The Sportsmans Inn, Ivybridge

The Sportsman is a pub, restaurant and hotel that I stayed at recently during midweek. The doors don’t open until 15:00 (midday on Sundays) so I had to hang around the large car park at the rear for half an hour or so after my arrival. There’s no garden as such, just a marquee over some old café furniture on the car park so I stayed in my car. Thankfully the doors of the pub swung open dead on 15:00. The interior is open plan with an L-shaped serving counter mid-way up the right-hand wall. Standard and premium keg were available and the three hand pumps were drawing Doom Bar, South Hams Brewery’s Eddystone and Morland’s Original, the latter being an expensive £2.50 for a half. In the right rear corner is a lounge area with a large circle of sofas and in the left rear is a raised dining area. In between is a dance floor with music equipment and disco lights for the advertised regular weekend events. In the front left, adjacent to the reception desk, are tables that were used as the breakfast area. I thought the pub as a whole was very disjointed and I struggled to get comfortable, even though there was only one other customer. That said, in the front right corner of the building is a saloon bar with a dartboard and lots of sporting memorabilia on the walls. This area felt a lot more like a proper pub, I just wish I’d noticed it when I arrived rather than just before leaving.

Looks rather modest from the outside but inside is a brilliant chintz retrofest. Probably untouched since the early 80's (the current licensees have been here for 30 years, which perhaps explains why) we have pub carpet, more hanging jugs than you can shake a stick at, wood panelling, breweriana, comfy leather seats and loads of Tony Hancock and Sid James memorabilia. The Saloon is a smaller discrete room with a dart board and loads of sporting paraphernalia including a framed pic of Bobby George with a bevvy of lovelies. Comedy club advertised for Wednesdays. Ales on were Doom Bar, Bombardier, Otter Poppy and Adnams Ghost Ship, the latter of which was in very good shape. I loved it in here and I hope it's preserved for future generations to enjoy. Well-worth visiting - it also offers accommodation.

Official site of the Sportsmans Inn, contains menu - www.thesportsmansinn.co.uk

Official site of the Sportsmans Inn, contains menu - www.thesportsmansinn.co.uk