The King Ethelbert Inn in Canterbury

Always have a good meal here. Staff are always friendly and helpful. Locals always have time for the kids. Well worth a visit

Disappointing visit to the King Ethelbert. Ordered the fish finger sandwich. When it came out the fish was mushy and translucent, it either was partly uncooked or it had been microwaved, shame as they could have been good fish fingers with nice white fish if cooked better. Very small amount of tartare served with it also. All in all, wouldn’t be returning for food sadly.

Called in for an impromptu lunch half way through a walk (we had a picnic with us but decided to try the pub instead). Being a Monday in March on a dull day we were the only diners at the time. Lady behind the bar was most pleasant. Food was excellent. I had an omelette and my wife had fishcakes. Nicely prepared and piping hot. Had our picnic for tea!

Proper homemade food great Sunday roast

Loved it, proper pub serving really good proper pub food. Great location and really welcoming service. Will definitely go again!

5th March 2025. I'll keep it concise. Old woman working the bar alone. Ordered cauliflower and chickpea curry with rice. £13.50. Had to pay upfront. Sat down at my table. Number 17. After some time, the woman came to my table and told me the kitchen said they have run out of that. I'll pause here to say, this is one of the reasons you shouldn't get customers to pay upfront + your staff need to communicate better. Bar staff need to be informed of such things. She said instead there's a veggie chilli con carne if I'd like that instead. I asked her what's in it. I'll pause to say... She's quirky. Seems on edge or something. Getting straight answers from her was hard. Friendly woman though. She didn't know what's in it. Just that there's veggies in it. I gave it some thought and accepted the given alternative meal. Food came in a decent amount of time. However this was an insanely low calorie meal and the portion was tiny. Bearing in mind I had paid £13.50. Food was nice and hot. However. The 'veggie chilli con carne' tasted like just tomato's, salt, pepper and maybe some herbs. And I'm telling you. That's all it was. The entire thing including the rice tasted like a relatively cheap microwave meal from a supermarket. It was terrible. For £2 more, where I live, I can get a handmade authentic, delicious veggie pizza from my local family run Italian. It's called Castellum pizzeria. And it's far far more calories and volume of food than this terrible offering. I was starving. While I was eating the woman came to ask how it was. I told her it exactly how it was. She just apologised. Didn't offer me anything. No refund offer, alternative meal. Nothing. I finished it all. Remember. I was starving. Went to use the toilet, as I was entering, she exclaimed 'excuse me would you like a different meal?'. I replied 'I've already finished it'. She replied 'oh, I'm so sorry'. She's a nice woman. However she seems to be poorly trained. She needs to be trained what to do in such situations. Just offering an apology and leaving the customer with what is quite frankly a terrible terrible dish, at that price is heinous. No fault of her own I assume. I used toilet, sat back at my table. Still very hungry. Went back to bar, ordered a panini. £8.50. I also told her that the alternative meal I was offered had only veggies in it, and that the meat version which was on the menu was priced at £11.95. Vegetables are cheaper than meat. So my meal shouldn't cost the £13.50 I was charged. She said she'll have to speak to the manager. Turned out he was sitting right next to me. I was standing at the bar. He apologised and said there was confusion about my order. There wasn't. I was told what I wanted was out of stock. Anyhow, I didn't dispute what he said. I was tired, hungry, and not feeling like dealing with any kind of confrontation. He was friendly. He said there would be no charge for the panini. Thanked him, sat back down. Panini came out nice and hot. Opened it up to release heat. Dismayed to see there were basically no veggies in it. It was Pesto, cheddar and veggie panini. Comes with a salad with salad cream of some sort, and salted crisps. Taste wise it was just OK. Not great, not terrible. I wouldn't recommend this place based on my experience sadly. Friendly staff though. Manager needs to teach pub floor staff how to deal with issues with food etc. Also, he had told me he just arrived and just found out about the problem with my meal. Even more reason to properly train staff. They shouldn't have to rely on the manager being physically present to deal with issues. Interior is OK. Warm. Walking past the bar area is a tight squeeze + the kitchen door and bar staff exit are opposite each other where there's very little space for customer to walk by. It's essentially a crossroad. And there was a man sitting with 2 dogs on leashes right next to this crossroad. His dogs were sitting in the crossroad zone. I barely had room to maneuver. Food needs major improvement. Cold toilets.

