Kensington Arms, The Reviews

I have eaten upstairs on a busy Friday night and in the bar on a couple of occasions, today being one of them. I found the service to be very good every time. The members of staff were very pleasant indeed and the food was excellent. I agree it is not the usual pub food people expect but that’s what makes it stand out from the rest. I would definitely recommend it to people of all ages.

Nice location and beautifully redecorated, advertising itself as ‘just how a local should be’. What used to be a nice pub has now become a gastropub with much emphasis on the 'gastro'. If you want a seat in the main room on a Friday or a Saturday night, forget it as most of the tables will be reserved for diners even though they also have a restaurant upstairs, and drinkers have to sit outside or stand in the small bar. The food looked nice, although there is very little for non-meat eaters, so last week I pushed the boat out and ate there. £12.75 for fish and chips in the bar, which was delicious but served in a child's sized portion. To give you an idea, it was a normal sized dinner plate with a tiny bowl containing about eight chunky chips, and a miniscule piece of cod propped artistically against the bowl. It was accompanied by a tablespoon of mushy peas and a pot of tartar sauce. The whole lot barely covered a third of the plate, and looked more like a starter.

This is a fresh looking gastropub in a lovely quiet area of Bristol. It’s clean and looks elegant for a pub and we hoped to have a fantastic Sunday lunch. To start off, we were served tiny portions of bread with dips and no olives. The food took an hour to arrive but it tasted good. The fish stew was not too pricey but I couldn't get a glass of wine to accompany it. I think it’s a nice looking place with a decent chef but bad service.