Halfway House, Brenchleyback to pub details please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Sunday lunchtime 23/06/13. All beers tasted were 1st class - Goachers, Betty Stoggs, Rother mild and the house beer (I would guess by the taste also Goachers). Food was a bit disappointing/sloppy - a couple of under cooked potatoes, below par accompanying veg with the roasts. Previous meal here was very good, so maybe they just had an off day. Staff and locals at the bar were friendly.
Worth travelling to for the beer.
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Excellent pub, fantastic real ale and cider choice, competitively priced. Fascinating bits and bobs to look at, great atmosphere and a warm welcome. Well recommended.
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Large rambling pub with lots of small areas on various levels. There are two large beer gardens which must be heaven on a warm summer's evening. The beer (Goacher's Bitter) was excellent and sensibly priced. But clearly most of the trade involves food. We got there just after lunch and the pub was full of a sour small of cooking fat which was off-putting.
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Lovely pub with a great selection of ales and really 1st class pub food which is well priced. Friendly staff and reasonably spacious, so all in all a real gem of a pub.
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Been in her about half a dozen times and its always been very good, the first time I came across it it had a beer fest on, I like the way they have a kids garden and an adult garden. They always have local beer on from Goacher , Rother as well as beers like Betty Stogs from Cornwall. The food I had on the 23rd was good and about the right price. The beer is gravity fed so if you are a northerner , think like november 5th and bring your sparklers with you as there is less head than usual. Top pub!
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Generally I can only repeat what is written by almost everyone else about this pub. Excellent variety of beers, good staff and good traditional pub food very well done. I was a little disappointed the day I went to their end of may bank holiday beer festival I must say. They advertised 75 ales but only had room for 50 at one time so if you wanted a particular one they may not have had it on at that time. However Im sure most could have found another one out of the 50 that were on. My main gripe was the food at the festival. The kitchen, which does fantastic meals was shut and the only food was a BBQ that was of poor quality and hideously over priced- �4 for an undercooked burger, �10 for a paper plate full of paella and �6 for a cold, tiny jacket potato was little short of extortion. A real shame as I will go back to the pub for the usual ales and nice meals but I think I will go to the Stile Bridge inn for the next beer festival.
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Stumbled upon this place while rambling in the area and gasping for a pint. A Spifire or even a lager would have done, so this place fairly knocked my socks off. Can only echo what is written below, didn't try the food but there was a bbq on (ale festival+good beer+good burger+live music = some sort of dizzy utopia) and if the home made burgers are anything to go by then this place deserves the plaudits. As for the beer, well I only wish I lived nearer.
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I have visited this place a few times over the last few years, and amazingly have never gotten round to reviewing it anywhere, which is a shame, as it is richly deserving of very positive appraisal.
Naturally I've been drawn to the HH on the primary basis of its beer - both range and quality - and this never disappoints. Mostly "locale" on offer, and I think 7 varieties on my last visit in late December. DOn't be put off by the taps at the rear; they are in no way false and serve all beers direct from their casks behind. The "Halfway to Paradise" is a Goacher's brew and well worth the sampling.
Happily, I was in need of sustenance beyond what beer can provide, and indulged in a 2-course luncheon whilst here. The menus - both the book and board options - yield much to tempt the modern pub eater and there is plenty to delight lovers of meat, fish, and vegetables. I began with the tempura prawns with sweet chilli sauce and finished with the venison sausages and mash. Both of these dishes were hearty and flavoursome, although it was not easy deciding on them as frankly I could've managed most options available.
Interior-wise, it is rather what one would hope to expect from the pleasant exterior frontage; very traditional and with numerous alcoves and accoutrements but the HH is every inch authentic and it never feels like a faux image. It doesn't require such spurious affectation, for it seems to draw plenty of regular trade locally, in addition to punters passing through who have cottoned on to the charms of the pub.
Atmosphere was not lacking either: a healthy mix of young, old, regular and irregular were found, on a grey Thursday lunchtime just after Christmas. I'd say that's a testament in itself to the enduring appeal of this hostelry. There was no sense of animosity on the part of the locals, and service was both efficient and with a smile from the young chap manning the bar.
Universally this should score highly on all major elements on which a pub should be judged, and ultimately I think this will happen as further visits are made, and more reviews accrue.
