KentOnline

bannermobile

News

Sport

Business

What's On

Advertise

Contact

Other KM sites

CORONAVIRUS WATCH KMTV LIVE SIGN UP TO OUR NEWSLETTERS LISTEN TO OUR PODCASTS LISTEN TO KMFM
SUBSCRIBE AND SAVE
Secret Drinker

Secret Drinker reviews The Bell pub, St Nicholas-at-Wade in Thanet

By: Secret Drinker whatsoneditor@thekmgroup.co.uk

Published: 05:00, 13 January 2023

Updated: 11:54, 13 January 2023

I’ve never understood folks who do Dry January – after all, if you want a month off the booze why pick the worst, most boring month to do it? What’s more worrying is pubs in one corner of Kent appear to be joining this month of abstinence.

Mrs SD and I were after a bite for lunch and spotted the Jolly Farmer on Manston High Street but sadly, although the lights were on, the door was bolted. Further along the A299 we reached Broomfield but, despite a new paint job, the Huntsman & Horn was locked up tight too. With the Gate Inn at Chislet also closed, I wondered if we’d ever get a sarnie.

The Bell on the High Street in St Nicholas at Wade was the fourth pub we tried for lunch – the first three we found were all closed

Fortunately it was a case of fourth time lucky as The Bell in St Nicholas at Wade is bucking the local trend by staying open to serve thirsty punters.

We were welcomed in equal measure by barmaid Keira and regular Chris, who has his own table by the fire reserved every day of the calendar year (he’s even got a statue to prove it).

Chris, who ought to know, says there are usually three beers on tap and they are changed regularly, however in the words of a famous Meatloaf song I was reduced to a choice of Timothy Taylor or Courage Best and selected the former.

Locked up tight, the first three pubs we tried for a lunchtime drink were all closed - the Jolly Farmer at Manston...
The Huntsman & Horn at Broomfield...
and then the Gate Inn at Chislet

I assume Mrs SD must have taken a New Year’s resolution to be more adventurous as she chose a glass of Pinot Grigio rather than usual SB in the only size of glass she knows!

mpu1

We had the SD Hound with us, fresh from a run on the beach, so took a seat at the other table near the roaring fire. Our new pal Chris continued to keep the fire blazing by regularly loading it with coal and logs, some days he even sets it up and lights it.

Frustration at wasting our time on three deserted hostelries was quickly forgotten when we were told lunch is served in The Bell until 2.30pm.

Already settled in and feeling at home, the SD Hound likes nothing better than a roaring fire
No short measure here! There was no way any more Timothy Taylor’s was going to be poured into that glass

I ordered a steak and stilton baguette for £8.50 and ‘er indoors’ went for the sausage variety for £7.50 and, when questioned, chose to have fried onions added. They came with salad and were hot and delicious – apparently, keeping things in the family, chef Kirk, is barmaid Keira’s brother.

During lunch we were joined by another regular Martin, who ‘just happened to be passing’ while taking his seven-month-old Jack Russell Jed for a walk.

He was allowed to take a seat at Chris’ reserved table so the pair could indulge in their daily rant and robustly disagree about the best, and worst, local pubs.

Wonderfully old fashioned and traditional, apart perhaps from the introduction of a few trendy lightbulbs
Regular Chris says there are usually three beers available on tap but when we were in the choice was restricted to two – Knowle Spring, 4.2%, from Timothy Taylor’s Brewery and 4% Best Bitter from Courage.

Mrs SD was already running her eye down the dessert menu when I returned to the bar – this time I switched to the Courage Best and she reverted to type with a Sauvignon Blanc. The pint had a creamier head and was slightly fizzier than its predecessor, but didn’t have the same depth of taste as Timothy Taylor’s. The wine, I’m assured, was a very good drop.

By the time I returned with the drinks, a sweet selection had been made and a tarte tatin with ice cream, at a cost of £6, was on its way.

