Eliot Arms

Excellent example of a small country hotel expanding into additional rooms and remaining traditional. Thousands of pubs remove walls creating a disappointing opened-up layout but here there are five separate rooms. The original pub layout consisted of the small bar near the entrance and the small rear bar then later a extension was added i.e. the large room and the small corner room with a parquet floor; a modern extension on the side road added the small lounge.

The original bar has a Delabole slate floor, the counter looks old but its position has been changed – it was originally diagonally across the room covering the small decorative cast iron fireplace – note the right hand part of the counter looks older and is angled. Bar top is a replacement, and the room has old dado panelling. The rear bar has an unusual small indented curved counter with a replacement top, old slate floor but is situated in a lobby / passage with an opened-up small room opposite where an old settle replaces part of the removed wall and has old dado panelling and two more old settles with a carpet over the slate floor. Bar back shelves are oldish – some have Formica on them.

The large room on the road side has another slate floor and carpet, brick fireplace on the far right might be from the 1950s, the bar counter looks 1970s, two more old settles. The small darts room on the corner has a parquet floor and dado panelling (age?).

Delabole slate floors come from the nearby quarry, reputedly the largest man-made hole in Britain being a mile and a half in circumference.