please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
A beautiful (very) old building with real fires, wooden beams, low ceiling and a large beer garden/courtyard.
That said I preferred it when it was Simple Simons and had live music and a variety of real ales.
However the Spitfire Gold I had the other day was ok and the staff were friendly enough.
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A beautiful old building with two real fires and a spacious garden. In my opinion it's still not as good as it used to be when it was a freehouse called Simple Simons and offered live music. Now the beers are almost all Shepherd Neame (not my favourite brewery) and there is no live music. Although the restaurant is upstairs the whole pub seems more geared up for food.
The building is still wonderful and I wouldn't want to put anyone off going there either to warm up in front of one of the fires or to sit outside in the summer sun.
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An unscheduled pit stop at this very attractive and olde worlde Shepherd Neame pub and restaurant.
On the bar are 6 hand pumps offering 5 ales all from Shepherd Neame, my choice was Amber Ale @ 4.5% and was thoroughly decent.
More of a restaurant than a pub but it’s worth a visit just to see the interior of this lovely building, there’s low beams, inglenook fireplaces, lots of wood panelling, hops hanging around the bar….a cracking interior.
The majority of tables were reserved for dinner later in the evening so the choice of seating was limited apart from the bar.
Semi busy at just after 5pm on a Saturday.
Decent pub, good beer and a cracking building. 7/10 but mainly for the building
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An amazing old building dating bach to the 13th Century. Brilliant interior. Greeted on entry by a history lesson on a plaque which was a good read.A good range of ales. I had the Lion Ale. A sun trap for a beer garden which was lovely on the day of our visit
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Was recently back in the city and had to give The Parrot a once-over since my (fond) memories of cutting through the smoke/fug when it was Simple Simon's. The (very) new landlords are making a good start although sanding and varnishing various bits of garden furniture in the courtyard whilst folk were drinking and eating was a bit odd!
After a nice drink in the courtyard, came back in the evening and tried - OK demolished - the Wagyu burger: very nice indeed (if it is genuine Kobe beef then all the more amazing for the price)!
I fondly remember Indian summer afternoons in the courtyard many moons ago and think the current staff are doing a good job to keep this place near the top of any discerning ale-tipplers 'must visit' list in Canterbury. OK it might be Sheps, but when served well I'd happily chose 'Finger' any day.
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Shame they got rid of Bert the parrot though. Doubt I will go in again, used to go in every Friday.
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I was surprisingly pleased on my recent visit to the Parrot. I still hark back to the days of Simple Simons however there appears to have been another change of landlord and there was a decent selection of ales available. I'm not a fan of Shepherd Neame regular brews but the seasonal beers are better.
The Amber Ale and Early Bird were both decent pints and I noticed Incubus and Exmoor Ale were also available.
The staff were chatty and knowledgeable and were happy to provide tasters.
The building itself remains a classic.
I was glad to hear that live music may return to the pub!
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This pub was one of the stops on my son's Stag Night (yes, he is a student). It is an olde type pub, very old. There was a nice selection of mainly Shepherd Neame beers on. A lot of people were eating. We sat in the garden, playing Connect 4. Unfortunately, I was driving so could not sample many of the ales. I made my excuses and left just as they were dressing my son up as a woman.
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Popped in on New Years eve for a couple of hours on an impulse - what a gem of a pub this is - never knew it existed, will definately be back on a normal night. No need for a big build up or what would sound like an advert, just visit it & see if I'm wrong.
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Great pub. Warm and friendly on a cold night. Good selection of drinks and although we didn't eat here the food looked good.
Staff were quick and took the time to have a joke with people even on a busy Saturday night when the place was very busy.
My second favorite pub in Canterbury.
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A cracking old school pub with a good selection of ale. The Youngs Gold on my visit was well kept and flavoursome. There seemed to be quite a few people eating and by the looks of it the food was good. Bar staff were attentive and helpful. Will definitey be going back in here the next time I'm in the neighbourhood.
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For me it will never be the same since the old Simple Simon days. Still attracts a good crowd many of whom are students.
The beers ok but not as varied as the SS days.
Very pleased to see live music is being reintroduced!
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First class pints - great food - lovely ambience - great beer garden - you couldn't ask for more. This pub ticked every box for me. As I usually drink Youngs I tried both guest ales and they were superbly kept. This pub is well worth a visit.
