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Submitted on Sunday, 18^th October 2020
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The Dovecote Inn, Tonbridge

Alders Road
Capel
Postal town: Tonbridge
TN12 6SU

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Served areas

Capel

Reviews of The Dovecote Inn (Average Rating: 8 of 10) Add Review see review guidelines

Please Note: This review is over a year old.

Strongers . left this review about The Dovecote Inn

Back in the early 2010’s I commuted past this pub for almost three years, but until Saturday afternoon last weekend I hadn’t actually turned off the A228 to visit. At the rear of the pub is a good sized decked and paved seating area full of picnic tables and beyond is a large car park. Entering the pub from the rear there is a short corridor, with doors to newly decorated toilets on the right. The gents has DC Comic wallpaper and some Victorian photos above the two urinals, nudge nudge wink wink!
The bar area consist of seating to the right and a bar counter with more seating to the left. Opposite the bar is a snug with seating for eight, that has been named Bullshit Corner. There is a rustic feel with exposed brick everywhere and there are loads off oddities throughout the pub, such as various ceramic flying pigs, a long necked zebra with fake flowers coming out of its head and a tasselled toucan lamp.
The location dictates that this is a food led pub, so there is a chalk board listing gastro dishes at the end of the bar. We went for chips, which were priced at £4. This may seem expensive, but the bowls were huge. The bar counter supports Amstel, Birra Moretti, Orchard Thieves Cider and Guinness. At the rear of the bar is space for eight gravity fed casks. Harveys Best, Bedlam’s Phoenix, Ton’ge Tastic and Old Rosie Cider were available.
This is a quirky pub that was filling up with diners during our visit, so the food must be good. I would return again just for the extremely friendly service.

On 22^nd January 2022 - rating: 8
[User has posted 5965 recommendations about 5931 pubs]

Please Note: This review is over a year old.

Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about The Dovecote Inn

Very good country pub, thankfully reopened after a worrying period of uncertainty, with a pleasingly traditional but refreshed interior. The bar area is extended by a small dining area at one end, next to which is a compact dining room too. Decking beer garden to the rear, covered by an open wooden pergola with climbing plants taking hold. Quite food orientated, which has to be the case for a place like this to survive, but the beer quality has always been good. Served by gravity from hidden casks behind the bar-back, I found the inevitable Harvey's supplemented by Adnams Ghost Ship, an excellent Purity Pure Gold and Rosie's Pig cider on this long overdue re-visit. NB - It used to be called The Alders until the 1980s, and changing a pub's name is often a bad move, but no harm done here.

On 1^st November 2021 - rating: 8
[User has posted 8679 recommendations about 8678 pubs]

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