Kingswood Arms, KT20 6EB
- 01737 354 053
- Waterhouse Lane, KT20 6EB (streetmap) (osm) (gmap) (bingmap) (streetview)
- kingswoodarms.co.uk
- Mon-Sat: noon-11pm; Sun: noon-10:30pm
Upmarket pub in the Surrey village of Kingswood, very handy for Kingswood Station and originally the Station Hotel. Previously owned by Enterprise Inns, it was bought by Fuller's in early 2012.
A prominent sign on the door bars entry to those wearing "untidy workwear", noting that the dress code is "smart casual". The interior is all nooks and crannies, traditional pub decoration and when the weather permits, a roaring open fire. The bar frequently has dishes of mini cheddars, olives and cheddar cubes set out on it. There's a separate restaurant section.
When Kake visited in August 2013 there were five Fuller's ales on: London Pride, Summer Ale (£1.90/half), HSB, Chiswick, and the seasonal Sticky Wicket. When I re-visited in May 2019 there were again five ales on: Dark Star Hophead, Dark Star Revelation, London Pride (£2.15/half), HSB (also £2.15/half), and Seafarers.
On a Tuesday afternoon in August 2013 there were a couple of other customers in, and music was playing quietly. It was rather livelier on a Thursday afternoon in May 2019, with a fair few people in and '90s dance music playing (although not too loud).
Food is served all day. In May 2019 Kake had the fishfinger sandwich with fries from the lunch menu (£10) photo. The fish was cooked just right, not at all overdone, and the (pre-salted) fries were hot and crisp and actually tasted of potato. The tartare sauce appeared to have been made in-house rather than coming from a jar.
Although I'd been offered a choice of white or brown bread, and chose brown, what arrived was actually seeded white. The bread was lightly toasted, and one slice had rather lost its structural integrity — presumably it broke when they tried to fit a rather sturdy lettuce leaf inside the sandwich, but at this price point I'd expect a better solution than just serving it anyway.
Like other Fuller's pubs, they have free wifi via O2 (registration required).
Accessibility: A step to get in. Once you're in, it's step-free to the ladies', and one of the cubicles has a door that opens outwards (not sure about gents'). Some of the seating is up more steps.
See also:
- Photos of the menu as of May 2019: main, lunchtime sandwiches, pizza
- Pubs Galore comments
- Eat And Be Merry review
- Beer In The Evening comments
- WhatPub entry