please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Nice interesting old pub just off The Lanes. Beer range limited but in good condition.
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Excellent pub a pint or two. Have never tried food here though. Interior is fantastic and hasn't changed much in a 100 years. Always worth a visit.
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Popped in for a pint while passing this 'famous in an old film' pub on a busy Saturday in Brighton. Staff attentive, beer good but didn't try the food.
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First visit to this pub and it was surprisingly quiet for a Friday lunchtime. Pleasant enough old traditional pub but with London prices (�3.75 for a pint of Harveys). My pint was short measured but it was topped up when I asked, although begrudgingly. It was in good condition. The staff were generally O.K but there was no attempt to make you feel welcome. Will return if I have to but would rather not.
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Randomly, one of the two bars in the pub doesn't serve ale. Fortunately the Harveys from the other was very drinkable. But, to echo previous comments, not cheap. Being situated where it is, probably won't ever be short of customers.
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Refer to last post, but one. Over �7 now! Just temp staff mainly in this tourist area basic pub; the temps have no interest; the owners, only in margins; simple.
And the margins don't extend to hygiene!
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Unique pub...but very expensive. Nearly �7 for a double Smirnoff (50ml) with a dash!
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Nice pub, good building, classic old school decor, friendly service and good beer. The backgroud music was at the right level to function as such and was reassuringly good. The only drawback as many other reviewers have observed is that the prices here are a little on the dear side to say the least. Ultimately if money is no object, you could probably spend a very pleasant evening here, for those of us not blessed with such wealth, it's still worth stopping by but probably just for the one drink.
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Far too expensive with almost nothing to justify the prices. Bar staff were friendly enough and it is clean and the beer well kept but I can't afford to go in there again for a while.
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The Cricketers is presumptious because of it;s prime location and beguiling interior.
It's a tourist trap but doesn't deserve to do particularly well with detatched bar staff and criminally expensive beer and lager.
As mentioned below, �4 for a standard lager is not how it goes. Won;t be bothering to go back. Nowt to go back for really. Disappointing as it used to have better service and was more reasonably priced. Not any more.
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Always been one of my favorites, nice pub. BUT over �4 for a pint of average lager is just daft. And the staff seem to get less friendly as time goes on, maybe the greedy landlord is cutting staff wages and can no longer find the better people? Shame, real shame.
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I maybe chose the wrong day as it was around 7pm on a Bank Holiday Sunday and it was extremely busy. However: My Harveys was not the best, having been poured my a surly studenty barmaid in hurried fashion and then charged �3.60 for it! Maybe it was the shock of having to work for her money?
Seemed nice enough inside but I went outdoors to people watch and see a plethora of gangs stagger around.
I'd probably give it another go, but on a quieter day when hopefully the service would be improved.
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Super little pub with a very warm and comfortable feel to it. A good pint of Harveys and some interesting bits of bric-a-brac around the bars. Note the little individual tables for the bench seating. Has a genuine old feel to it although there must have been several alterations over the years. However, well a visit when in town.
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An ideal venue just off the Lanes for an annual Saturday afternoon reunion with old friends, as has been our custom for several years now (I wonder whether we have been mistaken for 1 of the rowdy stag do�s referred to by a previous poster). Harveys Bitter is usually 1 of several real ales available on handpump and, despite the transient nature of the bar staff, the bar service is reasonably brisk. The food is typical pub grub and generally OK, if unspectacular.
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Has a fire sometimes in the winter, and a nice unusual little room upstairs and an interesting little courtyard. Good for after work drinks.
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A first visit in more years than I care to recall was made last weekend. The pub is as charmingly cosy indoors as it would appear from without, and has resisted what must have been a considerable temptation to follow the route of many Lanes hostelries and go for the contemporary and characterless lager and spirit-driven blueprint. Fortunately this is avoided - but beware - the pricing strategy one finds synonymous with the area is certainly being adopted. I sampled a pint of Doom Bar - one of a few cask offerings - and produced around �3.25 from my pocket to cover it. No chance; �3.50 no less! So the note was brought forth and I set about reconciling myself, as after all it isn't entirely uncommon even for real ales to be ramped up to that price now. But alas, this task was all the more arduous, as the beer just wasn't that good I'm afraid. A little tepid, but drinkable. I can only allow benefit of the doubt and assume it's not always in that form.
