So it's early on a Friday night in January so of course it's dark and I can't show you the wonderful flora outside this boozer. So let Google oblige!
As the Exmouth Arms is on the corner of a quiet back-street which leads from another quiet back-street to a dead-end, I wondered if there would be anyone else in. But blow me! it was rammed! How do all these know about the place? But it's a busy it a good way, just busy-enough. A young-ish crowd gave it a feel of a town-centre pub, I'm not sure if they were all there together for some occasion but I wasn't expecting them. There were a good mix of regular-looking regulars too. A fine & healthy crowd!
The choice of beers was simple & sufficient, but isn't going to get anyone overly excited. I went for an Adnams' bitter 4.5% at a healthy £1.85. I don't know what I'd done to the barmaid / landlady in a previous life because she wasn't overly-thrilled to see me. Maybe she was happier to be in the odd open kitchen, microwaving pre-grated cheese over Doritos or wrapping bowls of chilli in cling-film.
This kitchen is an odd one, firstly it's openness must fill the pub with a greasy-kitchenny smell. A landlord I knew once said he refused to do food at all, because the grease in the air got on the glasses and made the beer flat. Also you have to walk round the back of the quiz machine and wooden partition to get to it. Still I'm sure it works but I thought it looked a bit odd. Kitchens should be tasted and not seen! But I'm glad that they offer pizzas with "your choice of topping"!
I'm not sure if the bar was a step down, of if this barmaid is just a bit shorter than the average punter, but one thing I noticed was the you had to stoop down slightly to get served because of the shelving above the bar. This could well be a good idea as it may act to calm down angry punters. Or maybe I'm thinking too much about it! But the thing I like about this pub - and he's been there on every (not many...) occasion I've been in - is the pub cat sat on the bar. Not demanding attention, but neither shirking it. Some elf & saftey bozo would probably have a fit. But good. More animals in pubs please! I like the Exmouth.
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