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We have been using this great pub for about three years now and have always enjoyed our visits. Great beer, all served on gravity by the amiable George. Although we are not regular eaters here every meal we have had has been excellent quality, although not the cheapest. Look out for their special themed nights and the twice yearly beer festivals. This pub has been winner and runner-up of the West Kent Pub of the year on many occasions and deservedly so. Keep up the good work Richard and team, the pub is a gem and I have never awarded a 10 before.
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Excellent non tied pub run by very friendly attentive staff, always serving excellent, well kept real ales from local and further a field breweries. Always busy with lots of pleasant & sociable locals, which create a great atmosphere. The food is always good and the regular theme nights are well worth booking, the food is varied with good portions, and always of good quality. Nothing is too much trouble for the chef, he is very accommodating, we have arrived after we thought the kitchen had closed, and he assured us there was no problem with ordering. The real fire is always welcoming in the cooler months. The two beer festivals on the bank holidays are well worth attending. Our absolute favourite pub in the area, a real find!
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Yep - now my second favourite pub in the area (and the wife's favourite). Lovely beer - always a good and interesting choice; some excellent food; really nice people running it. A top pub. Ignore my previous quibbles.
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Stayed the night at this lovely isolated country pub. Nice clean and simple accomodation, very friendly staff, great wholesome food and very well kept beer. A publican that really knows how to run a pub. Busy with lots of locals and a great atmosphere. Would not fault it (other than shame the eggs were not free range).
Go there and enjoy a great evening.
I gave it a 9.
Potrix
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This August Bank Holiday's Beer Festival has 42 barrels in the garden. All beers at �3 a pint. A whiteboard lists them from lowest to highest alcohol. On Saturday it started with South Sea Spice at 3.9% ending with at Sarah Hughes Dark Ruby at 6%.
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First class..
Always a good selection of well kept bitters and a deceptive local cider.
Poor selection of lager ( a plus in my opinion ) !! along with no tv or jukebox .... ahh bliss.
Friendly staff and friendly customers always up for a bit of banter.
Forthcoming beer festival boasts 75 bitters.... Top that spoons !!
Good food for the diners too...
A real oldy worldy gem.
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A great pub, with something for everyone. A characterful multi-room interior with ambitious but excellent quality range from the barrel, wide range of customers (including well-behaving children), and good range of food. Bar staff were very friendly.
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Completely agree with all of the points made in the last review. This is a pub with plenty of character in a lovely rural location. There are plenty of tables inside and outside. Saturday was nice weather. So there were more inside than outside. The locals were all indoors in the bar area. It must be great to have a local like this. Beers are all served on gravity from behind the bar - Skinners Betty Stoggs, Goachers Fine Light Ale, Westerham 1965 Special Bitter Ale, Halfway to Paradise, 1648 St George's, WJ King's Spring Ale, WJ King's Dragons T'Ale, Ushers 1824 and Rother Valley Mild. They also have local cider from Chiddingstones. There's very few pubs I award a 9/10 for. But this one definitely falls into that category.
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Visited this pub on a chilly March weekday lunchtime while exploring the Tunbridge Wells area. What a find! Ok, it may not win the prize for the most handsome exterior but inside you're transported into a world of real character with rough cut wood beams and tables and a choice of around nine ales served on gravity. On my visit the choice included Goachers Finest Light Ale, Rother Valley Mild, Skinners Betty Stoggs, Westerham Nineteen Sixty Five, Roosters Celtic Corker, Kings Mother-In-Law, 1648 Gold Angel, and Daleside Spring Frenzy. There was also Chiddingstone cider on offer. I only tried the Goachers, but it was excellent as was the food I ordered. (I liked the beer so much I got a 4 pint takeaway).
Friendly barman, interesting decor, good food and spot-on ales - what more could you want. The large car park and beer garden suggests this place gets busy in the warmer seasons but even so, this pub is one you should make a point of visiting if you're in the south east.
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Went again, and the staff could not have been kinder or more welcoming. Must have hit a bad day last time.
CAMRA Award winner for best pub in Kent or West Kent every year for the last five at least. Whic speaks for itself.
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A popular local pub with a good number of lunchtime regulars when I called. Lovely log fire on a miserbale day. Nice pint of Goachers, very well kept, and good food. Lunch for three = �45.
We were welcomed, but there was a certain lack of warmth, I'm not quite sure why. So 8/10.
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August Bank Holiday Beer Festival now under way with 50 beers at �2.80 a pint and a spit-roasted beef or pork bap for �4.50. There's also a bbq and live music. The festival garden is adults only and there's another garden area, separated by trees, for families, with slides and the like for the kiddies.
