The Blacksmiths Arms, Sevenoaks

Blue Scrumpy left this review about The Blacksmiths Arms

I'd planned to take the R8 bus some of the way from Downe to Cudham to visit this pub, but it didn't turn up. Despite being part of London, the bus frequencies here are once every two or three hours. So, if you miss one, in my case if it doesn't turn up, you're snookered. I ended up walking in the heat, a walk which started off flat, before going rapidly downhill and then steeply uphill. I arrived at the Blacksmiths Arms looking very hot and bothered!

Dining appears to be a focus here at lunchtime. There was an unoccupied dining area to the left of the front entrance, with most of the tables on the right-hand side of the bar taken by people eating. Beyond this is a doorway leading to the toilets and outdoor drinking/dining areas.

As you exit the pub, there is a covered smoking area in front of you. Off to the left is a patio that was also popular with diners and beyond that was what was supposed to be an award-winning garden. In reality, the grass could certainly do with a mow and the flower beds with various signs asking customers not to "frolic" in them, looked overgrown. Perhaps they are meant to look like a meadow. But I'm not a horticulturist and it was probably lost on me. There is a shed that sells ice creams, presumably during the school holidays. It was shut on this visit.

I enjoyed almost an hour cooling off in the garden, before heading to the bar to enquire about where the R10 bus service stopped. The answer was right outside. You just need to flag it down. Whilst waiting to ask my question, I did witness a rather amusing exchange between a customer and a barmaid. He was asked for £6 for a couple of drinks and he queried if the prices had gone up again. At this point, the barmaid had to admit that she had rounded the total up from £5.90 to £6.00. However, on this occasion she decided to let him have it for the correct price of £5.90! It left me wondering how many other pubs round up prices to unsuspecting customers. Why she tried this trick with a local seemed beyond me.

Sharp's Doom Bar is the regular beer here. Guests were Harvey's Sussex Best Bitter & Adnams Ghost Ship. A 4th handpull was clipped, but the clip was turned. It looked like a much more interesting beer and was possibly from the local Westerham brewery.

This is very much a pub that most customers drive to. Whilst waiting for the R10 outside the pub for almost 30 minutes, I saw everybody else leaving in their cars. There may be a few occasional ramblers. But it's a real effort to attempt to get here by public transport and on this visit, I can't really recommend making such an effort.

On 22^nd June 2023 - rating: 5
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