The Alehouse in Colchester

Lovely pub, great ales and wonderful service, first time visiting but it will not be our last as made to feel very welcome

Great range of cask ales properly kept

Monday 16th August 2022 I revisited this pub again it was it was 5.30 What a nice pub the landlady was ace polite and friendly. The beers on sale were a credit to locally brewed ales and were bloody good The landlady was totally unaware that i had been in here before. that's how i like it Pleasure today to be drinking in this pub 10 out of 10 all Thursday 11th January 2024 This great pub was revisited This pub has at least 8 handpumped beers on offer, from local and small breweries, The pub is a old fashioned gem. The landlady is from the age when looking after Ales matters This pub for real ale drinkers when in collchester is a must to visit 10 out of 10

Fantastic traditional pub! Highly recommended for everyone who loves ale!

My husband and I dropped in for drinks and clearly, because we are not regulars, we were treated with contempt. What a dreadful and soulless place with incredibly rude staff.

Great beer, great staff and a friendly atmosphere.

Great beer, comfortable and atmospheric pub with friendly staff.

Great night at the monthly quiz!!

Fantastic local pub, very friendly staff, good selection of ales. Cash is preferred if possible. Lovely decor and atmosphere. Will easily be coming back.

A good traditional pub with a great selection of ales

Our favourite pub in Colchester. The owners are so friendly and welcoming. Great selection of reasonably priced drinks. Lovely little cosy, traditional spot ☺️

The finest ales in Colchester. Set a 5 minutes walk south of the town centre, The Ale House is in the heart of Colchester's proper pubs district. The Ale House, however, stands tallest and regularly wins CAMRA awards.

Used to be the best pub in colchester but has changed alot for the worse . Land lady has changed and is very judgemental and wants to know everyone's business. And we dont feel welcome anymore . The place has gone down hill alot. It's too clicky here now and it will be there downfall which probably won't be long

Good ale, probably one of the best selections in town with up to a dozen on. Thing is we came here for the bar billiards table and its gone. We asked why and were told it didn't survive the Pandemic (I didn't know mushrooms could catch covid) so we probably wont come out this way now

A basic pub with very well kept ales

Excellent pub, very friendly staff.

Excellent pub, lovely welcoming staff. Good real ale choices. Very glad we went to visit on our weekend away in Colchester.

Lovely old pub good beer good atmosphere friendly staff

Brilliant atmosphere - A real pub with a bundle of genuine real ales to taste. Great staff, great venue

Football away day visit. Couldn't ask for more in a pub. Excellent selection of beers for real ale lovers and decent for those who prefer lager or cider. Nice beer garden. Excellent service from the lady behind the bar who was on her own but still took time to chat, and even helped us try to get a taxi to the football ground, as did one of her regulars. She also allowed us to bring food in from the nearby takeaway which, I'll add, did one of the best pizzas I've ever had. We will definitely head straight for The Ale House on our next visit to Colchester.

Lovely local pub with friendly staff.

Great little pubwith a good selection of drinks and ales. Landlady was lovely and very accommodating. Went for a retirement bash and the buffet was lovely too. Would well recommend.

Good ale good people not keen on woman that runs it. Puts you off going to this pub

Good Ol' Fashioned Drinking Pub!

The Ale House is a lovely pub with excellent hosts. They have a wide selection of beers & ales and an excellent range of gins and rums. Pauline & Fred are welcoming & warm and a great sense of humour. The quiz nights are epic.

Excellent local pub with an excellent range of real ales

Great selection of beers & Cider

Love this pub great staff friendly atmosphere. No egos in here at all very good evening. Can’t recommend enough 😁

Plenty of outside seating, most covered. Wear mask to order drinks at the bar and use hand sanitizer and write down name & phone number. Good beer selection. There are steep steps up to the garden from the bar, but easier steps with handrail outside the pub on the right hand side. Also seating inside. Wear mask to walk around

Very friendly. Selection of ciders.

Fab place and great beers. Staff are just so good and friendly

Great selection and location staff knowledgeable and willing to help

Excellent bar staff and service with friendly people

I've been coming here whenever I've been back in my hometown for quite a few years now, and it is still my favourite pub in Colchester. The landlady and her staff are always friendly, and there is always an excellent selection of well-kept beers.

A great welcome from all the staff. The real ale was varied and local.

The pub has a fine range of beers, served from the cask under gravity as well as from the pump. Staff are very friendly and interested in their beers and are responsive to clients comments. At the back there is a beer garden with tables for groups of six or so people and this is where we were served when we returned to the pub in June 2021. We had a choice of six real ales, so felt like royalty.

Visited the Ale House for the first time, nice little place which also has an outside area / seating. Selection of ales / beers, could have done with a menu (even an online one) to work out what was available - but the ones we did have were pleasant. Staff seemed friendly and happy which was good to see.

The Ale House is a lovely pub with friendly staff close to the town centre but do not serve meals but usual bar snacks of crisps and nuts are available. There is a very nice large outside area with seating under cover as well as in the open. The Ale House has a monthly quiz night which has been suspended for the time being but may resume. The winners receive a cash prize and those in last place receive free bar snacks.

Top place to drink with Friendly Fred your local landlord

Good real ale. Proper traditional ale on draft . Hooray !

Very friendly homely pub , A fine selection of Ales too

Good selection of beers and friendly staff

Our favourite pub in Colchester.

