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OK, here's a personal note...

Being both amateurs of a decent pint and proud parents of our lovely daughter, my wife and I were afraid to go over to England. Before our kid was born, we used to cross the Channel on a regular basis, but with pub signs like "DOGS WELCOME, SORRY NO CHILDREN ALLOWED!" in mind, we chose to explore other and more child-friendly countries, me only popping over for football matches, waiting for a more relaxed attitude towards children in pubs.

Being Belgian, a good beer is a part of my culture and we just don't understand why drinking a good beer is something that should be done in secret, away from children's eyes. On the contrary, we feel that this is a part of daily life, a part of culture, and children should learn how to deal with this sensibly. It's a part of their education, a part of growing up and not even that special, come to think of it.

Anyway...so now, after more than 8 years we wanted to give it another try. And I must admit it was OK. We could enter pubs as a family, with some pubs (such as this one here) even being positively welcoming to our well-behaved daughter, who quietly enjoyed her tomato juice and probably wondered what all the fuss was about.

Proof is in the WS.

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Deal is a small fishing town on the Channel coast, just north of Dover. The former garrison town was named as a 'limb port' of the Cinque Ports in 1278. Due to its position on the Downs, the town grew to become for a while the busiest port in England.

Today it enjoys the reputation of being a quiet seaside resort, its quaint streets and houses the only reminder of its fascinating history.

We spent a couple of very enjoyable days in Deal and its surroundings over the Remembrance Day weekend.

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The Kings's Head is a traditional English seaside inn. Its history goes back some 250 years. The bar food is very good and there are some excellent local beers on tap, such as Spitfire.

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Spitfire is the biggest ale success story of the last decade. Originally brewed to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, its characteristically Kentish, hoppy flavor (along with a clever advertising campaign) has made it a firm favourite with beer lovers. And rightly so.

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