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The Parrot is a wonderful pub to eat and drink in with real fires extremely helpful staff, they extended the table so we could all sit together. The food and the ale were excellent.
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A friend took me here yesterday and im so glad he did he used it 20 years ago when it was simple simons i have to say with its two open fires roaring a class glass of beer i was going to ask if i could move in!
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This is in the top 10 best pubs I have ever visited. Used to be called Simple Simon's and is now called the Parrot. We were visiting town when a few old chaps at the Weatherspoons send us to the best pub in town - The Parrot. Down this little alley and around the corner and not as cheap - but well worth the find. Place is combined from 3 old buildings from 1000 years ago or something. Quality of the beer was top notch. I had a tribute, my mate had and incubus, and I had one of the youngs beers and I think bomardier - all were as fresh as you'll get. Staff great - hung out with the guy at the bar, and the locals. One guy gave me his lighter, which was over the top. Excellent huge garden outback, with a fire pit. We sat in the sun for awhile, very chill. If I could have stayed forever, I probably would have. I've rated 30 pubs on this site, and this is the only one I'll give a 10. Go here.
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Notwithstanding its consistent failure to breach the hallowed pages of CamRA's Good Beer Guide, Simple Simon's was a worthy hostelry that yielded good, diverse beer, a friendly atmosphere, a charming interior and well-laid out garden, all tucked away in a sleepy little hollow of the city.
Having recently paid 2 visits to its new incarnation which is indeed in the singular not plural, I am happy to report that the majority of these elements have been retained, and it demonstrates that when they see fit (i.e. they are venturing into territory where they are less confident that their own brands will receive rapturous responses), Young's can and will allow more flexibility in their formula, especially regarding choice of ale on the bar. Granted, the variety seen in Simon's day will never be seen again. But at least in addition to the stock Young's/Wells portfolio somehow Hopdaemon beers have clung on. Those sampled were in fine form. Supplies appeared to be limited and pumpclips were being reversed at a rapid rate, but given it had only been operating as the Parrot for a week, I am confident this was mere teething trouble.
The food sampled was also superb, and served by a very convivial manageress, who offered cheese and bacon on my burger for free - then again at �6.45 just the burger would've been somewhat steep. It isn't a pub in the vanguard of great value.
The garden has been overhauled but actually is more comfortable than I remembered it, and will be understandably popular in Summer.
In a few weeks this should be a mmore well-oiled machine and it shouldn't be dismissed purely because of its Young's branding.
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Visited 23/07/2008. This establishment is called Parrot (Pub & Dining) NOT Parrots! Yes it has indeed been taken over by "Youngs".
Three out of five beer engines on, garden better, although cant fathom why they have to have a smoking fire outside? Albeit, the garden has very plush furnishings.
However the cahnge has done nothing for improvement in the quality of the toliets or its general appearence.
No Jazz Bands, service not as it used to be and only a prod "Youngs" beer presentation!
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Now owned by the Youngs Pub Co. Initial reports are good.
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Predominantly a Young's pub with four beers from their portfolio. Hopdaemon were providing Incubus and also the House Beer on Saturday night.
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Now under the name of "Parrots", this place has six hand pumps, each with a different ale. Six!!! Friendly staff, and a smashing beer garden.
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My new favourite pub. Had 7 ales on when I visited on saturday, all of which were on good form. Gorgeous building, great atmosphere, as someone mentioned there's also an open fire which is always nice. It looks like I'll be making the journey to Canterbury a much for frequent thing.
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Great place. Shame about the psychotic gandalf looking landlord.
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Excellent beer, roaring log fire and some very friendly locals, the best pub in Canterbury.
anonymous - 25 Oct 2007 16:05 |
A disgrace that the dogmatic, dreary Canterbury CAMRA branch do not include it in their allocation of Good Beer Guide places. Excellent beer quality - it has been consistently so for the past three years - and a far better atmosphere than any other pub in Canterbury, with the sole exclusion of the Unicorn.
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A really lovely pu with a good selection of real ale. Great atmosphere and the place was full of friendly characters. The only problem with it really is that it is about sixty miles too far away from my home. Otherwise I would be there all of the time.
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Nice visit when I went. Garden lovely. Bar staff very friendly. Has a charm, maybe a bit small and rickety, but is tucked away nicely enough that it would def be a regulars haunt
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We visited on a Saturday night. Drank excellent beer and listened to a great jazz band. When the band finished the clientele quickly changed to the younger generation. Suddenly felt old and left but its nice to see a pub that caters for all.
