The Return of the Twangs!!

One of the highlights of the local live music scene sees the return of the Twang Dragons this month. The band are flying in from the USA for their annual British tour – with the highlight a special Sunday afternoon gig here at the Oak.
The award-winning band has been described as “a little bit country, a little bit fire-breathin' serpentine grooving rock”. Whatever you call their music though, it's performed by top rate musicians — you really don’t want to miss them!

It's going to be a great afternoon - and we want plenty of cowboy hats and western dress please!

If you've not heard or seen the Twang Dragons, check out their website www.twangdragons.com or check them out on My Space or You Tube.

Come and celebrate Father's Day at the Oak

The first known celebration of Father's Day was on July 5, 1908 in Fairmont, West Virginia, where it was commemorated at William Memorial Methodist Episcopal Church South – now known as Central United Methodist Church. Grace Golden Clayton is believed to have suggested it to her pastor after a deadly explosion in nearby Monongah in December, killing 361 men.

It was also during a sermon in 1909 that Sonora Smart Dodd became inspired by Mother's Day. After the death of her mother, Sonora and her siblings were raised by their father William Jackson Smart, a Civil War veteran. Sonora wanted to show how thankful she was to her father and, because William was born in June, she worked to have the first Father's Day celebrated on June 19, 1910.

In 1924, President Coolidge recommended that Father's Day become a national holiday. President Johnson designated the third Sunday of June to be Father's Day in 1966. It was not until 1972 that President Nixon instituted Father's Day as a national observance.

Pip is looking forward to this Sunday - he remembers the fuss made about Dads when he was a youngster. All the old boys coming back from the front used to have their powdered egg Sunday brunches. He still hankers back to that time of austerity and ArthurAskey. Sentimental old fool!!

We're looking forward to a great Father's Day on Sunday - but be warned it could be busy. So, if you want to treat Dad, why not bring him along to the Oak this Sunday?

Lunchtime or evenings - we're not proud!

At last! Pip has his very own club!!

Disgruntled drinkers have been invited to band together in a revolutionary organisation that could change politics forever: The National Association of Grumpy Clubs.

The very British revolt is being organised by Stephen Potten, the president of the UK’s first official Grumpy Club. Grumpy HQ is the 300-year-old Bishop Blaize pub in Romsey, Hampshire.

Mr Potten, 57, wants pubs all over Britain to form their own grumpy clubs, and liaise with him by writing to the Bishop Blaize in Winchester Road. He said: “There is a plot in this country to stop people talking. Pubs, post offices, corner shops – all places where people talk, all going. Pubs are closing every day, post offices vanishing in their thousands, corner shops disappearing because of supermarkets.

“It’s to ensure people have nowhere to communicate, so they can brainwash you into doing whatever you are told.” He added: “Pubs should have grumpy hours. Well, they’re banning happy hours. We’re all middle class binge drinkers now, apparently.

“And another thing, people have smoked in pubs for centuries. Now they ban it…”

“And another thing” is, naturally, the official Grumpy Club motto.

The Bishop Blaize Grumpy Club, meeting every Tuesday, was formed when regulars realised just how grumpy they were. Mr Potten explained: “Not so long ago, if you asked someone for their view, they wouldn’t have one.

“After the last disastrous ten years, though, everybody voices opinions. They are so fed up with being the butt of everything and having to pay for it through their taxes.”

Occasionally assisted by (brave) guest speakers, the club has tackled big issues: Gordon Brown, the death penalty, Gordon Brown (“sadly not during the death penalty debate,”), beer prices, Gordon Brown (“well, he’s disastrous isn’t he?”). And grated cheese.

The press found Mr Potten on his Grumpy Box, railing against the evils of improperly served dairy produce. El Presidente – as he is known in the pub – stood on a soap box bearing a picture of one of the few men he truly admires: Grumpy, out of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

Mournfully surveying his audience - Big Ray, the brewery technician, Dapper Don, the marketing director, and 20 other regulars – he warned: “And another thing: grated cheese. I asked for a cheese sandwich this lunchtime. It came with grated cheese. More went on the floor than in my bleedin’ mouth…”

His cheery greeting over, he signaled the start of the debate, on the topic: The Trouble with the Media. Taking turns to hold the sacred 'poisoned chalice’ - actually a key fob inscribed "Everyone’s entitled to my opinion" – the regulars mounted the Grumpy Box and fulminated.

