The Cock Inn, Gravesend

Perfect Country Pub. All nick nacks, photos of Winnie, log fires and top quality beers. A gem of a find down a lonely country lane. Visit blogged at http://bit.ly/2oqfX8f

Lovely pub with great atmosphere. Set down a very quiet country lane, enjoying a pint outside on a day with decent weather is a most relaxing experience in the peace and tranquillity. Inside there are low beams, old posters, comfortable seats, log fires and a friendly atmosphere. Usually about eight real ales are available, all in excellent condition, Adnams Ales being the constant while others guest. Good quality food available at reasonable prices. The gent's toilets are worth a visit just to check out the many photographs on the walls - nothing too risqué, I hasten to add! Several local clubs meet here and use the Club Room in a separate building. Morris Dancers occasionally perform in the car park. Dog friendly (but no children allowed inside) The Cock is popular with hikers, push-cyclists and readers as many of the walls are covered with shelves laden with books just asking to be taken down and browsed through.

Instantly impressive; low beamed ceiling, gleaming brass handpumps, polished wood floor, quality rugs, friendly welcome. The pumps are unclipped, but the beers are listed on a chalkboard at the bar – mostly mainstream, but a decent selection – Black Sheep, Goachers Dark Mild, Adnams Bitter & Broadside, Hogs Back Best, Doombar, Sheps Masterbrew, 3or4 of which will rotate. Your fussy correspondent thought his Hogs Back was ok on Saturday & had raised no complaint, but a new barrel was pulled thru in a trice, unbidden, and my pint removed to be replaced afresh. The public has a few barstools, a bar billiard table in very good nick, a dartboard with polished brass oche and other board versions stored nearby, incl Yorkshire board (standard layout but no trebles), what looks to be called an Ipswich Fives, or Wide 5s (20,5,15,10 repeated thrice to form just 12 segments), Lincolnshire Board (like the Yorkshire but no outer bull, & all black face), but I didn't see a Manchester Log-End (smaller, different number layout, no treble, tiny doubles, and the Elm wood needs soaking overnight to make soft enough to play!). We did have a game, and the guv showed us the sensible chain which links over to prevent accidental access from the conservatory. The bar room also features a photo of “Camer & Redwood Shoot's Beaters' Day 2006”, wall mounted heads of stags & foxes, decoy ducks, a log pile, a mounted replica of a 32lb salmon produced from a cast (haha) of the original fish, and another (trout?) caught, in Ireland, by a Cock regular who unfortunately turned up his toes the following day - something of Hemingway's Old Man & the Sea about that. The conservatory (with suspended wood ceiling) is nicely wood furnished, with each table supplied with games sets (eg doms, crib, backgammon), singer sewing machines sit atop a display case of model motorbikes, a portrait of Winston Churchill presides above the wood-stove (central, also, to the bar-room, where hang assorted polished copper skillets), a wood barrel supports an old typewriter, above which another case displays model cars (pre-Matchbox?). Out to the prettily planted fenced garden, concrete replica tree-trunk tables with proper canvas umbrellas which can be wound up or down. Split between a small lawn, stone tiles, & gravel (not Roger's petanque piste, which I missed), there is even a covered trellis (smokers allowed) with seating, heat lamps, a pot-bellied stove, a dartboard (hung v low), and a small section of immitation bar-top, complete with bar stools! Hanging bags of nuts were proving very popular with the birds (stop that tittering at the back Watson!). The corridor to the lounge has more display models, and showcases of old beer cans. The saloon bar has a sewing machine table opposite a leather sofa and settle library corner, which is homely with a rug on wooden floor, and works nicely (unlike most sofas in pubs). More books crowd a ceiling shelf near the bar which, itself, sports prints of the hunt. Both bars have ceiling covered in old (& very old) beer mats and both have wooden pillars decorated with brasses (I've warned you Watson!). Air & rail memorabilia are also present, in fact the friendly guv, who even showed me his amazing organisation of the small cellar, commented that the collection of diverse sundries had built up over his 25yrs at the pub. The pub is dog-friendly and a troop of happy Springers were wagging around on Sat. Apparently there is an owned cricket pitch next door(?), didn't see that. The lounge bar is the original build (1713) with the public added later that century. If you are walking from Sole Street stn, as we did, you can take the footpath around or across the field to save the much longer walk around Sole St and Gold St (see google satellite map). And with this on the same line as Farningham Road stn (for Horton Kirby's Bull), there's really no excuse not to head out this way.

