Castle Inn, Robertsbridge

Official site of Castle Inn - www.castleinnbodiam.co.uk

Official site of Castle Inn - www.castleinnbodiam.co.uk

This Shepherd Neame pub has a near perfect location directly opposite the entrance to Bodian Castle and close to the village's small train station, ensuring a steady flow of tourists, walkers and steam train enthusiasts through the door. The interior is fairly simple, with the bar to the right as you enter and a dining area to the left. The bar section is quite basic and has a few tables as well as a selection of the day's papers. A photo collage hung above the bar counter depicted some rather odd scenes featuring, I presume, the pub's staff and regulars and no small number of TV chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. The dining area looked quite smart, but thanks to some glorious April weather, most punters decided to take their food outside onto the patio benches. The garden includes a meadow that runs down to the River Rother and was packed with kids on my Sunday afternoon visit. Food, as you might expect in a tourist trap, was a little on the pricey side, with main meals around the £9-12 mark, but my burger was very tasty and seemingly homemade, which was something of a relief. Beer was strictly Shep's only, with Master Brew, Spitfire and Early Bird available. I tried the Early Bird, which was pretty good considering I'm not much of a Shep's fan. I thought this was a good spot for a meal and a quick drink after a morning spent walking around the castle and thankfully they don't seem to suffer from the complacency that certain pubs close to tourist attractions fall into. An enjoyable stop-off, if not a destination pub in its own right.