Cock Inn in Maidstone

My husband and I booked a table for our 20th wedding anniversary and it was a shambles. We waited 15 minutes for someone to take our order because they thought someone else had done it. 30 minutes later, still no starters, and when my husband went to speak to the server, she was very rude. They had a big table but they had finished their meal by the time we were seated and yet they used this as an excuse. They said they are short staffed and she had a issue she was trying to resolve. None of this should stop a pate starter from coming out. It's already cooked! We saw meal after meal coming out and nothing for us. We then decided we didn't want to stay and wait for a £30 steak (oh, and they didn't have mussels or lamb shanks, which is what we wanted!) because the service didn't deserve that price. Whilst we were paying for our drinks, the chef came out and spoke to the server and said "I told you this would happen if you accepted walk-ins", so I can only assume all of those meals were sent to people who hadn't even booked a table as we had. The man we presume to be the landlord had nothing to say to us and just allowed everything to happen around him. Absolutely disgraceful as service.

Really grateful that although staff were really busy, they made us feel welcome. I overheard them offering extra of another meat when the 'mixed' carvery was unavailable. Our Fish and Chips was the best I'd had in a long time and I'm definitely going back for food! We go for drinks regularly but honestly cannot recommend the food/chef enough!

We drove past the Cock Inn on a day out to Buttercups Goat Sanctuary and thought we must pop in and thats exactly what we did and we are so glad! The inside of the pub is gorgeous and we were later to find out that all of the quotes written on the old beams had been written personally by the landlord. He had found them all individually on his travels and picked the best. The food was wonderful and the portions were plentiful. The lady behind the bar who served us was lovely and we had the opportunity to meet the chef. We will definitely be back and have no hesitation at all in recommending this lovely, friendly pub. Thank you.

Absolutely nuts pricing, seriously, almost £10 for 4 small vegetable spring rolls that could have come from a freezer for all I care. £5 for a pint of diet coke too. The food is fine it's just ridiculous prices, and there is multiple non plant-bassd options under the plant-bassd section on the menu.

I will start with two points: (1) we all make mistakes and this isn’t an issue - the way we try to resolve them is the real issue; (2) I never complain in a desperate and cheap attempt to get money off. I heard this pub was nice so I visited with family on Mother’s Day - I really wish we hadn’t. I ordered the chicken roast when, to my surprise, I got half a small chicken on the bone. I’ve never had chicken for a roast like this - it’s always been a breast or sliced/carved. I can’t eat meat off the bone (which isn’t a new phenomenon or extremely rare nowadays). If I’m ever unhappy about something in a restaurant - which is exceptionally rare - I always raise it to give the staff an opportunity to address it. I did so and was told, “Sorry, I should have said it wasn’t breast. I forgot. We have a lot of chicken like this in the freezer for a few months and the chef wanted to get rid of it”. Basically, tough luck. It was not so much that he’d forgot to forewarn me, but more his ‘resolution’ that disappointed me. There was nothing done to address the fact I’d paid nearly £20 for two roast potatoes and some vegetables. There was no gesture to fix it or anything. As I was left with it, I asked for a doggy bag to at least take it home and give it to the dogs. To add insult to injury, the young lady serving the food should be more conscious of her behaviour: her abrupt tone, her rolling of the eyes, her sighing. All of this was done because she had to lean over the table to put plates down. I imagine this is a common task for waitering staff across the country, and less common they’re rude about it. I was actually quite upset by this poor service. For the first time in my life, I refused to leave a tip. I couldn’t reward this. It’s a shame an experience like this leaves such a horrible taste in your mouth. I wouldn’t wish ill on the pub at all, but I also wouldn’t wish anyone to experience such poor service - hence me making the effort to write this! I would strongly recommend visiting elsewhere. I won’t return.

Nice country pub, good atmosphere for a quiet sup on a pint on a Friday evening...

Fabulous food lovely friendly atmosphere family run pub would recommend a visit but book first

Lovely food and Bar staff were excellent

Really good service from the staff. The main course was very underwhelming though. I ordered the homemade pie but it was just 1 small slice, not an actual pie and for £18.95 I would expect more of the main dish. Also £3.60 for a pint of lime cordial and soda water is criminal.

Hadn't been here for years, but very happy to have re-visited. Really friendly welcome, and a big varied menu from which to choose. Perhaps priced a little above the odds, but the portions were good enough to make up for it. Will definitely be back.

