User name:

Password:

Login


Sign in with Facebook


Not already a member?
Join our community and - Rate & review pubs - Upload pictures - Add events JOIN for free NOW


Chat about:
Approving photos with rpadam on the Pub Forum

The Phoenix, Lower Sunbury, Sunbury-On-Thames

28 Thames Street
Sunbury-On-Thames
TW16 6AF
Phone: 01932785358

Return to pub summary

Reviews (Current Rating Average: of 10) Add Review see review guidelines


Please Note: This review is over a year old.


Graham Coombs left this review about The Phoenix

An unprepossessing exterior close on a narrow bit of the road hides the main selling point, which is an outdoor area backing on to the Thames. This is wedged full of tables, some covered, and has its own bar in the summer when it presumably heaves on sunny weekends. Inside is more conventional if a little dark and with slightly strange decoration. The back room benefits from a view of the river and large opening windows. It now seems to be run by a friendly family of Mediterranean origin, so the menu features tapas alongside the usual pub stuff. They still manage to supply ales though, with Brakspears Gravity, Directors, London Pride and Doom Bar claimed albeit not all on at time of visit.

On 1st April 2022 - rating: 7
[User has posted 3322 recommendations about 3259 pubs]


Please Note: This review is over a year old.


Malden man left this review about The Phoenix

A pleasant old pub with two main rooms split by a central bar plus what looked to be a dedicated restaurant in a bright and airy room to the rear left side. The right hand room looked to be the main drinking area, stone flagged flooring, beamed ceiling, settle type benches at small round tables. The fireplace looks like it gets some use, décor included framed river scenes and old Charrington's ads, there were a selection of paperbacks on a shelf and a basket contained a few games, newspapers on a table.
The beer range was decent, Ringwood Best Bitter, Pride, Brakspears Oxford Gold and Hobgoblin.
I was initially rather confused as to why the pub was so quiet despite clearly being one of the better options locally, on investigating I realised why, nearly everyone was outside sitting in the large sunny riverside garden which has good views of Sunbury Lock and even has a gate to its own landing stage with moorings. There is a bar out here too with a kitsch thatched roof but with two handpumps which is useful. A flag flying "Sunbury Skiff Club".
I liked it here, probably shaded it for my Sunbury pub of the day, I reckon it would also make a nice winter stop with the fire lit and the river looking moody and misty.

On 20th September 2014 - rating: 7
[User has posted 1707 recommendations about 1681 pubs]


Please Note: This review is over a year old.


Tom Fairburn left this review about The Phoenix

The Phoenix - the BEST pub in Sunbury, bar none! A fair bit of money was spent on a complete 'refurb' a couple of years ago (...2009..?) and what a difference it has made. Well done owners, this is now the best pub in the area, in my humble opinion. Directly on the 216 bus route between Kingston and Staines. If you're ever in the Lower Sunbury area (near the River Thames end of town) do pop in for a swift half pint, or some fruit of the vine. Good bar service, good clientele. :o) TJ

On 21st April 2013 - rating: 7
[User has posted 78 recommendations about 59 pubs]


Please Note: This review is over a year old.


Rex Rattus left this review about The Phoenix

This is another riverside pub just a few yards down the road from the Magpie and is more like a real pub than the “hotel bar” feel of its near neighbour. There are two doors from the street – the right hand one takes you into the main bar area, with a fireplace on the right (with a log fire on the go when I visited last Friday) and the bar counter on the left. There are a few tables in here and a bit of banquette seating. The flagstone flooring and low ceilings give it something of a country pub feel, but the beams are false. The other door takes you into a small room interconnected to the right hand bar area via an archway. This second room is very small and has just a table or two in it, plus a small bar counter that was being used for coffee service. The building has been extended to the rear at some stage providing for a fairly large room to be added – not exclusively for diners but everyone who was eating was in this room. There’s also a surprisingly large outside drinking area leading down to the river, with its own outside bar which is presumably manned when the pub gets busy during the Summer months. As you would expect, the river views are quite exceptional.
Now, on to the serious stuff. There were four ales on – London Pride, Timothy Taylor Landlord, Black Sheep Bitter, and Twickenham Naked Ladies. I just had a pint of the Naked Ladies which was in excellent nick, and Mrs R confirmed that the cappuccino was also up to scratch. The menu looked OK, even though we didn’t eat. Bagettes were £5.80 (plus £2 for chips), toasted sarnies were £4.95, and main courses were between £7 - £11. These sort of prices are not unreasonable for a riverside pub in this part of the world. I like this pub – and so does Mrs R, which no doubt means that we’ll be back for a bite to eat here sometime.

On 12th March 2012 - rating: 7
[User has posted 2606 recommendations about 2520 pubs]


Please Note: This review is over a year old.


Happy Supper left this review about The Phoenix

Good service, good Ale and the rear garden is just fantastic.

On 15th June 2009 - rating: 8
[User has posted 13 recommendations about 13 pubs]


Please Note: This review is over a year old.


Noel Hawkins left this review about The Phoenix

Good pub for meeting locals and sitting out in the beer garden when the weather's good and boats are cruising up and down the Thames. New owners are promising to do it up a bit - which it does need - but atmosphere is main attraction.

On 4th March 2008 - rating: 8
[User has posted 10 recommendations about 10 pubs]