please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Noticed it was closed today and there is no obvious link to it now on the West Berks Brewery web site unlike before.
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One of Newbury's finest and a great choice of REAL ales reasonably priced. What is not to love?
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After a good visit about a month ago, I thought I would try it again and see how the refurb is holding up.
The ale is superb, to be expected really as owned by a renowned brewer.
Food is great, really nice to see a pub doing some old greats with a new twist. Thumbs up.
Onto the staff, and really the only let down. They were chirpy and energetic the first time I visited.
This visit, two girls stood and chat behind the bar and seemed chirpy and energetic until I asked of them for merely an ale and a menu, 1 dashed off, the other served me an icy glare followed by what can only be described as a grunt, almost as if I had interrupted their conversation.
Hopefully just caught them on an off day, as food and drink were both great, just a bit of a shame the staff couldnt have been a bit more pleasent.
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Took a gamble and decided to pay a visit wow its open!! Well what can I say ?? Is it still a pub or a Restaurant ?? Tables all laid up a la carte style ,reduced bar stools worst of all the dart board gone what's the concept here get rid of the drinkers and bring in the cheese and wine brigade,anyway had a drink looked at the pretentious chalk board menu copied no doubt from another proper restaurant review and left disappointed .Shame can't see it working myself
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The Rising Sun is now open. A shame Stuart & Nicola have left (due to his health as posted on the WBB web site) as they made the pub what a good pub should be.
Knowing the new "hosts" from their time at the Pot Kiln, I'm sure we will all be made welcome & all tastes catered for. Tried the beers on Thursday evening & as good as ever.
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Decided to pay a visit to have a pint in the Rising Sun the other night and lo and behold its shut again and the couple who were running it have gone who seemed very settled the last time i was in there.I found out its shut for refurbisment well good move closing a pub in AUGUST TO DO THIS since West Berks took this pub over this seems the norm one minute open the next closed!!!! maybe they should enrol on a basic business management course at Newbury Colledge ,might get it right one day like a certain pub landlord not too far away from them has...
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A proper pub the way pubs should be.
Not a can of white wash paint or sterilisation in sight.
Great quality pub food (the best I've come across in a long while), great selection of real ales and spirits.
Really friendly staff, who value your custom and go out of their way for you. A true pleasure to spend a relaxing evening within these walls.
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This lovely little village pub is now back in good hands and is transformed once again to its former glory by the lovely new couple who are now at the helm.
This is a proper English pub, serving a variety of traditional Ales and Ciders as well as a good choice of wine.
I have now been in on 4 occasions and it seems to be getting better and better as more and more people realise that its in new hands.
On our visit this Sunday we decided we would give the food a try�.. what a lovely surprise.
Great homemade pub food with a contemporary twist. Large portions, beautifully presented. I had a starter of baked mini camembert with red onion marmalade and a rocket salad which was absolutely delicious. 2 of us had tian of prawn, crayfish and crab and 1 had pressed confit duck leg. All really really lovely. For main course 3 of us had roast lamb which was really nice. Lovely roast potatoes and one of us had homemade game pie which he was very impressed with.
We all shared a cheeseboard for dessert � it was huge!! The cheese was all served at the correct temperature. Lovely gooey blues and a couple of great cheddars and red leicester. Selection of crackers and a piece of iced fruit cake! � you have to try it!
We finished our food and listened to some local musicians playing some accoustic blues and folk music.
Absolutely wonderful evening had by all.
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News of a musical event to be held in the Rising Sun on Saturday 28th May, from approx. 8.30 pm. Having just completed a great production of the musical Cabaret at Arlington Arts with the Applebee Theatre Company, the 'Beautiful Orchestra' (featuring great singers, double bass, sax, trombone, guitar, banjo, & Max Hunt who some of you will remember from previous events at the RS, including the St George's Day entertainment will perform great music from Cabaret, a few other great show tunes and some more musical surprises.
If you fancy a good sing-a-long to songs like 'Money Make's The Word Go Round', 'Don't Tell Mama', 'Mein Herr', 'Perfectly Marvellous', 'Two Ladies', 'It Couldn't Please Me More' and of course.....'Cabaret' along with basking in the great new atmosphere at the Rising Sun, wonderful West Berks beers, food and loads of other great stuff, then please come along,
There will be a fancy dress from the 1930's with a prize for the Best Dressed Couple.
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The idiot in question was myself, and unfortunately in a town where phone signal is useless, I was stuck and had to find a pub with a decent rather than flaky (the other one in the village) connection.
Aware this wasn't good in the pub so moved outside when it got busy to reduce the impact, and will continue to do so if I need to call the USA again.
It wasn't a personal call but work, and occurred some 5 weeks ago plus and hasn't happened again. Interesting how I allegedly talked to this person about my alleged life whilst on a work call.
