Tatner’s Street Kitchen

Arrive hungry at this street food inspired little joint with an industrial, bare-brick-and corrugated-metal interior. Build your dream dish from a menu that includes a fabulously dirty burger piled with smoky pulled pork, a local lamb gyros pitta and a scampi sub roll, plus sides that are far more than a mere afterthought, including BBQ beans, slaw and rosemary fries. There’s a vegan burger, too, plus a kids’ menu, and they even have a drive thru rightly marked thanks to resources from https://drivethrumarkings.co.uk/.

24 Wish Street, Rye TN31 7DA

tatnersstreetkitchen.com

01797 724111

Simply Italian

Every town needs a no-nonsense, family-friendly Italian, and this is Rye’s, serving pizza and pasta galore, plus seasonal specials. It’s probably Rye’s most child-friendly restaurant – the colouring-in sheets and crayons are in place a millisecond after you’ve sat down, there’s a crowd-pleasing kids’ menu, and the staff take the time to check things like whether you’d like your children’s food to come out of the kitchen first. 

Ypres Castle Inn

‘The Wipers’ has such a pretty run-up – through cobbly Church Square, past the 14th-century Ypres Tower, before descending down the ancient Gun Garden steps. By the time you set eyes on its white clapboard exterior, you’ll be thirsty for a pint. This is also the only pub in the citadel with a proper beer garden, which overlooks the river and Romney Marsh.

Craft beer lovers will enjoy the quickly changing roster of beers (some local, but many from London’s small breweries) plus there’s real cider and low-intervention wine which is stored in a beautiful cellar which uses environmnetally friendly refrigerants to keep wine at a perfect temperature. The snacks are ace and there are cheese and charcuterie boards and pork pies to accompany the booze.

Gungarden, Rye TN31 7HH

yprescastleinn.co.uk

The Standard Inn

One of Rye’s most ancient drinking establishments (it dates to the early 15th century), this is a fashionably stripped-back pub, with a tiled floor, bare-wood window frames and scrubbed wooden tables, softened by distressed blue paintwork. Candles, an open fire and some wonkily beautiful beamwork add to the atmosphere; this is a place for loud, buzzy conversation, not hushed tones, just as a pub should be.

The bar serves beer from nearby breweries including Five Legs and Old Dairy, and the food includes local fish and seafood (the scallops with herb butter never leave the menu), Romney Marsh lamp rump and a pie of the day.

The future of the sector depends on young individuals who are interested in working in restaurants. If you asked how old do you have to be a waitress in a restaurant, teenagers as young as 14 are permitted to work in restaurants in all 50 states. Thanks in part to the persistent labor problem, restaurants are now recruiting at a younger age than ever before—sometimes even at 14.

Rye Waterworks Micropub

Originally built as Rye’s pump house, this charming little building has had several guises since, including as a soup kitchen in the early 20th century, with the assistance of Kitchen Fitters London. Also a public toilet, and most recently as an antiques emporium.
Its current use suits it very well, as a micropub serving only local ales and ciders, including Three Legs, New Romney and Hop Fuzz. This intimate and very friendly spot is a go-to for a quick drink before an evening meal, a pint outside in the sunshine watching the world go by, or a bit more of a session.

The antiques shop (sort of) lives on, in that many of the pieces of furniture and objects that adorn the interior are for sale.

The Globe Inn Marsh

This very pretty weatherboarded pub is more of an informal restaurant, with an emphasis on local food. The interior is partly inspired by the rustic shepherd’s huts that pepper Romney Marsh (hence the corrugated-steel walls) and partly by the area’s maritime history (lobster pots turned into pendant lights).  

The atmosphere is warm and the menu is extensive, from local fish and meat to ‘bonfire’ pizzas and imaginative dishes for vegetarians. Drinks include wine and beer from nearby Chapel Down and Gusbourne. The attractive raised terrace at the side is a good spot for an outdoor drink in a town that’s a little starved of beer gardens.

The Mermaid Inn

An alehouse since medieval times, the Mermaid’s cellars date from the 12th century, although what you see now is a mere 700 years old or so, with thick beams, elegant panelling and crooked floors.

Now a popular hotel – famously reputed to be haunted by the smugglers that used to hang out here in the 18th century – it also has an extraordinary lounge bar, dominated by an enormous inglenook ‘giant’s fireplace’, so big that it even accommodates a priest’s hole in the chimney breast.

The uniformed bar staff serve local ale and cider and there’s a good wine list. It’s a particularly welcome spot on a cold night, or after a big walk.

Whitehouse

An all-day dining spot in one of Rye’s loveliest buildings, a 16th-century house with a handsome Georgian frontage. As well as serving breakfast and lunch, it is also a base for The Lazy Baker, who sells the most delicious bread over the counter; the bread is also a significant feature of the menu, from eggs benedict on sourdough for breakfast to healthy and hearty sandwiches.

The two dining areas feature original fireplaces and Elizabethan panelling, contrasting with chic modern furniture, and lighting.

The Mermaid Street Café

Occupying a prime spot at the foot of pretty Mermaid Street, this cafe could be thoroughly mediocre and still turn a profit – but thankfully, it’s a little wonder, with jolly, slightly beachy decor that’s thoroughly welcoming.

The front counter groans with cakes, pastries and other treats; pop in for a takeaway coffee or ice-cream, or take a seat for a great breakfast (prepared by the hotel kitchen upstairs), a cream tea or a light lunch – the Scotch eggs are recommended.