The Red Lion in Canterbury

We came for Easter Sunday lunch as a family and can not express how good the experience was.The food was exquisite, a well thought out menu with lots of locally-sourced produce. Very accommodating of dietary requirements and well presented.The staff were all so friendly and attentive, making our lunch feel a very personalised occasion.The pub itself is beautiful, set in the gorgeous Kent countryside.

I had been looking forward to going here for ages and it certainly didn’t disappoint.Lovely warm welcome from the owner, room with great views over traditional farm and houses.It was the food that we came for and it was fantastic. The lamb with sea urchin ravioli was next level.Already recommended to friends to come and stay as it ticks all the boxes.Can’t wait to return for one of the tasting supper clubs.

We visited the Red Lion today and left bitterly disappointed. The menu comprises 2 courses for £33 and we opted for mains and pudding. The mains were small, under seasoned, with very limited vegetables coming with the Sunday roasts. Yorkshire puddings were very small and soggy. Roast potato's were okay but obviously reheated. The quantity of meat, especially the roast beef portion, was barely adequate. Service was very slow and when we asked for updates on progress we were fobbed off with mention of the kitchen being very small and under staffed. The gravy came pre-applied on the plate and was, whilst probably not of the packet variety, not much better than that to be honest. The menu mentioned that the beef came with pulverised horseradish. When this didn't appear and was asked for, we were told that horseradish is out of season and instead were given some powder in a little ramakin which was apparently powdered horseradish. It certainly didn't taste anything like horseradish and seemed more like some old garlic powder that had been found at the back of a cupboard. Deserts took absolutely ages to arrive, and when they did come, were absolutely miniscule. My wife chose a tart which, when it came, was about the size of a 2 pound coin, and that's not an exaggeration. It wasn't especially nice either. At no point during the meal were we asked if things were okay. I was absolutely furious by the time the puddings arrived and they did offer to take the plates back and not charge us for the second course, but we'd waited such a long time, and my 5 year old daughter was so looking forward to her pudding, that we felt obliged to plow on. Cost for 2 adults mains, 1 child main (vegetables only) and 2 puddings the size of cannepes, 2 beers and a glass of house wine, was more than £100. Absolutely bonkers in my opinion. Trying to end on a positive note, the pub is quirky and atmospheric, the village and surroundings are nice, and we asked for a high chair for our baby which was provided on our arrival.

My family had the pleasure of visiting this incredible spot when staying in Stodmarsh for a short break. The food was delicious, the entire menu has clearly been crafted with care and local input. The staff were incredible - very friendly and welcoming even with our young daughter!! Great selection of wine and some local beers. Charming interior with a cosy country pub feel. Would highly recommend!!

The service was fab, incredibly friendly and helpful. We had the best Sunday lunch ever!!!. Thank you for such a lovely experience. We will be back 👍🥂.

Stunning, can't say much more. A centuries olde village pub, that manages to "keep up!" Atmosphere, service, food , if could be rolled into one = a memorable evening.

We stayed here for a weekend getaway just before our baby was due to arrive. The pub and our room had lots of character, was very comfortable, with a very spacious bathroom. - Loved the bath! The staff were very warm and welcoming, and nothing was too much trouble, as well as dog-friendly. We had dinner here both nights, and the food was excellent - locally sourced, and imaginative dishes with exciting flavour combinations we'd never tried before. The staff ensured that I didn't have anything unsuitable for pregnancy and we really appreciated the chef making variations to accommodate us. The breakfast was also excellent.This place is a real gem, and we'll definitely be returning in the future.

A proper little 'find'. Not your conventional pub grub but definitely worth the trip out there for something a little different! We'd never eaten ants before!! Totally delicious.

We used to visit the red lion around 8 years ago and was always promised a lovely hearty home cooked meal. Fast forward to now and unfortunately our experience was the other end of the scale. My husband booked this for my birthday celebrations. He asked on the phone for mulled wine to be made available (my favourite drink) - was told it would be and it wasn't. He asked if they can cater well for vegans and was advised they can - they couldn't. There was one meal suitable for vegans which was the squash. Whilst this was very nice when your being forced into ordering two courses what can you do. Whilst I just stuck to a main my husband asked for a modification of a starter. What arrived was 5 strands of a root vegetable which was just ridiculous for the price. It felt that we were being picky. Having clearly asked before hand the restaurant had every opportunity to advise us they couldn't cater for us and we would have gone elsewhere. There was no pudding option for us which again says they do not cater for vegan. The other gripe we have is again we advised we would have three children with us. There is no children's menu and nothing in the few choices there are suitable for the children. Again if we were told that it wouldn't be suitable for children we would have gone elsewhere. The children ended up eating chips. Really not satisfactory. We arrived at 12 and got our main courses shortly before 3. That's 3 hours we were waiting. None of the meals came out together. My sister in law was last to get her dinner by which all the veg had gone cold. Again if we were told our table of 11 was to large we would have gone elsewhere. It seems to much time is being spent on trying to be fancy but when the basics are not met you cannot and should not bring out appetizers and cucumber shots. We just wanted our meals. We won't be visiting again and we feel that they should do what country pubs do best. Good quality home cooked food that isn't pretentious. Such a shame as fond memories are now replaced with sour thoughts.

Enjoyed an early lunch a couple of weekends ago. My party of four enjoyed every single dish and drink. The service was superb as there is no doubt we will go back again. We went for the first seating and it was rather calm but we could see it was getting busier and noisier for the later round. Booking inadvisable