A Chislehurst pub that dates back to the 18th century has been voted as having one of the best Sunday roasts in the UK.
The Imperial Arms, located on Old Hill in Chislehurst, is owned by Bromley couple Tina and Alan Weeks, who first took on the pub 13 years ago.
With the help of Tina’s brother and interior designer Martyn Lawrence Bullard they revamped the pub and bistro, giving the venue a cosy old-pub feel along with touches themed around the colours of the French flag.
Tina told the News Shopper: “My brother helped me to do the pub up as well as the Bistro and it was featured on the programme Million Dollar Decorators, the pub is very traditional and we’ve tried to reflect its history with the colour scheme and features.
“We also widened the space up by removing the bar stools and we’ve noticed it’s a place that a lot of women in particular feel comfortable coming to alone, which is great to see we can offer that to local women.“
In the time the pair have run The Imperial Arms, the pub celebrated a big win when its Sunday roast was named by The Sunday Express in 2021 as being one of the UK’s top ten roasts, in second place behind The Cottage Loaf in Conwy.
The business serves four meat options slow cooked overnight, along with a homemade nut roast, a vegetarian goat’s cheese nut roast and a vegan nut roast.
The list was comprised based on TripAdvisor reviews from the people who visited.
One TripAdvisor reviewer said: “We all ordered various Sunday roasts which were cooked perfectly and the service was amazing, absolutely faultless.
“We were seated in a pretty courtyard garden at the rear of the pub, lovely atmosphere.
“This is by far the best pub we’ve been to in the area. We’ll definitely be back.”
Tina said that the award “puts pressure” on the business to always deliver a good roast, especially as diners have to book a week in advance with 150 people “queuing hoping for a table.”
She said: “It’s amazing, but it does put pressure on us to get it right because people know about it.
“We must have to turn away 500 people a week because we are completely packed to the rafters.”
The pub also serves a menu of wines, including six organic wines, along with its Guinness which received a commendation from Guinness for perfectly kept Guinness.
Dating back to 1787, the pub, formerly named The Windmill, was a popular drinking spot for Louis Napoleon III, who was exiled to Chislehurst in the 19th century.
It’s also rumoured that his mistress Catherine was a barmaid at the pub, earning the bar its nickname “Catherine’s Bar.”
The downstairs cellar of the pub, now used to store barrels, food and drink, was formerly prison cells used by the courthouse that was once next door to the pub.
Today people who visit the cellar can still see the former bars of the cell doors that would have been used to keep people, a far cry from its current use.
Tina also added that the pub is believed to be haunted, with “several” of her bar staff reporting a “ghostly sensation” of something brushing past them by the jukebox.
The pub offers a seating area with room for up to 40 guests, along with the bistro which is open Fridays – Sundays offering seating for 25 guests, and a courtyard for outdoor seating.
Tina added: “Our bistro is a good space for anyone looking to hire for events, we’ve had all sorts of events like weddings, birthdays and wakes.
“It’s quiet and really intimate, and during events or weekends it's all lit up with candles, it’s a lovely space.”
The pub offers a range of food options, including an affordable steak and chips offer for two with a bottle of wine for £45, along with a “growing menu” accommodating to vegans and gluten-free dietary needs, including a recently added healthy poke bowl.
Tina said: "We really put ourselves out for vegans, we have a lot on offer for people that are celiac and gluten intolerant.
“That's a massive growth area, I'm gluten intolerant myself, so that's why I take it so seriously."
According to Tina, the pub is also “well-known” for its fish and chips priced at £16.95, which she said the business “perfected in lockdown”, serving rock fish sprinkled with samphire and deep-fried capers.
Tina said: "In lockdown we perfected the batter. We kept going and going and going until it was perfect.
“People do say it's the best fish and chips they've ever had, we even had an 80-year-old man from Bermondsey tell me it was the best he’d had in his life.
“We’re very proud of the quality of our food and what we continue to offer for customers who visit.”
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