Tom Thumb Apartments

We took a short walk off the beaten track to find this little pub, and it was well worth it. A friend had told us about it, so I brought my wife to start our night out. Ryan the barman recommended a cocktail, though I can’t remember its name, and my wife absolutely loved it. He was such a gent and made our night with a good chat. Great atmosphere, and we’ll definitely be back.

We got there around 6pm on Saturday, and there were a few people in but still plenty of seats. By 7 the bar had filled up and it was standing room only. They’ve got a wide drinks selection, including San Miguel, Estrella Dam and Poretti on tap, plus a good range of whisky, gin and cocktails. I had an Estrella, a Whitley Neil gin and tonic, and a double Talisker, which came to around £20. Thought that was fair. It’s a dark, low-lit bar with a nice vibe. Music was playing a bit loud, but we could still talk. Brilliant bar.

Ryan, the bar ‘manager’, refused to serve me, my partner, and my mum and dad because my partner wore tailored trousers with a stripe down the side. In his view, that broke the ‘no tracksuit bottoms rule’. He wouldn’t discuss it reasonably, though he did say it would be fine if another female customer lent my partner her skirt, leaving her with nothing on from the waist down. The whole thing was unpleasant and made no sense. It felt like a strange power trip, not a genuine dress code issue. For context, my own tailored trousers had a very similar stripe, but they were pinstriped, so Ryan, the Eagle-Eyed Trouser Inspector, decided mine were fine. Apparently only my partner had to be turned away. He blamed the owner and said he’d be sacked for serving someone with a stripe on their trousers. It seems odd that the owner would rather lose four local customers on yet another quiet night.

A really nice pub with a great atmosphere. The music was decent, service was good, and they brought our cocktails over to the table.