I thanked the landlord and apologised for the inconvenience.
Sounds like sour beer from someone who doesn't see my custom anymore, wonder who that would be?????
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I went to this pub again the other night, the beer was excellent, however the atmosphere was awful, there were only 4 people in the pub, and one was the worlds worst bore, not the pubs fault, however the managers were allowing the idiot to sit and have a very loud conversation on his laptop, in the middle of the pub no less. After exchanging two polite sentences with him, I realised that I never wanted to hear about his life again, but it was inflicted on me, phones are bad enough in pubs, but SKYPE, honestly, please have a thought for others. I am afraid this is the death knell for all pubs, but firstly this one.
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It's changed hands, and for the better. Beer is great, atmosphere is nice and chilled and the food is excellent. It makes my evenings in Stockcross a lot better than they have been for the last 4 months (I work away so am out every night).
Music on Sundays too
Fish & Chips with Beer batter are brill
Home made Pie, tried the Chicken Leek and Mushroom which was excellent
Toad in the Hole - huge & brill
Burger - really brill
Gammon Egg & chips - brill
There is a common thread, Stuart the new landlord is not a cook, he is a CHEF and it shows. I have seen someone on the egg mayo (warm) sandwich and the bacon & brie and I know where I am going this week on at least 2 dishes, think the risotto is on the cards.
Nicki (Nicola) the new landlady is a breeze, down to earth and a laugh, goes to the relaxed atmosphere
As a plus side he is also doing take away food until late, and smaller multi course lunch options.
Sorry Lord Lyon but this one gets my vote most nights, well nearly every night. They are different venues but for food and local ale there is only one pub here The Rising Sun. For more formal nights The Lord Lyon if you want to dress up but I'd rather have the food.
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The beer is really nice but tends to make the room a less pleasant place the next day but don't let that put you off.
I have eaten once and can recommend the steak and kidney PUDDING!!
Not open on Monday or Tuesday
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I've been drinking at the Rising Sun regularly since 2006. It's still a great pub. The beer is still excellent, and I feel welcome every time I drop by. There aren't enough pubs like this around anymore, so don't let any negative comments dissuade you from visiting. See it for yourself before you make your mind up.
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Went in last week with 3 friends about 9.30pm pub was empty !!!! we were made about as welcome as "As a fart in a lift " instead of staying and spending money ( 3 rounds = �36 approx ) we each had one drink and went else where to spend our money...Come on Mr Maggs sort it out its giving your beer a bad taste!!!
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Under relatively new management and they seem to be doing okay, though it's early days yet. The biggest downside is that it doesn't seem to be open very much, and the published opening hours aren't kept. Out of the times I've been, I have ended up at the other pub down the road precisely 50% of the time as the Rising Sun hasn't been open. That has to be sorted, preferably sooner rather than later.
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Everyone is entitled to their opinion & as Beer In The Evening states "reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously".
Whilst some may not take them seriously, others may be swayed against visiting a pub with negative reviews which is understandable but a reviewer's anonymity through choosing their user name enables those with ulterior motives to hide behind this to post remarks aimed at damaging a pub's / brewery's reputation.
Have those posing negative remarks expressed their views to the Landlord & Landlady? Constructive criticism is a better way to suggest areas for change if required to ensure patrons enjoy their visit to the pub or do those posting these remarks do so aiming for the pub to loose potential customers?
See you there next Thursday. Chris, alias "Sloshed".
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I have requested for all message from this person CLAIMING to be 'maxhunt' to be removed but I'm sure that people can judge for themselves what's going on here. I know for a fact and can substantiate that there where no other Max Hunt's in the Pub in the night in question (unfortunateley there were not many people there) and I know for a fact that this person claiming to be 'maxhunt' only registered with Beer in the evening on the day of writing the review so lets stop this messing around. In my experience the Pub is a lovely down to earth village pub with a very welcoming Landlord and Landlady, much improved food, a lovely atmosphere and a great choice of well kept beers. All these (suspiciously very similarly worded) negative reviews about the Rising Sun do not bear any relation to the reality of this lovely little pub.
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This might come as a shock to you but there is obviously more than 1 max hunt in the world! My name is max hunt I did visit the Rising Sun and I wasn't impressed. I also do not take kindly to you insinuating that my comments are those of someone else. You obviously have little or no taste if you are impressed with a pub of such low standards.
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Hi all,
I'm Max Hunt & have just registered myself on Beer in the evening in order to clear something up. The previous review about the Rising Sun in Stockcross claims to be from me but IS NOT. I regularly drink in the Rising Sun and find it a great pub with brilliant West Berks Beer and a lovely new Landlord & Landlady. John & Val are really nice company and are doing a great job getting the pub back on its feet again. I suspect that the culprit who wrote the previous review claiming to be me, may be the last Landlord or Landlady. Don't believe any of the nasty backbiting reviews you read here it's a GREAT TRADITIONAL PUB.
