A Sonder in Broadstairs

OK, folks, after having set the scene in the last post, it’s time now to reveal the details relating to the six Broadstairs pubs my companions and I visited, but over a week ago. The pubs were all in easy walking distance of one another, and they were all micro-pubs. Our visit was an official CAMRA tour, and for that reason, the beer range, coupled with the availability of some “exotic” brews, appeared to take preference over the pubs themselves. In some ways, this was a shame, as there were several traditional pubs that piqued my interest, notably Neptune’s Hall—a Shepherd Neame owned establishment featured on CAMRA's National Inventory of Historic Pub Interiors.

My previous visit to Neptune’s Hall was during a CAMRA tour of the island with my local branch, where we took advantage of the “hop on-hop off” Rover Tickets valid for the Thanet Loop Line. The latter is a circular bus route that traverses the island in both directions. For the price of a ticket, one could board or disembark at any stop, making it possible, through careful planning, to visit most of the notable pubs in the Thanet area within a day.

I also remember taking young Matthew for a visit to Neptune’s Hall, when he was around 3-4 years of age. We were in Broadstairs for a family wedding, but partway through the church service Matthew was losing interest and began playing up. Getting fidgety, would be an apt description, so I decided to take him out of the church, and nip into the Neptune, which was conveniently close by.

 I didn't see any problem with him coming into the pub with me, and neither it seemed, did he, or the pub’s management, for that matter. I ordered a pint of Master Brew and was just getting stuck into it when another refugee from the wedding appeared. It was Eileen’s brother David who, having seen me disappear, thought he'd come and join me. He didn't really have the excuse that I had, but hey-ho!

As well as Neptune’s Hall, there are several other traditional pubs located near the beach, including The Tartar Frigate, an establishment which I have yet to visit, but intend to in the future. Before moving on to the places we visited, it’s worth noting that I am relying on Untappd for a record of the beers I consumed that day, primarily because I wasn’t taking notes. The same can be said of the pub descriptions, where I have allowed the photos I took, to do the talking.

The first watering hole of the day was the community-focussed, Magnet, situated on the road leading down to seafront. Opened in February 2019, this micropub, is a tribute to The Magnet, a boys’ comic, created in the early days of the 20^th century, by Broadstairs author Frank Richards. With its stories about the boys of Greyfriars School, a fictional public school located somewhere in Kent, the Magnet was definitely a product of its time. Best remembered today for Billy Bunter, a greedy and overweight schoolboy, whose character, leaves little in the way of introduction.

The Magnet’s owners Will and Sam were on duty behind the bar, when we called in, engaging with customers, and helping create that warm and welcoming space, where beer take centre stage. The place was certainly buzzing when we pitched up, shortly after midday. The pub has a reputation for concentrating on Kentish beers, and I enjoyed a pint of XPA (Extra Pale Ale), from Bexley Brewery, plus a half of Blarney Stone, a rich and creamy, Irish Stout from local boys, Gadd’s.  The pub interior is decorated with all sorts of bric-a-brac, including plenty of ironware, of the type that would be attracted to a magnet, but rather than attempt to describe it, the best thing you can do is take a look at the photos.

Moving swiftly on, and just a short distance away, downhill towards the seafront, brought us to the Chapel Bar & Book Shop. This micro-pub is a strange combination of a former, non-conformist chapel and an old-fashioned library. The remains of the 14^th century, St. Mary's Chapel, which are claimed to be the oldest surviving building still standing in Broadstairs, are incorporated into a more modem structure. The latter is furnished, from floor to ceiling, with shelves of old books everywhere one looks, and these extend into the upstairs drinking areas, as well. Whether it works, is open to question, but this cask ale and cider outlet, which opened in August 2012, is still going strong.

The friendly licensee told us the books were on sale for just a pound each, but despite being draw to the myriad of shelves, I couldn’t see anything that took my fancy. This was probably just as well, as Mrs PBT’s and I are currently “de-cluttering “Bailey Towers", and the last thing we need are a load of dusty old books! As far as the beer was concerned, there were two “guest” cask ales on sale, alongside Tonbridge Coppernob – a beer that seems to crop up everywhere.

So, with a choice of Morello Bordello, a 5.3% porter – infused with cherries, by the sound of it, from Frome Brewery, plus Hop Lobster, described as a “hop monster”, from Norwich based Golden Triangle, which one to go for. With the barman advising that the latter was an acquired taste, and cherry-flavoured beers never up there amongst my go-to-drink beers, I played it safe and went for a half of each, a decision that was definitely the right one. Apart from a couple sitting at the bar, we were the only customers in the Chapel, and with a rather strange choice of beers, it was time to move on.

We carried on walking, in a downwards direction, until we came to the seafront. Here we stopped to admire the view out across Viking Bay, and I took several panoramic photos to prove that we’d been there. At the far end of the promenade, it was back up the hill, and past the imposing Charles Dickens, Pub & Restaurant. You just knew that there had to be at least one establishment in Broadstairs named after the iconic, Victorian author, but giving this self-styled, gastropub a miss, we continued up the hill.

