The Woodman, Banstead

A pleasant little pub in a rural village just out of the suburbs. I admit to being bamboozled by the sign saying "traditional free house", only to discover it was clearly a Stonegate effort inside, tarted up with polished floors and a lot of light grey paintwork. It clearly has a fair food trade but manages to keep a pub feel round the bar, the curved end of an inverted J shape, with the dining part to the rear. Ales on were Harvey's Best, Proper Job and London Pride. Nice enough.

This attractive early 20th Century building, with a distinctive turret to one side and hung tile frontage, is an attractive sight on approach and the only pub in the village of Woodmansterne. A nice front garden overlooking the village green leads into the main bar area, which has been given a fairly good going over by the interior design team, leaving it opened out into one long L shaped room with a neutral colour scheme and smart, well upholstered seating throughout. The bar is on the back wall of the front section, to the right of the entrance, with limited seating options opposite and a darts area to one side. High tables and stools run down the left hand side past a modern fireplace, eventually giving way to formal tables and chairs in a sizeable rear space that doubles up as the dining area. Despite all of these alterations, the interior still has a bit of a cosy feel to it, depending on where you manage to grab a table. It was a warm day when we arrived, so we eventually ended up in the large, leafy back garden, which has a well constructed shelter with lots of tables and chairs close to the back door, a good mix of trees and plants, giant Connect Four and a children's play area complete with bouncy castle and sandpit. There were three ales available when we arrived - the regular Sharp's Doom Bar, plus guest from Hop Stuff (Fusilier) and Kissingate (Sussex). An Orchard Pig cider was also available. My pint of Fusilier was in pretty good shape and the service was very good, especially from the cheery bloke who cleared our table. I thought this was a very attractive village pub that has perhaps lost some of its internal character but retains enough positives to make a visit worthwhile. The garden in particular was a real treat and a decent pint of ale to go with it was a definite bonus.

Woodman page at a Stonegate pubs site - www.mylocalpub.com

Woodman page at a Stonegate pubs site - www.mylocalpub.com