please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Really decent music pub with a great mural of musical greats (I wonder if Morrissey was ever on there) and perhaps Banksy's most famous painting of two coppers kissing on the wall. Ludicrously well placed between the station and the North Laine area + 4 or 5 really interesting ales on tap and a lively atmosphere. Tindersticks' Tiny Tears came out on the tannoy at one point.
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The exterior of this pub has a Banksy painting on the outside. Inside, we were welcomed by a fairly busy bar area with a number of decent ales. Burning Sky Plateau, Cloudwater Bitter, Reunion Incredible Pale Ale, Siren Cold Blood & Rooster's Not Berry Blue were all on. In addition, they had Seacider Christmas Pudding Infused Cider, which was a new one on me. We retreated to a small rear room that was reserved for a band. But they never showed whilst we were there. One of my favourite pubs of the day in East Sussex.
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Splendidly eccentric interior and a good range of interesting beers.
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A superb pub, as you approach look out for the Rock Star mural on the wall,I thought for a second and then realised that of the many faces they were all dead,it is very well drawn indeed.On entering the pub becomes a series of small rooms with no disernible theme just a mish mash of odd items. The beer selection was very good and the quality was excellent,we did not know this at the time aswe had several pubs to go but this was "Pub of the Day" by a large margin. The pub has Sky T.V.9/10
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Good range of unusual local real ales. Good buzzy atmosphere. Virtually under the station.
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Good music venue serving good quality ales. Burning sky Plateau superb...............
A decent all round boozer.
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My 3rd tick and the Prince Albert is probably the most surprising.
Large frontage with benches onto the road, the entrance that looks rather grand brings you straight into the old public bar with a snug just behind and a couple rooms tucked away off of the corridor.
It’s pretty busy but nothing close to how busy the Basketmakers was several minutes earlier when I left & made my way here.
There’s 6 pumps dispensing mainly local ales with 2 offerings from Burning Sky. I went for the strong pale ale Aurora @ 5.6%. This was another very good ale, drinkable and enjoyable.
The decoration is similar to the clientele which can best be described as odd. I mean this in a good way re the punters. Nick nacks a plenty with the front bar displaying footbal scarves, Che Guevara & Cuban flags, bank notes and lots of beer clips.
Music being played at a high level but it worked well.
A thoroughly decent pub however the outside men's toilet was a surprise.
3 pubs down, all very different but all very good.
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Despite the Jagermeister flag in the picture above, a great choice for a pint near Brighton station with lost of events literature to keep you interested plus a range of well kept ales. Has a trendy youngsters' feel and is none the worse for that as it's not in a crass way.
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Okay for a pint of bitter on the way to station. Too dark inside.
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Our first visit for a few years, only came as the monthly music session has moved here from the Lord Nelson.
Not very impressed, dark, dreary, run down back street pub, with over loud head banging music, tried to get in upstairs, where we could still hear the music from downstairs, went back down, and out the front, where we were regailed by a busker who only knew three notes.
We left after quickly finishing our drinks, which yet again were overhopped and undernourished, with a distinct lack of malt, and cost way over £4 a pint.
As I said in the beginning, our first visit for a few years, most certainly our last.
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Used to frequent this music-loving, hip'n'happening place back in the mid-00s, so we thought we'd give it a go for old times' sake. By golly, has this place has gone downhill, or should I say uphill given the steepness of the prices! �4.25 for a 175ml wine, conveniently enough not displayed anywhere on their price board of similarly pricey (but at least very sippable) lagers and ales. Service, of course, with no smiles.
Food menu is a similar story - 8 quid for nachos, same for a burger and a whopping �11 for fajitas. I can't comment on the quality but guys.... seriously? There's an authentic, licenced and highly rated Mexican restaurant just a couple of streets away with most main meals at half that price.
Amongst all this jolly profiteering, I was somewhat perplexed to find that Gents toilets are just as pee-poor as they always were. Now complete with cublicle doors that have no locks. Nice work!
On the plus side, the upstairs acts as an intimate music venue and remains well worth checking out for up and coming local talents. The lounge area to the left of the bar has also improved - some very nice furniture and complimentary lighting perfect for first dates.
In summary then, a mixed bag and certainly a massive slap in the face for all who previously had this place down as a so-called 'alternative' den with plenty of beers n' cheers for the common man. Gentrification has sucked the soul out of this place. I would recommend the many cheaper and no-less idiosyncratic North Laine pubs that lurk nearby. I'm afraid this is no longer a pub fit to have John Peel's portrait on the side.
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busy pub, decent selection of beers, although I just stuck to the Guinness, watched the England V Sweden game, good atmosphere, like the layout inside as it gives the pub a cosy feel to it, plenty of space for smokers to congregate too, , nicely located near Brighton station , so not to far to walk to get that last train to London
scarr - 16 Jun 2012 13:53 |
Amazingly good pub. Good ale selection-usually 5 different Dark Star brews plus a guest ale or two. Shows most football matches. Great atmosphere and decor. A couple of main bar rooms and some separate rooms to the rear which can be cooked for functions etc. Small outdoor seating area to the rear yard for smokers, a number of bench tables out the front as well- a great spot for people watching as people arrive at Brighton Station and head down through the North Laines.
Live music venue upstairs- a gig on almost every night of the week with a number of bands on.
Food is freshly made, good quality and good value.
Not sure what more you could ask for!!
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Very busy on a lovely sunny Friday afternoon so plenty of drinkers ouside but the pub has a good atmosphere. Different crowd to the evening shift when music is on upstairs. A good selection of beers inc Oscar Wilde Mild on the day in question.
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I must congratulate the previous reviewer (TWG) : he/she has given a very good account of the 'louche' interior. At first sight, this pub may not appear to be up to much but, like all good pubs it slowly reveals its hidden charms. This is certainly one of the top 3 pubs in Brighton.