Friendly staff, well kept ales, nice choice.

9 real ales on very friendly staff could not ask for more ,

Friendly welcoming pub - great ales and sensible distancing policy in place

Good beer and friendly staff - proper pub - even has a bar billiards table,

A lovely pub just outside the hussle and bustle if the main town. Really good range of drinks and lovely friendly staff.

A very friendly pub with a good selection of ales.

Great pub with a massive selection of beers. Rather than going for the taphouse feel of The Fat Cat across the road (also a very good pub), this is very much a traditional feeling pub with plenty of room to find a table. Friendly staff and punters make it a welcoming place. They also have bar billiards, if that's your thing.

If you love a great traditional real ale pub, then you are in for a treat. The Alehouse on Butt Road is absolutely worth a visit. Friendly and knowledgeable staff and happy to let you have a tester of an ale if you are unsure and always happy to recommend an ale based on what you like. They a lovely selection of drinks, so something for everyone and a nice collection of gins. Definitely visiting again soon!

Lovely pub. Great range of beer and the landlady is lovely. They have a pubquiz once month, bar billiards. Recommend of a nice place to meet friends for a quiet night out.

This is a great pub. It has a very homely feel and is a comfortable drinking environment

Great pub very friendly and brilliant selection of beer.

Good friendly pub, excellent choice of beer.

Go visit aunty Pauline and sample her ales.

Great place and friendly atmosphere.

Lovely bar staff, friendly feel to the place, nice little outside space

Great selection of Ales, lovely staff, just a nice genuine pub.

Lovely little English pub, well kept ales on tap.

Fantastic atmosphere and excellent service from landlady Pauline and staff. They even put on a spread on Sundays, what's not to like about this place ?

Nice pub. Has a bit of a weird "bar" feel to it, despite the pub look. But all the better for it. Great selection of beer and lager.

I've used this pub over the years in its various guises and it never disappoints. The service is friendly and efficient and the beer very drinkable.

Great pub with a great selection of ale's & ciders! Lovely friendly staff! Nothing is too much for them! It's not like a typical town pub and there is never any trouble in there. Highly recommend going there just to try!

Great staff. Great atmosphere. Great beer

Good Ales in a warm and welcoming local pub. Quiz on the 3rd Wednesday of month is great fun. Nice experience.

Nice place, clean friendly and a good choice of gins

Lovely pub , Fred and Pauline make you welcome all the time and they have a great choice of gin, bourbon and whisky .

Always a pleasure to try a new ale or several, have been visiting for a few years and I've never had a bad pint.

Great ales, ciders and atmosphere

Super pub. Best ale choice in town.

Wonderful place, great beers, very clean and a lovely beer garden and helpful and cheerful staff

Great pub, polite staff, friendly atmosphere.

Fantastic pub good beers and very welcoming

Beer is excellent here; I paid around £3.60 for a pint from a barrel. The atmosphere was good even though I was there on a weekday evening. Service was very pleasant.

Nice friendly bar. Good beer and good staff.

Great pub quiz every 3rd Wednesday of the month. Always a good selection of beers.

One of the best pubs in town - don't miss this real ale gem

Called in for a quick pint as the pub has a reputation for great beer, and was not disappointed, There was a fine selection in the casks behind the bar, and my choice from the Mighty Oak brewery was excellent. The pub was comfortable and pleasant.

Good real ale selection & quiz night

12+ real ales on, including my favourite Exmoor Gold, lovely friendly staff, nice spacious pub and great beer garden. It does'nt get much better than this!

A fair selection of real ales larger wine and spirits.

One of my old friends lives nearby, so it's a handy place for me to meet up with him, but it's a great pub anyway. The landlady and her staff are always friendly, and they always have a good selection of (mainly local) beers - usually including a choice of a darker (e.g. porter or stout), "regular" bitters and a golden or pale ale. It's very close to, but not quite in, the very centre of the town, but it's usually easy enough to get seats even on a Saturday night. I highly recommend it - especially for a quiet drink with friends.

Lovely pub. Major real ale pub. Don't forget to say Hello to Pauline. No food services yet but lots of snacks to choose from.

Been drinking in the ale house since it opened normally a great pub tonight had a doom bar that was very off but barmaid wouldn't take it back or refund crappie service won't be rushing to spend my money in there in future

Excellent real ale pub, friendly bar staff. Only bar billiards game in Colchester. Worth a visit.

This is a fantastic place to drink. Staff are really great and Pauline the Landlady is just fabulous. It is my local and I would not go anywhere else

Most friendliest pub in Colchester. Spotless. Super drinks selection. Ideally situated for a pre-evening drink before going into Town.

Because the landlady is a complete and utter fantastic person she welcome,s all new customer

Sitting at the bar with my wife we are enjoying some of the best beers is Essex. Camra awarded pub with amazingly friendly staff and a focus on real ale, darts and billiards - the important things in life. Pauline - the professional and glamorous landlady - runs a tight ship. The lines are clean and the beer is great. Probably the best pub in Colchester town.

This is a great pub nestled just on the outskirts of the town centre. Always a good choice of real ales on when I have visited (6+ ales on). I have been lucky enough to try food on the odd darts evening which is good traditional pub food (although I understand they are about to start doing food daily?). Nice friendly staff and a good atmosphere. Darts and bar billiards friendly.

The staff are very chatty, pleasant & polite. Never ignored, efficent