We have a pint in the ‘proper’ Bristol pub with a vintage red telephone box in the bar 

As the name suggests, the Post Office Tavern is full of old communications memorabilia, including a red post box within a wall of the bar and a red telephone box in one corner. 

The post box, however, has a sign warning people not to post letters in it as it’s only decorative. What a shame - this is a ‘proper’ Bristol pub well worth writing home about.

Perched at the top of Westbury Hill in Westbury-on-Trym, this former mail coach house used to be frequented by coach drivers and their horses after dropping off prisoners at the lock-up across the road.

The prisoners would be held there on the way to court so the coachmen would take liquid refreshment at what is now a single story red-brick pub.

A retro ‘first class’ railway sign hangs above the entrance to the small left-hand bar, with its book-lined shelves. This tends to be the quieter area where the regulars hold court at the bar.

On a beam at the other end of the long main bar, a humorous sign reminds especially thirsty customers ‘If you are drinking to forget, please pay in advance!’.

Carpeted throughout, this is a smart, traditional pub that tends to attract the more discerning local ale drinkers looking for a perfectly kept pint.

Landlord George keeps his beers in immaculate condition and some are drawn directly from barrels in the room behind the bar.

This is not a pub that has embraced trendy craft beers. Old school pints like Courage Best and Bass are still two of the bestsellers and other ales on tap when I visited were Butcombe Original, Sharp’s Doom Bar and the crystal clear, perfectly kept Wye Valley Butty Bach (good value at £4.70) I ordered.

Cider drinkers can enjoy Stowford Press and Old Rosie, and Guinness Extra Cold, Foster’s, Birra Moretti, Amstel and Heineken are also on draught.

Since the pandemic, the pub has stopped serving hot food - it once had a reputation for its excellent pizzas - but hopefully that will come back at some point.

Until then, crisps are the way to go. And, of course, it’s all the pub snack classics including Scampi Fries, Monster Munch and Mini Cheddars. For such a traditional old-school pub, you would expect nothing less.

Post Office Tavern, 17 Westbury Hill, Westbury on Trym, Bristol, BS9 3AG.