Not partaking, apart from a swift taster, I took the time to take a proper look round. As well as the two front rooms there is a large function/dining room behind the main bar at the back, right of the pub.

Mrs SD is a big fan of a sausage sandwich and when she was asked if she’d like fried onions on her baguette she leapt at the chance
The steak on my baguette was cooked to perfection and it was loaded with plenty of tasty Stilton cheese
Basically an upside down apple tart, Mrs SD chose the tarte tatin with ice cream and said it was wonderfully rich and full of flavour

This room has been thoroughly renovated fairly recently and there is a screen on the back wall. There is also another, much smaller room on the left which is set aside for dining and has the classic ‘welcome to the madhouse’ sign sitting on the window seat. There’s also an illuminated feature wine store.

mpu4

At the back of this room a small door leads to a narrow hallway and a side door to the garden, although the garden is currently closed and the hallway filled with Christmas decorations ahead of being stored away.

As well as traditional heavy beams there is plenty of feature wooden panelling and traditional furniture. The floors are reassuring higgledy-piggledy but make sure you mind your footing on the steps as well as your head going through the low doors.

This back room, with a screen (switched off) has undergone a full makeover fairly recently. There used to be an old fruit machine but it has now gone
Another easily adaptable dining space, depending on size of the parties expected, this is the room at the front left of the pub

During my travels I met the local flower man who was replacing several perfectly good looking bouquets with other perfectly good looking flowers. I’m clearly no expert on such matters as it had to be pointed out to me all the flowers are false and he is simply employed to rotate the different displays.

Pudding had been consumed by now and as the pub was closing we settled up and bid both the staff and regulars a fond farewell.

As we left I noticed the Sun Inn opposite was opening up spot on 3pm, just as The Bell was shutting up shop.

This co-ordinated approach from the village pubs makes more sense when you learn Sarah, who runs The Bell, snapped up the Sun Inn about 18 months ago and with her hands on the pair can make sure nothing is lost through ‘competition’ from across the road.

It didn’t seem like a madhouse, despite the sign – this dining room with a large table and well-lit wine store is at the back left of the pub
The garden, on the left hand side of the pub, has been reseeded ready for the spring and isn’t currently in use. I seem to remember there used to be an extra-large outdoor screen at one time.

The Bell, The Street, St. Nicholas-at-Wade CT7 0NT

Decor: Exactly as it should be in a pub this old, with all this history – a wood-panelled entrance leads to a beamed bar with a roaring fire. All the floors are reassuringly uneven. ****

Drink: A duo of decent beers, the Timothy Taylor’s was better than the Courage but in an ideal world it would have been great to have had a third beer on offer. Mrs SD assured me both glasses of wine passed muster. ***

Price: The beers were both £4.80, both large wines, Pinot and Sauvignon were £7.50, the sarnies were £16 the pair and a pudding £6. **

Food: Compliments to the chef, the baguettes were both extremely tasty and fresh – I thought the tarte tatin was a touch rich, but Mrs SD says that with the vanilla ice cream it was lovely. ****

Staff: The barmaid was welcoming, smiley and attentive, although she didn’t want to be drawn into recommending the best beer – she left that to regular Chris. ****

We were only after sandwiches, but if I had been looking for a full-on meal I’d have chosen the roasted salmon with crab mash and garlic-steamed mussels from the specials board.
This was the outgoing display and, to my untrained eye, the flowers still looked incredibly fresh. It had to be explained to me that they aren’t real and are simply rotated and refreshed on a regular basis.
I’m not quite sure who this fellow is? Answers on a postcard please.
Chris has just left his reserved table by the fire, complete with coal scuttle and two baskets for firewood

Catch up on all Secret Drinker's Kent pub reviews here

Click here to follow Secret Drinker on Twitter

Want more Secret Drinker? Sign up here for his monthly newsletter

More by this author

sticky

© KM Group - 2024