Despite what some folk might think, I don’t often find myself queuing at the pub door, with my tongue hanging out, desperately waiting for it to open.

But there was no getting into the Black Lion early, even if you made it through the metal shutter on the porch you’d still have to make it past the guy in full armour.

So, having waited patiently for the clock to strike 12, we were first through the door at this Appledore hostelry but, in her excitement, Mrs SD was about to make a terrible rookie error.

We both had a raging thirst and this was a free house so there was plenty of choice.

I had a taster and was impressed by the Romney Bitter so my decision was easy. However, Mrs SD, thirsty as she was, shunned the usual Sav Blanc in favour of an IPA, but against my advice, chose Greene King’s standard offering – so undrinkable, one sip had her pulling awful faces and she immediately returned this terrible ale to the barmaid, selecting a lager instead.

Why any free house would stock Greene King’s IPA, when it’s nothing like an IPA, I do not know.

Anyway, with drinks in place, our thoughts turned to food and I chose homemade nachos from the Bench Menu and the IPA expert selected a coronation chicken ciabatta.

Helpful barman Joe praised the nachos highly, and he wasn’t wrong to do so. He also had good technical knowledge related to the pub’s wi-fi and was generally very upbeat and helpful.

There were lots of walkers calling in, the majority accompanied by four-legged friends, and there was a good smattering of locals in early doors as well.

A couple of regulars, going straight for coffee, were the winning darts players from the night before and Pete adopted his usual position at the corner of the bar.

I’d already spotted the dartboard in an interesting-looking semi-outdoor area at the side of pub and I noticed they had gone to the trouble of placing a blanket on the back of most chairs. Apart from arrows there are no other traditional pub activities but there was a table stacked with board games.

The food arrived in a timely fashion and I was mightily impressed by the nachos, served with separate dips on the side. Mrs SD’s ciabatta was also very good but the £12.50 price tag was somewhat hefty.

Everybody seemed to be ordering a pint of Canterbury Ales so next up I went with the flow and had a 3.8% Pardoner’s and, having tasted it, immediately realised this was the one my good lady should have chosen first time.

The weather was fantastic so having finished eating we took our second drinks and secured a picnic table at the front of the pub. This was clearly a popular choice and within minutes every table was full, the vast majority with accompanying mutts (I counted 15 at one point).

The pub is cheek-by-jowl with the 14th century village church and sitting in the sunshine you could clearly hear the crows squawking noisily in the graveyard.

I returned inside to visit the gents but stopped off on the way to peruse the very interesting history wall – there were stacks of fascinating photos, many featured the pub but there was also a large number of other buildings and sites in the village pictured too.

I passed three separate ladies’ cubicles before I reached the wedged open door to the gents. The door was held open by a wet floor sign in much the same way so many were left propped open during Covid.

Decorated to a very high standard with dark green tiles and black urinals the toilets were immaculately presented and sweet-smelling.

Re-joining Mrs SD we agreed we probably should have taken the SD hound along as this is definitely a dog-friendly house and more were arriving by the minute.

In summary, the Black Lion was certainly worth the wait at the front door.

We received a warm welcome, the food was great and, provided you avoided the quite dreadful Greene King IPA, the drinks on offer were also good.

THE BLACK LION, 15 THE STREET, APPLEDORE, ASHFORD TN26 2BU

Decor: It looks and feels like a proper pub with a solid wooden bar, several open fires and stripped boards on the floor. I was particularly impressed by the indoor/outdoor area where the dartboard was situated. ****

Drink: The 4% Romney Bitter was rich dark brown in colour and had a pleasant, slightly chocolatey taste, an excellent pint. The Pardoner’s from Canterbury Ales was a light, refreshing and fruity pale ale, another great pint. The less said about Greene King’s IPA the better. ****

Food: Mrs SD rated her coronation chicken ciabatta but it was a little pricey. I was incredibly impressed by the home-made nachos – simple but delicious and the dips were tangy, tasty and fresh. ****

Price: The ciabatta was £12.50 and the nachos £8.50. Romney Bitter is £4.20, a pint of Pardoner’s from the Canterbury Ales stable is £4.50 and a Staropramen £5.50. If Mrs SD had gone for a large Sauvignon Blanc it would have been £9.25. ***

Staff: Our barmaid was pleasant and efficient but she tended to make a beeline for the regulars. Her partner in crime, barman Joe was helpful, chatty and informative. ****

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