Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Category: UK

  • Robertsbridge – The George Inn

    Robertsbridge – The George Inn

    The George Inn was the evening’s entertainment after the 12-mile walk and meander around the delights of Bodiam Castle. Just a little disappointingly, the inn doesn’t give any information about the building’s heritage on its web-site, but Whatpub come to the rescue though with this interesting note:

    “In earlier years Hillaire Belloc was a frequent visitor, and wrote the early chapters of ‘Four Men’ here. The book begins ‘Nine years ago, as I was sitting in the George at Robertsbridge, drinking that port of theirs and staring at the fire ……’”

    Looking through some old newspapers, I like that when the Flimwell & Hastings Turnpike wanted to widen the village’s Clappers Bridges that they laid the documentation out in the inn. There’s something intriguing about knowing that villagers and contractors would have visited the inn in 1835 to have a look at the plans, likely through the same door that we entered through.

    There’s also a poster from the late Victorian period on display at the nearby Salehurst Church which notes a jubilee fete which took place in Robertsbridge. There was all manner of different sporting activity taking place, with a procession to the church starting from outside the George.

    I also like the little incident that took place in 1922 when the Hastings and St. Leonards Observer reported that the licensee of the George had been summonsed for supplying intoxicating liquor outside of permitted hours. This was all essential reporting, until the newspaper realised they had got muddled up and it wasn’t the George at Robertsbridge at all, it was the Royal George Hotel in Hurst Green. A profuse apology followed.

    However, the Hastings and St. Leonards Observer was able to report in 1926 that the licensee of the George (they got the correct one this time) was summonsed to court for serving a drunk. After the trial at the Hurst Green Petty Sessions, the landlord was though found not guilty of the offense.

    Anyway, back to our visit. I must admit to cringing slightly when I see signs from the Good Pub Guide, a book which I find so unreliable to take even moderately seriously.

    The pub was clean and organised, with its long heritage as an inn evident, with food, drink and accommodation still provided today. Service during our visit was always friendly, engaging and helpful, although perhaps just a little slow at times, but nothing that proved to be a concern or annoyance.

    I was hoping that there would be a more intriguing range of drinks, but it seemed a little limited and the venue isn’t even listed on Untappd, slightly unusual when even the One Stop in the village has managed to get itself listed. There was Harvey’s Sussex Best from Lewes, which is a creditable local beer, as well as what I considered to be an unexciting pale ale. Anyway, it was apparent that this would be a pub most interesting for its food than its beer for me, so extremely unusually, I decided there was nothing for me here drinks-wise.

    The fish platter, which was neatly presented and perhaps a brave choice, as some of the ingredients in this can be bland and badly cooked. There were no problems here though, with the quality of the ingredients being high and the cooking seemed perfect to me. The mackerel is smoked locally and had a rich flavour, with the salmon being light and flavoursome. Too often calamari is served so it has the texture of rubber, but it nearly melted in the mouth here, with the salt and pepper squid being very moreish. I could have happily gone though platefuls of salt and pepper squid, which I admit isn’t particularly refined of me. The prawns were also juicy but retained some bite, all rather lovely. The salad was crisp, although it took me a moment to realise that there was beetroot in it, with the relish having a sweet chilli edge. The bread was light and the horseradish mayo wasn’t over-powering. So, I thought it was excellent, with no weak elements, so this was a choice that I was pleased to have made.

    I rarely order desserts, but on this occasion, the sticky toffee pudding proved too tempting. I was pleased that more toffee sauce was offered as this was excellent, although the pudding itself was moist anyway and the clotted cream was a decent counterpoint to that.

    I feel I’m drivelling on now about food, but it was all excellent and exceeded my expectations. The reviews on-line for this inn are high, it’s clearly a reliable choice for food and I got the impression that if something went wrong that the staff would resolve it promptly. Actually, I find it enormously impressive that an inn can trade for so many years and manage to pick up only two negative reviews on TripAdvisor, of which one seems unfair. So, it’s clear that they’re offering what their customers desire and providing a traditional countryside pub welcome. For a perfect visit, for me (and probably just for me), I’d like the same effort to be put in craft beer and real ale that the inn has put into the wine option.

