A proper pub on Ashford High Street
Kent ales poured by hand, seasonal plates from Tenterden veg and Canterbury beef, and a Sunday roast that sells out by Friday. On High Street since 1847, eight hand-pulls kept well, fire lit most days.
Hours
Monday to Thursday: 12pm to 11pmFriday and Saturday: 12pm to midnightSunday: 12pm to 10:30pm
Kitchen
Lunch: 12pm to 3pmDinner: 5pm to 9pmSunday roast: 12pm until it is gone
A seat by the fire since 1847
Started as a coaching inn on the London to Dover road. The oak is original, the kettle still hangs over the bar, fire going by four most days. Plan — snug, main bar, yard — is still the 1847 plan.
In 1923 fire took the shops next door; Ashford brought buckets, then timber, and we were pouring again by Saturday. The building was Grade II listed in 1978, and in 2015 David and Helen took the keys, lifted the carpets and found the oak boards underneath.
Two centuries on, it is still a proper pub on Ashford High Street — kept for the town, not for show. Quiet pint after work, Helen's quiz Wednesday, roast Sunday. Proper welcome, no fuss. If lucky, the settle by the hearth.
What we pour and plate
The kitchen buys from Tenterden veg, Canterbury beef and the dairy down the road. The pumps pour Kent cask, changed with the barrels. Nothing fancy — everything proper.
Eight hand-pulls
Rotating cask from Kent — Spitfire, British Bulldog, Hop Fuzz elderflower IPA and the House Ale that Canterbury Ales brew for us. Plus bottles and honest lagers. Sophie lets you taste before you choose. This week the pumps run £4.80 to £5.50 a pint; guests change with the barrels, so ask what is new.
The Sunday roast
Sirloin pink in middle, lamb shoulder that falls apart, or nut roast Wellington. Dripping potatoes, veg from Tenterden, Yorkshire puds as big as your fist, gravy Helen won't write down. Four meats or the nut roast, £15.50 to £19.50, from 12pm until it is gone — and it books out by Friday most weeks.
Good to know
Dogs
Welcome in the bar and garden, on leads. Water bowls and biscuits by the bar. Not in the dining room.
Children
Welcome until 9pm. High chairs, smaller portions, colouring pencils. After that it is bar only.
Step-free access
Side door on Church Passage, left of the building, ramped. Accessible loo on the ground floor.
Parking
No car park of our own — Elwick Road multi-storey and Park Mall are both two minutes' walk. Some High Street bays are free after 6pm.
Allergies
We cook vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free every day. Tell us when you book and again when you sit down. Full list on the allergen page.
Payment
Cash, debit or credit card. A 12.5% service charge is added for tables of six or more.
What's on this month
Next up · Friday 4 to Sunday 6 September 2026, 12pm to 11pm
Late-summer beer festival
Twenty guest ales from Kent — Shepherd Neame, Westerham, Hop Fuzz and more — in the garden. Music all weekend, kitchen noon to nine. Walk in, pay as you go.
Every week
- Wednesday quizEvery Wednesday, 8pm
- Friday musicEvery Friday, 8:30pm
- Sunday roastEvery Sunday, 12pm to 6pm
That is the week here: quiz Wednesday, music Friday, roast Sunday until it is gone. Once a month or so we do something louder — a beer festival in the garden, a murder mystery in the snugs, a wine evening with Sophie. It all goes on the what's on page.
Book your table
Two for dinner or twenty for a gathering. Sunday roast books out by Friday; the rest of the week is usually easier. Use the form or ring the bar — we answer both.