I’ve left reviews before for this pub, on and off we’ve been going for many years and having not visited for a long time we decided to drop in for lunch. The food was as good as it ever was especially the pie of the day which is always excellent. Up until this visit the specials were always chalked up on a blackboard but now there’s a big telly showing them, which I assume is used for footy or cricket when an important event is on. The screen was very bright and I guess it could be uncomfortable for someone facing it. The beer is Sheps as ever and I asked for 2 pints of Spitifre and was asked if I wanted ale or lager - I didn’t know there was a lager! But I took the ale - of course. The pub is very old and in need of some good tlc, even the floor is more uneven and shaky than I’ve noticed before. The landlord who has always been there when we have visited is very welcoming although he now also seems to need some tic himself… The other staff were fine.

my favourite local pub in front of their log fire 🔥

Don’t bother going. Obnoxiously rude owner. We didn’t even bother to stay for food after such a rude reception and definitely won’t be going back. Fortunately several fantastic pubs locally with fantastic food and great customer service. Don’t waste your money here.

Super fish and chips lunchtime today.

The landi’s let me wear one in the boat. Point blank range stinker and all. Really nice chips & draught selection.

Ladies who lunch had a very enjoyable lunch at our local. Plenty of choice, served by friendly staff Ben and Tom.We’ll be back.

Undoubtedly the best Lamberry pie I have ever had. Coupled with excellent service and a very warm and welcoming atmosphere. 10* for the specials pie, what an amazing Friday lunch.

Great pub serving great food. Good menu and excellent Sunday roasts. Fast friendly service.

Fantastic food and welcoming staff. We had lunch which was really really good and well priced highly recommended a visit

Another delicious meal at the cock best food in the area beautiful old pub our favourite

Didn't eat today. Pub was busy and staff were thin on the ground but seemed to be coping. One of the more expensive pub restaurants I've been in but the atmosphere was nice

Great pub. Great staff. Pints were a little pricey. £6 for cider

My husband and I visited for the first time today and were pleasantly surprised. I had lamb shank, my husband had the oriental duck, both were delicious. I had a latte which was much nicer than some coffee shops I’ve been to. The cherry on top was the service, from the moment we walked in until we left, we were made to feel very welcome. We were the only people in there, presumably that was because it was Monday lunchtime and there was a road closure. Even so, the pub had a lovely, warm feel to it. We will definitely be back, my only regret is that we haven’t been sooner, as I’ve driven past it hundreds of times. If you’re unsure where to go, I definitely recommend giving it a go!

Succulent food. Nice service. Lovely staff.

We were staying nearby and came here several times for dinner. The staff were very friendly and the food was very nice.

Lovely little pub and amazing food. Will be back again

Excellent lunch stop. Good food. Good ale.

What a great place for an authentic meal, good portions at great prices.

Always a pleasure to visit. Bar staff professional and friendly. Toilets very clean and bar service swift. There are also electric car chargers

Delicious Sunday lunch served by friendly and efficient staff Francis and Ben. We had lamb, pork and chicken with a variety of vegetables. Great selection of puddings plus pancakes with sliced banana and ice cream topped with caramel.

Lovely Sunday Lunch - amazing food. Waiter couldn’t have been nicer. Apparently some probs in the recent past with a female member of staff (we asked about as read prev reviews), but this person is no longer employed 🤷‍♂️ For us, we had a great experience and have no complaints, would happily recommend for the quality of the food. The staff were amazing 👍

Great place, need to duck if over 5ft. Unfortunately my dinner wasn't the best, not the fault of the premises though. The rest of my party loved both the starter and main.

We went here for what we hoped would be a lovely relaxing meal how wrong could we be One of the female chefs was shouting and swearing at the head chef throughout our entire meal. The head chef walked out and our meal was delayed while the so called landlord persuaded him to come back. Eventually he arrived back and our meals were served by a lovely waiter We asked for the dessert menu but were told there would be no desserts as the chef was refusing to make these. We paid our bill and walked past the landlord who didn’t even acknowledge us. Absolutely disgusting we will be taking our custom elsewhere as we have never ever experienced this before.

Awful meal. Food was fine but we had kitchen staff swearing, the chef walked out, food took ages. The landlord kept out of the way and just ignored the customers. On the way out the landlord thanked us!!?? First time he had said anything.Never again. First and last visit here.

Lovely home cooked food, extremely welcoming friendly staff and dog friendly, can’t wait to eat here again x

Nice traditional pub atmosphere serving good food and beers.

Great Sunday lunch. Good selection to choose from. Very attentive staff. Can highly recommend. Will definitely be returning.

Great old fashioned country pub 👌

A lovely old pub with exposed beams & cockerel decor. Was impressed with the gluten free menu as there was a lot of choice which you don’t always get in other pubs.