Our next halt was the strangely-named Sonder – the name apparently coming from a word that means "the acknowledging of others and having feelings of empathy for them". The pub started life as the Thirty-Nine Steps – see previous post, but changed its name in early 2023, when it came under new management. As well as being renamed the pub received a makeover, and today is a spacious and welcoming corner pub, fitted out in the style of the arts and crafts movement. With a wood panelled ceiling and two large internal arches, Sonder has a bright, airy seaside feel about it, and in my view was the best pub of the day.

When the Thirty-Nine Steps opened in 2017, it was planned to be a brewpub producing beer under the name Town Brewery, but this did not come to fruition. Some high-level external signage, advertising this aborted venture remains, and I have taken the liberty of pinching this photo from the CAMRA website to show this. There are four hand-pumps, and eighteen craft-beer taps at Sonder, and this time around I selected the Miller’s Ale, from Canterbury Ales, followed by Cascade, a single-hop beer from Sussex-based, Downlands Brewery.

Onward, upwards, and then time for a spot of lunch. Earlier that morning, we’d noticed a fish & chip shop, on our walk down towards the seafront. It was one of several in Broadstairs – it is a seaside town, after all, but having made a mental note of the place on the way down, we ended back up at the modestly-named, Best Fish & Chips. We ate in, and the food certainly lived up to its name.  Two of us opted for haddock, whilst the other group member went for cod. All freshly cooked to order, and with decent portion sizes, our meals were satisfying and filling.

We headed back up the hill and towards the station, where the railway themed, Mind the Gap, a straightforward shop conversion, was pub No. 4 on our list. Opened in July 2016, this micropub is on two levels, with a seating area on the ground floor, and a bar counter, with chilled cabinets behind it, on the upper level. Cask ales, ciders and perries are sold on gravity dispense, from the aforementioned cabinets. This type of set up is fairly common with micropubs, and we were to encounter it again, at the next bar. Mind the Gap was a pleasant enough place, but for both me and my companions, was spoiled by the solo, live performer with his guitar, plus box of tricks.

Under the right circumstances, live music in a pub, can be OK, but in this case the pub was far too small, even for a bloke on his own. The performer and his sound system took up half of the bar space, which probably explains why many customers were sitting outside. I am also of the opinion that someone strumming a guitar, whilst the rhythm section (bass, drums and lead guitar), are supplied electronically, is cheating. Some decent finger-picking, to go with the vocals, would have been far more natural, and more honest too, otherwise the performance is little more than glorified karaoke!

Haffen Den, a 4.2% best bitter from McCanns, was my choice of beer, and for those readers who remember my visit to Hukins Hops, at their Haffenden Farm home, just over three years ago, McCanns are the micro-brewery based on the premises. It would have preferred sampling my first pint of McCanns, at a more appropriate location, but we can’t always have everything we want out of life. Consequently, the three of us weren’t sorry to say goodbye to Mind the Gap, which was a shame, as under different circumstances I’m sure it would have been fine. 

 

A short distance west from Mind the Gap, and on the other side of the rail line, was the penultimate pub on our tour. The Royston is a stylish, and multi-award-winning alehouse, decorated in a mix of Victorian, steampunk and art deco themes. As in the previous pub, a showpiece chiller cabinet dispenses four carefully selected local and national cask ales, plus ciders for those who love a drop of fermented apple juice. 

An extensive wines and spirits, selection, plus barista quality coffee, are also available, and in fine weather, there are seats outside. The place was buzzing, when we arrived, and the throng of people in the bar, made it difficult to move. Perhaps the customers were refugees from the place down the road? Although the more likely reason relates to the Royston being voted, Kent Pub of the Year 2025. Despite the crush at the bar, the sartorially dressed manager/owner found time to demonstrate the state-of-the-art lifting gear, used to lift, and the manoeuvre casks into position on the stillages, inside the chiller cabinet. In my professional capacity of company Safety Advisor, this is a pretty cool piece of kit, that eliminates the need for stretching and pulling, when placing casks into position. Beer wise, I opted for a glass of Lightbulb, a hazy but very drinkable New England Pale Ale, from Verdant Brewery.

I was slacking by this time, and it was quite a stroll to the final pub of the day. The Four Candles Alehouse is a corner micropub that appears larger from the outside than it does, once inside. The premises was a hardware store for many years, which led to the shop acting as a prompt for the "Four Candles" sketch written by Ronnie Barker of the Two Ronnies. Although of modest size, the interior is light, bright, and complemented by large windows. This combination attempts to give the pub a sense of space. but there’s no getting away from it being rather cramped. 

The pub brews its own beers, down in the cellar, facilitated by a hatch in the floor, with a hoist above for the delivery of brewing ingredients, as well as for hauling up of casks. According to Untappd, I sampled two of the pub’s house-brewed beers - Session Green Hop Pale 3.6%, my first, and so far, only Green Hop Ale of the season. This was followed by Target Bitter, a darker coloured 4.4%. beer brewed using Target hops.

After leaving the pub, we made our way back to Broadstairs station and the train back to Tonbridge. It had been an interesting day with the chance of catching up with a couple of old friends, but it also afforded the opportunity of a rare visit to this cut-off, and slightly isolated corner of Kent.