The Best Restaurants in Birling, Kent, United Kingdom (2025)

Well, this was a great surprise. I'd been working in West Malling all day filming, and my mother in law booked us in for dinner. She is rather discerning, and this was to be her third visit in a couple of weeks, so I had high hopes. We had the taster menu. See the attached pics and what a wonderful gastronomic journey it was. The kitchen team has obviously honed this menu to a level of layered brilliant flavour bombs. We loved this meal and every course was interesting and delicious. We had a nice, well priced Malbec, and I'll be back it it was a great meal. The staff and venue were attentive and yet relaxed. Thanks very much, and keep up the great work!

Fantastic!! My wife and I had a rare date night without the children. We have wanted to try St Leonard’s since moving to West Malling a few months ago. We decided to have a cocktail before we headed to our table and it was the best margarita we have had in a very long time. We went for the tasting menu , each dish was really tasty and well presented. The monkfish was my favourite. Wine was very reasonably priced and the service was on point. We will be back again very soon!!

Another stunning meal at St Leonard’s! I come here every time they change the menu and it just keeps getting better. The food is seasonal, beautifully presented, and tastes amazing. They also have a really good wine selection and elegant cocktails. I’d recommend the Bloody Mary or the chocolate and hazelnut martini (this is really nice for dessert too). 10/10, definitely recommend.

From the moment I walked in and was geeeted to the time all staff said thank you and good bye was amazing. The food, service and atmosphere was stunning. I will return again and again

Great place, lovely atmosphere and great service. Warm and cosy place for a coffee and breakfast. Alcohol served as well. Best part is very reasonable prices. Well done team.

Went for a brunch with some friends and we were welcomed as soon as we arrived! The food was great and the restaurant is really lovely inside. Service was great, couldn’t fault anything from my experience!

I'm so glad we found this place, we've been two days in a row now. The restaurant itself is beautiful, the staff are all wonderful and the food is amazing. I'm looking forward to trying their Sunday roast next. Would definitely recommend and will absolutely be returning soon x

Really good food and service. Went for Sunday lunch and the roast was delicious. Other options on the menu as well.

We recently had our wedding ceremony, meal, and evening reception at the Swan on the 27th July. We cannot say anything but good things about the Swan. Anne Herring was an amazing wedding planner, she made us feel so special throughout. The service from start to finish was exceptional. All staff were so friendly and helpful. Everyone commented on how amazing the food was! If you are looking for somewhere to host your wedding, please visit The Swan, you won't be disappointed. We would like to say thank you so much to Anne and all at the Swan for a perfect day/night. Phil & Alex x

First visit to this incredible little gem today for our anniversary brunch, couldn’t find a single fault, not that we were looking however, staff were perfect! Welcoming, polite, friendly, felt like we were the only ones there because they were so attentive and lovely, would go back just to be treated so nicely, but the food was 5 star, perfect temperature, fresh, and really good options especially for me as a vegetarian, love love love this place! Will be going back asap!

Lamb rump really delicious. Small, single hasselback potato accompaniment needed some friends, for £26 though! And the side of veggies at £5 also a derisorily small portion size. Service and vibe superb, so if the pointlessly miserly approach to vegetables is rectified, this place would be perfect!

We came here as a family group of six, celebrating our son's wedding. Lovely relaxed atmosphere, good service, and amazing food. From the amuse bouche to the delicious chocolates with our coffee, we couldn't fault a thing.

First time visiting this pub/restaurant, what a fantastic place, the staff are very friendly, the food is stunning. Proper high end cooking. The word that best describes the cookery is faultless. We will definitely visit again. I can highly recommend this place.

The food is beautiful and more importantly cooked to perfection with bags of flavour. The puddings are bonkers but delicious. A good small wine list too. It was busy which made for a lovely convivial atmosphere. There are some lovely walks straight from the door if you want to walk it all off!

This is a unique dining experience, fantastic, delicately crafted, delicious food. Not your standard 'pub grub' but an unforgettable selection of flavours and textures. Excellent staff and a really lovely ambiance make Bowleys at the Plough a true dining sensation. Add to that, some great wines and beers at reasonable prices. Highly recommended.

The BEST roast dinner I’ve had in a long time!! Had the chicken and beef for the 2 meat roast and it did not disappoint!! The restaurant had a really cozy vibe to it that feels like a traditional pub and still feels clean and warm. The staff were brilliant! Quick service and very helpful. Had 2 roast dinners with 2 meats, a drink each and 3 scoops of ice cream which came to around £80. With what you’re getting and what it tastes like the food is definitely worth the price! Parking is tricky! Depending on when you go, I had to park down a side road and walk but the weather was nice for the walk. Definitely recommend this place!

Had a lovely lunch here, staff were very friendly & the service was great. The food was delicious & of a high standard. Will definitely be returning!

Fantastic dinner out. Food was amazing, with very friendly and helpful service. Steak and lamb cooked perfectly. Well behaved dogs on leads welcome in the bar area, not the restaurant area. They had bowls of water down.

