The Royal Oak, Battle

The Royal Oak is a long and thin 15th Century pub, circa 1490, located on the A21 to the north of Hastings. The far left of the pub houses a dining area/function room. The bar in the right side is sandwiched between a large inglenook to the left, with seating behind, and a couple of steps up to seating to the right. There are some very low beams in this pub, so stooping is in order. There are no televisions or gaming machines, but there was some low background music playing. There is a quiz every Thursday and the last Friday of each month is Irish folk night. Available from the bar on keg was Fosters, Hurlimann Helles Lager, Oranjeboom, Thatchers Gold and Guinness. On cask were Shepherd Neame’s Whitstable Bay and Long Man Brewery’s Best, the third hand pump was unused. This is primarily a food pub where a burger is priced at £11. Saturday night is Greek meze night for £17 per person, as advertised in the doorway and on local radio. Out the back is a patio with grass covered beer garden beyond with picnics and children’s climbing apparatus. Out the front are a few parking spaces. Autumn/Winter opening hours are Monday closed, Tuesday 18:00 – 22:00, Wednesday – Friday 12:00 – 15:00 and 18:00 – 22:00, Saturday 12:00 – 23:00, Sunday 12:00 – 16:00. The kitchen is pretty much open when the pub is but closes an hour earlier. You get a sense of history in here, but I don’t think I’ll visit again.