Kings Arms

This is for the pub —
I went here with a meet-​up group after a lovely walk in the area and parks. Unfortunately it was very disappointing, other than the six wives of Henry VIII painted onto the middle bar — that was the highlight.
First mistake was that the table they had reserved for us was smaller than requested. Fine, fair enough, they sorted it. Although whilst sorting it they opened the «new» table, and lets just say I’ve not seen so many crumbs and bits of food on the underside that they flip over in my life. The staff that was adjusting the table didn’t even seem to notice howerver, as he had realised that the table was broken anyway and couldn’t be expanded. He left said table with the crumbs still intact. I’m all for keeping up the feel of history in a place, but food bits don’t really need to be left for that in my book.
I was trying to forget about this and to just enjoy my Pimms. Unfortunately I realised the lipstick on the glass wasn’t mine (and I knew this as i hadn’t been wearing any). When I went back to the bar to let them know and request a different glass, another woman came up to the bar to do the same with her drink. At this point I was definitely thinking they might want to possibly consider hiring some cleaners. Or not. Maybe this was really a ‘theme’ pub and they were sticking with it all the way down to the historic lips that touched that glass??? Who’s to say.
With fresh drink in hand, I went back to the table. We all ordered roasts — lamb, beef and chicken. I’m going to suggest not getting the chicken roast at this point. Unless perhaps one enjoys dried out chicken, uncooked roasted potatoes and a yorkshire pudding that resembled more of a pancake… In any case, be forewarned.
They weren’t nearly as busy as one would expect from the slow and inattentive service. I would be afraid to see how the staff deals with a crowded pub.
Needless to say, whilst my day out with my friends was enjoyable, I was left hungry and disappointed on the pub bit.
Not wanting to leave this on a completely down note, I want to mention that they have free wifi which was very nice.

With apologies to the reviewer who expected her (unattended overnight while she slept) modern electronics to function perfectly in a building that may have been built in the 17^th century… we LOVE this place!
That is, we adore the pub. We have not stayed in the hotel. So — review of pub!
Cozy, cozy, cozy. Old and quaint and dark and pretty, with enormous pine tables to share, sofas around a large fireplace, and cunningly laid-​out tables and conversation nooks to encourage maximum relaxing-​while-​drinking.
This is a Badger pub, and I loved the lager I tried. R had his usual Guinness, which he pronounced «fresh and perfect.» His second and third were just as delightful!
Dogs are allowed. Families come and get settled in. There’s a goodly number of old codger locals in the afternoon.
I wish I lived in East Molesey so this could be my local!
Why not five stars? New Year’s Resolution. «Don’t be so freakin’ hyperbolic all the time, Thomsen.» Like that.
But I do love this place.

The pub, façade, and décor were A+. If you’re coming to just have some drinks and food, this is a great place — this is the only reason they’re getting two stars and not one.
HOWEVER, if you’re actually STAYING at the hotel… think twice. Being an American Anglophile… this was the perfect place to stay in my dreams. It looked like something straight off a postcard, the proximity to Hampton Court Palace (our reason for traveling outside of downtown London) was fabulous… seemed like a no brainer.
Once you leave the pub and are escorted upstairs, the atmosphere changes immediately. The rooms are unappealing, dirty. We had the Henry Tudor room. By the name, you know that’d be considered the hotel’s macdaddy room, right? Wrong. The room is right off the stairs… you hear the doors slamming shut all morning/​night, and they had a low battery alarm beeping all night that no one bothered to shut off. SO annoying… made it very difficult to go to sleep… the hotel was already not worth the 200 pound price tag. …but since the pub was so lovely and the surrounding area was so nice… I wanted to keep giving it the benefit of the doubt.
The biggest reason this hotel is getting such few stars is the fact that there an electrical explosion in our room in the middle of the night (fire SHOT out of the outlet/​my phone charger cord)! It had been charging for hours normally until I heard a very loud buzzing and then a BOOM… sparks, fire… the cord was black, the voltage converter was black. Suddenly… absolutely no power in the room. When we informed them the next morning, the hotel staff did not apologize once, offer to replace our damaged chargers, take some money off the bill, etc. Instead, they blamed it on us and our voltage converters. Their solution for the experience was them just trying to find us chargers that the hotel employees had that matched our iPhone 5s. We had been in London for a week prior to this in many public areas, our lovely Hazlitt’s Hotel (total opposite experience of King’s Arms), and cabs and never had any trouble… our cords were ruined leaving us without our phones… and even our phones have been acting funky since the explosion… no surprise of course. iPhone chargers are 30 pounds a piece from Apple… we’re out 60 pounds and an afternoon of chasing down charger cords around Kingston Upon Thames — not an enjoyable way to spend your very limited suburban London time. The attitude was the most enraging part… kind of a «what do you want us to do about it?» Our experience with the English has been nothing short of incredible, kind, polite, generous, and friendly until this… granted, the hotel manager/​maintenance man were not English… but they did treat us like crazy people… like fire and sparks over a foot long inches from my face and night (knocking out all of our power until the next morning when they finally arrived back at reception during business hours) was no big deal… and again: our faults…
Our new chargers then from Carphone Warehouse did not work there at all when we got back… then we got back to London and guess what: our chargers worked. So again… CLEARLY their electricity is as antiquated as the building.
Would still love a refund for our chargers.
If you stay here inspect your room before committing to staying and certainly do NOT plug in any mobile devices… phones, iPads, computers have a high probability of being ruined an unusable for the rest of your trip. Shame on you Kings Arms for not taking better care of your hotel patrons.
**pictures of burned charger/​converter attached**

The Kings Arms has all the right notes to produce a really good tune: friendly staff, an atmospheric interior, Badger Ales on tap and competent food. However, the overall melody has a tin note as it struggles to deliver the really warm atmosphere of a great pub.
The menu has a good range of the normal pub fare. Its burger is good and the chips freshly cut and not frozen. Nachos, likewise are not pre-​packaged, but freshly done. Worth the premium they charge over similar estasblishments.
It is in an ideal location for refreshments after a tour of Bushy Park (it welcomes dog walkers) or Hampton Court Palace.

Sometimes you just want to get out of the city. Away from the crazy rush, all the people and see some ‘countryside’. Okay we didn’t go far, in fact I think we may have still been in London.
And when you’re away for the day, you need a country pub. with a fireplace. The King’s Arms, handily located next to Hampton Court, is the perfect place to while away an afternoon.
Great selection of crazily named lagers. Badger? Super friendly bar staff and locals. Amazing looking roasts and really good chips. Best part of this place is the relaxed, welcoming vibe. If this was in Angel it would be my Sunday local. but if it was in London proper it probably wouldn’t be as cool.

Its a shame that this pub is not more popular. It can sometimes be pretty quiet in the evenings. The location is not very favourable — it is on Hampton Court Road, where there is only a limited number of spaces to park. However, if you do manage to find a space, or if you are coming by bus or train (Hampton Court station is less than a 10 minute walk away), this is a lovely historical old pub to warm yourself up in.
It backs on to the gardens of Hampton Court Palace, and while not as old as the Palace, the building is thought to date back to 1658. If you come here, look out for a tiny doorway in the main room of the pub. It is so low that you have to crouch — it is about 5 foot high. It was built when men were a lot shorter than they are today. The main part of the pub is very inviting; dark wood and cosy chairs, many of them facing a huge open fireplace. I have not been overwhelmed by the food, truth be told. It is traditional pub fare– pies, steaks, pastas and a few gourmet burgers. They do have a wide selection of Sunday Roasts here, these are definitely worth making a visit for.
This building also houses Hampton Court Hotel, which has 9 bedrooms.