Great food lovely atmosphere fantastic service

We've been to this pub a few times in the past and decided to visit again for lunch. The food used to be excellent but I'm afraid it's just average now. The service wasn't great. Our wine glasses weren't very clean, mine had lipstick marks on the rim. Had to eventually ask if they could take our order as we'd been forgotten about. Food turned up, no cutlery. Wasn't offered any condiments either. It's also VERY expensive now. Was never cheap but the quality was worth paying the extra for. Plus they now add a 10% discretionary service charge! Was not worth nearly £100 for Sunday roast for 2 people. Won't be returning.

Multiple order errors for our family Sunday lunch. Bit of a disappointment.

Not impressed at all, 9 of us booked in for Saturday night 23rd March 2024 for 7-30pm-8pm, we were sat at a table directly under a tv and the volume was loud, they did turn it down when asked, there was plenty of room in the restaurant area but we were told there was a party coming in, they didn’t all the time we were there and we left around 10.45pm. Upon ordering we were told that 2 items in the specials board were no longer available and when my husband ordered steak he was told they had run out, how is this possible at 7.45pm???? I had the white bait to start and the portion was enormous and they were lovely, we had no complaints on the actual taste of the food but if they were to make the starter portions smaller they could lower the prices, my whitebait could easily have been a main dish as well as my sister in law who ordered the chicken wings (again another starter) but chose to have it as her main, this also was an enormous portion, only one starter was had (me) 9 mains and 3 deserts had, my husband had one scoop of generic vanilla ice cream and it was £2.50 😱😡 it wasn’t home made it wasn’t Hagen daz it was disgraceful to charge that for one scoop. We spent nigh on £300 which included drinks, 2 large white wines with lemonade, 3 bacardi and cokes, 1 gin and tonic and the rest were cokes, and all agreed we won’t be going back there again. I used to frequent this establishment many yrs ago and it was a great place to go but now looks tired and could do with a revamp.

Came here for Mother’s Day, was the best roast I’ve ever had in a pub. Very nice.

Food was lovely & the staff were amazing, nothing too much trouble, really nice guys

15th century pub that has the best Sunday roast I’ve had in a long time.

Lovely little pub, very warm and cosy inside. Staff are always friendly when we go regardless of time of day. We both had burgers, but one was OK the other seemed very onion'y. I would go back, not sure if I'd want to eat here again though.

Had a brilliant family Sunday lunch very nice food

What a shame a potentially good pub has got a prehistoric , miserable , aggressive , rude moron as an owner ! Ruined a good night with my friends ( who spent a lot of money ) in his establishment . Patronising and unnecessary comments by the old and outdated owner that simply has nothing better to do than complain to the very people making him a living . We will never revisit this place as long as he is in charge , something said by many many others ! Don’t go here if you want to laugh , smile or have a good time , it won’t be allowed !

So many cockups , wrong drinks, mistakes with food . Small portions on some items, all were corrected and prices adjusted on final bill. Then put a £15 service charge on Which we did not pay. Definitely more staff training needed.

Lovely food. Great service. My friend and I were catered for in a special request. Plenty of choice. We both had a fabulous meal. Pricey, but I everything thing is these days! Would fully recommend.

Delicious food, very friendly and attentive staff &dog friendly which was one of the main reasons we chose this place,as we were travelling with our furry child:)

Very good food. Visited on a Monday lunchtime, so wasn't very busy. Service was quick and the food was really good. Very full afterwards. Thank you.

Great local bear, good food, carefully service. I recommended.

Een gezellige pub/restaurant waar wij heerlijk hebben gegeten. Super prijs/kwaliteit verhouding incl. de hoeveelheid portie. Het opnemen van bestellingen en vervolgens het brengen van het eten ging erg snel. Daarnaast ook een mooie entourage binnen die het erg sfeervolmaakt.

Just walking by with the dog and decided to go in, was really made welcome. Food and service was great will be returning. What a lovely place for a drink and a meal..

Fantastic food but my only problem was a (tip) was included on the bill , surly our choice to tip or not ? But then to not be offered our change after paying!!!!! Never again

A great pub for a family lunch the service was great the food was good and we weren't hurried out like some places .

Large outside area with a big car park. Not a garden but still nice. Inside is amazing and still has it's original character. This would probably be classed as a winter pub as so cosy and dark inside. Can imagine and open fire Great barman when we visited and hopefully will return to eat soon

Popped in for a late Sunday lunch. Was made to feel very welcome. Food was served quickly and was delicious. Would highly recommend.