With the assistance of Messrs Ringwood Best and Adnams Explorer, there was little hesitation, much deviation. “Everyone harps on about fuel prices,” Neil Sheppard, 32, a tree surgeon, declared. “What about the price of beer?” “He doesn’t know whether to drink or drive,” observed Stuart 'Macca McCormick, 45.

Eventually, it was sort of concluded that the media destroys winners, makes the nation dumber, and “You’re all talking bloody nonsense.” (Mr Sheppard again.)

For a Grumpy Club, there seemed a lot of laughter.

Mr Potten’s sunken eyes suggested a life dedicated to genial cantankerousness. He tried insisting he doesn’t delight in being grumpy, but confessed: “I love this country. Abroad, you know it’s going to be sunny every day. Here, you can open the window and think: 'Jesus, there’s frost on the car - in May.’”

Mr Potten, an ex-teacher who started an export business when 'modern’ thinking diverged from his robust approach to classroom discipline, would have liked the wealth to form his own political party: “The Majority Party, for the 90 per cent who pay for everything through taxes.” Instead, he hopes the National Association of Grumpy Clubs can build on, but change, British tradition.

“We have a tradition of moaning, but fixing nothing. If we were French, we would be marching in the streets.”

When the formal debate ended in the Bishop Blaize, informal discussion continued. The whole pub was soon deep in conversation, managing directors bantering with delivery drivers. Mr Potten would have smiled at all he surveyed – but he had to stomp outside to smoke. He muttered: “And another thing: why are they so determined to stop us smoking or drinking?”

Grumble noted, cigarette lit, he added: “There’s a complete mix in there. All talking. By moaning, you create a community. They offer advice: 'Don’t use him, he charges a fortune. See the bloke down the road.’ People help each other. It’s great.” The corners of Mr Potten’s mouth engaged in curious upwards twitching. The President of the Grumpy Club remembered who he was. The mouth drooped to its default position.

“And another thing…”

So that's it - so we just need to sort out what time The Royal Oak's Grumpy Hour is going to be - hosted, naturally, by Pip.

We'll let you know!

Get ready for the Midsummer Hash!

Just a reminder that our 2nd Midsummer Hash from Peasmarsh takes place on Thursday 19th June. Once again we'll be looking to attrcat local runners and social joggers and the event will feature a run, a free children's run, a barbecue and live music. The race starts at 7pm with sign on from 6.30.

Not strictly speaking a Hash, but a fairly easy timed 4/5 mile route through the quiet country lanes around the Oak in Peasmarsh and Iden, we ask for a suggested donation of £5 to cover food and some prizes. Afterwards, as well as the barbecue, we'll have a prize giving, with awards to individuals and teams.

Last year was great evening and this year we're looking for a healthy turnout from local runners - and, of course, non running friends and family are welcome.

You can get more information on the run from us here at the Oak or by emailing martin@nice-work.org.uk

Just down the road in Rye, Pip and I will be taking part in the Rye Summer Series which begins its 3rd year next month at the Rye Harbour Nature Reserve. The series of three Friday night races begins on Friday July 18th at 7.00 pm with a 10K race. Two further races over 5K take place on Friday August 22nd and Friday 12th September. You can enter each race individually or save money by obtaining a series entry.

More information from our friends at Nice Work.

Those damn roadworks!!

After being plagued by the roadworks outside for almost two weeks, only for them to be removed rapidly once they were featured on TV, we've enjoyed a few days of uninterupted traffic.

Until now.

Yep - they're back and, we hear, the road is likley to be closed for another two or three days next week. Please remember that even though the road may be closed, you can still reach the Royal Oak and we will be open as normal throughout the period of road closures.

So do please continue to visit us - otherwise we'll be lonely!

Maybe we should ask our friends from Heineken to do our roadworks?

Pub ban for Chancellor?

A campaign to ban the Chancellor of the Exchequer from the nation's pubs appears to gathering pace.

Following an Edinburgh landlord's decision to ban the Chancellor of the Exchequer from his premises after a budget that was punitive for drinkers, A Tory MSP, Alex Johnstone, is urging pubs across the country to follow suit and demonstrate their condemnation of the tax hikes on alcohol.

