The Alma

It’s great to see an old boozer & coaching inn revitalised. The Alma has come through its chrysalis of scaffolding to emerge as a green-tiled beauty – a decent pub with a proper welcome to locals who drop in for a drink, & might later decide to have a snack. There’s also a dedicated dining room & some rather beautiful bedrooms. The bar is stocked with proper pub drinks; cocktails are available, but they’re not a speciality. Instead, quaff a pint of Waggle Dance or Summer Solstice ale & snack on sausage & mash, Welsh rarebit or sharing boards. Customers heading for the dining room might be treated to Dorset crab with mango & papaya chilli dressing; pork fillet with black pudding, apple & Calvados; & an above-average wine list.