Overview

This is my first visit to the Cosy Club in Salisbury town centre and I was really impressed by the atmosphere, the venue itself and the lovely staff; I felt really welcome. The venue is a listed former arts college and the various Bohemian paraphernalia, prints and decor emphasised it's artistic roots. Maybe it was the light and the time I visited but It also had a bit of a 'His Dark Materials' vibe for me, which I also really loved; I imagine it has a completely different and equally exciting vibe at busier times too. There are two dining rooms (one upstairs, one downstairs) but we ate in the bar area, the food was delicious and all plates were completely cleared. I'd highly recommend their Super Greens Juice which was green juice, cucumber, apple, lime, spinach, lime and ginger!

Transport & Parking

We parked at the Lush House Car Park in Salisbury; Blue Badge holders got an extra hour parking grace but it was not free during Mon-Friday 8-6. We only saw 3 disabled spaces where we parked but it's possible there were more elsewhere. The car park is about a five- to- ten minute wheel away from Cosy Club and being an old city, the pavements can be a bit uneven but for the most part it was managed well with dropped kerbs etc. We saw other car parks too and there is another larger one at Old George Mall in the same street as Cosy Club which also has disabled spaces but I didn't visit this one. There is a train station in Salisbury which is apparently about a 10-minute walk from the town centre and it seems to be well-served for buses into the centre; the buses are low-floor and have disabled access but I personally can't verify this as I didn't use them.

Access

For a listed building, I think they've made a real effort to make it accessible whilst maintaining the character of the venue. I had lots of room to manoeuvre and staff were really helpful. There is a small step of approx. 1.5 inches from the street into the venue and although I did manage it in my powerchair, a temporary folding ramp would have been better along with a way of requesting it from the outside. I initially thought that because of the step, the rest of the venue wouldn't be accessible until an able-bodied friend went ahead to check it out for me so Cosy Club might be losing the custom of other customers with disabilities who also think that the venue will be innaccessible. This is a shame and doesn't do justice to the rest of the venue's access and the efforts made to be accessible. Although I enjoyed the music, I felt that the acoustics in the bar would make it really difficult for people with hearing impairment but the ground floor dining room was more for conversation and offered another really atmospheric alternative.

Toilets

The disabled toilet was spotless, spacious and had grab-rails and a red cord and was shared with baby-changing. There was lots of room to manoeuvre and a wide corridor making it easy to access.

Staff

The staff we met struck exactly the right balance between being attentive and helpful and allowing me to have my independence; they were lovely and helped to make the venue special.

Anything else you wish to tell us?

I loved the ethos and statements re. animal welfare, gender pay gap, modern slavery etc. but couldn't find a disabled access statement; if there is one, I think it needs to be more obvious. It would have been helpful to give dimensions of the front step for example, however, I'll definitely make the effort to visit again next time I'm in Salisbury.

Photos