Mr Johnstone said "The Chancellor has raised the duty on alcohol under the pretext that it is in a bid to combat binge drinking. But by even the simplest calculations, his tax hike will do nothing more than raise money for the treasury. For example, if an individual went out and drank ten pints of cider in an evening, then Mr Darling's efforts in beating the booze culture will in fact have cost the drinker just thirty pence more. That’s hardly going to make someone think twice is it?"

"No-one underestimates the need for action in tackling the country's booze culture, it is something that needs urgent attention and a holistic attitute. This budget does nothing to address this and I'm not alone in being disappointed that the government has come up with such a simplistic response."

Mr Johnstone concluded "Barring Mr Darling from licensed premises will send a clear message, that ordinary, responsible drinkers should not be seen as a soft touch for raising money to pay for previous fiscal incompetence."

We couldn't possibly comment!!

A question of brain power

The monthly series of Royal Oak quizzes are proving more and more popular. Our March event was well attended – despite those damned road works.

Our quiet, reserved quiz master once again handed out well-earned chocolate prizes to all participants – and, to the winning team, the notorious team prize – a vegetable! It is the tradition that each month's winning team brings a prize vegetable to present to the next winning team. To date we've had some great leeks, rhubarb, celeriac, sweet potatoes and very rude parsnip!

Join us at the next event on April 15th.

British Pie Week declared

Now this is right up one or two of our customer's street!

March 1st to 7th has now officially designated as British Pie Week.

What a great idea we thought – till we saw it was sponsored by Jus-Rol! Anyway, the experts that design these marketing initiatives have also discovered that steak pie is consistently the best-selling pub dish.

The chap from the artificial pastry company said “The pie is justifiably one of the great British favourites. Being the UK’s most popular pastry dish, we felt it truly deserved its own national week and are delighted to be associated with its launch."
That's all well and good Mr Pastry but we can assure regulars here at the Oak that all our dishes our entirely home made – which means pastry properly (and lovingly) prepared by Marc or Carmen. And if you'd like to try our favourite pie-ish dish why not come here and try our notorious Steak and Mushroom Pudding?

But we're taken by the idea of a Pie Week – so we'll have a look at what our customers say in our new Poll. That's right, vote for your favourite Pie in the Royal Oak PieQuest – and perhaps we'll celebrate the winner in true Royal Oak style!

Join us for the Wassail ceremony

Its a busy week for the Oak.

Carmen is wowing the West End ... well, OK , wowing Beckley with her performance in Wind in the Willows - catch her tonight or tomorrow at either of the matinee or evening performances.

Meanwhile, on Saturday, we have one of our busiest evenings of the year - the Wassail ceremony. This ancient Sussex tradition of wassailing the apple trees takes place from around 7pm.

Wassail is an Anglo Saxon word meaning good health and the tradition of toasting the trees was often known as Howling locally.

It involves pouring cider on the roots and branches of apple trees and making loud noises to scare away any evil spirits before reciting the old wassail rhyme of "Stand fast root, bear well top, may God send us a good howling crop".

The good natured ceremony is said to ensure a good crop of apples later in the year.

Saturday's festivities will also include a traditional Mummers play and Border Morris dancing as well as music and songs in the pub.

So, why not come along and join us?

The Ten Great Restaurant Swindles - not in the Oak though - we guarantee it!

We were interested in a report issued this week on the Ten Greatest Restaurant Swindles.

1. Sea bass or not?

Once cooked, the prime fillet of sea bass can be hard to identify – and there are many lookalike, imposter species being dressed up as the original. Among the counterfeit fish recently identified in Britain's kitchens by local authorities were the Patagonian toothfish – which is often sold under the moniker of "sea bass".

Royal Oak Sea Bass is ... Sea Bass. Guaranteed!!

2. Plastic salads

Supermarket bagged salads are full of additives, deteriorate rapidly, and have been vilified as an environmental disaster. But while it may be acceptable to crack open a bag in the comfort of your own home, there's no excuse for serving the stuff in a restaurant. But most pub chains do use pre-prepared salad to garnish their burgers and fries.

Our kitchen is crammed with lettuce, tomatoes and cucumbers - honestly!!


3. Instant egg, and other powders in a packet

According to Government food policy officer Les Bailey, the appearance of the words " made from natural ingredients" on menus should set alarm bells ringing. The officer, who oversees trading standards in British restaurants, has heard of countless examples of the less work-intensive powdered egg being passed off as scrambled. Less common is powdered potato – often conspicuous by its ever-present lumps – but still passed off by crafty caterers as genuine mash.

