The Pembroke, formerly known as The Coleherne, was for many years one of the most famous gay pubs…read morein the country. It was purchased by Realpubs towards the end of 2008, since when it has undergone a major refurbishment and been re-branded as a 'gastro pub'.
The interior has been redecorated in a mixture of dark browns, golds and creams, with loud 'feature wallpaper', old leather sofas and wooden chairs and tables, with a dining area at the rear and less formal seating at the front and on the mezzanine. It's taken it about as far away from its previous incarnation as it's possible to get, if at the expense of its character - with this sort of décor you could be in just about city centre in the UK.
The one positive is that it now serves real ale in the form of Adnams, with the possibility of a guest ale. I've not eaten here yet, but the menu is familiar gastro-pub fare: modern British/European cooking, with prices to match: starters from £4.50-£7.50, mains from £8.50-£17, desserts £5-£7. The old dingy toilets have also been replaced by swanky new ones in the basement, which seem to be kept spotlessly clean.
Bar service isn't bad, but it's still early days and it's pretty quiet, so we'll have to see how it goes.
Update 27-01-2009
Well, what an experience. No Adnams, but they had Deuchars IPA on instead, which is a very nice pint. Clearly, their beer supply is still settling down. One downer: they served the beer in old-fashioned handled/dimpled glasses, so say if you want a straight glass. We also had to ask for every pint to be topped up. (At over £3 a pint, I don't want to pay for an inch of froth).
But, more oddly, some of the old Coleherne crowd seem to have returned, alongside the more generally more mixed clientele. I got my bum groped by some punter as I walked out at the end of the evening - something that hasn't happened in years - even though I was clearly with my other half. Clearly, for some, old habits die very hard