Great food prettily presented. Bit of a wait but it was busy.

Zeer goed eten, voor een redelijke prijs,

Mostly a good experience, friendly and efficient staff and great service but was expensive for a weekday lunch for two people, almost £100!

Food is very good. Service great. Good atmosphere.

Lovely pub! Location is great, loved the seatings and the environment. Foods and beers are palatable and service is extremely good. Had an phenomenal evening here!

Lovely atmosphere and tasty food.

Came here for a meal with friends this evening, the gentleman on the bar and who took our orders and served our meals was very welcoming, friendly and professional. The food was absolutely excellent, picked the vegetable risotto and was not disappointed - favourite risotto I've tried!

Great country pub with lovely atmosphere

Best welcome from all the staff who were attentive throughout without being in your face. Food was just stunning. Cajun chicken with tagliatelle and fish pie were both epic. Bit pricey but so worth it. Go!

A very nice old pub great food friendly staff

Great place to meet a delivaroo driver

Close to my youngest so very convenient and good food drinks and service, drinks a little on the pricey side thou

Good food and a lovely atmosphere

Cosy pub with a warm fire and warm reception

8 of us attended Christmas eve and the young guy behind the bar went out hes way to sort us out a table as we had a dog and didnt book, was so helpful and food was great, place was buzzing and staff was rushed off there feet but still couldn’t help out enough.. will definitely be returning

Great food , Very nice staff and very good service . And a very nice place to eat and drink.

Lovely old pub with friendly staff. Cozy atmosphere and the food is really good. Dog friendly as well which is a bonus. No complaints here.

Lovely pub and food, staff really friendly and efficient. Good for dogs too.

Sunday roast eccellente, carne cotta alla perfezione, tutto buonissimo e personale molto gentile! Tappa comodissima dopo aver visitato il vicino Leeds Castle :)

Great Sunday lunch but spoilt by no heating. Sat with our coats on. Restaurant full, on a cold day, surely not too much to ask for a warm pub?

Lovely lunchtime meal, very comfortable pub where you could feel relaxed and enjoy the friendly atmosphere.

Lovely pub friendly staff and a great atmosphere.

Lovely pub, really friendly staff and good quality food.

Always so friendly and helpful in there. Delicious food and great drinks.

Friendly place with a nice lunch menu.

Me and my fishing buddy came here for a beer refresher. I had a nice pint of Spitfre lager and he had a real ale. Lovely ancient interior but no pub garden to speak of. Didn't try the food my buddy noticed the seafood platter was priced at £150 eeeek!

Absolutely lovely welcome, David and his staff were amazing. Beautiful pub with a traditional environment and comfortable seating. Tables well spaced out. Dog friendly pub. Food was outstanding. Plenty of choices but I had the best fillet steak I have ever eaten followed by a lovely homemade desert. Drink choices were brilliant and the drinks garnished with fruit if wanted. Even a simple glass of water came with a nice glass and ice and lemon. Local were also very welcoming and good parking available if you need it. Thank you for a lovely evening.

The food is amazing. Could not fault anything. Staff are lovely. What an amazing place.

Simple food at reasonable prices

Lovely pub for dinner and drinks!

Very charming pub with friendly staff and excellent food. I'd recommend the steak and ale pie, it was class 👍

Lovely food, reasonably priced and excellent service. Would highly recommend. We have eaten there a gee time and the food and service has always been good. Beat to book for Sunday as its very popular.

10 very wet cyclists, on their way from London to Dover as part of a charity ride to Amsterdam, arrived at 14:04 on a Tuesday for some well needed lunch. Unfortunately, they were 4 mins too late for the kitchen! However, the staff took pity on us and offered a range of baguettes, which were gratefully accepted. Thanks.

Lovely pub, staff were friendly, food was good, would recommend

Lovely atmosphere. Enjoyed the place with my wife. Staff were friendly.

Friendly staff and very generous yummy roast dinner! One person had ribs, he enjoyed those. We all then had lovely puddings. Thank you.

Very old pub in a great spot. Plenty of seating inside with both a large bar and large restaurant area. Staff were very helpful and the chef was accommodating to our specific requirements. All the food was cooked to a high standard. The only downside was the relatively high bill compared to other pub restaurants.

Staff were very friendly and the food was lovely well done

Very nice place, fantastic food!!

Visited on a Tuesday, pub didn't look massively busy. Asked very young bar tender for a table for 7 felt the need to ask someone if it was ok, returned to inform us couldn't cater if we wanted food. Unreal when advertises as a restaurant, felt as though we were a hindrance to staff, didn't want our custom, rude