 

The Regency (22-24 Lower Church Street, Weston-Super-Mare, BS23 2AG)

The Regency sits in a row of residential houses and only differentiates itself by the protruding front window and bright red pub signage.  The front seats had been a busy sun-trap when we passed earlier.  By now everyone had gone round the corner to cause the Wetherspoon's staff a nervous breakdown.
There were just a nice number of punters inside, producing a low hubbub of conversation and a relaxed feel.

My Palmer's IPA arrived 22-times faster than drinks in the Cabot Court. 
And very nice it was too.
We took our time, comfy on the cushioned bench seating in the window, making this the last pub in a good day of pub visits.

Weston had been a winner.
Next up, I'll be reporting on the Bass in Portishead.