[Drinking] Do you know these Brighton pubs?

[BevBHA]

'I’ve been in some rough dives in my time, but I don’t think I’ve ever been anywhere that I thought it was more likely to kick off at any moment.

If you’re planning a visit here leave your common sense at home and take a couple of minders.'

Golden, whatever happened to the Pub Spy.

This is still true, some right riff raff in there. Very clicky and one of those that if you don’t know anyone when you walk in you get looked up and down

 

[One Love]

Avoid the Tap. It and the Anchor next door are always empty. They have no parking and very limited housing around them where they might draw customers from. Most would sooner go to the Park View or The Station at Preston Park, but that part of town are notoriously fickle when it comes to going to the pub.

The Battle - what's not to like. Loads of potential (as long as you don't change things too much - but change the loos!).

Loved going to The Juggs, but admittedly haven't been back for 10 years. Car trip innit.

The others I don't know, but I'd have thought Hanover would be highly competitive, but great if you can create a community there.

The Crown and Anchor does pretty well nowadays especially in summer. They do excellent food. Maybe you haven't been there in a while.

Brewery Tap has been done up, drove past on their opening day and there was no one in there which is not a good sign.

 

[The Fits]

I would definitely sort out the toilets. In many respects that pub is popular because it’s in a great spot plus it’s very unreconstructed in an area where so many have been tarted up - it literally looks exactly the same as it did when I first started drinking in there, apart from the removal of the bar billiards table.

But the last time I was in there either the ladies or the gents was out of action on a match day. A lived-in look can be very cozy and welcoming in any pub but IMHO not when that vibe extends to a smelly malfunctioning khazi.

The rent they are charging you could very likely agree to a toilet refurb. It’s a real problem with old pubs. One of mine theyre nuts. Tiny little wooden Victorian cubicles but thankfully they don’t smell. No urinal maybe.

 

[pishhead]

The Setting sun has only just recently changed hands.

 

[The Fits]

This is really useful everyone- thank you.
I’ll make sure to bounce this thread if there’s any progress on these (or somewhere else) and you can all have a pint on me.

 

[The Fits]

The Setting sun has only just recently changed hands.

Yeah it’s a red flag as it’s definitely available.

 

[BevBHA]

echo the above regarding The Juggs. Definitely more of a laid back, restaurant type pub. The food there used to be quality, but it has gone downhill massively in that respect. Used to go there monthly for a nice meal and country walk. Haven’t been in over a year now. The food went from that nice country, warming, home made stuff to food that looked and tasted like Greene King pub food. Quite a decline! But you’d imagine it would be pretty easy to fix, just by sorting out the food.

 

[The Fits]

echo the above regarding The Juggs. Definitely more of a laid back, restaurant type pub. The food there used to be quality, but it has gone downhill massively in that respect. Used to go there monthly for a nice meal and country walk. Haven’t been in over a year now. The food went from that nice country, warming, home made stuff to food that looked and tasted like Greene King pub food. Quite a decline! But you’d imagine it would be pretty easy to fix, just by sorting out the food.

It’s probaly too much for me. I’ve run kitchens but there’s huge pressure if you’re known mostly for the quality of your food. I’m more of a bar roll kinda landlord.

 

[jackalbion]

Did you never go in the snipe?!

One of the few pubs that have scared me.

Not really my end of town, The Victoria at Portslade is my scary pub, the Mile Oak is certainly a dodgy one as well.

 

[Hamilton]

The Crown and Anchor does pretty well nowadays especially in summer. They do excellent food. Maybe you haven't been there in a while.

Brewery Tap has been done up, drove past on their opening day and there was no one in there which is not a good sign.

I lived around the corner in Clermont Terrace for about 15 years. Left 18 months ago. So, certainly possible there have been improvements in the Tap, but in my experience the track record for both pubs was pretty shocking. I hope they succeed.

And I'm sure you'll agree that the garden area out the back of the Anchor, while a good attempt at converting a bit of car park, wasn't really a big draw. But again, maybe they can make it work. I've just never seen it.

