Torquay – The Rabbit Hole
And yet another apology for the poor quality of the imagery here…. This is the Rabbit Hole which opened last year and which was previously known as the Jolly Judge pub which were named after the nearby magistrate’s courts, although they shut in the summer of 2017. I don’t know the area, but Torbay Today (which I assume does know the area) reported last year that:
“Castle Circus, the same Castle Circus that has been dubbed a ‘hotspot’ for crime, anti-social behaviour, street drinking, drugs and violence. An area recognised by Devon crime commissioner Alison Hernandez as needing extra special investment, resource and partnership working, delivering more visible police patrols, legally-binding dispersal measures, a mobile police station and a new Street Focus Torquay initiative which will be rolled out across the force at similar problem locations if it is a success. Zoe, 43, is now the landlady of the Rabbit Hole. The pub was formerly Wig and Pen and Jolly Judge and had its licence taken away about six years ago for under-age drinking, drugs and fighting. “I managed to get the licence back which I never thought they would allow,” said Zoe. “People have been telling me I must be mad.””
It seems that the area is lucky that someone wanted to invest their money and energies into this venue, as somewhere that lost its licence is going to be a challenge.
The beer selection and it was quite hard to reach the bar to see this, there are some quite chunky bar seats located here. It’s interesting to see the Lucky Buddha and Dortmunder Vier beers and although I don’t know either of these lagers they are poorly reviewed on Untappd. But variety is good for the soul, although they do seem quite lager focused. The number of Untappd check-ins is surprisingly low (and yes I know that the world doesn’t quite yet revolve around Untappd…..), it’s just one other than me. My comment on this is because I had thought, and indeed hoped, that they would have some nod towards craft beer as it felt like an on-trend venue in terms of the design, but maybe that will come.
Not as a criticism but rather just as an observation, I must admit to being entirely confused when entering as they have an area that looks like a restaurant where the lights are slightly dimmed and had no customers in when we entered. They then had quite a cluttered main bar with the pool table and where absolutely everyone was sitting, something I noticed seems a common situation when walking by the front. It is still unclear to me whether or not that main seating area is meant just for dining customers or can be used by anyone. I was also confused by the food arrangement, as there were menus on the table but the couple of the table next to us tried to order and were told that there was no food.
Back to the positives, the staff member was friendly and helpful with the service being prompt and timely, with everything being clean and tidy. There’s a lot of work that’s taken place here and they seem to have completed most of what they need to do, although they’ve got the toilets to work on yet. But, Torquay wasn’t built in a day…..
The only real ale was the Jail Ale from Dartmoor Brewery and this was well-kept, keenly priced and it had a punchy, malty, fruity and smooth taste, one of the better bitters that I’ve had. I’ll mention this a few more times I think, but I’ve had a few beers this week from Dartmoor Brewery and the standard of all of them has been high.
I’m still a little unclear whether this is a restaurant with a bar or not, the design didn’t quite make sense to me, but they’re keen on more live music and so I imagine it’s more bar focused. Either way, the reviews of the bar are positive and it’s evident from the local reporting that this is a venue that needed to be changed to improve its reputation. Although I was puzzled by the design, it’s evident that the new owners have made a great effort to change the venue and that seems to be rather positive to me and I’m sure it’ll do well as it did seem to have a unique charm. It’s certainly given me a love for the Jail Ale real ale, that surprised and delighted me.
