Organ & Dragon, Epsom

Currently closed and boarded, a planning application has been submitted for conversion to a KFC restaurant and takeaway, a sorry end indeed.

Formerly The Organ Inn,this is a 1930's roadhouse which over the years has lost it's seperate rooms and is now largely open plan.As Rex notes there is a large Thai restaurant to the left side of the building with impressive carved wood ,a ceiling with curved surrounds and a sky light dating back to the days when this area was a small dance hall.The restaurant menu is standard Thai and well cooked but the views over the Ewell By Pass leave a little to be desired .There is however an enclosed garden for fine weather dining. The pub part of the operation is where the L shaped bar is,and many locals drink in here.There is a flat screen with sounded turned down for sports fans and the assortment of furniture gives a lounge feel.Both English and Thai bar food is available in the "pub" .There were two handpumps,both reversed and talking to the barman revealed that real ale is only an occasional visitor here. A decent Thai meal warrants a revisit but there is little to justify a trip just for a drink.

This is a very large pub on the junction of the A240 and London Rd, set back from the road and with parking to the side. The building has been extended to the left at some time, with a large room currently being used as a Thai restaurant. This used to be a Jim Thompson pub, named after the Thai silk merchant, and the Thai connection is still very much present as the food on offer is mainly Thai, either as bar snacks, or as more formal meals in the main, attractively furnished, restaurant. The most attractive feature of the restaurant is the carved woodwork in the Thai style – teak if it’s the genuine article – at the back of the room. Basic stir fry meals on the bar menu were in the region of £7 or so, and also included a handful of pub grub favourites. There was just the one real ale on – Sharp’s Doom Bar at £3 a pint, with another handpump unused. The main bar area is mainly bare-boarded with a bit of carpeting near the front windows. The full panoply of furnishings are here, including tall tables/stools, sofas, armchairs, upholstered benches and low stools, wickerwork chairs, and even a couple of normal tables and chairs. There were a couple of TVs on, but muted, and showing spome sports channel, and with some music being played at background volume. Free wi-fi is advertised. This is quite a nice pub, being clean, fairly comfortable and well maintained. My feeling is that the restaurant side of the operation is the major business stream. In fact I don’t really think that it’s worth coming here just for the beer (the Doom Bar wasn’t brilliant) and if I came here again I expect it would be for a Thai meal.