The Albion

Went for a long lunch with a friend today. Really enjoyed the warm cider (they’re too easy to drink!).
I ordered the fish pie with new potatoes and salad. The food was light and was good value.
The staff were friendly and accommodating.
The only minor thing they could have improved was to ensure the warm cider was hot by lunchtime (we had to wait for 30mins or so). But once it arrived, it was awesome!
I always enjoy going here to meet friends, I highly recommend it as it has a great atmosphere.

I found The Albion by accident while looking for something to eat. It was the sound of happy chatter that beckoned me, that and the promise of Fish Night. What a lovely evening! I had scallops and seabass. Both photographed. My waitress (didn’t catch a name but blond, had lived in Borneo for a little while and on her second night of work there) was an absolute delight. I wish I’d had more in my purse than the shrapnel I left as a tip, but if her boss reads this, keep a hold of her! She even charged my phone for me! Star!!!
I tried the beer Proper something, which was very nice too.
I’ll be back if I’m in the area. Best place I found in Bristol to date.

3.5 stars
The Bristol Evening Post put us onto this ‘gastropub.’ We have to thank the atrocious New Year’s Day weather for helping keep the crowds away so we could get a table at lunch time at the last minute. (May be it was the above average prices that also made folks a bit shy?)
The food got mixed reviews from our small group. My sister’s fish and chips was deconstructed but not very memorable. Sam’s pork chop was good, but oddly American in style due to the melted cheese topping. My chicken supreme was a safe bet and very tasty, but not particularly creative.
This is a great restaurant pub (not a pub with food) as done have noted. The staff were really nice and even helped us order a taxi. The prices are on the steep side (£5+ more) compared to other pubs, so this is unlikely to be your regular spot unless you have a small appetite.

Lovely quaint British pub down a nice cobbled side street — nice helpful staff & the gin & tonic and pimms & lemonade are just what you need after walking through Bristol & seeing the sights with the Clifton suspension bridge within 10 minute walk.

Great spot. Went on both a Saturday night and a Sunday afternoon. Sunday was chilled with chess being played around us. Saturday was jammed, clearly a popular place!

Nice pub tucked away in a cobble stone laneway. It was buzzing on Saturday night and the menu looked decent. Wouldn’t mind trying their food next time. Had a pint of Gem bitter which was excellent. Happily come back here anytime when in Clifton.

The Albion is kind of a mixture between a pub and an upmarket restaurant, and on my visit here I was never really sure what to make of the place. This ‘public house’ is not the kind of pub where you feel comfortable and relaxed just lounging around — you feel as though you should be dressed up for the occasion!
The whole interior is pretty upmarket with classy lighting and already prepared tables (unlike most pubs which they set when you decide if you want to eat or not). Although you are welcomed here just to have a drink, you do feel that you should be sitting down to eat… the atmosphere is classy, and this is probably somewhere that would suit for special occasion dinners (kind of similar to Browns in many ways), but perhaps not somewhere you’d just pop along to. Decoration and atmosphere aside, the prices are also very high end! A pint of beer was £3-£4 — so definitely not somewhere that attracts students!
Onto the food… on my visit here I was pleasantly surprised with my meal, and although it was crazy pricy the food was delicious (in terms of pricing think around £20 for the roast duck!). Overall, I probably wouldn’t return purely because I found it a bit over priced, but if you don’t mind paying a bit more for good value food then give it a go — and perhaps dress up!

‘if you are looking for a cheap tart
don’t glint with perspiration
There’s a five-​mile queue
Outside the disused power station
Now come away (away), won’t you come away’
If you go to The Albion expecting it to resemble the Pete Doherty song of the same name (lyrics quoted above) you’d be wrong. Their ‘tarts’ certainly are neither cheap, nor sweaty. Starters hover around the £7 mark while a main will set you back just under £20. However if the prices don’t drive you to ‘come away’ then you’re in for a treat. The food is immaculately presented and equally tasty. The thinly sliced fillet steak was extraordinarily good… I can still taste it on my lips; the mark of a good meal! The bar prices are extortionate sure, but look around you and you’ll see that you are paying for a wonderful mix of relaxed and refined.