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what a fantastic pub. the interior is cosy and so is the garden.
the landlord was super friendly and even sat down with me and my friends when invited.
i just wish this pub was nearer to me.
also definitely try the 8% cider. it makes you happy.
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Loving simple simons, lovely small pub atmosphere, with great bar staff. Wanna come here some time when music is on bet its great. Not too studenty either more of a locals pub I would say. Definitely drag my friends here again!
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I'll give this an 8. The beer is excellent and varied, and the live jazz is thoroughly enjoyable and conjures up a great atmosphere. However, on a Saturday night with live music the pub is crammed full to the point of ridiculum, and the beer is just too expensive for my budget. That being said, it's excellent for occasional visits... or frequent ones if you're rich!
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Popped in on 22/01 early evening a few locals in as well as the manager. I love this place, the locals say hello (Im not a Kent resident) and the staff and good. Beer wise 9/10. Tried "Simple Simons" Bitter for the first time after many visits here. VG.
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good pub although very studenty at times well kept beer but pricey recommend going in.
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Another great session at Simple Simons. The very best beer Canterbury has and a very good range. Don't agree with the last posting that the guy running it is a wally, anything but! He makes sure the beer is top rate, the food is good and hearty, the place is clean, he works very long hours, and is always courtious and polite. He is no wally, but a very good manager.
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Good beer, amazing building, nice atmosphere, shame about the bearded long-haired wally that runs it.
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I agree that this is one of Canterbury's hidden gems, and concur that a Good Beer Guide entry is long overdue. It serves a vast array of interesting ales, and in my experience always well-kept. It plays host to a lively and mixed clientele of locals, young and old, and with varied socio-economic background. Plenty of space in the pub itself, although better weather should lead you to the back garden where there is a sheltered and spacious drinking area.
There is a surprising dearth of good honest ale pubs in the city and this is a rare treat.
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The best pub in Canterbury. Pricey at �3.70 for a biddendens, but im just glad they serve it. Only bettered in the area by the Yew Tree at Barfrestone, but if you dont want the drive this is the best around.
What a good pub should be.
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A complete mystery as to why this pub is continually overlooked by the local CAMRA branch. As a CAMRA member this pub is, in my opinion, the best place in Canterbury to have a decent session sampling different ales. A few years ago the quality of the beer was gighly variable but in the past two yaesr it has markedly improved. A must on any visit to Canterbury.
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This pub is an historic building with a cosy interior. However this is runied by the over priced water downed beer and the policy of not serving people with dreadlocks .
After the landlord refused to refund our drinks after he asked one of our party to leave for no apparant reason other than his haircut, we shall no longer frequent. There are far nicer pubs in Canterbury such as the Cherry Tree or the Two Sawyers
anonymous - 25 Aug 2006 15:16 |
Simple Simons is in an historic building near the river in the city centre. It has a pleasant beer garden. Excellent range of real ales, well served by polite staff. Recommended!
anonymous - 21 Aug 2006 16:39 |
Popped in with friends over the weekend. Beer was of a high standard but damn' pricey! �2.90 for a pint of Hopdaemon "Skrimshander" (4.5%) and it's only brewed up the road. I can get the same pint in my local for �2.20. This is Canterbury, NOT London. In fact, I think London tends to be cheaper. No wonder the average student debt after three years at Uni is �12k!
The food was excellent. The price of the beer stops me giving this lovely old pub more than 7/10.
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Absolutely brilliant pub! Not only the best pub in Canterbury, but I would say the best pub in Kent!
The array of real ales and lagers is amazing (if slightly pricey) and always served with a smile.
The food is great (I can't recommend the steak sandwich enough) and well priced.
The bands are always brilliant and I have never been disappointed.
The toilets are great fun as well! People write amuzing little poems and quotes on the walls, which always keeps me occupied for a little while... in fact... I'm sure my friends must wonder what I'm up to in there!
A definite 10 out of 10 pub!!!
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Not possibily the best pub in Canterbury....it IS THE BEST PUB IN CANTERBURY!!! I have been going there for 3 years now, and I know I can always count on it to have a great atmoshpere! The staff are great, Captain Birdseye (the owner) is amusing, and the bands always rock hard! My fav. band is the one with Stevie Wonder on the drums (If you saw him you would know what I mean), which I think plays on Saturday nights.