Powdered Egg????? John would kill us!! Our eggs are free range and laid by our local hens - just a few hundred yards from our front door!


4. Reformed ham, chicken or scampi


It's common for eateries to pass off scampi tails glued together with additives as "scampi" pieces. They can even be minced scampi that has been breaded. This is " reformed scampi", a turn-off for menu-writers.

Reformed? NO!!!!!


5. When "organic" equals factory-farmed


Foodies love organic meat, and are willing to pay vastly inflated prices in the belief that it's healthier and tastes better. But not every restaurant plays by the rules. In December, a Notting Hill eaterie frequented by Kate Moss, Robbie Williams and Kylie Minogue was fined £7,500 for falsely claiming that meat it was using was organic.

When we do say Organic, we mean organic. But more often than not we serve honest to goodness meat. And we cook it well too!


6. Dodgy drinks

Drinks can account for half a typical restaurant bill, so it's little surprise that canny outlets use every trick in the book to increase their margins. Always check that the label on your wine bottle tallies with the menu – cheaper vintages are often substituted in the hope that a diner won't notice.

Check our wine list - it does what it says on the tin.

7. The fishy business of "wild" salmon


It is little wonder, given how many times we are told that farmed salmon is full of toxic nasties, that people are prepared to pay a fortune for the wild variety. However, research by the Food Standards Agency reveals that up to 15 per cent of fish labelled as "wild" is actually farmed. Its survey found that 10 per cent of "wild" sea bass on menus was farmed, rising to 11 per cent of sea bream and 15 per cent of salmon. The reason is purely financial. Farmed fish is much cheaper than wild: in markets wild salmon can cost £30 per kg, while the farmed variety can cost from just £4.20 per kg.

When we use Salmon, we always tell you the source. We sometimes use farmed salmon - which cooked right tastes just great and is priced reasonably to reflect its quality.


8. When "home cooked" means microwaved


The term " home-cooked" that is scrawled across many a pub chalkboard is meaningless. Ideally, steak-and-kidney pies, pasties and apple pies should be prepared on-site with enough genuine effort to be called " home-cooked ".

When we say home cooked, we mean home cooked. Period!

9. Boil-in-the-bag main course


The "pub grub" industry needs to produce reliable food, fast. Many outlets therefore resort to serving "boil-in-the-bag" main courses, which chefs tend to call " sous vide" – a nebulous (if gourmet-licious) term that literally translates as "in a vacuum". It is, for example, almost impossible to lay one's teeth on a freshly cooked lamb shank in UK pubs (including Mr Dancer's), because it can take up to five hours to cook. Boil-in-the-bag can be heated up in minutes.

Not even worth commenting on. Our competitors may - but we never use boil in the bag!


10. Line-caught lies


"Line-caught" conjures up images of an artisan fisher with a rod. What it actually means is that an ugly great trawler has crossed the ocean with several hundred yards of nylon and hooks hanging out the back, indiscriminately killing all sea life as well as the occasional albatross. Even then, line-caught fish is more expensive than farmed or netted alternatives, since it is normally fresher and its flesh firmer. Most consumers cannot taste the difference, and an estimated 5 per cent is mislabelled by disreputable outlets or suppliers.

We serve unpretentious food. So 'line caught doesn't enter the equation.

Think before you eat!

We saw an interesting article on the web yesterday.

A foodie writer was suggesting that there are a number of questions you should ask of a restaurant before sitting down to eat.

Well, that's fine if you must be so intense – so we’ll put the questions to the Royal Oak test!

Here are the questions:

1. Does the restaurant use organic/local/fair trade produce?

The Oak always uses local and fresh produce.

2. Fast food is full of salt, sugar and fats – often twice the recommended daily amount.

We cook good food as quickly as we can – like we say "we don’t do Fast Food!"

3. Is the food cooked fresh or microwaved?

Our food is all cooked fresh and to order.

4. Are you looking for sparkling crystal and starched linen or plastic beakers and Formica tables?

The Oak doesn't do ‘pretentious! But we do believe in standards and quality – you’ll find our tables just about right!

