please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Expensive pub near the entrance to the station. Had a pint of London Pride which was only just acceptable. Not much choice if you are a beer drinker. Staff looked very serious and unfriendly. Not a place I would rush back to.
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This is a good town centre pub. Good pre football and post football. Unusual for a busy pub, the toilets are pretty decent. Decent atmosphere and staff that can cope with a rush.
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Pleasant, comfortable interior that had been recently refurbished. The service was good and the atmosphere was fine. However, the London Pride was in very disappointing shape, and rather expensive because they can get away with charging a premium. OK, fair enough due to the location, but the beer quality needs to be there too. Despite the range of pumps, this was the only choice. I will be unlikely to return which is a shame, as I quite liked the pub.
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Has been subject to a rather nice retro makeover, stretching to snob screens. But, as others have noted, you can do better for choice and price nearby.
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Good Pub nera The Station tried a pint of Olivers Island .Plenty of beers ,continental Lagers and Ciders on.
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The pub was recently extensively refurbished and re-opened at the end of May. Now well worth a visit.
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Pubs near stations are rarely fantastic, something to do with a constantly rotating clientele of commuters in and out. The Grand Central takes that a step further.
The good - inside it's large, relatively tidy, almost pleasant.
The bad - one staff member (who admittedly was very nice and efficient) on a summer's evening...during the World Cup meant 15min wait for a drink! Ridiculous.
Claims of a roof terrace. In reality it's a shabby slightly raised deck at the back below the level of any surrounding roofs. The wooden tables are in a shocking state - wobbly planks, rotten wood, splinters and exposed screws and nails. I was going to say 'Ladies, beware snagging your tights' but in truth you're more likely to receive a more serious aggravation. It could be quite nice but no energy, enthusiasm or care has gone into it.
Expensive - £4 for a pint of standard bitter (that tasted OK) that in any other pub in central Brighton would be £3.40-£3.60. It's just an additional 60p because of the location near the station. Two other people at the bar when I was ordering widened their eyes at the cost of their rounds.
If you're looking for a long wait to pay a lot of money for drinks then sit on a shabby deck and rip your trousers or get a rogue nail in your derriere, this is YOUR place!
Otherwise - avoid.
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Good pub right by the station. Avoid on match days if you're not going to The Albion game. Normally a couple of bitters on. Right by the station so a revolving clientèle.
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its very busy beofre and after brighton home games. but aside from the convenience of the station there's no reason to choose this place over any of the many many fantastic pubs brighton has to offer.
not bad as such, just nothing good at all.
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went in yesterday afternoon for a drink at 2.30, didn't leave until 7, excellent ESB at perfect temperature, friendly bar staff, got busy later on. If there had been no one in there still worth it for the ESB. There wasn't time to try the Pride.
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Things can only get better now that this pub has been taken over by Fuller's
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If this bland, unfriendly boozer was located anywhere other than next door to a busy railway station it would have shutdown years ago. Do yourself a favour and take a 1 or 2 minute walk in just about any direction and try a decent pub while you wait for your train.
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�3.95 for a pint of Kroney!? You're taking the p*ss.
alexd - 11 Aug 2011 17:50 |
well probally the rudest manager in the world. NEVER EVER GO THERE!!!!!
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Dark and dinghy and resemble a student bar.
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Ideal position if you're waiting for train at the station over the road. However this might be one of the most expensive bars in Brighton. Its pretty outrageous and a wonder how they get away with it. Had one drink and left to go to arrange mortgage in case I want to pop in again. Doubt it though.
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Called in here because of the impressive array of ales featured and pumps lining the bar. Reasonably sort of layout but they were setting up for a bit of live music as we entered. Decided to park ourselves at a bench on the pavement and watch the world go by. (And most of the world did go by in honking buses and tooting taxis !) True to form, my nutter magnet must've been dialed up to 8 and we were joined by an old campaigner who told a good tale about war and ill health, punctuated only by rabid swearing directed at passing beggars ! We opted for 4 halves of various ales and I thought they were well kept. However, I thought �6.75, for what we're mostly local ales, was taking the frothing pils !
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This could be a great place . Ideal position and nicely laid out. However it is very expensive (even for Brighton) and beer quality is poor.
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Feels more like a station waining room than a pub. Beer not that great and nothing to keep you here for long.
Floyd - 13 Dec 2009 13:02 |
Great beer garden on the roof in the sun shine, expensive food and beer but lovely if you catch it in between the commuters and the local office types.
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Terrible, but could be so much better. Being by the station it attracts a lot of officey types after work, but the main problem is the poorly kept real ale. I've seldom had a good pint in there and last Friday the Harvey's was off, the Speckled Hen cloudy as dish water and the Arundel as flat as if it had been sitting out all afternoon.
