The Bell Inn, Ipswich

The Village pub for the attractive Suffolk village of Kersey and it’s a very good one. The multi roomed layout is unchanged from the description below and the only thing to add is that the main bar area seating to the right is some very comfortable settee seating just for drinking whereas the other rooms were more aligned to dining. It also benefits from a very pleasant courtyard and garden area out the back of the pub. We visited on a Sunday lunchtime where nearly everyone else in the pub was in for Sunday dinner and in the side rooms or out in the garden and we managed to get the front facing window settee seating to ourselves, which was a very good spot to enjoy a couple of very well kept ales. Still three handpumps on the bar and I am guessing from its additional badge information that the Timothy Taylor Landlord is a permanent fixture. For our visit Wainright Amber and the local Mauldons Silver Adder Pale Ale were the other two on. We tried both of these and the local Pale Ale was an excellent pint. So all in all a cracking village pub and well worth a visit.

Official site of The Bell Inn - www.thebellinnkersey.co.uk

Official site of The Bell Inn - www.thebellinnkersey.co.uk

A very attractive, half-timbered pub with leaded windows in this small village, it has fortunately retained all of it’s charm inside and is just as inviting as you would hope from looking at the outside. A board outside said that it dates from around 1379. The entrance way has an unusual brick lined floor with the main bar being off to the right. There is a low beamed ceiling, and plenty of chunky wooden supporting posts along with red patterned carpet at the front and quarry tiling at the rear. An old fireplace was at the rear and some colourful local photography was for sale on the pale lemon walls. A small TV was up in one corner which perhaps seemed slightly out of place, but fortunately this was not in use. A couple of smaller rooms off to the left were broadly similar in terms of décor, but without perhaps quite as much cosy charm as the main bar. Here too was a large fireplace with a massive wooden lintel above and a wood burning stove as well as various copper pans, old bottles, earthenware jugs and even an old telephone. A shelf on the wall had a selection of locally made preserves for sale. We didn’t inspect the menu, but did notice that the specials board noted that it was Pudding & Pie day (Wednesday) and there was also a selection of vegetarian dishes and a good choice of sandwiches. Beers on tap were Adnams Southwold, Timothy Taylor Landlord and Otter Ale, whilst a board next to the bar listed a couple more that were coming soon. The solitary cider was Aspall’s Suffolk. All in all I thought this was a fantastic pub and a very quaint and attractive village, and well worth a visit.