Down a quiet Kemptown side street is a pub that oozes warmth, welcome and a pretty back yard
Saint Georges Inn Kemptown has a name dedicated to our nation’s Patron Saint, whose legendary skill for sleighing dragons and converting people to Christianity won him martyrdom and eternal fame.
Centuries later, Saint George’s name adorns patriotic pubs great and small across a land he wasn’t born in, and never even visited. Gotta love that irony 😀
PUB DESCRIPTION
If you enter the Saint George Inn Kemptown from the main door on the corner, the first room is the smaller of 2, with less seating and mainly high chairs and tables. It feels like the space that the locals and regulars might congregate in to prop or sit at the bar for banter on a weekend evening. In fact that’s they were happily doing so today when we visited on a Sunday afternoon.
The room to the left of this has a more tranquil vibe with more dining orientated space with larger tables for groups. The green ceiling plays off nicely against the red brick walls. There’s a wood burner in the fireplace making this room seem like the ideal location for Sunday roasts on a Winters afternoon.
On the walls hang lots of bespoke artwork and the fireplace is adorned with foliage. However if you take a closer look you’ll notice that many of these plants are crocheted and not real. We asked the barman about this and apparently the owner is a gifted artist who took up knitting plants over lockdown and now makes bespoke ones as well as the smaller ones which you can buy. Check out these creations on the Forever Foliage instagram.
PUB GARDEN
If you venture out the rear of the pub there is a little oasis of a back yard. Yes it’s faux grass which some people are just naturally offended by. But despite this, the old flint-stone walls hiding behind creeping plants give this space an aura of prettiness and peacefulness, with almost a monastery cloister vibe. The combination of booths and large benched tables make this a versatile space for either a quiet drink in a secluded corner, or for a large group to gather together.
BEER OPTIONS
The bar offers quite a lot of options though the majority are standard global brands. On the keg pale ale side of things, you do have a couple of Laines beers, (Im going to assume this is now Laine Pub co owned establishment), alongside a Beavertown and Tiny Rebel option. There are also 3 typical lager brands and a Guinness.
FOOD MENU
The food menu offers a really really good variety of options, fish and chips, burgers, pizzas and more, plus loaded fries and other snack options. We were only peckish but the thick-cut chips were brilliant and for a little extra they super-sized our portion so it was big enough for 2.
ENTERTAINMENT
The pub hosts a weekly quiz on Wednesdays and their socials indicate they are tapped into the local art scene with pop-up events and live music on occasion.
CONCLUSION
It was such a pleasure to discover Saint George’s Inn Kemptown on this quiet side-street. It truly was a pleasant place to while away an afternoon with my family. The garden is a real gem, and there is a definite charm to this pub that once experienced leaves you incredibly tempted to visit time and time again.