BITE user comments - Soddball
Comments by Soddball
Lunch time, quiet, group of four for food and drink: waiting staff took ages to notice our arrival and food arrived an hour after. Drinks order - wrong. Pudding never turned up. On the plus side - apologies and free food bill. Disappointed as was a birthday treat.
10 Feb 2008 13:27
The Little Brown Jug, Chiddingstone Causeway
I ate here last Thursday. The service was excellent, the food was good and arrived reasonably promptly, although I found the portions too large. I had their cheese and bacon burger with homemade chips for my main course and was unable to finish it after having a starter. The chips are, probably, the best I've ever tasted - chunks of potato that are cripsy and delicious. The burger was well-cooked and loaded with cheese and bacon. I was unable to find space for a dessert. The red wine was good, which is why I am hazy about what I had as a starter. I do remember enjoying it though.
It appears that the Jug is thriving under the oversight of the Chaser group. Long may it continue.
The one thing that surprised me was the means by which orders are shipped to the kitchen - via a long pneumatic tube! The whizzing noise is amusing, but I can't help but feel that a simple wireless network would have been cheaper and just as reliable.
Well worth a visit.
11 Apr 2007 14:57
The missus and I tried this on a Monday night. Phone answered in 5 rings when I called up to book, and my reservation was handled politely and deftly.
I'd be hard pressed to call it a pub - it's far more of a restaurant. The owners have worked hard to make the decor look good and there's plenty of space between tables.
We skipped the starter and both ordered the belly pork with a sweet potato and pickled ginger mash. The pork was beautifully cooked - it just fell apart, and the crackling was wonderfully crisp. The mash was good but I found it a bit sweet for my taste - probably just me though. Neither of us realised that vegetables are a side order or we would have ordered some.
For dessert I had cheese and biscuits - pretty good but it's hard to get it wrong - and the missus picked the lime cheesecake which she thoroughly enjoyed.
I didn't find the food overly expensive and soft drinks were very fairly priced.
Service was excellent - the staff were keen, attentive and capable.
The owners have clearly worked hard and it shows in the presentation of the building, staff and food. I'll certainly go again.
28 Nov 2006 08:59
I wanted to take issue with Anonymous' posting.
The pub IS overpriced and remains so. The food is poor and has been since the landlord decided that profiteering was better than offering good quality at a decent price.
If you look back at my review of the Chaser at Shipbourne you'll find that I gave it an excellent review. Sadly, a number of the other pubs I've tried which were excellent aren't listed on this site so I can't review them, including the Carpenter's Arms at Hadlow and the George and Dragon at Speldhurst.
Perhaps you should, like me, be prepared to stand up and say who you are, Mr Anonymous.
25 Nov 2006 11:12
Sadly, the previous owner is now back in control of the Hare and Hounds after the new owners went bust. The chef has left and it's back on the slide. Give it a miss until he moves on. My parents ate there last week and my dad had food poisoning from the wing of skate. Hopefully this village pub will improve but at present the attitude is 'it's a rich area so people will pay high prices for rubbish'. Sorry mate, you're wrong. Rich people are just as fussy with their cash as poor people. That's why they're rich.
19 Nov 2006 12:51
The Hare and Hounds has recently changed hands after a couple of years of pretty poor management. The assumption was that no matter how poor the food or service, it was a 'rich area' so the prices could be sky-high. Amazingly, rich people are just as discerning as poor people and turned away from the pub in droves.
However, new management is in place and things may change.
30 Jun 2006 09:58
The Rose and Crown Hotel, Tonbridge
Truly dismal. My girlfriend and I ate there on St George's Day and it was far and away the worst meal I've ever had, sloppily prepared and just reheated microwaved crap.
Diabolical. With a setting and location like that it should be a winner, but it stinks. I don't care how hungry you are, and how nice it looks, go anywhere but here.
30 Jun 2006 09:55
I ate at the Chaser last night (Thursday). Delightful setting, friendly, cheerful staff, clean tables and chairs, largely smoke-free, and excellent food. I had leek and potato soup to start (served with 2 big chunks of crusty bread) which was very good, and a home-made burger with chips as my main course, which I was unable to finish. The burger was superb - cooked well, served with bacon and cheese.
Excellent pub, highly recommended although I suspect you'll need to book at weekends since the place was packed on a weekday!
30 Jun 2006 09:53
The Bottle House, Penshurst
Ate here on a mid-week evening. We asked for a shared garlic bread as a starter since we had read that the portions were huge. I then ordered their fish pie, with salmon, smoked cod and haddock covered with mashed potato. It was excellent. The missus had their fishcakes, which were huge and also excellent.
If you live, as I do, in Tonbridge, it's not worth driving. You can hop on the train to Penshurst since the station is opposite the pub. Ideal.
3 Jul 2008 11:37