Very welcoming, delicious lamb rump! Excellent service thanks 😀

Great little pub food good and staff friendly and helpful and Terry from Tesco's great singer

Stopped in for a drink after a walk. Friendly staff and locals.

The staff were amazing, so helpful and the food was excellent.... Best Sunday Lunch I've had for a long long time... Thank you for helping us with my nieces Allegens too.....

A cosy Free House, Dog friendly Reasonable selection of Ales Beers and other drinks. Very friendly staff and a wide variety of food well cooked and presented . Vegetarian option available. Small Free carpark with ANPR in action .Main carpark is council owned and charges apply. A very short walk to Reculver towers.

The barman was nice, the manager/landlord spoke quite rudely to us. The food was below par. I won't be visiting again.

We visit here fairly regularly and have never been disappointed. Whether it's a quick drink or a meal you cannot go wrong with the Ethelbert. A quaint pub in a great location with a lovely team of staff and super friendly locals. It's definitely worth a visit.

Good food & drink. Pub nice & warm. Service good.

Go every couple of months to play Pool. Snacks for food available freindly staff.

Fantastic food and location . was the perfect date night, beautiful lanscape

A nice pub with a good selection of lager. Dog freindly and a traditional pub food menu

We always have Sunday lunch here it's fabulous!

Lovely little pub right next to the beach

Lovely food after a nice walk. Nice staff , very pleasant.

Treated my wife to an Arments pie and mash instead of going to London. The food was great, fresh, and hot. I had the seafood combo, but without the whitebait, a good selection of hot and cold. The specials board had a great selection. Will definitely be back to try out the Sunday Roast. Also it's so close to the beach.

First visit had the 6oz steak burger, and was lovley. Chips not so great but I don't like.chunky chips, would deffently visit again. Lady behind the bar was a good laugh and friendly aswell

Good pub, lovely setting nice staff and food

Had an afternoon tea here, staff very nice, food was good, reasonably priced.

Had lovely lunch for 6 adults, a baby and a dog. Very accommodating friendly and helpful and food was delicious.

Brilliant place lovely food, good place to go with kids

Excellent meal, great service, good atmosphere .

Just had a delicious meal here. Food top notch and staff super friendly and welcoming.

This was our second visit and it didn't disappoint (not that we expected it to). Although crowded, a good sign, the staff team were very proactive and fast in getting our food and drinks order for a light lunch. We had Panini (different fillings) and these came out well presented along with delicious salad and crisps. If you're visiting Reculver make this a place to stop by also.

Wonderful place right next to Reculver towers. Make sure you use the pub carpark not the pay and display if using the Inn. Food excellent good range of drinks, staff are very friendly and most helpful. We'll worth a visit

Lovely pub had a warm welcome and nice food 😊

Great place with amazing food. Excellent service! I'll go back when I am in the UK again.

I rode to reculver and popped in this pub for a quick pit stop. I ended up ordering abit of grub and a few pints. Amazing service and excellent food! Definitely recommend pub. Also the music choice was 👌🏻

Had a fab meal with great service for mums birthday

Very nice little pub, right next to the castle ruins. The food tastes very tasty and the service is a bit overwhelmed, but professional and nice. I was even able to get hold of the WiFi password and a place for a socket.

A great selection of food besides a Sunday roast.

What a great find. Food and service was excellent. Five star recommendation from me.

Very nice authentic old traditional pub

Great fish and chips and delicious steak and ale pie! Very cozy and the lady running it was great! We loved this place!

Service poor, curry and tagliatelle very dry had to ask for some sauce , gravy was one lump didn't poor out just plops out very disappointed ate there last summer and was very pleased hence we went back but I'm afraid we won't return again

Very nice meal to celebrate my son's birthday Chris .Thanks for lovely lunch Paul and Jan

Great pub, food, real beer and service. We were served by Amy who treated us very well.

