Tasting Britain
TastingBritain.co.uk - The Spring Grove, Kingston
'Spring Grove'...sounds like a level out of vintage Sonic The Hedgehog but is actually a pub (and formerly renovated hotel) in lovely leafy Kingston. A short (but somewhat confusing) walk from Kingston Rail Station, The Spring Grove lives in an area quiet enough for me be able to stand in the middle of the road for long enough to take multiple pictures of the front (as you can see in the pictures)
It is some shade of gunmetal grey and stands a very noticeable 3 stories high at the end of Bloomfield Rd. It used to be the Spring Grove Hotel - and you can see - the building has some character and age. As for how It feels 'light' here in the main part, well designed for light to come through the various windows and a central skylight. How about human ambiance? The staff wear checked shirts and are young, probable students with minimal to moderate amounts of tattoos. One wears a Scroobius Pip t-shirt under her checked shirt. It's a chill, youthful atmosphere here. Maybe it's all that Kingston Uni shit rubbing off on the surrounding area?
As for the food and drink, they seem to be keen on Meantime's ales, along with, obviously, their own range of Young's beers. They could probably do better on the cider choices - they only have Aspall (not that there's anything wrong with Aspall). The food is basically pushing 'gastropub' (but perhaps not quite at THAT level of price and ATTENTION TO DETAIL). The Cote De Bouef platter shared between me and my buddy Adam was pretty legit (even though they told me they wouldn't do it blue). All in all it's not the most memorable or unusual pub I've been to, but for consistency, easygoing atmosphere, area (and a beautiful area it is)... plus that amazing garden - I would recommend it!
TastingBritain.co.uk - The Spring Grove, Kingston
'Spring Grove'...sounds like a level out of vintage Sonic The Hedgehog but is actually a pub (and formerly renovated hotel) in lovely leafy Kingston. A short (but somewhat confusing) walk from Kingston Rail Station, The Spring Grove lives in an area quiet enough for me be able to stand in the middle of the road for long enough to take multiple pictures of the front (as you can see in the pictures)
It is some shade of gunmetal grey and stands a very noticeable 3 stories high at the end of Bloomfield Rd. It used to be the Spring Grove Hotel - and you can see - the building has some character and age. As for how It feels 'light' here in the main part, well designed for light to come through the various windows and a central skylight. How about human ambiance? The staff wear checked shirts and are young, probable students with minimal to moderate amounts of tattoos. One wears a Scroobius Pip t-shirt under her checked shirt. It's a chill, youthful atmosphere here. Maybe it's all that Kingston Uni shit rubbing off on the surrounding area?
As for the food and drink, they seem to be keen on Meantime's ales, along with, obviously, their own range of Young's beers. They could probably do better on the cider choices - they only have Aspall (not that there's anything wrong with Aspall). The food is basically pushing 'gastropub' (but perhaps not quite at THAT level of price and ATTENTION TO DETAIL). The Cote De Bouef platter shared between me and my buddy Adam was pretty legit (even though they told me they wouldn't do it blue). All in all it's not the most memorable or unusual pub I've been to, but for consistency, easygoing atmosphere, area (and a beautiful area it is)... plus that amazing garden - I would recommend it!