Great Yarmouth – Tombstone Saloon

Tucked away a little, although within a short walk of the main market-place is this Good Beer Guide listed pub in Great Yarmouth. Calling itself a saloon, not least because of its American west theme, it’s the bar section of the Tombstone Brewery. It’s an under-stated location from the exterior and until about ten years ago, this was the home of the restaurant Cafe Nova. Indeed, some of the decoration from that period as a tapas restaurant remains today as the bar area.

A decent selection of real ale, particularly given the trading limitations that all pubs currently have. The pub was also busy, with someone at nearly every table, and there was a relaxed atmosphere in the pub. There were numerous tempting options visible at the bar, not least the scampi fries, with a range of different beer types.

I opted for the Tindall Stout, which was reasonably priced at £3.30. There are a couple of stouts produced by the Tindall Brewery, a small–scale local producer from nearby, in Seething, but the board didn’t name which one it was. I’m guessing though that it was the caramel stout and I came to that conclusion because I thought it tasted of caramel…. It seemed a little weak in body at first, but the aftertaste was rich and moreish, so a decent beer.

The wild west theme hasn’t been taken too far, but it adds character and atmosphere to the surroundings. The service was polite and the pub staff were following the current guidelines in terms of taking customer details. A fair few pubs aren’t doing this very well at the moment, and although I can’t say it overly bothers me, it does show a level of professionalism. It’s not the largest of pubs either, so I can imagine that it gets relatively busy during a warm balmy day in summer. Well, I like to think that tourists come here in a reasonable number anyway.

There wasn’t really anything exceptional about my visit that I can add, although that doesn’t mean there was any particular problem. But the customer service didn’t engage beyond the minimum, so there’s not much more I can add about that. I would say though that it felt like the kind of pub where you’d soon be known after visiting a few times, it had that sort of character to it. The selection of beers and ciders, as well as spirits, is also well above the average and so I can see why it’s listed in the Good Beer Guide.