Town of Ramsgate

This post guest authored by Brent DeMoss

 

Photos and First Impressions

 

Streetside View

The Bar

Shotgun-Style Main Room

Continuing Outside

Split-Level Deck

Looking out on the River Thames

Chronicling from the Barstool

 

When Nick told me he’d stolen the idea for a blog from me, one that I've never mentioned or copyrighted, I was unsurprised since great minds drink alike. For the shared enjoyment of human nature with its faults and flourishes, not just the drinks within, we share a love of an idea that has been with us for centuries: the pub is a place where life happens.

 

For instance, if you were in the newly constructed Town of Ramsgate, a pub just north of the Thames that has been standing in its current form for around 270 years, you may have overheard conversations between a Captain Bligh and his Master’s Mate Fletcher Christian just before their voyage on the H.M.S. Bounty. Or you may have learned that the Colonies had just placed the U.S. Constitution into full effect, finalizing the steps that took those same colonies from British control.

 

While this pub is as old as many in London, it is unlike most of its ancient cousins. This pub feels more modern, with its white wooden panels, light oak woodwork, and fresh paint. The beer rotation has a London-specific cask ale selection (I went for the ubiquitous London Pride), as well as a handful of standbys. The outside section leads right out to the Thames where you can sit, drink, and enjoy the sights of the waterway.

 

In addition to the decor choices that set this pub apart from many, I very much enjoyed that it is off the tourist trails of London, far enough away from the Tower and Parliament that the clientele is uniquely local. While the restroom smells of piss and IPA, this pub feels like an elder that the neighborhood knows and loves.

 

Also in the pub’s founding year of 1545…

• Henry VIII rules England alongside his sixth and final wife.
• Henry VIII’s flagship, the Mary Rose, sinks at Portsmouth following the Battle of Solent.
• Pope Paul III opens the Council of Trent.
• Potsí founded as mining town in modern day Bolivia; the silver mines provide much of the Spanish Empire’s wealth over the next 250 years.

On Draught

 

Better Late than Never IPA

Portobello Brewing Co.

4.5% ABV

 

Nick only tried this because the logo on the hand pull featured an etching of Charles III, which is just hilarious. Turned out to be a pretty decent beer.