It looked fantastic, the quintessential old English ale house, sitting pretty on the village green to serve weary travellers just as it has done for centuries.

Yes, the Chequers on the Green at High Halden looked the perfect place to treat Mrs SD and The Apprentice to a well-earned drink and a bite to eat. But, just as we were walking in The Apprentice, who like all young ‘uns is never off a screen, informed me the interweb thing says this is a gastro pub.

Over the years, I’ve become wary of this term as all too often it’s meant inflated prices, mini portions and misplaced over-confidence in the staff.

But we were in now and I already had an excellent pint of Harvey’s Sussex Best in my hand, having thrust a large Zensa Fiano organic (whatever that is) into the hand of she who must be obeyed, so we were committed.

There are tables galore in a whole host of different spots around the pub, one or two are even in nooks and crannies where only a loving couple will fit – we selected one in the window of the restaurant overlooking the village green.

Our three-burger order was reasonably straightforward, but I was still impressed that the young waitress decided not to write anything down either electronically or even in old-school pen and paper form. My burger was topped with blue cheese and bacon and came with fries, Mrs SD’s was blue cheese, without the bacon, but upgraded to sweet potato fries and the lad had his as naked as the day it was born without toppings, salad or sauce of any kind.

When Mrs SD then added extra confusion into the mix to ask if she could have the empty wine bottle she’d taken a fancy to, I feared the worst for our order.

But, fair play, everything arrived exactly as requested, it was all wonderfully tasty and fresh and they were all only £10.95 apiece – I clearly need to have more faith in the memories of young people, and she was very smiley too.

The window seat was great and there are no fruit machines, dartboards, pool tables or anything like that to distract you. The background music was mellow and played low, though it got a bit eclectic jazz at one stage.

Mrs SD, who’d received a couple of empty wine bottles by now (one red, one white) said she felt like she was being watched but closer inspection revealed it was just a giant bull and a well-dressed hare, part of the pub’s varied artwork.

The pub is arranged like a maze and, having weaved myself through to the toilets at the back, I found myself in an area which looks as if this spot must usually host a giant carvery on a Sunday.

There is a good deal more seating out front and some folks were taking advantage of the weather and enjoying the view of the green opposite. I also spotted a fenced off section at the back of the car park which contained a pond and a trampoline, which looked as if it had seen better days – there were picnic tables in here, as well as an area that looked like a failed allotment, but it wasn’t clear if this was open to the public.

I assume the sign saying only Jags are allowed in the car park was tongue-in-cheek but you never know round here and there was a Jaguar dutifully parked alongside it.

There are some beautiful touches around the place, not least the well-tended, free-standing window boxes which will look an absolute picture in a few weeks. I noticed one was emblazoned Shepherd Neame and it’s clear this place was once run by the famous Kent brewery, though I assume now the building is just leased from them.

The toilets, like everywhere else, were carefully maintained and, whilst I don’t make a habit of gazing upwards in the gents, I was particularly taken with the wild animal wallpaper on the ceiling.

By the time I returned to the table, the other two had already ordered puds, a delicate lemon tartelette with raspberry coulis for her and a Baileys meringue for him. Having missed out on the ordering, I insisted on tasting both, without letting on I would never have had enough room to order one for myself. They were both good but the meringue, in high-stacked format, is a thing of wonder and everyone should sample it.

I’m delighted to say my original shudder caused by The Apprentice’s ‘gastro pub’ uttering proved completely unfounded and none of the trio of possible pitfalls I mentioned at the start of this review manifested themselves. This is a wonderful village pub serving great food and drink at half-sensible prices.

CHEQUERS INN ON THE GREEN, ASHFORD ROAD, HIGH HALDEN, ASHFORD TN26 3LL

Décor: Plenty of history has been retained everywhere you look but it’s also perfectly modernised as required. A great example of a quality Kent pub where you’d want to spend a relaxing lunchtime. ****

Drink: When it’s kept properly, a Harvey’s Sussex Best can be great and this was a good example. The wine, too, received high praise and the Cruzcampo was exactly what you’d expect. ****

Price: Burgers priced at £10.95 is pretty good these days and puds of this quality for around the £7/8 mark isn’t bad either. The Sussex Best was £5.55, the Cruzcampo £6.20 and a large wine £8.35. ***

Food: It might be described as gastro and the food is certainly good quality but the prices are reassuringly sensible and the portions very reasonable. I only sampled a spoonful of each dessert but both were excellent. ****

Staff: Spot on, attentive, friendly and fun. Our waitress could not have been better and when the landlady kindly delivered Mrs SD the empty wine bottles she requested, you could see the staff are set a good example. *****

Catch up on all Secret Drinker's Kent pub reviews here

Click here to follow Secret Drinker on X -

Want more Secret Drinker? Sign up here for his monthly newsletter