An okay drink or two was had by the crowd and we enjoyed the pleasant convivial aspects of the place well enough. But there isn't enough of an exceptional nature here to make me want to make repeat visits; at least not with the competition that lies outside the Lanes - or even within them at the Bath Arms.
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This is a really nice pub with a great atmosphere and the beer is great. Been here many times now and it's always good. Can't add to that really.
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This has been a good pub for generations. A downside is the transient workforce - many of whom are untrained in people skills and pub techniques. On every visit, there's new bar people - with seemingly 10 mins training; a view seems to have been taken that - as this Lanes pub is so busy anyway - why bother?
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Really liked this place, full of character, bar staff pretty good and a nice pint, good location in lanes as well.
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Had some Broadside here with an old work colleague recently.
This remains a super, quirky old place.
Highly recomended, though the guvnor is a little direct, even for my taste....
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always pop in when in town.. but that points made below are spot on - avoid sat afternoons and dont bother with nosh. Beer is great tho and its one of a few real central pubs left
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I quite like this pub. It's a good old fashioned pub, no stupid themes or wine bar decor. A bit dark and dingy perhaps, but cosy as well.
The beer is very well kept and there is a decent variety.
Didn't try the food, so can't comment.
The staff were perfectly friendly too, no sign of a tall loud person. I can well believe that it might at times, get full of boisterous stag parties, but that is true of Brighton generally.
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Ok decor. Ok beer. Food not exactly desriable but does the job. Rude staff (Im not sure whether the tall, loud chap is the manager but the service industry is evidently not for him)
Mediocre pub, would be improved if they sorted out their staff.
Garwy - 14 Jul 2008 06:07 |
Nice pub but avoid on late Saturday afternoons as it seems to get full of loud Londeners on Stag Nights who form a circle by the bar and seem to be unable to talk without shouting and swearing. You'll also find nowhere to sit or stand.
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Remains a warm pub with responsive service and well kept beer.
Quite busy on a thursday afternoon but its charm was not lost.
The Broadside is consistently very good and if you're into single malts which I'm not, they have a good range.
Always good to see pubs in tourist hot spots not succumbing to mediocrity as is so often the case.
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By far my favorite pub in Brighton. Pop in for a wonderful pint of Harveys, a shot of Jagy and a quiet cotemplation in the afternoon. Gets busy in the evening but still a great boozer.
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City centre pub with interesting decor. Generally well kept reales including Harveys and reasonable food. Can get very busy but worth a visit if in the area.
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Characterful interior with lots of different drinking areas. Have only visited once, seemed ok and the pint of Harveys good.
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Remains a charming pub which is worth a visit on any ale-related visit to the city by the sea.
Always a pleasure to pass by and sink a Broadside.
Sit at one of the little individual tables near the bar and pontificate.
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This is a must. Possibly the best town centre pub in Brighton especially in the evenings. Gets busy, but lots of seats, and upstairs area and outside cobbled area with its own bar.
Well kept beers and always plenty of staff. Good for pub crawls.
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Beautifully kept Adnams Broadside...
Manages to retain its charm whilst still being a tourist trap.
Worth dropping by for sure...
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Nice pub to include on a Crawl, gets very busy and usually has a bouncer or two on the door. Not a place to spend the whole night expecially in summer
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Down stairs is very traditional, but always packed out. Some people i know like the upstairs, but to me it feels like having a pint in a hospice. They do hire it out for partys though (70th birthdays i'd imagine)
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Big pub with lots of people in on Christmas Eve, staff handling all food and drink requests happily. Harveys Sussex as in most pubs around here.
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A fantastic pub full of character with cozy little seating areas all around. Huge variety of seats to suit any seat-based fetish.
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One of the better options for a proper pub in the centre of the town. I agree that the staff have improved in recent times. Harveys sells well here.
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A pub that seems to have improved since the summer. Much friendlier staff, as ever well kept ales and decent single malt available.
Still reliably red also.
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Very plesant pub - on a recent visit we had several very enjoyable pints sat in the undercover area between the bars
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I hadn't visited this pub for several years, but I was heartened that the interior was much the same - and redder than ever, if possible! Some of the light bulbs are even red. However, the pint I had was definitely a bit off colour, saggy and stale tasting, so maybe some more attention needed in keeping the ales well. As noted below, while one of the barmen is overtly taciturn, the other - slimmer - one is quite normal ...