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I am pleased to say that nothing has changed since my last report nearly two years ago - still a great pub with great beer. Another very successful Whitsun bank holiday beer festival with some 50 beers to choose from. Most of the barrels in the tent had run out by Monday afternoon, but there was still plenty to choose from inside. The weather was kind, but (as usual) the garden was full of happy, relaxed people enjoying one of the most pleasant spots on Kent to spend an hour or two.
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Great pub, well worth making the effort to visit. The twice yearly beer festivals are a local legend, and the usual selection is the best in the area. The landlord must be doing some thing right to sell enough beer to keep it fresh, especially when you consider that he has 8+ ales available. This is the pub to take visitors for an experience of what ap ub shpuld be like, although oldy worldy inside its also lively, and serves up great food.
If your in the area, give it a visit
fenix - 23 Feb 2009 22:14 |
This is a truly excellent pub. Went for first time with my partner on a drive out of London and found 13 perfectly kept real ales plus one proper cider. Stuck to the session beers and the Rother Valley mild was delicious. Food was good, if not quite as good as I'd hoped (the vegetables didn't seem like they were fresh and the leek and spring onion mash with the sausages was not as good as it might have been). But the beers really were top quality and it is a real ale lovers paradise. Should be back for the beer festival on Bank Holiday Monday.
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Gorgeous rustic bar to right with some ancient timbers & hop-adorned rafters, original blackened wood floor, wood burning fire, decorated with old tools, bric-a-brac, brasses, old pump clips, the feel of an old farm building. All beer served by gravity, 16 stills behind wood cask fascias at bar, 8 were in action ystdy, listed above bar and on individual boards above each still; Goachers Fine Light, & Best Dark, Rother Valley Mild, Harveys Best, Westerham 1965, Wyre Pea in the Pod, the splendid Halfway to Paradise, plus local Chiddingstone cider (7.5%), all were in top shape, �2.40-�2.80. Some chunky wooden tables as you enter, where some were enjoying lunch and, beyond the bar, a window from which is visible the large, well-tended garden with picnic sets. Most at the bar seemed to know each other and timing may be key in grabbing a barstool (I did) but there is plenty of space elsewhere; descend from the bar, past piano, into adjacent building (main brick bldg when photo appears) for lots of seating incl a bench & table hewn from very old wood, beyond this a smaller room seating 12ish almost privately, up a coupla steps to more seating with fabric settles & rustic wood tables (nb the country mural with oasthouse-size carthorse), still another room beyond this set for slightly more formal dining. Must be popular for food, I overheard the barman advise a phonecaller that they were fully booked last nt &, unusually, I had a bite to eat and the homemade burger with blue cheese, proper large chips & salad was very good indeed, �8, and last night�s specials included a choice of 4 curries, 2 for �9.50. I wouldn�t fancy walking down from Brenchley as the traffic really belts along dangerously, but the 297 from Tunbridge Wells (�4.70 rtn) stops immediately outside. If I rtn with others for the 24-26May beerfest (45 beers, all �2.80, daily spit-roast), Paddock Wood then taxi would be a little quicker. One of the pub signs proclaims Isle of Wight, Brenchley, apparently due to surrounding road system being shaped like IOW. Sorry to ramble but thoroughly good visit, highly recommended.
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Passed this place on a sunny bank holiday Monday afternoon, so had to stop once I'd seen the sign saying 'Kent CAMRA Pub of the Year 2006' (at the same time as wondering whether such shameless advertising should be allowed).
A lovely old pub inside with slightly eccentric design and arrangement of furniture and rooms inside. Doesn't look like its always been a pub, and someone at the bar did say it was once a morgue. I was getting worried that there didn't appear to be any RAs until I realised that they come straight from the barrels on the wall behind the bar. I only stayed for one - and that was in the large-ish garden outside - so didn't get time to properly savour the full atmosphere. The pint I did have - Highgate Beezone - is a low strength honey beer that was well kept, and there were at least 8 ales on.
The garden has a kiddies play area, and an 'adults only' area. I'm not sure if the latter is to give the unecumbered drinker a bit of p & q, or for the benefit of the pub pet. Unusually, rather than a cat or dog, the Halfway House has seems to have a pub hawk.
Sadly there as no food served after about 3ish which is disappointing, and a not uncommon feature in country pubs. That's why I didn't stay long. This aside, I would certainly recommend the HH, and would love to give it a second go at some point.