Im going to miss this pub when I leave uni. this summer, as I have had so many great times there(specially in there huge beer garden out back!)
Simples is highly recomended for ANYONE! ALL AGES, NATIONALITIES (loads of international students go there) AND SEXUAL PREFENCES WELCOME. Although, they do seem to always mysteriously not serve anyone with dreadlocks...which I think is a good thing anyways...the are dirty! Haha ;)
Anyway, hope this helps, and enjoy your visit to Simples! Tell them Holio Rodregez sent you!
Peace out
anonymous - 8 May 2006 18:48 |
great beer, great punters, good music but incredibly stuffy; this is to be expected given the age of the building (C1400?) though.
Have been going there occassionally for 7 years now and noticed rather high staff turnover, so maybe the place isn't so great from the other side of the bar.
anonymous - 26 Apr 2006 13:32 |
i agree, absolute stunners! and check out the landlords daughter... :) and yes, i guess the beer is pretty damn good too!
anonymous - 15 Apr 2006 01:18 |
Hot barmaids. Amazing selection of real ale. Amazing real ale served by hot barmaids.....
Seriously go there, can't go wrong. The beautiful girls behind the bar are just an added bonus, the two blond girls working when I went in (one eastern european and one english) were both gorgeous and friendly which would make any blokes day!!
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Possibly the best pub I've ever been to.
Excellent range of beer and ale, but what is really fantastic about this pub is the beer garden for the summer, and the open fire for the winter. An excellent beer garden, secluded and somewhat magical.
The live music is always good value, with jazz and folk on offer. The food is veritable, although not cheap.
An incredible find, and certainly worth discovering.
Go there!
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I went to Uni in Canterbury for 3 years and sampled as many of the pubs there as I possibly could. I came to the conclusion that Simple Simons is far and away the best pub in the city, and I don't know anyone who doesn't agree! They have a great range of beers (often including some hogs back beers which I am fond of due to living round the corner from the brewery, when I'm not in Canterbury) although don't bother trying the Simple Simons own brew... it's a tempting price but terrible beer. Fantastic beer garden, many a great summer's afternoon/evening spent there. An no one's mentioned they frequently have some great live jazz and folk music!
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OK, so I've only been here once, and it was a Sunday afternoon, but I didn't see a single chav in the whole place. I had a couple of very tasty pints and the food was superb. Fresh veg and proper ingredients instead of the usual frozen/reformed crap you get makes a huge difference. Can't fault it for a Sunday pie and pint.
koosh - 20 Feb 2006 11:00 |
Fanstastic range of beers. nice garden for the summer and great open fire for the winter!
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full of chavs!
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This pub is absolutely splendid, and easy to miss if you do not know of its whereabouts. The garden is sheltered so that one can sit outside in inclement weather, and in the summer, a veritable suntrap. The range of beer has improved over the last few years ( as has the quality! ). Excellent live music and good attentive staff.
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Great pub for atmosphere & Theobolds cider!!..Manys the time I came here on the weekend from Teynham during the hop picking season.....It`s very hard to reconcile Theobolds & train travel!!,,,top place...old,beamed pub with beer garden..a Canterbury MUST!
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Probably my favourite pub in Canterbury, definitely one of my favourite pubs anywhere, ever! Lovely, cosy atmosphere, especially on Sundays, and an almost daunting range of beer, friendly staff and good food. Time almost seems to stand still when you enter this place!
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Excellent place, good beer, nice sunny garden for the summer time - shame too mant people know about it, even though it is away from the touristy areas!
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Beautiful!! The only pub I know with the guts to sell Theobolds Cider 8% by the pint and trust the punter to handle it!
Great range of ales, good live music, great bar staff, even when full of sweaty folk a great safe atmosphere, I have only been a few times but each time i felt right at home(The pub is built in an old catle shed, perhaps that's Why!!)
carbs - 13 Jan 2005 22:29 |
Three words: Theakston's Old Peculiar. Also has an open microphone sesh on sunday evenings.
Bill - 4 Jun 2004 13:23 |
Lovely old pub, a bit off the beaten/tourist track, but serving brilliant selection (9 last tme I was there) of real ales, stouts, ciders etc.
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