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Peculiarly, I had yet to venture inside this rather prominent pub, until last Friday. I suspect that a combination of pull factors (stand up the Lord Nelson and Evening Star!) and push factors (hordes of lager-swillers spilling out onto the front area during Summer) were responsible for this. I had spied that there were a couple of surprisingly unusual ales on the night before so decided to find out for sure. Happy was I to find a selection of four beers, including WJ King's none-too-easy to find "Mother-in-Law" at a barnstormingly cheap �2.50 a pint! And it was on fine form too; no sign of a price cull to pass off old beer ASAP.
I did have some difficulty fighting through the scores of predominantly post-work crowds to reach the curiously deep bar (looks like the hordes referred to earlier stuff themselves into the pub on less clement days), but a busy pub is a happy one and it is not to be taken for granted nowadays, so good luck to them.
Whilst a rather different animal to its nearby competitors, this offers a kind of London-style drinking shed experience - it has two floors and many corridors in which to lurk and slurp, in tandem with an emphatically Brightonian vibe - piercings, political debate, foreign nik-naks and today's Guardian were all in check. I must say although much of that sounds ghastly to my mind, I kind of liked it. Nowt wrong with a bit of affectation if it can be mixed with affability and affordability.
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always lively and busy in there, with a smart alternative crowd on the whole, benefits from a good central location on the way down to north laine from the station.
Always has a good couple of ales on offer, and the separate rooms and corners of the pub lend a lot to the general ambiance.
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Good reliable pub, conveniently positioned between the excellent Lord Nelson and Evening Star. Very popular and deservedly so.
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vibrant and lovely makes you feel like you're part of a 'scene' alas not quite such good service as a couple of years ago.. i fear it's a victim of it's own success.. being so close to the station it must not have to try too hard.
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Nice lively pub with good beer from Hepworth Brewery.Worth a look before going to the Lord Nelson down the road.
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1/10! Not the most gay-friendly of places.
This is a vibrant and lively pub. It has lots of 'texture' and is only a stone's throw from the station. I've been a few times and arranged a birthday do there. The staff courteously took a few hundred quid off us during the evening but then had the most ridiculous drinking-up-time policy that had a bouncer removing drinks from our hands in a pub that was still half full. One of my gay friends was also jibed by one of the staff who asked if he'd 'got his handbag'. It was an embarrassing and scruffy end to what would otherwise have been a nice evening.
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Easily the best pub in brighton. Have to agree about the decor, but lets face it thats not the reason you go in a pub is it. Best priced food in Brighton. Friendly (+fit) staff. Need to get normal Guinness back and sort out the smoking area.
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Could well be the best pub in Brighton. despite previous poster's comment the decor is lovely (modern patterned wallpapers, signed original posters but local and famous bands that have played the space upstairs, wood floors and roaring fires in the bar room. The layout is much like a house, with seperate rooms which makes for intimate evenings or rowdy parties dependant on the crowd. The food is almost second to none - bar The George, which ia veggie only - on this road - try the homemade burger and chips!
Brilliant live music - especially Club Kovak which is always good for a laugh.
I wish this was my local but at least it's close to where I work.
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It takes a town like Brighton to pull of a pub like this - not enough seating, an apparent disregard for interior design of any discription and the facade of a south coast B & B (that last observation is in no way perjorative). But it all works and does so in spades. I don't why or how but it just does.
Good for: I've drunk here in Winter and Spring but I imagine it is summer where the place really comes into its own - 7/10.
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Huge mural of the legendary John Peel visible as you approach from stn end of Traf St., but the condition of the beer was poor on my single visit a few months ago. Didn't strike me as the sort of place that would have the necessary through-pull to keep the cask ale in top shape but would be on my Brighton crawl if they could get that (rather important) element right.
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Called in here as it had been recomended before I came for the Hepworth beer. Intersting rooms to look round. Unspoilt.
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Great old pub - plenty of great lagers, another one up for the Brighton pub scene.
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Lovely. Unspoilt. Rough round the edges. A fine Pub.
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I love this place! Great music, GREAT kopperberg cider (7% and it tastes like squash) Get yourself down there, not just the haunt for students anymore.
anonymous - 19 Oct 2006 20:59 |
Love It. Old converted 3 storey house will the shell remaining mostly untouched. Staff are wicked, locals are great, beer is reasonable and the entertainment is alternative and non intrusive. They often have bands on the top floor with DJ's downstairs on some nights or a Juke Box going with a great selection of alternative music. There is a night every second sat of the month called Fresh Sounds with amazing DJ's and cool new bands for free.. def worth checking out.
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Bohemian and eclectic, several bars, as many styles as you can shake a stick at and a good atmosphere. Good range of people, ages but mostly students.
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As well as being a boho/muso establishment, this pub
is also a rpetty decent real ale house, serving two guests
(one usually from Dark Star) at low prices. Most real-ale types seem to give it a wide berth.
Makes a strong contrast with the distinctly boourgeois Nelson
just down the road!
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Years ago this pub used to have a wonderful reputation of alternative clientele, and live bands of the rock, punk and goth variety. Unfortunately after a take-over this is no longer so. It looks a bit unatmospheric but my other half says it's not too bad inside.
Lucy Pointycat - 20 Oct 2004 13:55 |
Good sized pub with a great mix of people, leaning towards the alternative. The bar staff are friendly and the jukebox has a great mix of tunes. Its by the station but hidden so rarely attracts idiots. For big international football matches they open upstairs (with big screen and its own bar) which gets packed but has a great atmosphere, though get there early. The upstairs is also used for a club or bands.
Paddy - 4 Feb 2004 04:23 |