 

[BevBHA]

It’s probaly too much for me. I’ve run kitchens but there’s huge pressure if you’re known mostly for the quality of your food. I’m more of a bar roll kinda landlord.

In which case would definitely decide against The Juggs. Even when it was good, other than in summer in the garden, I have rarely seen groups in there just for drinks in the bar area. More so for meals.

The in laws are just about to move pubs in Brighton from a drink only pub to one with food, will be really interesting to see how they find the difference

 

[Eeyore]

The Juggs should be great but they never seem to get the serving system right. It used to be somewhere we went pre-pandemic, but seems to have gone downhill a bit.

It's out in the country so really closer to a restaurant type pub. Heaving in good weather previously. I wonder about how busy it would be at other times. I also wonder how easy it is to staff. The last few times non of the waiting staff seemed to be over 14.

Setting sun, likewise used to be great. Quite small hut an excellent outdoor space with good views. That simple local decent food premise seemed to be ruined the last time i went in with really tacky decorations and chandeliers and they'd killed the atmosphere. I've no idea how you fail to run a pub in hannover. Must be fairly constant foot fall

I don't like what it's like for the Setting Sun et al these days. There is so much competition in Hannover. l live nearby and a pub crawl meant that I could visit the ten nearest pubs and still be less than a ten minute walk from home.

 

[el punal]

I don’t know whether this applies, but here goes :
A couple of blokes used to run my local pub (a tenancy) until quite recently. They then took over a well known Southampton city centre pub. In addition they were looking to be tenants at the Foundry, in Foundry Street in Brighton. The gossip I heard was that the deal never went through. I just wonder then if the Foundry is still up for grabs - maybe worth looking into?

 

[The Fits]

In which case would definitely decide against The Juggs. Even when it was good, other than in summer in the garden, I have rarely seen groups in there just for drinks in the bar area. More so for meals.

The in laws are just about to move pubs in Brighton from a drink only pub to one with food, will be really interesting to see how they find the difference

Good luck to them. Chefs seem to be nuts (apologies to any chefs here) but there’s no doubt the importance of food. Mine are wet only and we haemorrhage customers once they get hungry.

 

[Guinness Boy]

As many others have said the BoT is your best bet here.

The Juggs, irrespective of food, was one of those pubs that everyone knew but that I only visited about once every two years after a cricket match. There's a lot of good restaurants and gastro pubs in competition. Ginger Fox is our favourite after a country walk but even then I'm not sure we've been more than once since Covid.

 

[pb21]

This is really useful everyone- thank you.
I’ll make sure to bounce this thread if there’s any progress on these (or somewhere else) and you can all have a pint on me.

 

[The Fits]

Hove Park Tavern as well, which is an emotive location.

 

[Peacehaven Wild Kids]

Never been to the New Oak, but they have run coaches for away games before, and the Landlord there was the one who found Veltman's GPS at Forest. The other two in Brighton is on the Dark Side of Brighton for me so I've never been.

So does this thread mean Pat’s moving on from The Oak? I think he’s been there years

 

[Nobby Cybergoat]

Hove Park Tavern as well, which is an emotive location.

My local. Odd pub.

There's no food offering at the moment (or wasn't last time I was in there). Beer passable. It's very much the vibe of people meeting after work for a game of pool or darts. They do a good trade from the dog track crowd on Saturdays I think and have to be fair they have done a decent job with the garden

But if i'm honest, if i'm going for a local drink I always walk past it to the Poets Corner or the Exchange.

What I would say about this one, is that given the masses of development going on on Sackville Road, someone could do very well out of it

 

[AmexRuislip]

As many others have said the BoT is your best bet here.

The Juggs, irrespective of food, was one of those pubs that everyone knew but that I only visited about once every two years after a cricket match. There's a lot of good restaurants and gastro pubs in competition. Ginger Fox is our favourite after a country walk but even then I'm not sure we've been more than once since Covid.

Juggs