The Rock, Horsham

They've removed the Brewhouse here, but the Kitchen remains, and this is specialising in Smash Burgers; how these differ from your regular burger is an investigation for another day and another, more appropriately-named, website. Along with the brewing kit, the hand pumps have also been shipped out, leaving the usual craft assortment, some from B&K, and the rest from several of the better of the new wave (Deya, Siren & Burning Sky for example). Weirdly, the 9 taps on the back wall are listed on a blackboard with strengths and prices, while the font on the bar gets no advertising, though there are A5 sheets listing what's available. The Rock was doing reasonable business for mid-afternoon, so it's meeting a market. I may pop in from time to time, but a few doors down there's a more interesting choice, plus cask, at the Anchor Tap, so I doubt I'll be making this a regular haunt.

Facebook page of The Rock - www.facebook.com

Facebook page of The Rock - www.facebook.com

Official site of The Rock - therockhorsham.com

Official site of The Rock - therockhorsham.com

This is a decent sized modern brew pub typical of this chain, with a good location on a pedestrianised shopping street in the heart of the town centre. The pub has a large open-plan interior that might feel a little bland and soulless were it not for the retention of several traditional features from previous incarnations. The room has smart new floorboards, big front windows that allow a lot of light in, and a modern servery to the rear with a fancy distressed panelled counter front and attractive bare brick bar back with keg taps on the wall seemingly fed from an unusual ‘church organ’ pipe arrangement behind them. A row of high tables and stools runs through the centre of the room, opposite the bar, whilst a lovely plush banquette follows the front wall with comfy padded chairs in support. It is here at the front of the room that most of the old features become apparent, with a nice glazed ceramic frieze visible along parts of the wall and a pleasant partitioning screen with an etched glass pane for an old Bar Parlour, breaking up the banquette. As with other Brewhouse & Kitchen establishments, the brewing kit is all on show, in this case occupying the right-hand side of the room, where the gleaming coppers were being put to use by the small brewing team, filling the room with the distinctive smell of the mash. Beyond this, a door leads out to a pleasant looking garden with plenty of seating options including a number of open-fronted sheds with names like ‘Shed Sheeran’ and ‘Right Said Shed’, which offer a private, sheltered spot in the garden, should such a need arise. There is also a roped off section of pavement seating outside the front of the pub, ideal for a bit of people watching. A TV screen to one side of the pub was showing muted promotional material that seemed a bit more interesting than the usual marketing guff these things tend to specialise in, as it included some old black and white footage from long-lost breweries and other bits of historical interest. In the meantime, pop music was playing in the background and the busy team of staff were efficiently despatching drinks and food, occasionally heading up a staircase to the left of the bar, where there may possibly have been an additional seating area. As usual, just home brew on the hand pumps, with three available on this visit – Rock Session Bitter, Saxon Warrior and Project Cask Heritage – I gave the latter a try and thought it was a pleasant enough brew that was unlikely to linger long in the memory. Friendly staff took all the necessary contact details upon entry and encouraged the use of an app to order drinks. I found that this pub sat somewhere between the best and worst this chain has to offer – it elevated itself by providing friendly service and comfortable furnishings that made me happy to linger a while but didn’t quite have the character of some of their better outlets, despite the efforts to retain a few old pub features. A good addition to a Horsham pub crawl but not really a destination pub in its own right.