Grumpy middle aged barmaid very unhelpful

The ham was was wafer thin, the salad was just cucumber and oven chips. We have eaten here numerous times and have been very happy with the food but, will think twice about returning.

Lovely venue, friendly staff and good food.

Lovely restaurant and lovely food

Stopped by chance without a booking. Staff very welcoming and friendly, £45 for two main meals, beer, Diet Coke and service charge. Great garlic bread. Plenty of prawns in the salad but hard to find the salad, maybe a bowl not the best service choice to see what you were eating.

Great place. Friendly welcome, excellent food at good prices.

Very atmospheric seaside location close to the Reculver towers. We only stopped in for a drink, very pleasant pint at an outside picnic table, were very tempted to stay on once other people's food started to arrive! Particularly fancied the seafood combo!

A Thursday lunch, pint and snack. Busy which gave the place a nice buzz. One lass serving so there was a bit of a delay as a large group arrived, but she managed well, apologised for the delay. Food excellent, arrived quite quickly, we were sharing but the waitress/landlady? kindly offered an additional plate and extra salad. Only down side was that the only ale on, Theakstons bitter, was not at its best. It was passable and the barmaid did say after that she would have changed it, but it was too busy at the time hence I didn’t ask. Certainly well worth a visit.

Dog friendly, lovely lovely staff

Lovely place and staff friendly and helpful 😀

Not my first visit, and certainly not my last! Great pub all round!

Popped in after a walk from Herne bay to the reculver towers. Good local beer and well prepared food at a reasonable price. Staff friendly and very helpful

Popped in for lunch and had the bacon, brie and cranberry panini, which was delicious

Lovely meal great service nothing to much trouble.

Lovely pub with an interesting history.

Enjoyed the atmosphere and food 😃

Lovely location good traditional pub food and an all day breakfast!

Me and my partner ended up here unexpectedly last night and cannot fault the service,food or setting. The staff where supper helpful and friendly nothing was too much The wait time for freshly prepared and cooked food was good and when it was served did not disappoint. Delicious! Pricing is also in line with the amount and quality of food you get. So highly recommend this gorgeous, historical delight!

Mark and his staff at the King Ethelbert Inn are 1st class and have always put customer service at the forefront of there pub and as a regular that is very much appreciated.I recently had my Mums wake at the King Ethelbert and Mark and his team really went out of there way to making it a memorable day with there food, drinks, customer service, there was nothing that was too much trouble and it made so much difference for my friends and family to make my Mums day a memorable one. Its a great pub whether your a day visitor, walker, cyclist, or local you always know that you will have a really nice time at the King Ethelbert Inn........Regards Barry Price

A perfect spot for hikers. We visited during a walk from Margate to Herne Bay. The King Ethelbert was 9 miles into our walk, right next door to the Reculver church ruin and Roman fort, so the perfect break for lunch just when we needed it. It's a classic locals' pub, well looked after, with an excellent menu of pub classics, and lots of canine visitors. Service was prompt, and even on a winter Saturday, it was pretty full, both inside and outside. There are a good selection of beer, including some local Kent choices. The whole atmosphere was comfortable, and the staff couldn't have been more kind or welcoming. It wasn't the day for it, but there's also a huge amount of outdoor space and parking.

Lovely walk in Reculver today finished off with a great lunch in the pub My friend was very happy with the Liver bacon and mash and was a very generous portion, great prawn sandwich again generous filling with salad and crisps Shared a delicious pudding of pistachio and damson tart was soooo good 😋 Staff were amazing Thank you

Great value for money. Huge portions

Great place to stop and refresh after a cold and windy walk.

Lovely friendly pub and staff, super food 😋

Excellent food, excellent service and very accomodating to the Beach Buddies Newfoundland dog group today. Thank you. We will definitely be back. 🐕

We came as a group of 8 for our Christmas dinner and it was so lovely the staff were brilliant. We had such a lovely time

Nice meals,barman was rather rude,next time we went for a drink.

Lovely lunch, nice pint and dog friendly, what more could you want 😃

We were out on a walk and popped in for a pint but stayed for Sunday lunch . Great food nice staff and dog friendly.

What a first class evening had by all ,food and service was excellent, can't wait to return with other friends and shear in the wonderful friendly warm atmosphere Thank you .

