The Royal Oak, West Molesey

Located on the main road through the centre of Molesey, this is a good sized, two bar pub that has been opened out into one large space. Inside, you'll find a carpeted room with the servery in the middle of the rear wall and seating areas to either side. Half height tongue and groove panelling can be found around most of the walls, with white textured wallpaper above over to the right, and higher traditional panels in the left-hand space. Banquettes run around the front and side walls with proper pub chairs in support and a few low stools in the middle of the room. The bar is in two parts, reflecting the former layout, separated by a huge brick column, and the two sides of the room are divided by a dark wood arch, lined with many pump clips. The servery is a little dull, comprising a two tone counter front and mirrored bar back decorated with a bank note collection. There's a low, brick fireplace to the right with an unused TV screen above and the walls have been decorated with mirrors, beer themed posters, black and white photos and a collection of beer bottles along the top of the high wall panels. Books stand in the window sills, there's a juke box on a brick pillar and two dartboards can be found to the rear right, with various trophies displayed on a high shelf. There are four handpulls on the bar, which offered a choice of Fullers London Pride, St Austell Tribute and Twickenham Naked Ladies (£5.00 a pint), with Taylors Landlord having recently been taken off. The Naked Ladies seemed like the most interesting option, and was in pretty good shape, reflecting their inclusion in recent editions of the Good Beer Guide. The pub is a short walk from Molesey FC's ground, and a few punters were clearly here enjoying a pre-match pint before the evening kick-off. I thought this was a decent enough local's boozer that clearly serves this fairly underpubbed community well. It's a bit of a basic pub, with nothing particularly standing out beyond the well-kept pint, but I was happy enough killing a bit of time here and imagine the local's are grateful to have such a place. Date of visit - 3rd September 2024

Official site of The Royal Oak - www.royaloakwestmolesey.co.uk

Official site of The Royal Oak - www.royaloakwestmolesey.co.uk