All things to all people is usually a polite insult — but surely that’s what a truly good pub should be. In the case of the Merry Harriers, a gorgeously renovated inn in the village of Hambledon dating back to the 16th century, it’s a full-hearted compliment.
Settle down in the window seat, glancing back at the sweeping view of the Surrey Hills as the sun begins its winter descent, and watch a regular nursing a pint at the bar, office lanyard still dangling; listen to the gentle hubbub of a floristry class in the ox-blood-painted, vinyl-piled record room round the corner; admire the cheery patience of the bar staff as a chattering group toast the end of their long lunch with pints of Guinness and shots of the baby version.
By your second pint, you’ll notice a rhythm: walkers stomp in, in twos and threes, shaking the cold from their shoulders and the mud from their shoes. They eye up the table by the fire, taken for now; an elegant dance of politeness ensues as its occupants leave and the newcomers vie to take their place. Dogs flop on the floor. Arrive a little later, and puzzle over why half the tables proudly bear a packet of sausages; a whole chicken; a leg of lamb — spoils from the meat raffle which takes place every Saturday.
That tradition dates to long before Sam Fiddian-Green, a former Sally Clarke protégé, and Alex Winch bought the Harriers in 2023. But while they overhauled the interiors — designed by Fiddian-Green’s cousin at Hutley & Humm, all deep reds and dusky greens, the bar — handcarved by Fiddian-Green’s brother-in-law Joss Stoddart — and the food, they kept the raffle, kept the local ales, kept the community. And, in the process, earned themselves the 18th spot on last month’s top 50 best gastropubs list.
So, yes, a pub for down-from-Londoners, who are rewarded with negronis, superlative bar snacks, meat from Fiddian-Green’s family farm, a bed in an absurdly beautiful shepherd’s hut with its own log burner and underfloor heating. But also a pub for locals, who pop in for a pint after work, for the raffle, for a coffee and whatever the chef fancied making that morning — a fat sausage roll, a just-out-of the-oven almond cake. The Merry Harriers — all things to all people, in the best possible way.
Hambledon Road, Godalming, GU8 4DR, merryharriers.com
