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Picture of The Flower Pot
Image posted by Graham Mason
Submitted on Sunday, 18th September 2011
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The Flower Pot, Maidstone

96 Sandling Road
Maidstone
ME14 2RJ
Phone: 01622757705
Correct details

Served areas

Reviews of The Flower Pot (Average Rating: of 10) Add Review see review guidelines

Blue Scrumpy left this review about The Flower Pot

Corner boozer to the north of Maidstone town centre.

There are a couple of rooms. Both have access to the bar. The lower room contains a pool table, whilst the upper room contains the 9 real ale handpulls. Just a couple of other customers were in when we arrived. They appeared to be CAMRA members and husband and wife. A further customer arrived and sat with them during our visit.

The barman was reasonably knowledgeable about beer and we had a good conversation, with him and the other customers about local pubs and beers.

Goacher's Gold Star is the regular real ale. Guests on for our visit were Moor Illumination, Fyne Ales Jarl, Kent Madagascar, Odyssey Underground Up & Oakham Citra. Also on the bar in the upper room were 4 boxes of real cider - Biddenden's Dry & Bushels & Lilley's Mango Cider & Rhubarb Cider. All are listed on Untappd.

Of 10 pubs we visited in Maidstone, I would certainly rate this in the top 3. Although, it did feel a bit quiet on our Tuesday afternoon visit.

Discounts are offered on pints between 1-4pm on a Tuesday. CAMRA discounts are offered at other times. However, I'm not sure our halves qualified for a discount and we didn't enquire. Pizzas were advertised for Wednesdays.

On 17th May 2023 - rating: 8
[User has posted 2442 recommendations about 2441 pubs]


Please Note: This review is over a year old.


Pub SignMan left this review about The Flower Pot

This is a very nice split-level, backstreet pub to the North of the town centre. The lower front room has a bit of a public bar feel to it, mainly due to the presence of a pool table to one side, although the room has been smartly set up, with dark red walls, neat floorboards and an attractive bevelled counter front, which a few locals quickly lined up along on an otherwise quiet mid-week afternoon. Steps to the rear lead up to a quieter rear room with the same flooring and a squarer bar counter beneath a canopy with a nice Kentish mural across it, which also noted the pub’s two Kent Pub Of The Year awards from 2010 and 2011. Loads more CAMRA awards are hung around the room, which has been furnished with comfy bench seating arranged into booth-like formations. A nice fireplace stands on the back wall, with an attractive moulded surround, whilst the decor includes a few old tankards, vases, lamps, books and the like. The side entrance had a decorative moulded door frame which is worth checking out. Music played quietly in the front room, but from where I was sitting in the back bar, I could barely make it out. Food is available from the pub’s in house pizza menu, with several bar snack options also listed.
On the bar, a handsome row of handpulls was dispensing Brit Hop Filmstar (a bargain at £3.70 a pint), Oakham Citra, Black Iris Bajan Breakfast and Goachers Gold Star. Six ciders were also listed on TV screens around the room. I took a pint of the Brit Hop, which was in excellent condition - probably the best conditioned beer I’ve had post-pandemic. The barmaid was friendly and when I arrived she was on her hands and knees scrubbing the bar counter - the sort of attention to detail that clearly also ensures they serve top quality ale.
This is an excellent pub in just about every respect, from the traditional two bar layout with comfortable seating and smart decor, to the friendly service, interesting beer range and care and attention paid to quality and presentation. If there’s a better pub in Maidstone, I didn’t find it, and I’d love to come back here some time, preferably when it’s a bit busier, to sample more of those great ales.

On 21st December 2022 - rating: 9
[User has posted 3102 recommendations about 3102 pubs]


Please Note: This review is over a year old.


Aqualung . left this review about The Flower Pot

This is situated at the North end of the old Sandling Road, I'm sure the new road just to the West was not there when I last visited Maidstone. My old Kent beer guides suggest it may have been a Truman's pub back in the day.
Inside it has two levels the rear upper level with the bar, bar stools plus a few tables and chairs and the lower level has some seating but is dominated by a pool table.
There is also a juke box on the wall which as I stayed for three pints was able to examine at length. Juke boxes aren't what they were, this one had seemingly thousands of albums including a Jethro Tull compilation with Aqualung on it which made my day. I soon realised that it was playing random tunes which included tracks by Alma Cogan, Pavarotti and Motorhead!
The bar had nine hand pumps with some beers coming on during my stay. I noticed Fyne Ales Hurricane Jack, Country Life Golden Pig & Reef Break, Oakham Citra, Dark Star APA, Goacher's Light, Saltaire Amaarillo Gold and Newby Wyke Kinston Topaz. I think all prices were £3.25 a pint reduced to £3.15 after showing the CAMRA membership card which the friendly landlady reminded me about. Another plus point is that they use lined glasses here. I tried the Hurricane Jack, Oakham Citra and Dark Star APA. The Hurricane Jack and Citra were superb but the Dark Star APA was a fresh barrel and may have needed a bit more pulling through, although I certainly wasn't prepared to complain about it.
My only two minor niggles were that the bar stools block the beer line up and I thought the pool table was overly dominant for such a small room. I liked this place a lot and would be surpised if it wasn't the premier real ale venue in Maidstone. It gets a strong nine from me.

On 4th May 2015 - rating: 9
[User has posted 2143 recommendations about 2143 pubs]


View more reviews of The Flower Pot (7)
This pub features in the following crawls:
Maidstone East and back again by Manky Badger
External web links for The Flower Pot

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Pub location see interactive map of local area
Map location corrected by john mcgraw
Maidstone East, 0.48 miles, 9 min walk (show)
Maidstone Barracks, 0.64 miles, 12 min walk (show)
Maidstone West, 1 miles, 19 min walk (show)
Latest updates View all updates for The Flower Pot, Maidstone
17th May 2023, 14:03
Review submitted by Blue Scrumpy
 
21st Dec 2022, 15:44
Review submitted by Pub SignMan

Pub Details

Pub details supplied by members of this site to the best of their knowledge. Please check with pub directly before making a special trip.

  • Accommodation : No last updated 21 December 2022 by ROB Camra
  • Bar Billiards : No last updated 21 December 2022 by ROB Camra
  • Beer Festivals : Yes - June - last updated 21 December 2022 by ROB Camra
  • Beer Garden : Yes last updated 21 December 2022 by ROB Camra
  • CAMRA Discount : Yes - 10% - last updated 17 May 2023 by Blue Scrumpy
  • Car Park : No last updated 21 December 2022 by ROB Camra
  • Dog Friendly : Yes last updated 21 December 2022 by ROB Camra
  • Hot Food : Yes last updated 21 December 2022 by ROB Camra
  • Live Music : Yes last updated 21 December 2022 by ROB Camra
  • Micropub : No last updated 21 December 2022 by ROB Camra
  • Pinball : No last updated 21 December 2022 by ROB Camra
  • Pool Table : Yes last updated 21 December 2022 by ROB Camra
  • Real Ale : Yes last updated 21 December 2022 by ROB Camra
  • Real Cider : Yes last updated 21 December 2022 by ROB Camra
  • WiFi : Yes last updated 21 December 2022 by ROB Camra
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