This Bristol classic, nestled away down a cobbled side street, in the most beautiful area of Bristol, never fails to produce the goods. The wide selection of ale’s compliments the up-​market food.
The food has what Simon Cowell would call the X factor. I would recommend ordering something you wouldn’t normally be taken by. If the pub went on Britain’s Got Talent i am sure that Piers would want the Queen to try the Ox cheek and chips at the Royal Variety show (which is quite ostentatiously outstanding). Amanda would no doubt have the soup, but what does she know.

Nicely tucked away in Clifton Village, the Albion is a pretty standard cliftonite pub — nicely done out, a bit expensive and a bit gastro-​pub. Situated on a cobbled alleyway, it does have a lot going for it though. In the summer, the courtyard area is a good sun trap — an excellent place to sup a bit of cider and get a taste of some Clifton atmosphere. With its hip bar feel, complete with the comfy sofas, chunky pine tables and swanky-​rustic looking bar that’s become pretty fashionable for all the relevant bars, The Albion also serves food, which is perhaps one of its best features. It’s got a very interesting menu, with such extravagances as roast teal and cornish pollock baked in a bag. As I said at the beginning though, this is a cliftonite pub, so expect the resultant prices, especially with a menu of quality like this — Over £15 per person for one of the mains. If you’re willing to pay though, the food is really very worth it, and the upper class fish-​in-​a-​bag really is the way to go.

Expensive and tasty. Friendly service and a pleasant atmosphere for lunch. Portions were small and we should have ordered sides, but then we wouldn’t have been able to justify the lunchtime booze budget. I’ve heard the Sunday roast is great and plan to try it soon!

If you don’t know your Clifton Village pubs too well, the Albion is the big one on your left as you enter. Basically, if you enter through the archway, it’s immediately on your left down a small alleyway.
It’s as much about dining as drinking here, so it’s not the snuggest place to sit down for a few beers. The interior is plush enough, but you’re not going to feel truly comfortable unless you’re actually eating. I’ve only ever come here for a drink and I’ve never lasted past one. Indeed, the overall impression I’ve left with is how pricey the drinks are. Not a great recommendation, though the food may be better.

This pub has a nice atmosphere, but is extremely expensive.
I think a glass of wine was around £6! One glass!
The beers are ok, and they also have a good bar-​tab system, where you leave your card in a safe in view behind the bar, where you have the key. They hold onto your card but can’t access it to do anything fraudulent.
This is quite reassuring.

I used to love this pub a few years ago when it was a little bit run-​down but had a great atmosphere and was cozy and relaxed.
I went to the Albion the other day and was really disappointed to find that it had totally changed. Its now really swanky and soulless and full of Clifton Posers. The drinks were mega expensive, probably to pay for the total re-​fit!
There are already tons of wine-​bar type pubs in the Clifton area and I think that its really sad that some of the few remaining un-​pretentious and individual pubs have been changed to become just the same as all the rest.

This is a lovely pub. If you’re just looking for a drink with friends, the comfortable and lively bar area does the job. The staff are friendly and welcoming and the atmosphere is lively and warm. They have poker nights and various board games behind the bar so whether you’re looking for an excitement filled night or a cosy relaxing evening you can find both here.
I was initially put off by the prices and fuss that jumped out at me on their menu. However, mainly due to laziness, I ended up eating here with my boyfriend and good friend. Wow. I’m currently saving to go back. I ate the nicest sea bream I’ve ever had (and I’ve eaten a lot of fish in my time) and followed it up with a divine fondant pudding recommended to me by the friendly waitress. Oh boy did she get a good tip! The quality of food and cooking here is much higher than you’d expect from a small-​looking pub tucked away down a side alley and I’ll certainly be back.

I rate the Albion for its quirky, bountiful, well cooked and presented cuisine-​myself and a mate found ourselves there in July eating our way through a charcuterie platter starter and rib of beef –both dishes shared and the main course remaining unfinished-​washed down with a most excellent bottle of claret it was a very satisfying feeling. They also serve some great ciders and the outside seating area is a hive of activity on a summers evening for those just wanting a drink.