The Curious Pig in the Parlour, Crawley

Another 'Gatwick fringe' dining pub, with an opened-out U-shaped layout and accommodation in a side building to the left. Refurbished semi-modern furniture and decoration throughout, with a patio and beer garden to the rear. The pair of handpumps aren't immediately obvious as you enter since they are on the right-hand side of the L-shaped counter, but they were pouring London Pride (£5.40) and Old Speckled Hen on my visit.

Official site of The Curious Pig in the Parlour - www.baronspubs.com

Official site of The Curious Pig in the Parlour - www.baronspubs.com

A former Marstons Inn’s pub restaurant hotel known as the Hedgehog Inn it was sold off to an independent owner and was closed for a major refurbishment and reopened at the beginning of June and has been renamed The Curious Pig in the Parlour. The name alone should tell you all you need to know that this is a food orientated pub restaurant but more restaurant than pub, especially as it now houses a Pizza oven and has a pizza menu available all day alongside the lunchtime and evening menu.. Style wise and décor wise it’s one of those usual modern Gastro style makeovers bare stone and wood on the floors , pastel shades on the walls and most of the pub set for dining, although there is a space by the bar with comfy seating and a very pleasant renovated garden area out back. And although there was an army of young , blue uniform wearing waiting staff , some serious organisation skills and staff training are still required a few weeks after opening. The bar does benefit from four real ale pumps alongside the usual chrome draft offerings and Chapel Down Curious Brew, Sambrookes Wandel at £3.50, and Harveys IPA and Sussex Best at an eye watering £3.95 (I suppose you have to cover the cost of the refurb somehow ), were available. To be fair my pint of Sanbrooke’s was perfectly passable and the couple of pizzas we tried were good and at standard Pizza Express price levels . although they were pretentiously served on a lump of wood that these places seem to think adds style for some strange reason. And a good point to this place is its closeness to Gatwick airport just off the A264 which is how we found it in the first place. It also is a B&B accommodation with 9 rooms available, but better looking at trip Advisor to see how that performs