We visit a Bristol pub with a waiting list for Sunday roasts, a ‘secret’ garden and an aviary with 40 birds

Surrounded by industrial units on the busy Lodge Causeway, The Spotted Cow is a surprisingly relaxed pub with a genuinely warm welcome.

A large Victorian corner pub with window boxes that win awards for the floral displays in summer, The Spotted Cow was taken over six years ago by Richard Cotton and his wife Angela.

It’s the couple’s first pub, having both worked in very different businesses before. Richard worked in transport refrigeration and Angela worked for a law firm. They just fancied a change and running their own pub was top of the list.

And despite having to deal with a pandemic, lockdowns and running a takeaway service from the garden for a bit, they have survived the worst of it and trade is now back to what it was.

In fact, the Cottons are enjoying their new life running pubs that they’ve just signed a new five-year lease on The Spotted Cow.

With workers from nearby businesses forming the bulk of the daytime trade and locals using the pub in the evenings and weekends, there is a steady stream of custom.

From Wednesday to Saturday, there is a menu of home cooked food, all made by Angela from scratch. As well as classics like fish and chips and sausage and mash, there’s a chicken curry that regulars say is excellent.

On Sunday, the £14.95 roasts include beef, pork, lamb shank or homemade nut roast. Angela only cooks 35 meals in one sitting but they are so popular that there’s a waiting list and the next available tables for Sunday lunch are for January 14.

With a dartboard and pool table in the larger of the two rooms, as well as Sunday quiz nights and multiple screens for live sport, there is plenty for locals to do apart from eating and drinking.

But when it comes to beer and cider, the choice includes Butcombe Original, Greene King Abbot Ale, Doom Bar, Thatchers ciders, Moretti, Madri, Carling and Stella.

The real secret to the success of The Spotted Cow, however, has to be its ‘hidden’ beer garden. Large enough for between 60-70 people, it’s a suntrap in the summer and there is a sheltered area as well as a huge aviary with 40 canaries and finches - a unique feature for any pub and quite a talking point with customers.

The Spotted Cow couldn’t occupy a more prominent position on one of the city’s busiest roads, but it still feels like a hidden gem and that makes it all the more special. It’s simply a great community pub.

The Spotted Cow, 120 Lodge Causeway, Fishponds, Bristol, BS16 3JP.