Market House, Maidstone

Official site of Market House - www.markethouse.pub

Official site of Market House - www.markethouse.pub

I visited Earls on Friday afternoon last week and found a high street pub busy with locals watching the Ryder Cup via Sky Sports on the plasma screens. The interior is L shaped with the bar area at the front and tables at the rear that were set for diners. The bar is stocked with standard draught and the two hand pumps were drawing Bombardier and Hobgoblin. Pub grub is available from 11:00 until 16:00 Monday to Saturday and midday until 16:00 on Sundays. Entertainment is listed for most days of the week, but don’t wear a hat or take a dog as you’ll not be allowed in. There are some picnic tables on the path out the front that were taken up by smokers. The service was friendly and I thought that there was a good atmosphere in here for a high street pub. I would have no problem returning.

First positive, Earls looks and feels like a pub inside and out, not something that can be taken for granted in central Maidstone. There is generally a good vibe from a mature crowd. It is known for music and football, but it does these well and enthusiastically rather than as an afterthought, so you know what you will get. I somehow always seem to gravitate here during a night in Maidstone.