About Us

In a world in which pubs are tending to be painted pale grey, hang a minimalist number of colourless pictures on their walls and have bright lights shining unshaded into customers’ eyes we at the ‘Shoes are determined to buck the trend. We have a beautiful old building here and we hope that people who love old-fashioned pubs will find everything they are looking for within our ancient walls. Those walls are painted deep red and rich cream, old pictures and pump clips cover every available bit of wall space and there are dark corners to hide in all around the pub.

When it comes to food and drink we are very proud of what we offer our customers. Pete, our landlord, has been in the pub business pretty much all of his life and has worked with a number of breweries (Hook Norton and Thwaites to name but a couple), creating new ales. His passion for good beer shines through and we offer a great range of ales with the accent on local. We have one of the world's greatest lagers – Krusovice Imperial – and we have a super range of ciders, both keg and traditional. We are also proud of our new wine list, our range of gins and our single malt whiskies.

Our food is good, honest and fun. Our burgers come from the renowned John Murray butchers of Loxwood and our sweet DB1 sauce for ribs and wings is ours and is completely unique.

The pub itself started its life back in the 15th century and some parts of the building, in particular the inglenook fireplace, have their origins back then. However, the building has been extended and added to so often that it’s difficult to age it precisely. Suffice it to say that the pub has a “lived in” feel about it and that people who like beams, wood floors and open fires simply adore it. We like to think there is something for everybody here at the ‘Shoes. If you want “the quiet life” you should enter the pub by the right hand door and you will find yourself in the wood-panelled Snug Bar with its polished wood floor and which features a wood-burning stove in winter.

Enter the pub by the left hand door and you come into the main bar with the inglenook fireplace where we burn huge logs in winter. There are polished wood floors throughout the pub, board games in abundance, beams everywhere and just the right amount of clutter to make you feel comfy.

Go through the bar towards the back of the pub and you find yourself in the Garden Room. This is a great place for parties, for families and, if there’s a big rugby match on TV, the place to watch it. There are colouring books and games for the children here and you can always overflow into the garden with it's extensive playhouse if the weather permits.



We have worked really hard in the garden and now we feel there is something there for everyone. For children we have built a fun playhouse up in a eucalyptus tree, with a climbing wall, Tarzan net, fireman's pole, slide and a sandpit. The whole playhouse area is fenced off and dog free and there are two family tables inside the arena where parents of younger children can share the experience with them. We have also covered the entire patio area and installed infra-red heaters, so parents and carers can sit and watch their children at play, even when the weather isn't that great. We have six big family garden tables with giant umbrellas, bistro tables and chairs and three wine huts (red, white and rose of course) which offer privacy in all weathers.. Shrubs and climbers surround the safe, walled garden and butterflies simply love our two budlias.


We’re all about creating a safe, pleasant atmosphere for people to relax in here. We don’t like people who can’t behave themselves when they’ve had a drink and we don’t like the idea of people drinking alcohol purely in the pursuit of getting drunk, so we don’t serve “shots”. What we do offer is what we hope you will agree is the very best drinks and food you can get for your money and the very warmest of welcomes.

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