The Royal Oak was a large inn which stood roughly where today's Superdrug shop is. It's said to have been here in Victorian times, though precise dates are unknown and there is some doubt about this claim. It's one of three pubs of this name to have existed in the town over the centuries, the others being in Northgate St and Felixstowe Road.

This is one of only 24 inns recorded in a town assessment of 1689.

There is a great degree of uncertainty about the dates this inn was open, as it isn't clear which historical records relate to this and which to the Northgate Street inn. However, we do have this document:…