  • London – River Thames City Walk

    London – River Thames City Walk

    And another walk led by the formidable Des (the one with the bag swung nonchalantly over his shoulder) and I deliberately booked a later train back to Norwich so that I could come on this. That’s dedication…. I was fortunate that someone on the walk kindly explained how I could use my phone to take photos at night, there was a setting that I never bothered to explore. Anyway, that means I could take photos and below is the result of that experimentation.

  • London – Camden (Borough of) – Camden Road Draft House

    London – Camden (Borough of) – Camden Road Draft House

    This is a sizeable pub in Camden, located opposite Camden Road Overground Station. I never knew this until today, but the Draft House chain is now part of Brewdog (they bought it a couple of years ago), which explains why they share so much in terms of branding and beers. I wonder if they’d have been better of swapping buildings with the smaller Brewdog Camden, but there we go….. According to WhatPub, this has gone through a few incarnations over the years, “formerly the Eagle, then Rosie O’Grady’s, then Mac Bar, then Grand Union”.

    For those who don’t want to sit inside, there is outdoor seating on the pavement where you can enjoy traffic fumes and noise. The set-up here allowed me a suitable compromise, the ability to people watch, but with a lovely sheet of glass to keep out traffic and cigarette fumes.

    All modern and on-trend, as well as being quiet which is a little unfortunate for the pub. I imagine it’s a busy place on weekends and evenings though given it’s in a fashionable area. The staff member was friendly, so all welcoming and comfortable.

    The tap list on screens.

    Ordering was a bit of a faff, their system isn’t the most logical (there are lots of steps) and they had to explain it in some detail to a neighbouring table where it failed. Anyway, I got there, but was slightly annoyed that the prices on this tap list don’t match the prices on the app. The pub was serving food and I was amused (because it reminded me of someone….) that the couple near me ordered cauliflower wings as it’s buy one vegan side and get one free on Thursdays. I didn’t partake, although I might have done if it was Wednesday as they have unlimited chicken wings on, rather replicating the Brewdog theme.

    The Brewdog Oatmeal Stout, a perfectly acceptable drink, at the appropriate slightly chilled temperature and although not silky smooth, it had a certain richness to it.

    It’s all a decent modernisation of a Victorian pub, without its heritage being entirely destroyed. Spacious and with a suitable range of beers, all rather lovely.

  • London – Camden (Borough of) – Brewdog

    London – Camden (Borough of) – Brewdog

    And another day in London, so another Brewdog for my little collection…. This one is located in Camden and was formerly the Laurel Tree which had closed and then been turned into a restaurant. Brewdog were given permission to return it to use as a pub in 2011 and it became their first outlet in London.

    The pub is bright and modern in feel and although there’s a basement level, it isn’t the largest Brewdog in the estate. The staff member was friendly and helpful, with the appropriate health protocols all being handled professionally.

    The beer choice was wide, although there were no interesting dark beers from guest brewers, which is a little rare for Brewdog. Anyway, they had their own beer of Pudding Face which I haven’t had before and this was a quiet remarkable drink, as it tasted of a chocolate eclair. Beer shouldn’t have to taste like this, but I’m pleased when it does. It was certainly just a little decadent and there were tastes of pastry, chocolate and toffee, all coming together beautifully in a beer. I’m now rather glad that there weren’t any guest beers to try, as I would have missed out on this. Brewdog isn’t trying to be the cheapest option for beers, and this was towards the higher end of the scale, but the quality was high.

    As an aside, a senior person from Brewdog came in when I was there, but not many other customers did, only two during the time that I was there. I can see why so many pubs are deciding not to open at all at the moment in London, these are still challenging times.

    When walking to the toilets I was confronted (from the other direction) with this ladder and I suspect a customer who was slightly (well, very) drunk would have marched straight up it. It’s just their store-room up there and the ladder had been left down, so I was pleased I realised to walk around it rather than straight up it.

    Anyway, it’s another perfectly decent outlet and the beer is, as usual, towards the excellent end of the spectrum. The staff member was friendly, the pub was clean and so that’ll do me….

