The Shipham Inn - formerly Penscot Inn — Restaurant in England

Two friends and I had booked to stay at The Shipham Inn while walking the West Mendip Way. My friend had booked two rooms and dinner directly with the manager Graham by email, who had confirmed the booking, and yet when we arrived in the afternoon, weary and ready for a drink and a shower, the front door was locked and there was no answer by phone or by ringing the bell / knocking on the door. We were pretty baffled by this, and the general air of disrepair and mess (ashtrays overflowing with cigarettes and a dirty bowl and spoon just left on the tables outside the front door) which contrasted significantly from the signs claiming to give us a 'warm welcome'. Two visitors to the car park assured us that they would let the manager know we were there (it was apparently his day off) and said he would be back shortly. 45 minutes later we were still waiting when Graham and Cheryl arrived and spoke briefly to my friend - they indicated that they would make another room up but that was pretty much it, certainly no apology or expression of welcome. We waited outside (the front door was still locked) for another 30 minutes wondering what on earth was going on until I needed the loo - again no answer to the phone or from ringing the doorbell, at which point we gave up and headed to The Swan Inn in Rowberrow which was a compete different and wonderfully welcoming experience. My friends and I are still very confused as to why our experience was so different to the reviews here and on other sites - perhaps the hosts didn't want their day off interrupted and hoped we would go of our own accord, in which case why did they accept a booking on a Wednesday? In any case, I would definitely NOT recommend this venue based on...

Two friends and I had booked to stay at The Shipham Inn while walking the West Mendip Way. My friend had booked two rooms and dinner directly with the manager Graham by email, who had confirmed the booking, and yet when we arrived in the afternoon, weary and ready for a drink and a shower, the front door was locked and there was no answer by phone or by ringing the bell / knocking on the door. We were pretty baffled by this, and the general air of disrepair and mess (ashtrays overflowing with cigarettes and a dirty bowl and spoon just left on the tables outside the front door) which contrasted significantly from the signs claiming to give us a 'warm welcome'. Two visitors to the car park assured us that they would let the manager know we were there (it was apparently his day off) and said he would be back shortly. 45 minutes later we were still waiting when Graham and Cheryl arrived and spoke briefly to my friend - they indicated that they would make another room up but that was pretty much it, certainly no apology or expression of welcome. We waited outside (the front door was still locked) for another 30 minutes wondering what on earth was going on until I needed the loo - again no answer to the phone or from ringing the doorbell, at which point we gave up and headed to The Swan Inn in Rowberrow which was a compete different and wonderfully welcoming experience. My friends and I are still very confused as to why our experience was so different to the reviews here and on other sites - perhaps the hosts didn't want their day off interrupted and hoped we would go of our own accord, in which case why did they accept a booking on a Wednesday? In any case, I would definitely NOT recommend this venue based on...

I was looking forward to revisiting the Penscott Inn with my wife since hearing it had reopened under new management. ||It has improved which was easy to achieve as the previous poor reviews really said it all. Dirty, grubby and unkempt. There is no excuse for being given a wine glass with greasy fingerprints and lipstick around the rim left by the previous user.||The new couple are young, helpful and polite. The bar area so much cleaner and outside clutter , cigarette ends and rubbish cleared away.||However there were two aspects that would not pursued us to hurry back.||Firstly too many odd chairs and tables gave the impression of us being crammed in. When we decided to leave we had to plan a way off getting out. As the old saying goes … less in more . ||The other detraction was the effing and blinding of the men at the bar. The fact is that if the Inn gets a reputation as a workingmen’s after work pub then local residents and others will simply stay away . Including ourselves. ||The Penscot Inn is in a delightful setting and has got the potential to be a very good local pub . We truly hope this review helps...