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Nice interior.
Its very red! The front bar is a picture, very interesting decor
Nice range on tap. Its extended next door, the aforementioned 'back bar'
Im sure it was just an off day, but the barstaff were a bit off. When asked when the loos where, all I got was 'too the right'. If id followed their directions, would have ended up pissing on a table....
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Don't bother with the bar at the back. The front bar is much more pleasant.
Once again well-kept beer.
Only fault was off-hand, discourteous service. Not sure what the point is in having charmless bar staff.
Front bar has some olde-world charm and keeps some decent ales.
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As expected from a central Brighton pub it is pretty pricey, but hey it seems to keep the chavs away. The seedy bar at the back of the court yard ruins the atmos. Apart from that no complaints.
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I think there must be some confusion here. No self respecting Chav (that, I realise, may be a contradiction in terms) would drink in here.
Best during week days. Excellent decor.. although they cleaned it up a bit. Very ornate telephone booth.
Watch out for(and you really will have too)the dinky little barmaid, very freindly & if rather small.
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I'm not a chav or a Millwall fan but I go there some weekends. It's at it's best during the day or the quieter week nights. Can get far to busy otherwise.But it is a nice pub, shame about the prices but thats par for the course given the pubs location.
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Now that the Millwall fans have rearranged the decor this place has got even better!
Wouldn't drink here if it was free.
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Possibly the most touristy pub in town. Crowded and smokey, always full of chavs. Very expensive.
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I went in this pub in July 2005 and I was a bit disappointed with this. Its got the potential to be a great wee pub. I thoght it was very expensive �3.00 for a pint of coke. There is some nice pictures on the wall and upstairs looks quite nice. Dont know if I would go back
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Clean, trad d�cor. Sussex ale good. Barmaid slightly exasperated because the loos aren't well signposted, and she therefore has to keep telling people where they are (left-hand far end of the courtyard). Just a fleeting visit so no time to experience the below-mentioned characters. Very handy for the sea. Eastward views of folks eating in the windows of pricy restaurants, and of a Big Issue seller dancing.
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What a city pub should be, fantastic in every way. Easy to spend the afternoon in, great staff, food, range of drinks, music, atmosphere and character by the plenty.
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Makes me wish I was back in Brighton. A great pub. One of the best in town.
anonymous - 29 Jul 2005 12:27 |
Billed as "the oldest pub in Brighton". Once you get over the flock wallpaper and gaudy decor, you begin to realise that this is a splendid, well staffed, character pub.
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An excellent pub! Not often you find somewhere so full of character.
No sign of any goats but maybe my expectations are too high? :@)
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This is an old skool pub with so much character and characters drinking in it,you could spend hours in this place and not get bored.
Nick Hamer - 17 Sep 2004 17:09 |
One of the first pubs I stumbled into on my trips to Brighton and it got the spirit of the place for me, like something out of Graham Greene. Spent a superb afternoon in there. Great place.
Graeme - 12 Aug 2004 19:27 |
i was in there and a man walked in with a goat but apart from that it was ok
sam - 2 Mar 2004 18:22 |
Probably the oldest pub in Brighton, and allegedly features in Graham Greene's "Brighton Rock", this is a fascinating place. The barstaff are great, the beer is always well-kept and fairly priced, they serve food, and this pub is WELL worth a visit. It's in The Lanes and 100 yards from the sea -what more could you want?!
Tim Holman - 13 Nov 2003 22:07 |
A PROPER PUB - ON OUR LAST VISIT TO BRIGHTON WE SPEND SUNDAY AFTERNOON THRERE, IT WAS SO RELAXING AFTERNOON TURNED TO EVENING AND I CANT REMEMBER ANY MORE
CATH AND GEORGE - 5 Feb 2003 09:18 |
I am from the U.S. and had occasion to visit this pub on my first day in the UK. We had a delightful time. The bartenders were excellent. They were friendly and outgoing and so were the patrons. I think this pub should be rated at the top of the list.(I lost the email addresses to send the pics I took. I didnt forget I just lost them. I'm sorry)
Pam - 9 Aug 2002 03:44 |