  • London – Tower Hamlets (Borough of) – Museum of London Docklands (Lascars Only Sign)

    London – Tower Hamlets (Borough of) – Museum of London Docklands (Lascars Only Sign)

    This sign is now on display at the Museum of London Docklands and it was also located here when it was being converted. It’s a sign that wouldn’t normally survive and it’s thought to be from a toilet block within West India Quays. Lascars were sailors from the India region, south-east Asia and what are now the Arab States. There were relatively large numbers employed during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries by the East India Company and they were primarily Muslims, although with some Christians from Goa employed as well.

    The life of most sailors wasn’t one of wealth, but the Lascars fared badly and there were much poverty with the sailors and this was evident in their living conditions in London. The sailors were though well-regarded and the docks did make an effort to provide reasonable facilities for them. The facilities installed were squatting toilets and so it was more about meeting different cultural standards than segregation, but lascars did face discrimination in many areas.

  • London – Southwark (Borough of) – Churchyard of St. Mary Magdalen, Bermondsey

    London – Southwark (Borough of) – Churchyard of St. Mary Magdalen, Bermondsey

    This is the former churchyard of St. Mary Magdalen church in Bermondsey, which closed to new burials in 1854. There was a growing concern in urban areas that disease was spreading due to these graveyards and space was often limited anyway, so there was a move towards the provision of municipal cemeteries. Today, the area is a park, although there are a few monuments remaining and some which are of historic note. The land was given by the church to the council in 1882, which after some changes in local Government over time means it’s now under the care of Southwark Council.

    But, away from the memorials of note which are still in situ, this is the little arrangement that Southwark Council seems to think is entirely acceptable. It doesn’t look ideal to me, shattered stones just dumped here at the edge of the park. A sad end to these stones, some of which would have likely caused the family some difficulties to afford at the time.

  • London – Southwark (Borough of) – Marquis of Wellington

    London – Southwark (Borough of) – Marquis of Wellington

    This looked like an intriguing pub and so I thought I’d have a little sit down in here, since it was quite a long walk from where I had just come from, which was Hawkes. Well, it was around thirty metres, but walking can be a thirsty exercise. The pub is operated by the Bermondsey Pub Company, the managed house division of the EI Group, formerly known as Enterprise Inns.

    There was a particularly personable staff member at the entrance and he set the tone for this pub, quirky, off-beat and comfortable. That’s not a bad set of attributes for a pub to aim for. I had already eaten sufficient pizza for the day, but this pub also offered them, although a customer tried to order at just gone 18:00 and they had already stopped serving for the day.

    I’m not sure how practical this is for a table, but I like the concept. Incidentally, this is another pub that has installed plenty of power points, I’ve had a good day for these today.

    I thought that the drinks selection was a bit disjointed, although they have the Gamma Ray from Beavertown, which is acceptable to me. They also have a web-site in some need of attention, as their newsletter and offers page is broken when anything is submitted. Anyway, there was a warm welcome here and a comfortable environment, with the quirkiness all working well. With a slightly more intriguing range of beers, this would have been a lot better, but everything seemed well managed and I’d merrily recommend it to others.

  • London – Southwark (Borough of) – Hawkes Cidery

    London – Southwark (Borough of) – Hawkes Cidery

    I admit that I hadn’t heard of the Bermondsey Beer Mile until last week, which is probably another one of my little oversights. There are quite a few of these to be fair. Anyway, there are some tremendous bars along this route, although a lot of them are closed mid-week and a few haven’t re-opened due to the current health issue. I definitely need to come back on a weekend.

    I can’t judge which venues in London will be busy and which won’t, and I booked a table probably needlessly as it was relatively quiet. But, best to be sure. I took advantage of their two pizzas offer when I booked, but then had to e-mail to check that one person was allowed to do this. They replied promptly saying that was fine and the staff member who replied remembered my e-mail when I turned up. On that matter, the staff here were personable, laid-back and keen to welcome customers, all very lovely.

    It’s a while since I’ve thought much about ciders, but I think that I might start thinking about them again. I went for the Dead & Berried Mixed Berry which was sweet, elegant and way too drinkable, with lovely flavours of raspberries. I also tried some Pineapple Punch, which was again so smooth it would be easy to forget that it was alcoholic. The pineapples certainly took the taste of the apples away, something a little different. I think there are some tasting trays available for those who want to try more, which I should have probably experimented with. Incidentally, I’m moderately obsessed with blackberries, I hope they do a cider packed with them with the apples.

