Canterbury Ales

This is a solid pub. It was clean, the service was excellent, and the food was very good. My son and I always go out and sapsuckers is our favorite! Well it was we have a new Fav for a good burger. We will def be back soon

Welcomed by the delightful facade of a country cottage, we walked through the wooden door into a convivial English pub. While I can't speak for the authenticity of the style, when you walk into Canterbury Ales you will certainly be transported to another place. From the stained glass windows, wooden floors, walls, and furniture, as well as the British old-timely memorabilia and knick knacks on the wall, the wonderful ambiance contributes to a more compelling experience.

However, while the pub itself is rich with charm and character, I found the food to be overpriced, mediocre, and served in stingy portions. I came here on two occasions and each time the food was very disappointing. For what they charge you, I at least expect a more generous portion of slop compared to the tiny amount of slop I got.

On the first occasion we've tried:
Angels on Horseback   $10.99
Plump oysters, wrapped in bacon, broiled in garlic butter, sherry and herbs.
The best thing we ordered from this place. While the oysters wrapped in bacon were very good, we've only got a handful to share.

Cornish Pastie $10.99
Boneless chicken breast and pork sausage mixed with peas, carrots, onion, and mashed potatoes, enveloped in a pastry, served with brown gravy and cottage fries.

I expected a flaky, savory, pastry the size of my face. My sister and her husband had a pastie in the UK and they half the price, and received a huge yummy pastie. Instead, we got the saddest, little-est, wee pastie. It was quite bland and a tad crappy. The cottage fries were unspectacular round fries.

Beer Sampler about $12-$13
4 types of beer (from a select list). A great way to sample some of the beers they have on tap.

All of this added up to a whopping $37 with tax. This cut me deep, because at the time I was a college student with little money, and I was sad that I wasted money on crap that wasn't as satisfying as a meal from Checkers.

The second time, the food quality/quantity to price ratio was even worse:

Scottish Bridie
For lunch, one bridie  . . . . . . 10.99
For dinner, two bridies  . . . . . 16.99
A traditional Scottish "meat turnover." Minced beef and onion, lightly seasoned enveloped in a traditional turnover pas try. Served with cottage fries

Instead of 1 tiny pastry, we got two tiny pastry!!! I had to steal a couple of bites from my sister's burger to feel full. Not only was their turnover small it was below mediocre. It was ehhh bordering on bad.  And it was freaking $17.
Are you fucking kidding me?

Stay clear from their horrible English meat pies, pasties, or turnovers. Any meat wrapped in carbs should be avoided at all cause in Canterbury Ales. The burgers are nothing extraordinary, its as good as burgers in other places, but the burgers seems to be one of their most decent food items.

The only reason I am giving this place 3 stars because I love the ole' English pub look and their beer selection is really good and quite extensive. They have great beers such as Delirium Tremens, something that you rarely find in a pub/gastropub/restaurant.  

I recommend coming with good friends, ordering a beer sampler along with some bottles of interesting beers and perhaps a burger. I would be wary of anything else on the menu.

I absolutely LOVE this pub to death.  It's got a great, authentic English feel to it and the food is fantastic.  Love their stews, pasties and meat pies, highly recommend appetizers like the hot pretzel and the Scotch Egg.  They have a good, seasonal beer selection and feature beers from local breweries, which is cool.  Ask for a Growler also, you'll be satisfied!  It's a bit pricier than I'd wish but I feel like it's worth it.  Great for a nice dinner in a cool town.