Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Category: Royal Tunbridge Wells

  • Royal Tunbridge Wells – Basil

    Royal Tunbridge Wells – Basil

    Basil is a wholefood cafe located in Royal Tunbridge Wells and they have a couple of outlets, with this being the town centre one. There was a free table outside so we went for that, although discovered that there were also a few tables inside as well.

    The cake selection inside, which were all very tempting, although perhaps priced towards the higher end of the scale for a cafe.

    I wasn’t quite sure what was happening with the salad section, it seemed a bit limited in scope but they might have just been half-way through putting it out. For anyone interested, the options were (i) lightly Curried Slaw with Savoy Cabbage, Fresh Mango & Toasted Almonds, (ii) Quinoa with Avocado, Radish, Baby Cress, Cumin & Lemon and (iii)
    Roasted Spiced Carrots with Ginger & Honey, Toasted Pinenuts & Pomegranate Seeds. The service in the cafe was friendly and it was quite a relaxed location, with staff cleaning tables on a regular basis.

    I went for the sausage bap, with a soft granary roll and a rich and meaty sausage, so all rather lovely. The cafe prides itself on its wholesome ingredients and this quality seemed to be reflected in the food that I had.

    And the latte, which was of a suitably high quality with a rich taste. All in all, this is a pleasant little cafe, all welcoming and comfortable. Perhaps not the cheapest, but the prices weren’t entirely unreasonable and the staff were friendly.

  • Royal Tunbridge Wells – Name Origin

    Royal Tunbridge Wells – Name Origin

    The origins of the town name of Royal Tunbridge Wells are logical, as The Concise Oxford Dictionary Of English Place points out, but they are a little confused by the different spelling to nearby Tonbridge. The book notes that “named from Tonbridge, the medicinal springs are said to have been discovered in the times of James I”. Although disputed by some historians, Tonbridge is named after “Tunna’s Bridge” according to the book and the place name spellings have switched between Tonbridge and Tunbridge over the centuries.

    The reason to have different spellings seems to have been more recent, likely from the early part of the twentieth century, a deliberate attempt to show that the two settlements were very different places. The Royal bit of the name dates from 1909, when the honour was granted by King Edward VII to mark the popularity of the town with the Royal Family.

  • Royal Tunbridge Wells – Stopping Point for Omnibuses

    Royal Tunbridge Wells – Stopping Point for Omnibuses

    I have nothing to add about this pavement marker near to the town’s war memorial other than I like it….. And I also like that the town planners have managed to keep it.

  • Royal Tunbridge Wells – Holy Trinity Church (Thomas Moon)

    Royal Tunbridge Wells – Holy Trinity Church (Thomas Moon)

    The gravestones at Holy Trinity Church in Royal Tunbridge Wells are now mostly shoved around the outside of the churchyard, some being more accessible than others.

    This is the grave of Thomas Moon, who was born in 1823. If I’ve got the correct birth record, he was baptised on 1 May 1823, the son of Richard Moon (who worked as a fishmonger) and Priscilla Moon. At the 1841 census, Thomas was living with his parents and his 1-year old brother, Henry. He died at the age of 24 on 19 April 1847 and was buried on 25 April 1847.

    And that, annoyingly, is the limit of what I can find. Why he died at that relatively early age, I don’t know…..

  • Royal Tunbridge Wells – Holy Trinity Church

    Royal Tunbridge Wells – Holy Trinity Church

    What is now the Trinity Theatre, a well-respected theatrical hub for the area, was constructed as Holy Trinity Church in 1829. It was designed by Decimus Burton and was the main church for the town. Unfortunately for the building, by the 1960s there were falling congregation numbers and in 1972 the church was declared redundant. The Church Commissioners, who by all accounts were hardly pro-active in their efforts, left the building to dereliction and it was only due to pressure from the local community that funds were finally raised to re-open as a community theatre and arts centre in 1981.

    Over its history, the church has been noted for some of its vicars, not least Edward Hoare who took over in 1853 and built quite a reputation for his sermons, remaining in post until his death in 1894. The vicar in 1907 also seems to have been quite innovative, as he installed phone lines which led from the pulpit to the pews to assist the hard of hearing amongst his congregation to hear the sermons.

    Fortunately, the structure of the building has been saved.

    Less fortunately, the graveyard has been mostly decimated and the gravestones shoved to the outside whilst picnic benches and car parking spaces have been left to take over the space that has been left. It doesn’t feel very dignified and I’m not sure it’s what the families of those who died would have liked. But, it seems better to have this than to have entirely lost the building.

    And where there were once graves, there’s now a seat.

  • Royal Tunbridge Wells – Compasses

    Royal Tunbridge Wells – Compasses

    Whatpub describe this as “the oldest building that is a pub in Tunbridge Wells”, so this seemed sufficiently interesting to pay it a little visit. It’s also got a bar billiards table, although this is sadly out of commission at the moment. Unfortunately, the pub is operated by Greene King, so a hopeless beer choice was near guaranteed.

    The pub is in a building dating to the early eighteenth century (and much is later) and it’s likely that it was a pub for most of the period since. For a time it was called the Three Compasses and it gained some notoriety locally when the landlady at the end of the eighteenth century was killed in a fight within the pub.

    The staff here were really friendly and welcoming, so there were no issues with the customer service. The staff seemed to be seating everyone outside, with no real choice in that matter, although this suited us to sit in the sun. Well, under the overcast sky to be more precise, but it was still warm. Greene King has though really improved the area outside the front of the pub, which was until a few years ago the pub’s car park.

    The advantage in having no-one inside the pub meant that it was easier to take photos and this is a building which has lots of character. Only one customer using the toilets was allowed inside and that process was all well managed.

    The beer choice was limited and it still bemuses me that Greene King charge well over twice the price that JD Wetherspoon do for Greene King IPA. I ordered the Beavertown Neck Oil IPA which was satisfactory, although it’s not really what I was hoping for. But, at least it’s not Greene King IPA. Customers seemed to be forced into using the app to order, which is convenient for me, but perhaps not others. There were a fair few food orders going through, with everything looking well presented.

    Anyway, the staff were friendly, the pub was clean and it’s an interesting environment. The beer tasted as it should have done, but the drinks range from Greene King is the usual bland affair. However, the pub is well reviewed and so it’s still a location that’s worth visiting and perhaps when I go back the bar billiards league in Royal Tunbridge Wells will be operating once again.

  • Royal Tunbridge Wells – Photos

    Royal Tunbridge Wells – Photos

    And just some random photos from our relatively quick visit to Royal Tunbridge Wells yesterday. I was a little surprised to see that the centre of the town seemed to be struggling a little, I had thought it had sufficient money to be able to remain a little stronger than my quick visit suggested. Anyway, always nice to visit a different town.

    This has to be the most impressive frontage that Cotswold Outdoor have, in what was originally the Mount Pleasant Congregational Church constructed in 1848.

    And the town’s Opera House has now been converted into a JD Wetherspoon pub.

    The Pantiles area of Tunbridge Wells, which is where the well was located that led to the creation of the town.

    Calverley Grounds, a neatly laid out park area.

    Grove Park and there’s no shortage of green areas in the town.

    Looking down onto Warwick Road.

    What is now a gym operated by Oakley Fitness was previously Vale Royal Methodist Church.