    This is all beautifully on-trend, but they probably aren’t aiming for that. Instead, I’m guessing, although I didn’t ask, that they just created somewhere they liked and hoped other people would like it as well, rather than going for something formulaic. This venue is in a railway arch and they also have a cidery on site where their products are made, it’s quite a sizeable location. Indeed, if anyone wants to send this place some apples, they send back cider, which seems quite a good deal to me. I might collect all the apples that Accor hotels keep giving me and send them here en masse.

    I didn’t need two pizzas, but the staff member reassured me that this is a common thing to do. I bet it isn’t and she wanted me to feel better, but I didn’t much care. I liked the Diavola Chorizo, on the left, the best, but the Prosciutto on the right was also sufficiently tasty for my needs. I finished them both, but then realised I should come back here to get a Nduja pizza, I’ll just have to find someone to come with me to avoid ending up with two pizzas to myself though. Actually, on reflection, that would be fine.

    The pizza menu, which is different to the one on the web-site.

    On a customer service technicality, no-one mentioned the app (excuse the pun) to me and there was apparently a £5 off offer on there to anyone who spent £10. As someone who likes these sort of offers, I’d have merrily gone for that. It slightly annoyed me that they didn’t mention it. But not enough to dislike this place, which is a beautiful concept and one which I hope rolls out to more locations around the country. As an aside, they have a few beers which I think are from Brewdog, as well as some wines for those that insist on drinking them.

    All told, I haven’t been to a place like this where it’s all about the apple, and, well, some other fruit as well. Friendly, laid-back and comfortable, I’m pretty sure that I’ll come back. All rather lovely.

  • London – Southwark (Borough of) – The Trinity

    London – Southwark (Borough of) – The Trinity

    This isn’t a great photo of the pub’s frontage, but it’ll have to do as I’m not walking back there to take another one. It’s another Fuller’s pub and I’ve been impressed with their estate with this week, although this one had the more limited beer range that I had anticipated from their other venues. The welcome was no less generous though, I’m not sure whether Fuller’s are just recruiting friendly and able staff, or perhaps they have a first-class customer service programme.

    The interior of the pub, all quite open and modern in its styling, with a major restoration having just been undertaken by Fuller’s. The staff member at the bar was also very patient with a customer (not me) who marched in the exit, seemed to understand the card-only rule before trying to pay with cash and then walked around looking lost. Everything seemed clean and comfortable, with the handy advantage of having power points on the walls so that I could charge my laptop.

    So, although I’m not sure that there’s anything exceptional here I’d want to mention, it was a laid-back location that seemed well managed. The half-pint of London Pride that I went for was well-kept and tasted as I expected, although I’d have ideally liked something a bit more exciting. The pub did offer food, although it was priced towards the higher end of the scale.

  • London – Southwark (Borough of) – The Ship

    London – Southwark (Borough of) – The Ship

    My opinion of Fuller’s has very much changed this week, some of their pubs are way above average and I had been expecting them to just be offering London Pride in the main. The choice has been much better than that and there’s some quirkiness, in a positive way, to what they’re offering. This Fuller’s pub has a traditional feel to it, located relatively near to Borough underground station and to Mercato Metropolitano.

    The welcome at the pub was prompt and friendly, with the staff member showing me to a table outside and then explaining the set-up at the pub. Customers could either order at the bar, or scan a QR code to order direct to the table. Everything seemed well managed and organised, with a few different real ales to choose from. Nothing overly exciting in terms of dark options, but I’ve never seen the HSB before and so went for that.

    And here it is, not bad at all, Fuller’s say that it has a taste of Dundee Cake and I had to look up what that was (fruit cake with currants, sultanas and almonds). I’m not sure I got those tastes, I got notes of toffee, but it was all rather refreshing and was well-kept.

    The outside garden was suitably cooling and there were no wasps around to irritate me, something that happens too often when I sit outside. It was all organised and laid-back, this is a quite lovely way to spend the afternoon.

    And the pub sign. All told, a perfectly decent pub which had a community feel to it. The service was friendly, the pub was clean and the environment was comfortable. So, all rather lovely.