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Visited this pub last Thursday BAD atmosphere. BAD BEER. NO friendly welcome. No signs of up-coming music events. West Berkshire Brewery must have no regard for the customers of this pub and the people who drink their beer. Shame on you Dave Maggs.
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Visited again on Friday, beer was actually good, must have been a new barrell!! Atmosphere awful, service awful, never again, WBB must be leaving their own feedback (see below) to try and salvage the awfulness of this pub. The Rising Sun is a classic example of how NOT to run a pub.
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Spent the weekend in Newbury and popped into this pub on the off chance. Friendly warm welcome, beer was superb.
Although didnt plan on eating, the steak deal was too good to miss and the portions were of a generous size.
This seems like an ideal local pub and could do with more of these where I live.
I will be back.
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Visited last Friday - food definitely improved from the previous landlord. West Berks ales seemed fine but I do not claim to be an expert. Lady serving behind the bar previously worked at the Rising Sun so a familiar face. Looked like John was working in the kitchen with Val at the bar. Early days yet so will be visiting again in the coming months to see how John & Val are getting on. Hopefully they will soon get their telephone sorted out - keeping the old number will help - and can accept debit/credit cards.
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RIP the Rising Sun and shame on West Berkshire Brewery for allowing such woefully poor landlords to be in charge of their reputation!!!
Crap beer in a crap pub, what more can I say, the beer was flat and so was the reception!
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Have given this pub 3 chances to impress since the new landlords took over in september, truly awful everytime. They are in the wrong trade. Luckily the other pub in the village is great!
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Well what can i say thats positive about the Rising Sun at this present time??? thats easy NOTHING .A group of us attended the opening night and were made to feel as if we shouldnt of been there ,there was no interaction between mine hosts and us and only a few words were exchanged.Two days later we thought we would try again once again same situation,no change, now i was becoming a bit worried so under much protest two weeks later i was dragged in there again and i couldnt believe it once again we were made to feel that we werent welcome,its a shame as this pub has been part of my life for the last 30 years.Anyway thats enough from me RIP The Rising Sun.
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Now open again - new landlord and landlady seem just fine - hopefully it will be back at its best very soon.
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Currently closed - I believe landlord has left after some dispute with brewery. Since it's West Berks Brewery's only tied pub, they'll be wanting to re-open as soon as possible.
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A simple, traditional pub with proper beer and dog friendly. Food is ok too.
Garden could be prettier and better thought out.
A nice change from the Newbury town pubs.
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Update to my comment of March 09 - there is still frequent live music here if that's your thing. It's usually (always?) unamplified so not too intrusive if you're not interested.
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Superb range of excellent beers (as would be expected from the only tied pub of the West Berkshire Brewery). Locals pub with friendly atmosphere. Food uninspiring but adequate -- frankly this is not a pub you go to for the food and with this in mind what they do is absolutely fine. The dogs on the sofas in both the bar and dining areas may put some off, and they (the dogs) are not that fantastic with other dogs, either. In short this is a friedly local pub with good banter, tales, excellent beer and no pretence of anything else. If that's what you're after, you'll be delighted. If you're after posh gastro-pub you'll be dismayed. It's a love-it-or-hate-it sort of place, I suppose. Date: April.10
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This is a proper traditional village pub. Excellent place, handy for Newbury and much better than any of the town pubs. West Berks beers plus occasional guests and mini-festivals. The pub was refurbished by Dave Maggs who owns West Berks Brewery and he often visits. Beer quality excellent. Food is traditional pub food and good value. Previous landlord was a musician and there were frequent musical events - not sure whether this will continue.
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New landlord in the Rising Sun. The pub has instantly improved, much more comfortable and WARM Hooray. Beers in Excellent condition, and there happened to be a bunch of blues guitarists playing when i dropped by on a wednesday evening - bonus..If you want a real village pub this one shouldnt be missed.
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Pretty much what a village local should be - good beer (essentially a West Berkshire brewery tap), good atmosphere and god conversation.
Had already had a few when I got here so the power of recall lets me down on the detail - there were a collection of tankards on display and oh, I think I purchased some very nice homemade spicy chutney from the bar!
Anyways, well worth a number of visits in the future...
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A good pub is one that has friendly faces, a wide selection of well-kept real ales, a warm fireplace in the winter and a pleasant garden in the summer. Instead of televisions and fruit machines, it has candles and live music. The Rising Sun at Stockcross gets all of this right. That�s what makes it the best pub in the Newbury area.
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Its precisely because this pub doesn,t serve chain pub food that makes it so good. If you give the landlady a few days notice she will make whatever dish you like within reason. I have always had a friendly reception here from the landlord and staff. I live about 15 miles away but still come here two or three times a month. So the landlord is a bit grumpy now and again, he's a middle aged bloke working long hours to make his business succesful. This is a real pub with real people and I have had many an interesting conversation with total strangers on a Sunday afternoon. Oh! and the beer is good too.
