Address: Canal Banks, Exeter, EX2 6LT, United Kingdom
Phone: +441392256947
Rating: 4.4
based on 419 reviews.
Location & Setting
Pros:
"Beautiful setting right alongside the canal."
"The pub really does have a wonderful location, sitting right next to the canal it's the perfect destination for a refreshing drink on a hot summer day."
"A brilliantly placed pub sitting on the river with fantastic views."
"This pub is lovely with a beautiful canal-side setting."
"A pub with a huge garden next to the canal. An approx 30 minute walk from central Exeter, so a lovely destination in the summer."
"The Double Locks is a nice pub with a very large beer garden area, plenty of outdoor seating (some under cover), picturesque countryside views."
"First of all, it was hard to arrive there 😒 that bridge is ...speechless 😑."
"Bit of an out of the way place. Be warned, the drive is difficult to say the least."
"The place is accessed by a small bridge that has awkward entry and exits, so we had to abandon the evening as I couldn't get the car onto the bridge."
"A wonderful spot to have a drink on a summer's day my only complaint it is so difficult to get to at the moment, at least from the marsh barton side, and there's no information to help as far as I'm aware."
"Not the easiest to get to, down a single track road and a very sharp turn to cross an extremely narrow bridge, a very difficult manoeuvre for larger vehicles."
"We had tried to drive there and paddle down the canal from the pub but Google took us to multiple dead ends."
Food & Drink
Pros:
"I enjoyed a perfectly cooked pink bavette steak, with a luxurious bearnaise to complement."
"The food was amazing, I had the chicken, ham and leek pie, which was one of the specials."
"Their cider in a box is always high octane and tastey."
"The ploughman’s was excellent, there was more than enough to fill the plate, with nice cut ham and fresh salad."
"The burger was nice and big, with some great flavour and cooked to perfection."
"The pasty and fries was a good choice. The fries nice and crisp but not dry and greasy and the pasty again had some great flavours wrapped in nice pastry."
"Delicious Sunday Roast, usually I opt for beef but had the pork today with the most gorgeous gravy."
Cons:
"Pretentious prices with very little flavour."
"The worst was, and I know that it's controversial, the margarine that has been used instead of butter."
"Fish and chips were undercooked, the fish was soggy and not properly cooked with too intense the taste of deep-fried oil."
"Food was abysmal, bland and boring and terrible value for money."
"The pea & mint risotto was cold and inedible."
"The burger and chips served were terribly low standard, akin to a very bog standard roadside burger van."
"The watercress and feta salad also awful, five tiny squares of feta and two sour tomatoes with a bag of watercress and a little dressing …£12?!!…"
Service & Staff
Pros:
"The staff were very friendly and accommodating and the food was amazing. Highly recommend they couldn’t do enough for us."
"Leading up to the day Tom was very responsive via email and happy to accommodate any requests we had."
"Drinks and fresh food arrived without delay & served by friendly, helpful staff."
"Staff service was fantastic throughout. Even when we messed up order they were quick to rectify it for us."
"The staff are wonderful (Especially Owen who has served me with a massive smile multiple times)."
"Lovely views, huge beer garden with children’s play area."
"Service was lovely and friendly too."
Cons:
"The staff are 'ok' but not particularly smily."
"Shame staff members passed us and failed to welcome us or offer info re seating and ordering until asked."
"Absolutely vile members of staff behaviour. They got our order wrong numerous times and started saying that we were the problem."
"Service of food was fast but attitude was terrible."
"Very slow service, not terribly attentive staff, they didn't have the ingredients for a ploughman's!"
"Food was sub standard and staff need a uniform to be able to identify them easily. They dress quite scruffy."
"When we questioned about a couple of things it was a blank look from young untrained staff."
Ambiance & Amenities
Pros:
"Always clean and tidy."
"Even throwing some extra wood on the fire for us!"
"A great friendly atmosphere and family friendly."
"Inside the pub is a traditional style, I did. Notice they had a selection of board games to borrow which was a nice touch."
"Lovely atmosphere, especially in the huge, family friendly beer garden with views over the canal in the summer."
"Always welcomed and staff say hello when you walk in the door."
"It's very dog friendly for those who want to take their furry friends."
Cons:
"Toilets are disgusting and clearly not cleaned regularly, General cleanliness of the pub area was not great, rubbish and litter on floor."
"For the first day of opening inside after lockdown, the toilets were a bit of a mess! Toilet seats hanging off, dryer not working."
"There was a lot of rubbish on the floor around the benches which meant we couldn't sit near the park area due to having 2 toddlers."
"The indoor toilets were out of use and the outdoor toilets were not clean."
"Great location, but frequently find dog mess on the grass."
"Oh and there were a lot of dogs making a lot of noise and we saw one dog pee on the door next to the bar."
"No napkins or cutlery."
Value for Money
Pros:
"Really good value considering the stunning location."
"Great food, different selection of meals."
"Good food selection. Ordered a few options - all nice."
"Food is great, really good drinks on offer."
"The management really have got the right balance with this beautiful venue."
"Great effort made by the landlord to not only make this establishment as safe as possible but also expand it at the same time."
"Amazing social distancing rules here! So much outdoor seating and grassy areas to take a picnic blanket."
Cons:
"Shockingly overpriced food though!"
"In total, food came to £50 for a sharing platter of hummus, olives, bread, feta and salad, a small plate of whitebait, and two desserts... Not good value."
"I feel £4.70 for a pint is steep compared to nearby pubs with comparably well kept ales."
"Very expensive, £6 for beers and very little choice. £6.50 for a very small bowl of cheesy chips."
"£5.70 for a pint!!!! Where does the landlord think he is - TOKYO!!!"
"Cheese and pickle sandwich for £11. Stale bread and lots of indifferent cheese."
"Prices were higher than I expected: £6 for a bottled cider. £23 for a double meat roast."