Service was very slow, which surprised me it took nearly two hours for the food to arrive and drinks where over ½ an hour. Although thier were nine of us, head at front of house could have advised us of the delays ahead.

Lovely pub for a ploughman's lunch and a decent pint of ale.

Had the jacket potato with prawns, it was loaded with prawns plus salad and coleslaw. Excellent and so was the service.

A nice place to visit right on the coast almost next to Reculver historic site. Sit outside in good weather or inside in poor weather. Good food drink and service. Well worth a visit.

We stopped here for quite lunch on our way. The Sunday roast was delicious! Pork 10/10, soft, juicy and very tasty. Lots of vegetables on separate plate. Highly recommended if you looking for pub in local place far away for noise city

The food here is so homely! Absolutely delicious and generous portions. The menu is great and you can taste the love that goes into each plate.

Pre-ordered sandwiches for 18 hungry cyclists were quickly dealt with on this particular warm October weekend. Good selection of beers and ciders(I'm sure spirits were available too) Nice location, being a stone's throw from the Reculver towers and even closer for the Roman wall.

Lovely location, good food, good service too

Very pleasant and helpful staff. Food cooked fresh. Very olde worlde atmosphere- will visit again.

Delicious food, tasty drinks, historical site, huge playground and large parking lot. Perfect. We received a friendly welcome and experienced first-class service.

Nice pleasant atmosphere, good beer, didn't try the food.

The King Ethelbert Inn is a gem. Very helpful staff, very welcoming and superb traditional food. A real pleasure. It is next to Recover, so it is very convenient. Superb.

Went in for Sunday roast on 24th September. Pre ordered over the phone a few days earlier so that we could be sure to get the meats we wanted. Ordered food at the bar and the roast arrived not long after the order. Unfortunately I found part of a plastic bag in my vegetables. Showed this to the young man who served us and he looked very disinterested and just said ' I just serve.. and 'do you want me to take it back'...I asked him to take it back. It seemed a while and my husband asked a female bar staff member if she could find out where the roast was. She came back and stated it was being cooked. The young man returned just as my husband and friends were finishing theirs. Totally disappointed in the whole experience as no apology or anything from any kitchen staff the server or the bar staff. It was as thought they didn't want to acknowledge their mistake and just wanted to sweep it under the carpet. We will never return and I hope people will read the review and take extra care when ordering food at this pub.

Great 👍 place. Stop off on one of our cycling adventures of the south coast On the way back to Canterbury

A lovely pub .Found it on a cycle which was refreshing. I did not eat but the food look great .

Lovely location. Staff very welcoming and helpful. Food freshly prepared and good quality. Great place for walkers, cyclists, dog owners or a drive out. Highly recommended.

Great food.polite service.Fairly reasonable prices.

Lovely well cooked evening meal with family. Service & staff excellent.

Very busy but they are working hard to serve everyone quickly. All the staff are welcoming polite .

Fabulous location for a bite to eat in the sunshine. Food was delicious and service excellent. Highly recommended.

Staff were moody and unapproachable. Extremely overpriced drinks £36 for a bottle of prosecco! Miller and Carter don't even charge £30. Dirty glasses, staff put out when asked to clean them! Service was poor. Food was delicious but the service and drink prices are offensive. It's a local pub for local people type vibe!!

Popped on for a beverage, lovely old style pub, friendly staff and toilets spotless, a great find will visit again.

We stumbled upon this welcoming English pub by chance. Nice atmosphere, very friendly staff, good food at reasonable prices. Plus the location is fantastic. Worth a visit.

Great vintage pub. Good selection of beer and cider also make a lovely hot chocolate

What a lovely find for a sunny afternoon. Good choice of food inc veggie options. Nice to have a children’s swing in the garden and lots of seating. Clearly popular so we were delighted to get a table without booking

Very nice place and friendly staff. The food was avarage.

The staff were lovely and the food was very good I had a lovely evening

Lovely pub with great service. FYI food served evening 6 -8 pm according to the signs on the door. Had tuna - very nice with pesto cream sauce, husband had steak and ale pie which was gorgeous.