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I can add little on the matter of staff and licencee friendliness, other than our reception on a recent visit to this place was both convivial and polite - one of our number was greeted like a regular even though he'd only visited once before.
I also can't comment on food, as we only needed to indulge in snacks (can one recommend a pub on the quality of its "Nobby's Nuts"?! - if so it was top-notch!).
However the obvious draw for an old soak like me is the ale, and being a West Berkshire tied outlet it was well worth visiting for that prospect alone. 4 out of a possible 5 ales on (the 5th had only just gone), and all sampled were as they should be. The Skiff and Maggs Mild were in especially great form and the only shame was that we had to move on before a solid session was allowed to develop!
Clearly one for real ale devotees; maybe one might think twice if going for food or friendliness, but it was popular enough with eaters and seemed to have a good atmos to me.
MUST steak always feature on a pub menu? Surely there are more imaginative options nowadays. Perhaps "anon" of 18 Oct '07 should get him/herself to a Berni Inn ASAP - ooops, they don't exist any more!! Wonder why....?!
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The beer may be good but the current menu is dire. This pub needs to get into the 21st century with it's menu. We visited on a Friday night recently, a lovely Rumanian lady was the cook and she served up delicious Goulash soup. This was the only item on the menu worthy of eating. It is the only pub we have visited without steak on the menu - a good standby on any menu. The cheery landlord and cook now seem to have disappeared so not going back.
anonymous - 18 Oct 2007 20:39 |
Went down here last week landlord was a bit grumpy only wanted to talk about his holiday to Egypt. Beer in good condition. Maybe landlord could be more friendly.
anonymous - 23 Mar 2007 08:37 |
Not having gone to the pub on a Saturday evening, I can�t comment on the welcome given by Jenny the barmaid as described by anon Oct 06 but echo their comments about the landord & landlady�s friendliness whilst adding that all the staff are welcoming.
Perhaps Jenny used to work in the Pot Kiln; they seem to have included �making the drinkers feel unwelcome� in their bar tender induction course.
Having used the pub over the 12 months since it opened under West Berkshire Brewery, I have found the beer to be of a consistently high standard and the cleanliness of the surroundings worthy of note.
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Spent a very pleasant lunch and afternoon here during the post-Christmas week. I think they normally close on weekday afternoons, but they had decided to "go with the flow" and keep the bar (including the food) open all day. Wholesome "non-gastro" food, a log fire, and a good selection of local real ales. Excellent relaxed venue for catching up with friends and family over a pie and a pint.
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I arranged to meet some family here for a mid christmas meal and a drink, the beer was spot on and the atmosphere friendly, a good honest pub, well done.
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very good pub, landlord Keith and landlady Joan very friendly, beer 1st class, try avoid going on a Saturday night as barmaid Jenny is a miserable cow and does not make anyone unless she knows them feel welcome, Joans meals are 1st class, the puddings are fabulous keep up the good work
anonymous - 20 Oct 2006 07:07 |
Excellent selection of local real ales. West Berks flagship ale "Good Old Boy" is a good place to start. Good, traditional, atmosphere, no music or TV to spoil the conversation. Dog and child friendly too.
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CAMRA ensured that �real ale� was preserved and now they are rightly concerned at the loss of the traditional British pub as many are being closed or converted to restaurants. West Berkshire Brewery�s Rising Sun is a welcome stalling of the trend being an ideal place to sample their excellent beers served in pristine condition. Cider, stout & lager are also available and the menu caters for all tastes.
Pictures of motorcycles reflect the Landlord�s interest in vintage bikes and old photos of Stockcross coaches make a change from the standard displays found in �chain pubs�. Books, cards & boardgames are provided and details of the musical entertainment is posted in the pub.
There are several footpaths & bridleways nearby for those who wish to work up a thirst and the pub has a neat beer garden to enjoy. Not wishing the summer away but remembering the winter cold, the open fire provided a warm welcome reflecting the overall atmosphere of the establishment.
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Great friendly pub. Good selection of Real ales. Food not too bad. Recently under new management. Far better than the Lord Lyon down the road which only seems to be interested in food these days. Good luck to 'em!
anonymous - 21 Jun 2006 18:32 |
Had a very pleasant hour here during a weekday lunch time in Easter week. The Magg's Mild was superb and Keith, the Landlord was very sociable and accommodating. I will revisit during an evening session when I am sure the atmosphere will be even better. Good luck to Keith and the WBB.
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Just opened: Dave and Helen Maggs of the West Berkshire Brewery's first pub.
Newly decorated, small village pub. Broad range of Mr Maggs' medications.
This will be a great pub. Good luck Maggs's!
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