Bull & Bush Pub
Bull & Bush Pub has operated near the Main Mall in Gaborone for decades, earning its place as the city's most recognizable bar through sheer persistence and a formula that works. The venue is a British-style pub adapted for Botswana: dark wood paneling, a long bar counter with taps and fridges, booth seating, a pool table, and multiple big screens showing sport. Total capacity is about 100 across the main bar area and an adjacent room. The beer menu centers on St. Louis and Castle Lager from the taps, with bottled imports available. The kitchen produces pub fare: burgers, fish and chips, pies, and toasted sandwiches. The crowd is the broadest in Gaborone: government workers on lunch break, university students in the evening, expats watching sport, and regulars who have been coming since the previous decade. The Bull & Bush is Gaborone's default, the place people suggest when they can't think of somewhere specific. This sounds like faint praise but it's the opposite. Being everybody's default in a city of 250,000 means you're doing something right, consistently, year after year. The pub's longevity in a market where bars come and go is its own recommendation.
What to Expect
A pub entrance with dark wood and a beer-branded awning. Inside, the bar runs along one wall with taps and fridges behind. Screens show football, rugby, or cricket depending on the season. The pool table sees action all evening. The smell of frying chips carries from the kitchen. Someone at the bar nods hello. The atmosphere is familiar, warm, and distinctly pub.
Classic pub warmth. The kind of bar where strangers watch sport together and leave as acquaintances. Unpretentious and reliably social.
Sport commentary dominates during matches. Background pop and rock playlist at other times. Occasional live music on special events.
No dress code. Casual wear of any kind is standard. The pub accepts everyone from suits to sandals.
Sport watching, expat socializing, first-time visitors wanting an easy entry into Gaborone nightlife. The default option that always works.
Cards accepted (Visa, Mastercard). Cash (Botswana Pula) accepted. South African Rand accepted at some times. Mobile money (Orange, Mascom) accepted.
Price Range
Beer BWP 25-40, burgers BWP 50-80, fish and chips BWP 55-90, spirits BWP 30-60
Beer ~$2-3.20 / EUR 1.85-2.95, burgers ~$4-6.40 / EUR 3.70-5.90
Hours
Monday-Saturday 10 AM to midnight, Sunday 12 PM to 10 PM
Insider Tip
Saturday afternoon for the sport crowd is the social peak. The booth near the biggest screen is the prime spot for Premier League matches. The steak pie is the kitchen's underrated best item. Happy hour (4-6 PM weekdays) drops beer prices by 20%.
Full Review
Bull & Bush Pub endures because it understood its audience decades ago and hasn't second-guessed itself since. The formula is British pub translated for southern Africa: cold beer on tap, sport on screens, pub food from a kitchen that knows its limits, and an atmosphere that doesn't discriminate.
The physical space has the lived-in quality that genuine pubs possess and themed bars try to fake. The wood paneling is darkened by years of use rather than stain. The booth cushions show wear patterns from thousands of Saturday afternoons. The screens have been upgraded over the years, but the wall mounts betray where smaller TVs once hung. These details create authenticity that can't be designed.
The beer program is simple and effective. St. Louis and Castle Lager flow from the taps, cold and consistent. Bottled imports, including Windhoek Lager from Namibia and a few European options, fill the fridges. The pricing is Gaborone standard: BWP 25-40 ($2-3.20) per beer, making an evening affordable without being cheap. Happy hour drops prices further, which the after-work crowd knows and exploits.
The kitchen operates within its competence. Burgers are thick and properly grilled. Fish and chips arrive in the right proportions with decent batter. The steak pie, made in-house rather than sourced from a supplier, is the sleeper hit: proper pastry, good filling, and the kind of comfort food that pairs perfectly with beer number three. The menu doesn't overreach, which is the first sign of a kitchen that knows what it's doing.
Sport is the social catalyst. When Manchester United, Arsenal, or Liverpool play on a Saturday afternoon, the pub fills with supporters who may disagree about everything else but share the communal experience of watching together. The reactions to goals, the groans at missed chances, and the post-match analysis create a social bond that pure conversation rarely achieves. Rugby internationals and cricket tests have their own, slightly more restrained, following.
The crowd's diversity is the Bull & Bush's strongest feature. Government ministers and their drivers drink at the same bar. University students occupy the pool table while expat mining engineers debate at the counter. Botswana's relative equality and social openness manifest here more visibly than in any civic document. The pub is democratic, not as a principle, but as a natural consequence of serving everyone equally for decades.
The Neighborhood
Main Mall is Gaborone's central pedestrian strip, with shops, banks, and government offices. The pub is near the mall's commercial section. Riverwalk shopping complex is a few blocks south. The area is well-lit and commercially active during evening hours.
Getting There
Walking distance from most central Gaborone hotels (5-15 minutes). Taxi from the airport costs BWP 100-200 ($8-16), 20-30 minutes. From Riverwalk, BWP 20-30 ($1.60-2.40) by taxi or a 10-minute walk.
Address
Main Mall, Gaborone
Other Venues in Main Mall Area
Lizard Lounge
One of Gaborone's few dedicated nightclubs with a dance floor, DJ sets, and weekend events. Music runs from kwaito and amapiano to international pop. Young crowd, lively atmosphere. Entry BWP 50-100.
Sanitas Tea Garden
Quirky garden bar and restaurant near the Main Mall that serves as an evening gathering spot. Craft cocktails, light food, and a relaxed outdoor atmosphere under string lights. A favorite for sundowners. Cocktails BWP 50-90.
News Cafe
South African chain restaurant and bar at Riverwalk complex. Cocktails, bistro food, and a young professional crowd. The terrace seating is the draw. Reliable option when you don't want to gamble on an unknown venue. Cocktails BWP 50-100.
Maitisong Cultural Centre Bar
Bar attached to Gaborone's main performing arts venue. Live music, cultural events, and a crowd that comes for the performances. When a show is on, the bar fills with an engaged, arts-minded audience. Beer BWP 25-40.