Bear & Ragged Staff, Dartford

Official site of Bear & Ragged Staff - www.greeneking.co.uk

Official site of Bear & Ragged Staff - www.greeneking.co.uk

I think that this place must have improved considerably since the previous reviewers' visits. but it has suffered from a typical Greene King makeover, with grey painted counter front and some walls, wood that appears distressed and/or reclaimed all over the place, clinical white tiles where there should be a bar back, and of course the tall benches and tall tables that this brewery likes so much. It's all very utilitarian now. But I realise that the majority of people must like these madeover pubs for some reason, because since Greene King got their hands on my local and did a very similar job on it to the one they've done here, it has attracted more customers. However there are some normal tables and chairs, and when my chums and I were in at lunchtime on a Wednesday it was of course pretty quiet and we had no difficulty finding somewhere comfortable to sit. But, unlike a lot of Greene King pubs, there was no guest ale on in here, just their IPA and Abbot. But to be fair, the Abbot was in very good condition and a very reasonable £3.20 a pint after the 10% CAMRA discount had been applied (£3.55 gross). All kinds of meal deals were available, including a deal giving two meals for £10.49. This is a typical Greene King pub, and although being nothing very special, we enjoyed our meal, and the hour or so that we spent in here.