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Submitted on Tuesday, 3^rd November 2009
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Druids Head, Kingston Riverside, Kingston Upon Thames

3 Market Place
Kingston Upon Thames
KT1 1JT

Phone: 02085460723

Correct details

Pub Type

Greene King

Served areas

Kingston Riverside

Reviews of Druids Head (Average Rating: 5 of 10) Add Review see review guidelines

Bucking Fastard left this review about Druids Head

Two georgian building knocked together,there is some external brewers tudor but the internal layout is of two long ,thin buildings running back a long way from the Market Place and joined together by two opening in the internal walls at either end of the serving bar.The two entrances give way to a more discrete section on the right running back to a raised ,small lounge,and a larger area to the left with mainly high tables,fruit machines and a staircase to a first floor section closed off on my lunchtime visit.There are tables along the external frontage but a much larger rear beer garden extending across the whole pub footprint ,and it's from the beer garden that the georgian origins of the building can be seen.
The internal refurb by Greene King doesn't celebrate the heritage of the building(s) although wood panelling has been retained.The chain vibe is never far away ,the pub grub pricing of a median main for £17 seemed very high.
Surprisingly for a GK house only their awful IPA and a house beer of unknown provenance (almost certainly a GK horror show) were visible at the bar leaving guests of Hogs Back TEA,TT Landlord,St Austell Tribute,Twickenham Grandstand and Spring Ale (clear yet musty,NBSS 1.5) plus a Lilly's cider.
Maybe there is an attempt to offer a wider ale range,but this ended in an epic fail on the ale I sampled and given the uninspiring interior I won't be returning in a hurry.

On 24^th April 2026 - rating: 5
[User has posted 3141 recommendations about 3141 pubs]

Please Note: This review is over a year old.

Rex Rattus left this review about Druids Head

I dropped in here on Monday afternoon for some necessary refreshment following a shopping expedition to Kingston. There were three ales on - GKIPA, Abbot, and Belhaven Robert Burns, with Bath Gem "coming soon". That's a decent guest ale in a Greene King pub. A standard pub grub menu was available, with a burger and chips at £7.95 a pop.

Looking at the frontage, it's clear that two properties have been knocked into one to form this pub. It's larger that it seems, with it going back a long way, and with a "beer garden" on the right. The front portion of the room has a red tiled floor, with the remainder being bare-boarded. Furnishings are the usual pubco mix - tall tables with tall stools, banquettes, and some normal tables and chairs. I didn't spot any sofas, but I suppose there might have been one or two lurking in some nook or cranny. There's an exposed brickwork fireplace past the bar counter, and that other upmarket pubco favourite of some glazed-in shelving containing wine bottles opposite it, with more wine bottles on shelves in the bar back. The upstairs bar is reached via a stairway to the front of the pub, but I didn't venture up there.

This is a corporate pubco pub, with all the staff wearing black the regulation shirts as they do, that could be on any high street. However, it's still one of the better pubs in central Kingston, and is a jolly useful retreat if you're in Kingston town centre for any reason. I'm sure that I'll find myself in here again sometime.

On 22^nd January 2013 - rating: 5
[User has posted 2621 recommendations about 2535 pubs]

Please Note: This review is over a year old.

Pub SignMan left this review about Druids Head

This is a large Greene King pub (formerly a Hogshead) at the southern end of Kingston's market square. Two front doors offer access to either the main bar to the left or a smaller, snug-like bar on the right. The left hand entrance takes you into a large room with wooden flooring and the bar counter running along the right hand wall. There's a limited amount of seating at the front opposite the servery, but the room opens out to the rear where there are plenty of extra tables and chairs. This rear area is split level and the upper half is carpeted with some plush sofas and a nice fireplace, making for a fairly enticing place to take a seat, although the modern decor belies the fact that this is Kingston's oldest pub. From here you can head back to the front of the pub via the small snug. There is also a door to a large beer garden here which has its fair share of bench seating.
There were five beers on the handpumps when I visited - Greene King IPA and Abbot Ale, Ruddles, Old Speckled Hen and Hardy & Hanson Kimberley Bitter. I gave the latter a try and, having put up with the brusque barmaid, found that it was well past its best. There were plenty of menus dotted around the pub which I had a good nose through. I thought their food sounded pretty good and the menu certainly looked a lot more interesting than the one in the other nearby Greene King pub, The Ram.
I was a little let down by this place, which tempted me with the prospect of a nice historical interior but actually serves up a rather bland drinking experience. I think I'd enjoy this place more as somewhere to eat and even for a quick drink it would serve a purpose, but I wouldn't want to spend too long in here. And I didn't find the Jerome K Jerome inscription either!

On 30^th September 2011 - rating: 5
[User has posted 3387 recommendations about 3387 pubs]

View more reviews of Druids Head (5)

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