Had a great meal, the food was fantastic and well presented. The service and atmosphere was great, I will definitely be going back to this restaurant.

Even better second time! We came for dinner again and the food was superb. I had the Chorizo Scotch Egg to start, followed by the Cod and Fries, with the Irish Affogato to finish. Friendly service, lovely decor and clean facilities make this an excellent venue. We shall return!

Large car park. Some steps to entrance. Friendly welcome on arrival. Good service and food.

We had a really lovely visit to The Moody Mare recently, the first of many I hope. Great staff and a really good selection of drinks. The most incredible aspect of the pub is the building. The atmosphere is really special and history is truly worth hearing about. The team have managed to keep both the important historical features but add some unique features, such as the teepees at the back of the pub.

Took advantage of the take away roast dinner offering. Food was well packaged and hot. Portion sizes were perfect. Beef and lamb was good quality and a large variety of vegetables included. Would recommend.

Good food and good beer and friendly staff. Also very dog friendly. Visited again, usually go once a week whilst dog walking. Today went for dinner and had by request roasted tomato and red pepper soup which was fantastic, followed by pie of the day, beef and mushroom today and it was brilliant. Wholeheartedly recommend this pub.

Update 2024 December Had the Christmas set menu which was fantastic, the traditional turkey was fine and portion size was huge, so don't eat anything before your meal. I personally thought it was couple of quid over priced. Don't get me wrong the food was good and service was out standing. The bar staff worked very hard so give them a good tip. UPDATE December 2023 Had our Christmas meal here. Great service and friendly staff. But to be honest personally I was disappointed with the mushroom soup, Christmas meal was good but could have been hotter. Still have a number of good range of real beers. Good range of draught beers, food and service excellent. Would have been nicer if the restaurant area had been warmer. Service in the normal bar area was sporadic.

The pub is beautifully decorated for Christmas, with the log fire burning, very welcoming. Our meal was first class. The fish and chips was fresh and tasty. The beef and mash, and the chicken pie was also enjoyed by my friends. Hayley served us, nothing is too much trouble for her, assisted by a friendly young man in charge of the bar. A great way to spend a Monday evening! Looking forward to our next visit, that's Christmas Lunch with our MG Car club. Thank you.

We love visiting the Kings Arms they are always so welcoming. Our last few visits we have been with babies and toddlers and dogs - they were so accommodating and thoughtful. Food is tasty and good variety and the atmosphere is perfectly village pub!

Lovely country pub with great atmosphere and friendly staff. Watched a live band Bad Panda's which was great! all in all a great experience!

Food was great They love dogs. Staff was polite Matthew was the person that was really dog loving so was all the other staff members

Came across this wonderful pub while in kent So, the first visit won't be the last👍 The welcome was very friendly. The meal was excellent, served by a very attractive, polite waitress the local drinkers were very friendly too. That turned out to be a very sunny, enjoyable day

We popped in to have some lunch with the Grandkids as they have a play area that is great for the kids 😄 there is a nice outside area to have your food 🥘 while watching the kids playing 👍 the door was very nice and the staff were helpful and friendly 😎

Christmas lunch at The Freemasons today, fast service, friendly & attentive staff and lovely food - fanstastic value. Thoroughly enjoyed by all 15. What a lovely local pub!

Been recently for some food and drinks, lovely little pub, big garden, good atmosphere, and the staff are so friendly! Think we were served by a girl called Katie great service!

Seriously amazing home made food ..very very good value for money .staff are very welcoming genuinely lovely pub

What a lovely place, absolutely fab! Found this place on Google after looking for places that serve mussels, as my partner and I have recently started enjoying them. I'm glad we came here. So much choice of mussels and their main menu also has a good selection. We will definitely come again, hopefully on a Monday or Thursday when they have their mussels nights!

Married to a Mussel lover this fantastic restaurant offered not only 22 different types of mussel dishes but also a great starter and main course range and a dessert menu we were too full to test. We attended in a Wednesday lunch and hadn't booked but were treated pleasantly upon arrival. The building is beautifully kept and provides a great atmosphere for a meal and chat. We took a table next to the window so we could also people watch. The portions were very generous but quality also exceptional. I would definitely return many times and would highly recommend.

This restaurant has been on my radar for absolutely years and I finally got there! And, wow, did it exceed my expectations. Yes, it's a little pricey but the location, the building, the service and the food more than make up for it however, I would say, this is a place that's definitely reserved for a special occasion. I went for the classic mussels with white wine and cream but the choice of mussels dishes is quite large, about 15 to 20 I think. There's other more traditional foods like steak if you're not into mussels, again a nice varied menu. I had tap water so I can't comment on the alcohol but there was a good selection to choose from. Another table requested to try two wines as they couldn't decide which one to have and the server brought a sample of both so the decision could be made. I've not seen many places do that nowadays. All in all, a great restaurant, great food, no complaints here, just compliments all round.

Lovely lunch with friends the most incredible mussels menu absolutely delicious 😋