Me outside the White Horse, June 2001

What a find! This part of the UK tends to have a much higher proportion of country pubs that have lost their community focus and become country restaurants with a "pubby" theme. It is with great sadness that a number of pubs in this very guide have had to be removed for that very reason. This pub's great though. It's obviously in a lovely semi-rural setting yet central Slough, and the busy M40 and M25 motorways are not far away. It's the sort of pub where folk call into for a pint and a chat on the way home from work. It's an absolute gem. The emphasis is clearly on the real ale attracting connoisseurs of good pubs, as distinct from pub restaurants, like bees to a hive. They do offer food at lunchtimes ranging from tasty sandwiches and simple dishes such as bangers and mash and pies (they also have regular barbecues during the summer), but the place comes alive during the evening. I called in on the way back from Bracknell to Birmingham where my time at the latter was drawing to a close and I was in the process of preparing myself for the blandness, and noticeably more mainstream dull and uneventful living of the former.

A lovely flagstoned public bar and larger more comfortable lounge with lots of old photos on the walls. I've chosen not to add a photo of the bar itself, I'll leave the surprise to you when you first visit there. They'll have about half a dozen ales on handpump or tapped directly from the cask at any one time and there's no danger of them going off as there are always plenty of thirsty folk there to consume them. There's plenty of outside seating either out the back or where we sat out the front watching little spotted flycatchers doing their little dashing lights from bushes to, well, catch flies and then dash back again into the bushes. Can you spot the mobile phone in the sunshade? Reception's a little dodgy in the area but it can only be a good thing!