If you want to drink decent beer served with care round that way, make for the Evening Star, Battle of Traflager or Nelson instead.
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I've used this pub on several occassions for a quick pint after getting off a train. It's a pub which resembles many London pubs in a way - big, dark and unremarkable - but at the same time safe and useful. I guess it is the convenient position which ensures that this pub is busy, so it serves it's purpose well. Never had any complaints about the staff and the beer is fine. It's never going to live up to the reputations of the multitude of smaller, more characterful pubs, around the station. It looks inviting from the outside and it is worth a visit.
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Large rather impersonal pub that has suffered at the hands of the pub company theme designers over the years. Gets busy but not really with much atmosphere. Real ale acceptable but nothing special. A place to go if desperate. Much better to go to the Evening Star anbout 100 yards (oops I must be old.... metres!) down the road.
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Lovely roof terrace but the rudest, most incompetent staff I've come across in Brighton. I thought it might've just been me but heard other people complaining as they came up to the roof terrace with their drinks. A great shame that this will be many visitors' first port of call in Brighton
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I pop in occasionally and it isn't bad and handy for the station. Some people rave about it but I can't see why! Nothing wrong with it but just seems a bog standard pub to me.
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great in the summer on the roof terrace after work.
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Ohhh dear..... I really dislike this place. The atmosphere is terrible. Never seen so much agro in a 'trendy' pub. They play banging D'N'B at 4 in the afternoon! Have several friends that have had coats and bags stollen from there table. Too many office crowds come in here so there are lots of big groups bashing into each other. Also you 20 something estate agent types acting like tools. Really wish i could say something good as i have been in quite a few times (it's near work) but cant. Oh one thing the roof terrace is ok in the summer.
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This pub is good, nice food... handy when in need of a quick drink after work...
FiMcB - 28 Dec 2006 16:37 |
Went in just before Christmas and it was heaving - extremely smoky in there and a few fights do happen (depending on what beer is drunk!!!)
Good location though as very close to the station so shouldn't be any problems getting the train home again!
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Stayed up in the beer garden/roof longer than we intended because it was so pleasant. Quite a nice pub with a good selection of drinks. Several "media" types hanging round the bar in their suits and talking rubbish but we ignored 'em. Would visit again.
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You want to read a little more carefully sunbeam. I was referring to a mechanism displaying chronological exactitude.
But seriously... a bit pricey isn't it?
Do they add a few pence (or 50) onto the beer to fund the maintenance of the clock? (note the clear inclusion of the "L" in that word)
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i read the review by "terenced" as "A beautiful large cock by the door... "
ahh, the pub is nice though - check the little-known roof garden!!
anonymous - 29 Jul 2006 18:31 |
Nicely decorated and comfortable surroundings. The sort of place you can quite happily sit on your own reading a good magazine or the Guardian newspaper (maybe the Sun but bet those trains are full of Guardian readers) waiting for your train...
Which is why that BIG clock comes in handy. Yep even if you've had a few, you shouldn't have much of a problem not missing your train. Prob recognize your time then have trouble running for it!
Joking aside, its a nice pub warranting a return visit!
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Best pub for last beer before train scenario.
A beautiful large clock by the door...
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Best for meeting from the train, before moving on..
Re-furbished more times than Anne Robinson. But none the worse of for it. Gets crowded late afternoon as the offices spill out, and the poor sods who work in London nip in for a swift one.. before heading home.
Great roof terrace that is on the roof of a building 2 doors away! Gent's Loo's minimal. Wireless Internet.
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It remains a good, comfortable meeting place. The surroundings, barstaff and food are all fine, but the beers are nothing special. The beer garden is great in summer. This must be one of the only pubs in the country with a theatre (The Nightingale) upstairs!
anonymous - 29 Jan 2005 17:47 |
Expensive and smart - not my favourite kind of place. Having said that, it's got big squishy sofas, wireless internet access, and a roof terrace which is pretty as anything in the summer and rarely used. It also has a good reputation for food, in addition to some yummy cocktails. The bar staff are informal and polite. It's pretty big, with a bar placed centrally to divide up the space.
Lucy - 20 Oct 2004 13:36 |
Fantastic beer terrace which hardly anyone ever uses. Costly pints though.
Charlie - 27 Nov 2003 13:13 |
Not overly keen about this pub, but a FANTASTIC, that's FANTASTIC meeting place. Anyone arriving in Brighton via train caanot fail to miss this pub.
Jim - 2 Oct 2003 16:05 |
good live music and a secret sun terrace make this place more interesting than you'd expect a zel pub by the station to be
mark - 14 Jul 2003 16:37 |
This Pub has been refurbished and is now the 'Grand Central'. So there is no more Irish theme.
I havnt got any more details at tis time.
Dennis - 13 May 2003 16:40 |
