On our trip to Bath, we were looking for a casual, lively place to enjoy some good food and drink, particularly cider as this is a Somerset specialty. The Stable, with its menu of pizza, pies and cider, was exactly what we were looking for.

The Stable has multiple locations (Bath, Bridport, Bristol, Falmouth, Fistral Beach, Plymouth, Poole, Weymouth, Winchester and soon Southampton). Each location has a slightly different menu, in accordance with the local ingredients and cider available.

The Stable in Bath is housed in a beautiful building and seating consists of benches, stools and long tables. This lends a wonderful convivial atmosphere and whilst this place is indeed a proper restaurant, it feels more like a bar with the freedom to order more food and drink whenever you please.

Staff will show you to your table and give you menus but you must place your food and drink orders at the bar. You pay up front so whenever you wish to leave, it is hassle free to do so.

The Stable stocks over 80 different varieties of cider so the concept of The Cider Tasting Board was ideal for us as we were looking to sample some different local ciders. The Board included 5 different 200ml samplers selected by The Stable. The ciders change regularly.

The Cider Tasting Board came with a card identifying each cider and we were advised to drink them in the order they were placed. The ciders were:

1. Honey’s Midford 6%
2. Ashridge Gold 4.5%
3. Philosopher 6%
4. Devon Red 4.5%
5. Hecks Perry 6%

All 5 ciders were delicious but I preferred the effervescent ones, namely Ashridge Gold and Devon Red.

The menu also included some lovely non-alcoholic options from Cornish Orchards. My son had the Cranberry & Raspberry Sparkle. Very nice.

The pizzas have an organic sourdough base and a thin crust. Each pizza is served on a round wooden board with a long handle, complete with a handy pizza cutter.

There were a variety of tempting pizza options to choose from. My son loves cheese so naturally he ordered The Four Cheese Special, a pizza with an optional tomato base topped with Rosary goat’s cheese, Dorset Red smoked cheese, Wookey Hole aged cheddar and local blue cheese. They were generous with the cheese!

Paulo, the spice fiend, had The Bath Blaster pizza topped with spicy local chopped pork, Naga chillies, garlic, red onion, basil leaves, mushrooms, fresh tomato sauce and mozzarella. It was nicely spicy and very tasty.

My pizza was The Longhorn Jim which was packed with a variety of delicious meats and vegetables. The pizza had marinated Longhorn ground beef (from a local herd), chorizo from The Bath Pig, field mushrooms, roasted red onions, West Country smoked ham, fresh tomato sauce and mozzarella. I knew Paulo and my son would really like The Longhorn Jim pizza, so when their bottomless appetites prevailed, I was quick to suggest it. They ended up ordering one and splitting it between themselves.

I will definitely return to any of The Stables locations. I want to try their handcrafted pies, which include steak, lamb, ham hock, chicken and butternut squash. There are some nice desserts too, such as cheesecake, crumble, brownie, meringue… even an intriguing Nutella pizza. For those who don’t have a sweet tooth, their cheese board includes three local cheeses served with tomato chutney and oat cake biscuits. They have a well developed menu to suit all tastes, preferences and requirements, including gluten free options.

The owners, managers or staff did not invite me to visit this establishment and were unaware that my experience would be the basis of a written review. It is based on my experience at my own cost and I did not receive compensation for my review.

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