Out to Priscilla’s Kitchen, Lost Pubs and Thatch
Lunch at Priscilla’s Kitchen in East Garston is always an attractive prospect: great food, home made and served by people who care that customers enjoy what they eat. This was to prove a beautiful ride with many very attractive lanes, some of which were new to me. For photos to illustrate the journey I chose two themes: lost pubs and thatched roofs.
This was a ride of just over 200 km to and from West London, 96 km from Reading station and back.
A familiar route through Datchet and Windsor took me to Paley Street, formerly home to two pubs. I stopped at the Bridge House where a local resident walking her dog told me that there was some hope that new owners would be found for this sixteenth century pub and that it would reopen. She also told me that there were plans to build some sort of hospitality building along the road on the site of the Royal Oak “but it would not be the same”.
Click on an image for a larger view.
A pile of beer barrels and a skeletal pub sign were the only clues that this pile of masonry was once a pub. Brexit, COVID, the war in Ukraine or simply their location - take your pick of factors that led to their demise.
On through Reading, taking the cycleway along Richfield Avenue (passing the site of the Reading Festival), the short climb of Norcot Road and shortly right along Chapel Hill and eventually down into Tidmarsh. I stopped to eat some “real food” while sitting on a bench in the Millennium Green, looking across the busy A340 at the Greyhound Pub with its thatched roof sporting a greyhound.
The Greyhound, Tidmarsh
The Old Bakery, Tidmarsh Lane
Before I continued on Tidmarsh Lane towards Bradfield and Bucklebury I took a photo of The Old Bakery, another building with “Old” in its name to add to those in an earlier post.
Tidmarsh Lane climbs gently to a left turn into Dark Lane. The route descends and climbs again, becoming Back Lane, then Bucklebury Road, part of Bucklebury Quiet Lane. It’s relatively traffic free and a real pleasure to cycle along.
As the route approaches the Marlston Road, there’s a ford with a warning to vehicles not to cross if the water is more than four inches deep: probably that’s a factor in the relative lack of traffic! Fortunately, there’s a narrow bridge for pedestrians and cyclists.
Ford over the River Pang with footbridge to the left
From here I climbed Tylers Lane, a route I always enjoy for its lack of traffic and views of the countryside. At the end of Tylers Lane I usually bear right along Holly Lane to climb quite steeply for a short distance to Broad Lane which leads to Cold Ash. On this ride I continued to the left and stopped by another thatched house where the owner was sitting in his garden. “Beautiful piece of thatching,” I called out. He walked across towards me and told me it was a deer on the roof. “Come from London?” he asked. “Yes,” I replied. “Not all the way on a bike?” Once we had established that I had ridden from West London, was going to East Garston and intended to ride back, he told me that he did all the gardening himself, including the wide verge in front of the fence (with its very impressive stripes on the grass). He’d lost this wife five years ago and had to do everything himself and it took him longer these days.
He was very proud of his tall sunflower. He told me that he had five but four had died; the remaining plant kept growing higher and higher. After our short chat, which he said he enjoyed, I set off again, spotting young deer darting across the road. I continued through Cold Ash and Ashmore Green, then Shaw and eventually the Lambourn Road, passing Woodspeen. On the left is the Cookery School with its adjoining garden and on the right the restaurant with a menu that changes according to what’s growing and what’s inspiring the chefs. It’s not as expensive at Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons which I pass on one of my other favourite routes but it is certainly not cheap. I’ll come back to the Woodspeen shortly but meanwhile I spotted a thatched house which took my eye for the way the thatch surrounded the first floor windows.
Thatched house on the Lambourn Road between Woodspeen and Boxford
The Woodspeen deserves its mention because about 3 km further along the Lambourn Road, the route passes the site of the Bell at Boxford, which is no more. It was demolished earlier this year (2023) and a replacement building was having a thatched roof.
This was being brought to the village by the team behind the Woodspeen to provide a “high quality locally sourced restaurant”
I’d seen the new building on earlier rides; as far as I remember it had a modern frame and was now having a traditional thatched roof.
The photo does not show his airpods: a traditional craft being practised by a modern builder.
And so to the village of East Garston which lies to the north of the Lambourn Road and below it. There are many picturesque houses; here’s one - Lone Barn.
Lone Barn, East Garston
Priscilla’s Kitchen is open Wednesday to Saturday only. It’s very popular locally and for me it’s great because it comes at almost half way on my 200 km ride. Here’s my coffee and excellent bakewell tart which I began eating while waiting for my baguette. The bakewell tart and other cakes are made by one of the staff.
Coffee and bakewell tart
I had a brief chat here with a motor cyclist who had come from Bassett (meaning Royal Wootton Bassett, just beyond Swindon) and had seen a sign for the cafe at the junction with the Lambourn Road as he turned back from Lambourn to avoid a road problem. He told me that they (his motorcycling friends) are always looking for good cafes. He asked about my route and recommended the Blackbird Cafe at Chapel Row on the way back to Reading.
Refreshed by food and a stop of about half an hour, I rode back to Boxford where I took a left turn into the village and turned right by the church to ascend Winterbourne Road. This is another of my favourite roads for its wide views across open farm land. Just before the village of Winterbourne I turned right at a junction to ride towards and through Bagnor (with the Watermill Theatre) and so back to Reading and London.
