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The Waterworks, Rye
Rye
TN31 7AT
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 8½ of 10) see review guidelines
Blackthorn _ left this review about The Waterworks
Located, as it’s name suggests, in an old waterworks pumping station, it’s a prominent street corner pub, and although it’s not located on one of Rye’s more picturesque streets, it is nonetheless a pleasant looking building and there were a few hardy punters sat at the tables on the pavement on our recent Sunday evening visit. Having read the previous reviews, I thought there’s no way I’m going to give a micropub a 9/10, I normally find them rather bland and lacking anything in the way of charm or character, but I couldn’t really have been more wrong, one thing you definitely cannot do is accuse this pub of lacking character, or even characters come to that, chief among them the landlord. Although whether it technically qualifies as a micropub I’m not sure, as there was both a flat screen TV on the wall (not in use on our visit) and a notice advertising some forthcoming live music.
Internally it’s one decent size, open plan room although it’s difficult to say much about the décor as every square inch of available surface was covered in….well, stuff, although I did notice some sections of exposed brickwork and an old brick fireplace as well as some more modern RSJ’s and such like. There were plenty of horse brasses of course, but other brass items as well including some sort of a ladle, strings of hops, old black and white photographs of the locale as well as colourful watercolours, bottles, a cart wheel, clocks and barometers, jugs, tankards, bottles and I’m sure all sorts of other things too numerous to mention. You could spend all day here and probably not take it all in. On top of that, everything was for sale, with small price stickers in the corner or underneath, making it something of a cross between a pub and a junk shop.
It was very busy considering the time we visited, with a good crowd in. Available seating was therefore limited, but the landlady directed us to a shared table with some other punters, one of whom tuned out to be the landlady from the Anchor Tap in Bermondsey who was down visiting for the weekend. A game of Toad in the Hole was in progress, which for the uninitiated (that includes me) consists of a small box with a sloping top and a hole in it. The object of the game is to toss a coin from a few feet away, and if it goes in the hole you score two points, or if it stays on the top without rolling off, you score one point. Apparently, it is unique to this part of the world. The landlord was quite a character as mentioned, and at various times interrupted proceedings to make “public service announcements” which included admonishing whoever had managed to aim at the floor instead of the urinals in the gents and suggesting they must be therefore rather under endowed, and when he announced last orders he clocked someone checking their watch and started on at them, saying he had been there since 10:00 in the morning, before proceeding to walk round the pub with a steering wheel, saying “some people drive me mad” and steering the wheel at the same time to emphasis his point!
Beers on tap were their own Golden Flush, IPA (with small letters next the name speeling out I Pee A lot), Uryenal Best and Pissoir Porter (the “i” in Pissoir being a figure of a man from the gent’s loo sign. There seems to be something of a theme here) along with Tonbridge Easy Street, Romney American Pale, Goacher’s Gold Star, Brewing Brothers NE IPA and Tonbridge Rustic Best. Ciders too were well represented with Waken, Kentish Kiss, Tenterden, Earls Reserve, Double Vision and Biddenden Dry, as well as several fruit options including rhubarb, mango, lemon, elderflower, fruits of the forest, strawberry and toffee apple. All in all, and absolutely cracking pub, and a definite “must visit” when in Rye.
On 1st March 2024
- rating: 9
[User has posted 1948 recommendations about 1861 pubs]
Quinno _ left this review about The Waterworks
A micro housed in a characterful and historic building (a former Georgian pump house). Absolutely rammed on a Saturday afternoon with a convivial atmosphere and regulars known by name by the staff. It has quite a nice traditional interior with some discrete areas, alongside quarry tile flooring and exposed brick. Good barmaid (landlady?) who was directing people to spare seats and keeping an element of control of the throng; an enjoyable chaotic vibe proliferated with barrels being moved through the bar to the cellar to much hooting and calling. 11 beers 11 ciders I think, as there’s no PoS at the servery so you have to work off the blackboard to the right as you enter. My Goachers Gold was off stillage and in good shape (NBSS 3.5). £3 rolls which were decent. I liked it here and it’s shame I didn’t leave myself much time (blame Jeff at the Wipers…). What I will say is that a double header with the Ypres with a dip into the Mermaid should see you sound in Rye. 8.5
On 16th October 2023
- rating: 9
[User has posted 5081 recommendations about 5064 pubs]
Steve of N21 left this review about The Waterworks
We paid a visit to this micropub on two occasions during our stay in Rye and found it being well utilised. Initially we visited late on a Sunday evening in time for last orders and then returned the day after on the fine August bank holiday Monday lunchtime, when at a time some of the other hostelries in town were sparsely populated, the Waterworks was even more banged out both inside and outside, proving there’s no demand for real ale nowadays (sic).
