The Bulls Head, Reigate

This is a pleasant looking, two room local’s pub well situated part-way down Reigate High Street. A nice, traditional feeling front bar forms an L-shape as a result of the servery occupying the rear right corner of the room. Smart modern floorboards, plain painted walls, muted lighting, mostly in the form of fairly lights, and traditional pub décor such as brewery mirrors and a selection of old black and white photos give the room a nice homely feel and resulted in all but one group of customers preferring to drink here rather than in the rear room. The bar has a tongue and groove panelled counter and traditional bar back, all augmented with some pretty hefty Covid-inspired screens along the length of the counter. A few standard tables and chairs stand under the front windows and a long banquette extends down most of the left-hand wall, serving a number of small tables. A door to the rear leads through to the rear room which has been set up with similar décor but furnished with larger tables ideal for bigger groups. A nice brick fireplace acts as a bit of a focal point and the walls are decorated with more old photos whilst the window to the rear looks out over the pub’s modest beer garden – a decent sized space accessed by a staircase from the main bar, with several picnic tables under a canopy. A very odd semi-operatic soundtrack played, which seemed at odds with the loud, laddish interactions between the bar staff and some of the younger patrons. Just the two ales on the bar on this visit – Sharps Doom Bar and Black Sheep Bitter, with at least one more pump left unclipped. The Black Sheep was in reasonable shape and served to me by a very friendly, polite barman who ensured all the relevant track and trace protocols had been followed before showing me to a table. This struck me as a pretty competent town centre pub with a good band of loyal locals and a nice choice of spaces to relax in. The beer choice was a bit pedestrian on this visit and the conditioning was adequate rather than outstanding, but these may well be issues linked to social distancing and the reduced customer numbers that inevitably results in. This wouldn’t be my first choice for a return visit, but it’s a decent enough place that worked well on a mini-crawl.

Dating in some form from 1628, The Bull’s Head is situated right on Reigate’s main shopping street and probably attracts a fair amount of trade from passing cave visitors. This is a town noted for being part of the Stockbroker Belt and from inside, you can frequently see the obligatory black Range Rover or Bentley Continental glide past. This though is probably not frequented by their drivers as this would seem to be a resolutely more locals’ pub, customers being mainly male and a little lubricated. The interior is small with some traditional elements such as the painted rough plaster walls and beams, but it’s not Olde Worlde. There’s a flashing games machine in the corner and music played at a sensible volume. Bare boarded, furniture is traditional with the addition of some brown vinyl studded banquettes and there’s a fireplace out front and log burning stove to the rear snug, though I’m not sure if they are used – certainly there was a reassuring smell of firewood about the place. There’s food but it certainly isn’t gastro, being simple pub fayre such as an enormously hearty portion of gammon, egg and chips with salad for around £8.50, with sachet condiments on the tables. The staff were very friendly and efficient too. Ales: Courage Directors’, St. Austell Tribute, Sharp’s Doom Bar and Marston’s Lancaster Bomber. Interestingly, the halves were £2.10 but a pint was a pricey £4.25. Aren’t pints supposed to be better value than halves? Either way, it was satisfactory. This is a perfectly decent boozer, but I don’t know how it compares with the competition and it’s highly unlikely that I’ll ever find out. A more adventurous selection of ales and at more competitive prices would garner a higher mark, but on balance it would certainly seem worth a visit.

This is one of those honest little pubs that is a pleasure to find. The main bar area as you enter is traditionally furnished, low-ceilinged, has the matchboard fronted bar counter, and a large brick built fireplace is on the left. Dried hops were wreathed over the bar counter. The fire wasn't alight when we visited, but we could smell that it had been going fairly recently. At the back through an archway is a smaller room at the back, which looks as if it might not have originally formed part of the pub. This room had rough lathed walls, and black beams giving it a brewer's rustic country pub feel. There were three ales on - Sharp's Atlantic, St Austell Tribute, and Courage Director's. As I recall, all the beers were under £4. Hot food was available on Wednesday lunchtime, with most main courses in the £10 - £11 range. The burger with chips, coleslaw, and a bit of salad was £10.50. It came served up on a slab of wood, which I've become quite used to by now - I don't recall the last time that I had a burger on a plate. I liked this pub a lot. It had a homely and friendly feel to it. The young barman took our food and drink orders at the table (there were nine of us) although table service was not advertised. I'm always wary of table service for real ale, as it less easy to require a top-up when it is necessary - but it was not necessary here. I would happily revisit this pub.

Small and pleasant enough pub in main shopping street with several good and changing beers available. Quite an aged and slightly cluttered feel to it but at least that gives it some character.

The Bulls Head is a small high street boozer that I visited at 21:00 on a recent Monday evening when there were two other customers who were tucking into some food. I gleaned from the menu that the food is standard pub fayre with mains priced around £8. The interior consists of a small bar area at the front and a small seating area at the rear. During my visit a standard draught selection was available and I counted four hand pumps. Two of these were unused leaving Jennings’ Cumberland and Wells’ Bombardier as the ale options. I’m not sure how they manage, but apparently a band squeezes in here every Friday night and jazz is found here on the last Sunday of every month. The service was polite, but I didn’t see anything here that would have me rushing back.