5. Many burgers contain 48% chicken, water, beef fat, beef heart, rusk, starch, onion, salt, spices hydrolysed vegetable protein, etc – but no beef!

Then you’ve never eaten an Oak Burger!!

6. Is the restaurant child-friendly?

We welcome well-behaved children for lunches, snacks or early dinners.Pip eats children that do not behave!

7. Mark-up on wines can be as much as 400%.

All we can say is – not at the Oak!

8. Service charges are discretionary.

Absolutely - we couldn't agree more!

Our live music went down really well last week. First of all the Bluegrass boys had a great turnout for their weekly Thursday session. Then, on Friday, we had a great OPen Mic with Steve Stone, some regulars and some new faces too.

More live music this week with another sesion of Bluegrass on Thursday. And our next live band is on Friday week when we welcome Big Blue to the Oak. And on Tuesday we have the first of our Winter Chocolate Quizzes.

See you soon?

Don't forget that our Christmas Party menu is now available for December bookings.

Coming soon!

There's some great live music on its way to the Royal Oak.

In addition to our weekly Bluegrass session each Thursday night, our ever popular Open Mic Night with Steve Stone takes place on the first Friday of the month - our next one is Friday September 7th.

September also sees two great bands visiting the Oak.

On the 14th, we've some great Folk Rock with the Stag Band and Friday 21st September sees the return of the ever popular Dawgs (left). If you like your Hillbilly and Cajun music spicy, then don't miss this one! For a taste of what to expect, click here.

The Royal Oak is a great place to catch some of the best live music in East Sussex - and don't forget our full range of home cooked food is always available - so you can dine and listen!

The summer's on it's way!!

Forget the miserable summer we've had - it's all going to change this weekend. The weathermen are telling us that the miserable rain and wind is leaving us and that hot sunny climes will be with us just in time for the Bank Holiday weekend.

So, why not come on down to Rye this August Bank Holiday?

Rye is a lovely place to bring the family - with more culture than you can shake a stick at in this wonderful ancient town. Perched on a hill, overlooking the River Rother and Romney Marsh, Rye is the sort of place you thought existed only in your imagination. With enchanting cobbled streets, a medieval church and beautifully preserved historic houses from medieval, Tudor and Georgian times, Rye is almost suspended in time and has a uniquely unhurried atmosphere. Compact enough to discover the key places of interest over a week-end but with plenty of secret treasures to entice you to stay much longer and to return again.

And if it's traditional seaside activities you're looking for, then look no further than Camber Sands - with one of the finest beaches on the south coast.

And when you've built up an appetite, why not come along and visit the Royal Oak for a great Bank Holiday lunch, dinner or snack? Chef Mark is working on a brand new specials menu - and we'll bring you news of that right here very shortly.

If you're visiting Rye, you'll find the Royal Oak on the main A268 road a couple of miles outside the town. If you're coming to the town from London, the A21 or the M25, you'll probably be driving right past our front door - well don't drive past, call in!!

Before the weekend though, don't forget our popular Bluegrass Night with live music on Thursday night.

Welcome to the Royal Oak

It doesn't seem like five minutes since we moved to the Royal Oak - but it's been 12 months!

The Oak is starting to become what we really envisaged when we moved here last year - a traditional country pub - a good place for locals and visitors alike to eat and to drink.

We're also really proud that our live music evenings are proving popular. So, whilst time has flown by we've already built up a loyal customer base - all attracted by good beer, great home cooked food at sensible prices and some really special live music events.

You'll find all you need to know about the Oak right here - including how to find us and how to make a reservation.

Remember - the Oak is a great place to meet friends, family and business colleagues for a snack, for lunch or for a great dinner. If you work in Rye - we're convenient for lunch and snacks - so do call your order through to us by ringing us on 01797 230494.

If you're visiting Rye, Camber or other holiday locations on the coast - we're right on the main road into Rye, so the chances are that you'll pass right past our front door!

The Oak is a great place to stay and a great place to dine for all the family - we believe in offering quality home cooked food at sensible prices. So, if you like great food - you must pay us a visit!

Finally, remember our live music nights - Thursday is Bluegrass Night; we have live bands at least twice a month and then, on the first Friday in each month it's our famous Open Mic night with Steve Stone as your resident compere.

We'll keep you posted right here on all our live music and special events plus our new menus - so do keep visiting us.

We hope to see you soon!

Carmen and Pip
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