The Cock Inn is situated in a fairly remote rural location, although it is possible to walk here from the comparatively nearby Sole Street station. However you decide to get here, it will almost certainly be worth the effort. This is an excellent rural pub that demands an extended visit and much exploration. You enter through the large car park/front garden area which has ample seating for sunnier days, and pass through an interesting external corridor which offers doorways to the two bars on the right and the toilets on the left. The corridor itself is worth spending a bit of time in so that you can admire a number of cabinets displaying old beer cans, model cars, spirit miniatures etc as well as plenty of posters and info sheets about wartime aircraft. The first door on the right takes you into the saloon bar – a wonderfully cosy room with plenty of dark wood and leather furnishings that I found myself spending the majority of my stay in. The floor has been covered in a number of slightly fraying old rugs and there are some interesting seating options, including a small individual booth, a table made from an old sewing machine and some high stools around a large barrel. The servery is to the rear left and has a fireplace to the right of it and a large stove on the other side. Books can be found just about everywhere, with shelves on most walls and some high shelves running just below the ceiling which is covered with old beer mats. Any remaining wall space has been filled up with paintings of rural scenes or more WWII aircraft. The public bar, located a little further along the corridor, has similar décor but extends into a modern conservatory which had a plentiful amount of standard table and chair seating. The corridor eventually leads you out to a pleasantly green back garden complete with attractive water feature. Adnams beers are popular here and I found Southwold Bitter, Broadside and Lighthouse on alongside Shepherd Neame Master Brew, St Austell Trelawney and Proper Job and Goachers Dark Mild (£3.00). The keg range included some unusual foreign lagers such as Bitburger, Licher and Kostrizer. I tried the Mild and the Trelawney, both of which were absolutely spot on. The staff were very friendly and helpful and I found the place to be very welcoming to newcomers and regulars alike. Kent is blessed with some outstanding rural pubs and this place is up with some of the best that I have found, aided by the fact that they are primarily drink-led, with only a selection of rolls and a limited lunch menu available. This is a destination pub and one that I’m very pleased I made the effort to find.

Lovely old fashioned English ale house. Can hardly find fault with the place. Superb.

This quintessential 300 year old rural pub is tucked away down some small country lanes but is well worth digging out the satnav to locate. The current owners have been there 25 years and created a pub with a very good and long established local reputation that attracts several local community organizations including the cricket club, walking groups, bike enthusiasts (you can always expect to see a few lovingly restored Triumphs and Nortons pulling up in the car park), Morris Dancers and all manor of obscure sporting groups. The interior is divided into similar sized 2 bars that lead from a flagstoned corridor that contains collections of beer cans, bottles, model cars and wartime charts and posters. The saloon bar at the front has bare floors with rugs, old beams, exposed brickwork and a couple of enticing fireplaces. Brasses, cigarette cards, old World War 2 posters and memorabelia are dotted about with various bits of Bric a Brac including an old fashioned telephone. The ceiling is littered with fading beer mats and there are several bulging bookshelves if you fancy a quiet read. To the rear is the public bar with more collectables, old local photosa nd a few stuffed animals as well as dart board and bar billiards table. A dining area stretches into the picturesque and partly covered beer garden complete with water feature and a Petanque pitch (they have a league team based here). 7 Ales generally available including a mild (Goachers), Adnams, Adnams Extra and 4 rotating guest beers (Master Brew, Doom Bar, Bass and Burton Bridge on my recent visit). Quality is excellent and prices very reasonable (between £2.70 and £2.90 - CAMRA members receive 10p off with their Membership Card). The hand pumps are all located in the public bar but the ales are listed in the saloon bar on a blackboard. There is no music, TV's or fruit machines and entertainment is of the traditional kind. It must be said that the Tuesday quiz is not pitched at the average pub goer although it does appear to be immensely popular so take along a few local Einsteins if you plan to have a go. It should be noted that the place is dog friendly but children are a no-no (which is a blessing to some, a burden to others). A very civilised, friendly and well run place with quality beers a great deal of appeal.