Ye Olde Windsor Castle, Leatherhead

There were four ales on handpump during my visit – Courage Best; Adnam’s Broadside; Spitfire; and Bombardier, with a couple of pumps unused. Only time for a swift half before catching my train: so, Bombardier at £1.65 a half. This is Chef & Brewer pub with the usual pubco style menu, but the prices aren’t excessive – most mains are in the £8 - £9 range. They advertise a weekday (Mon – Sat) lunch menu which seems a lot cheaper – e.g. the steak & ale pie is £6.49. The pub itself is a large rambling affair broken up into separate eating and drinking areas by large exposed brick pillars, archways and the like. The traditional dark brown, or perhaps black, beams are on the ceiling, some prints on the walls, pots and kettles and suchlike hanging from the beams, and the odd (or rather unidentified by yours truly) bit of farm or craft equipment on display completes the décor. Seating is standard tables and chairs. There’s a large garden at the back, with a large heated umbrella for smokers, with picnic benches both at the rear and front of the pub. It’s got the look of a destination pub that caters for people who drive to it (there’s a large car park) for a reasonably priced pub meal. As chain pubs go, it seems a fairly good one. I would be happy to drop in again for a bite to eat, or a pint, sometime.