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The only way to descibe this pub is as "a beer drinker's paradise"! Great range of ales all in good nick, friendly staff and clientele, pleasant atmosphere - a real pub of which there are very few remaining.
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Justifiably award-winning country pub, with a great range of real ale available and decent food. The 50-beer festival over the August bank holiday weekend is a must, but well worth seeking out at any time of year.
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...lovely old pub, loads of character, lots of little rooms on different levels add to the rustic charm...and an excellent selection of proper beers.
Huge garden and car park.
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Sensational pub in the middle of no-where. Incredibly friendly bar staff, lovely atmosphere, traditional fittings, this pub is perfect. There were 6 beers on the menu when I visited and 1 cider. I had 4 pints and all were in superb condition, straight from the keg. Make an effort to visit here!
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Rambling, slightly shambolic (in the best possible sense of the word) Kentish pub in the middle of nowhere. Beer range good - though don't always expect local Kent beers to feature prominently - and the quality beyond reproach despite the rather odd method of dispense. Food good, sometimes very good. Service is extraordinarily friendly. Go there, stay there too long, get a taxi back home.
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Another great beer festival this Bank Holiday weekend, with a hog roast each day. All real ales at �2.50 a pint. Live music.
Extra parking provided in field opposite: this festival's getting popular!
I went on Sunday and stayed for about 7 hours...I wish I lived in the house next door.
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I have been seeking out this pub since I visited the 2006 West Kent CAMRA runner up pub of the year (the Rose and Crown at Halstead which is excellent - how could it be beaten I asked myself?). Well, I can see why. This place really knows about beer food and how to run a traditional pub. A very pleasant welcome and Yes, what a great idea to have an adults only garden section. It was all set up for the beer festival starting "tomorrow" but from the leaflet the range is very impressive. Deservedly an award winning CAMRA pub. But don't forget the Rose and Crown at Halstead if you are that way, you won't be disappointed with the range which to me seems like a continuous beer festival!
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Excellent range of Real Ales and a locally produced cider as well!
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best pub in miles
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What a gem! So glad to have come across this place. Excellent setting, lovely interior, well kept ales and magnificent food. Hardly surprising they were awarded West Kent Camra pub of the year.
Great idead to have a adults only garden.
The Westerham Pale is superb. Looking forward to using this place far more regularly.
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Their next beer festival, with a daily hog roast, will be on Saturday 27th May through to Monday 29th May, i.e. the Bank Holiday weekend at the end of May.
All the beers will be �2.40 a pint, and will include
Rutland Panther, Otter Bitter, Moorhouses Premier, White Horse Bitter, Harvest Pale, Five Bridges Bitter, Alton Pride, Wherry, Drawwell, Suffolk County Bitter, Caledonian 80/-, Loxley Ale, Thrappledouser, Landlord, Rambrau, Exmoor Gold, Old Slug Porter, Old Hookey, Thirsty Moon, Hole Hearted, Schiehallon, Nautical Mild, Dark Star Original, Summer Lightning, Molecatcher, Sharps Special, Black Adder, Festival Ale.
This marvellous pub was named the West Kent Camra Pub of the Year 2006, and is open 12noon to 11pm.
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Restored to life under new management a few years back, it's now a very nice pub. Friendly service in bar frequented by regulars (also friendly) offers good range of beers, all those sampled in good nick. Open fire, great children's play area outside.
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You can also get to this pub by bus from Tunbridge Wells station. Although this method is only feasible for weekday and Saturday lunchtimes. Go to bus stop "C" outside the station and get the Arriva 297 bus. Ask the driver for the Halfway House. Although there isn't a bus stop sign outside the pub, and it's not listed in the timetables, it IS a named bus stop! The 1150 gets you there for 1225, and there's a bus at 1504 for coming back.
WadeB - 26 Feb 2005 17:33 |
Situated just outside Brenchley heading towards Horsemonden on the Horsemonden Road. Outside, the pub is in two acres of land in the bottom of a small valley with streams on two sides. Big car park, safe childrens play area and large outside eating area make this an excellent choice. Accomodation is supplied by 3 double en-suite rooms.
Inside, the beamed restaurant is on different levels with log fires. Delicious reasonably priced home made food is available. This is not a fast food pub and everything ordered is freshly cooked to a very high standard. The superb selection of beers include both popular local varieties and guest ales are served directly from the barrel The beers have the prestigious 'Casque Marque Accreditation'.
Chris - 11 Jan 2005 17:00 |
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