To be fair, alongside the 10 ales from the barrels behind the bar there was seven ciders available from glass demijohns in the fridges and a good range of artisan gins.
It looks like the outside seating is expanded for fine weather days with stools and beer barrels with soft tops and additional benches and was accommodating quite a few for our visits, probably more than were fitting inside.
Internally it remains the eclectic mix of junk / antique shop strangeness as described in the reviews below, with everything you sit on, at, or touch, is priced to go. I will have to reevaluate my understanding of the market pricing levels of ‘retro’ furniture though as I wouldn’t have given you £3 for the battered old table we sat at, let alone £30.
The available drinks options are now displayed on the large chalkboard on the left-hand wall as you enter and for our visits the ten ales included three of their own Brews, three from Hopfuzz, two from Tonbridge, one from Brewing Brothers and one from Romney Marsh Brewery and covered a good range of styles. I tried a couple of the house brews as it would have been rude not to and they were very good.
For the ales this is one of the best micropubs I have visited, but I just prefer them to have more of a pub character than a junk shop to drink them in.
I was tempted to review it as an 8, but any establishment that uses a Doombar ale pump as a toilet flush deserves the extra point.
On 4th September 2023
- rating: 9
[User has posted 2110 recommendations about 1992 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Blue Scrumpy left this review about The Waterworks
There's just a small seating area at the front of this micropub, which is located in the town's old waterworks and has also been a soup kitchen.
With the rain pouring down and with tables undercover reserved, our only initial option was a table in the rain. However, the landlord soon appeared and shifted a few people around to make room for us. It was shortly before 6pm when we arrived and it soon became apparent that neither of the two reserved groups were turning up for their 6pm bookings, meaning he didn't need to throw anybody out!
The beer list was on a laminated A4 sheet of paper. Ales were Goachers Sussex Gold & Special (DSB), Three Legs Mosaic & Oatmeal Stout, Romney Marsh American Pale, Brumaison Best Bitter & Old Dairy Milk Stout. Ciders were Kent Cider Company Waken, Lemon Cider, Rhubarb Cider, Mango Cider, Elderflower Cider, Strawberry Cider, Toffee Apple Cider & Spiced Cider, Nightingale Tenterden, Double Vision Medium & Norman Hunt & Sons Medium & Vintage.
The interior could be viewed on a visit to the toilets. It is a wonderful mishmash of curios, which are probably mostly antiques.
Despite the rain throwing down and the chilly evening temperatures, I really enjoyed my visit here and am already contemplating a return visit very soon.
On 3rd May 2021
- rating: 9
[User has posted 2452 recommendations about 2451 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Moby Duck left this review about The Waterworks
Great setting for a micropub well described by Ray below. It was rammed when I got there with no inside space available so had to take my pint of Gun Babylon Project outside to drink detering me from a second beer. Not the best Micropub I visited that week but not bad.
On 25th October 2020
- rating: 7
[User has posted 1872 recommendations about 1845 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Real Ale Ray left this review about The Waterworks
A quirky and interesting micropub, where whatever you sit on or touch is for sale, from farm implements, sideboards, lamps etc, all of which had a white sticker on with the price. We found the owner and his wife to be very welcoming and upbeat. This was a difficult one to leave, especially when they had a decent range of 8 ales on stillage. We went for the Old Dairy UBER Brew and the Goachers Gold Star. A good few of the customers were tucking into the local pork pies and scotch eggs. There's also a handpump toilet flush in the ladies, according to Mrs Ale.
On 12th November 2019
- rating: 9
[User has posted 3382 recommendations about 3381 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about The Waterworks
"From pump house to soup kitchen to micropub" as the blurb goes: rebuilt in 1869, closed and leased to the Rye Poor Law Union in 1895, and taking on its latest incarnation in 2018. It's now a really characterful little building housing just three tables plus four bar-stools along the rustic counter. In good weather, there are also some additional heritage seats from the adjacent antique shop out on the pavement. Excellent choice of eight real ales in a variety of styles from small East Sussex and Kent breweries available on gravity from a cool-store at the back, from which selection I opted for the Goachers Real Mild (£3.70). Eight ciders from Norman Hunt, Nightingales and Hendersons were also being served on draught. However, making the point on their leaflets that they "welcome families, dogs & people just wanting to have a look around" is a further positive, and as a 'final piece of icing on an already excellent cake', the toilet flush (in the gents at least) is a Doom Bar-clipped handpump!
On 19th May 2019
- rating: 9
[User has posted 8117 recommendations about 8117 pubs]