BITE user comments - muttley
Comments by muttley
This is such a famous pub as it was the favourite for WWII pilots during the Battle of Britain. Sadly the refurbishment has destroyed any real feeling of a connection to its past - just take a look at the pub's website. It looks like any bar anywhere in the UK with bland and 'bad taste' decor. Go see the original blackout board with the famous pilots' signatures in the Shoreham Aircraft Museum and have a pint in the Crown instead.
27 Dec 2012 00:15
STILL CLOSED!! Steel shutters now. The local newspaper reported some gun crime to do with the management but it is a sad loss to the area - it was a real local
19 Feb 2011 17:14
One of the few genuine pubs left in the area - very good beer and not as expensive as you might think given the postcode. The hooray henries and henriettas can be a bit much in the evenings but the staff are great and the eccentric locals make up for it.
There is a very nice outdoor area at the front but the giant brollies are positioned so that half those seated get rain down their backs and you can no longer move the chairs to get more comfortable because they have been replaced with some badly-designed benches nailed to the floor. The benches also have very sharp corners and are difficult to get on and off. Wheelchair users no longer have access because they are blocked by all the fixed furniture - a strangely retrogressive upgrade. Surely breaks the Disability Discrimination Act as access is now prevented .
Food is just a bit too posh for me and expensive with tiny portions. I ordered the cheeseboard selection to share and wasn't disappointed with the quantity and quality of cheese but 3 micro thin slices of stale walnut bread left us starving and unable to stomach all the cheese.
19 Feb 2011 17:10
The Southside Bar, South Kensington
The new new Southside - or 'Eastside' at the base of Linstead Hall is a good place for a cheap beer and decently priced food in what is otherwise a very expensive area. It's modern and looks like a posh cocktail bar but it really can be relaxed when the staff turn down the volume from the large screen TVs showing endless bad music videos with terrible ads. There is a small terrace outside and if you ask for a plastic glass you can sit on the grass in the garden square long into the summer evenings.
The biggest problem is the lack of real ale - 2 is the max and usually one is off. 'Pride' is standard fare. A far cry from the legendary Southside which was a CAMRA award winner. Staff are a bit thin on the ground at the bar and consequently service is rather slow in the evenings.
19 Feb 2011 16:28
The Jolly Sailors, Brancaster Staithe
I love this pub and have been going back for years - not too posh - although a bit too modern and samey compared to the characterful place it once was. It lacks history now - everything odd has gone but at least the customers include locals and thank goodness the recent refurb left the main bar area untouched. The locally brewed beers are fantastic and 'The Wreck' recently won some award. Food is reasonably good with large portions - vegetarian options are a bit disappointing but you can always opt for pizza or veggieburger.
19 Feb 2011 16:12
The Hoop and Toy, South Kensington
This pub is handy for the Museums and South Kensington tube but caters for tourists and other unwary visitors so it is expensive and often targeted by bag-stealers. The range of beers is not great -Pride, Youngs Gold, Broadside and GreenKing IPA usually - but often only 2 beers are actually 'on'. The last time I went in there was only Broadside. The staff are ok - overworked - so the queues at the bar can be long. Food is ok, a bit pricy but it is South Kensington, it's the beers they could do some work on and spend more care serving. The toilets are an absolute disgrace - missing or very wobbly seats, often blocked, very very cramped and not clean. Unfortunately the issues extend to the toilet plumbing and the leaks seem frequent - dripping down to the ceiling of the actual pub below and bulging alarmingly in places.
19 Feb 2011 15:05
I am always sad when I get out the train at Sevenoaks Station - there used to be two lovely old Victorian pubs - the Railway & Bicycle and the Farmers - but now the area looks like something out of a JG Ballard nightmare.
The developers were extremely fast to demolish the pubs but both have remained derelict for years and I read at least one of the companies went into administration.
The Farmers was a good place to meet someone off the train, a nice warm cosy place in winter with lovely gardens to use in summer.
What a shame - if the developers ever get going it'll be a boring block of flats on both sides of the spaghetti junction - bring back our pub and some character to the area!!
25 Apr 2010 23:46
The Southside Bar, South Kensington
The new Southside (or Eastside) as locals call it isn't worth the walk. It's more a noisy cafe that happens to do a couple of beers in minimalist style surroundings and very bright lighting. Come summer and the opening of the gardens again it may again be a good place to get a cheap pint and sit outside on the lawn, but until then...
The old bar was a legendary place, a dirty, cheap bunker with fantastic range of beers. I don't know why the college got rid of it - it won all sorts of awards.
4 Jan 2008 23:16
The Hoop and Toy, South Kensington
Expensive and lacking in atmosphere, but there isn't much so close to the museums. I work locally and amongst many museum staff it's known as the "Hoop and Toilet" due the endless plumbing problems they seem to have with the gents' loo upstairs. There have been several bad floods and there are often suspicious drips from above - sometimes landing in your pint - I kid you not.
A transient population of tourists seems to attract bag thieves - lots of colleagues have had their stuff knicked from the pub (beware also if outside smoking).
Service can be haphazard as often there are so few staff employed on the shifts and the turnover is so great that they don't have time to learn the ropes or to look out for people who have been queuing for ages.
4 Jan 2008 23:07
Ship Inn, Brancaster
I found the Ship too pretentious , and there is lack of pleasant outdoor drinking space, which made me head on towards Brancaster Staithe. Outside the pub is a massive car park and modern houses (presumably built over the pub garden to pay for the gastro refurb. Beer good if you can bear the flash gastro customers
26 Apr 2013 09:12