please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Very interesting comments from below. I actually wondered if I have the right place. The one I am to comment on is at the end of the Devils Dyke road where you can park free if you are a National Trust member.
The outside decking was so full of people eating we had to go inside. We could sit wherever we chose and the staff were all pleasent (this was the end of September 2010)
The starters and first courses were fine, the only complaint I had was the Eton Mess i had was served in a hot (recently washed) bowl.
We have been back since that incident (end of October 2010) and all was fine but still no room outisde to sit and eat.
It may be that the person who asked for a suggestion box did the trick!
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Visited this establishment August1st. very busy and rather slow service,however the roast lamb was reasonable and not over expensive the guest ale ,sharps doombar very drinkable at three pounds per pint ,cheaper than harveys which is local,nice chatty server worth the windy open top bus ride,From earlier comments the pub appears to have improved .One nice notice IF YOU WOULD LIKE A NON TRADITIONAL PINT OF REAL ALE ie NO HEAD ASK FOR A TOP UP.this I like some pubs cheat the customer by serving short measure.,saying a frothy head looks good on a pint.This may have been accepctable when beer was ONESHILLING a pint. Heady days.
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AVOID. AVOID. AVOID. There was MUD in my food. Actual mud. When I showd it to the waitress her respose was: "Would you like some desert?" Perhaps she was a robot programmed to say that phrase? I asked her if she would eat it herself. Her reply was that she would take it and show it to the chef. She came back a few minutes later and asked me if I wanted desert! I asked her if the chef was willing to eat the mud and she said he was willing to replace that part of the meal. Not the dish, no refund, just that bit to which the mud was stuck!
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Arrived at the pub at lunchtime on Easter Saturday wanting to purchase a light lunch. Having established dogs weren't allowed inside went to the bar to order drinks and food to consume on the decking. Informed that they could not serve food outside. I pointed out this was one of the main pubs along the South Downs Way and asked if they had a comments box thinking if enough people commented, they might at least review the policy. The barmaid gave me the email site to comment, the manager then came along to ask me what I was going to say. I explained my thoughts again and he was actually not at all helpful telling me that he had to think of his staff, it was too cold for his staff to serve food outside and that anyway the food would get cold. I have to concur with previous comments about his attitude being aggressive. We drank our drinks and left without sampling the food, we don't intend going back
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Well. What to say.
Possibly the rudest 'welcoming' to a 'pub' I've ever endured.SIT DOWN. MOVE TABLE. HAVE YOU BOOKED. HAVE YOU RESERVeD. BLAH BLAH. WONT be going back any time soon or ever.
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A real shame this pub is run by rude and unpleasant staff as it is in an idyllic location. Staff aggression and inflexibility show they don't want to change anytime soon and will not be receiving my custom again.
I urge not to waste your money and enjoy the view instead!!
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Over-commercialised, bland,big and very cold and draughty. Staff pleasant enough and the Rudgate Ruby ale was nice.
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My wife and I made the journey up to this pub because of its location and memories I had from my childhood. When we arrived we were met by the most aggressive and threatening man I have come across in a long time. I later discovered that this was in fact the landlord and while he did not receive our custom then, he will not ever receive it in the future either.
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Despite a few negative comments the food here was actually pretty good - although the vegetable curry was very poor value for money. Too many people here queuning up to be especially enjoyable but would be nice on a quiet day. No real on was especially disappointing but an ok pint of Staropramen.
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Very sad to report that in a year nothing much has changed.
The weather was delightful last Monday afternoon and my Son and I decided to go to The Dyke Inn for a drink. Our previous experience has not been good at this place but things can change. How wrong we were. Although it was not a busy time we waited for an age to be served.
The server put up two glasses, one of which had a white rime of dried bubbles coating the whole of the inside of the glass. It was quite obvious that the glass was dirty and had not been washed at all, this was refused. The other glass looked cleaner but not by much as clumps of gas bubbles formed on the inside surface as it was filled.
Customers deserve better and it is shameful that places like this are able to make a profit. There is a (public ?) gents toilet which has access from the outside of this inn and has existed there for many years. This place is a disgusting stinking hole.
As a race why do we have such lamentably low standards of hygiene and service ? The best thing about the location is the view and this is free. Don’t waste your money or your time in this hostelry unless you are desperate. If you want a sore throat or a tummy upset this is just the place to get it.
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Take a pub in an astonishing location with one of the best views in Sussex (West over Fulking Hill) and screw it up completely! Quite an achievement, but whoever owns/runs/manages this debacle of a boozer has managed this feat!
Slow service would be an understatement. We went in there prior to undertaking a National Trust guided walk. Said walk was due to commence at 2.00 p.m. We entered the establishment at 1.00 p.m. and ordered the culinarily complex dish of 'two bowls of chips.' - We barely got out in time for the walk! As for obtaining drinks - that so-called "service" proceeds at glacial speed.
This place is of use only if you wish to shelter from the howling winds which frequent the Dyke. As a pub, it is a travesty, which is such a pity given its stupendous location - Shame on the management!
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Very disappointed. Went up on the open-top bus hoping for a good pint in the evening. Long queue to be served, and then no cask beer was available, just the fizzy stuff.
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Seems to have improved- slightly! Decent pint of Harveys at least
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I began going to this pub about 4 years ago when I found it very satisfactory. However, over this past weekend, I went up again and was horribly disappointed. We waited over one hour between having starters and our main course coming (only after we had gone to find out what was going on) and then the food was second class and astronimically expensive for what we got (one ladle spoon of pasta and sauce with literally five small pieces for chicken for £9, for instance...) The roast dinner that we had ordered was burnt and the vegetables were obviously the end of the batch - but we had waited so long and had to get going that we did not have the time to wait again!! Before leaving, we went into the cloakrooms, which was also a mistake... They were disgustingly dirty and all the toilets were blocked with paper napkins as there was no toilet paper.
It is a real pity that a pub in such a wonderful setting is so bad, but I can say with absolute certainty that we will not be returning to that pub again!
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Last Sunday our group walked from the public car park at The Devils Dyke. On our return the pub was literally packed. Why ? Haven’t people got anything better to do on a Sunday than to crowd into a pit like this ? I know what this place was like in the 60’s, very different, the upstairs floor was a restaurant you could have a drink and good meal and enjoy a real view. You can currently do none of these things in this pub.
If a pint and a pee and a breezy trot to and from the car is your idea of a Sunday outing then you will not be disappointed, but check for a clean glass.
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This pub has been a sloppy 'ping-fling-and-bring' sort of place for the last 10 years or so but appears to be reaching new heights of incompetence, they are setting ever lower standards and failing to achieve them.
Biker - 13 Oct 2007 10:56 |
Has gone downhill dreadfully (if you will excuse the pun). Went to the bar to order and there was one person trying hard to serve everyone and 5 others standing doing nothing - sorry, talking. After looking pointedly at them for a while I then asked if they would serve me, which got them in a muddle.
The fried egg we were served with was solid. One of the sausages was raw in the middle.
After the main course we waited for the table to be cleared in order to order some coffee. No-one turned up so we had coffee at home.
anonymous - 9 Oct 2007 10:06 |
This is a canteen style pub at a local beauty spot. It serves its purpose well, providing cheap and cheerful food at cheap prices for the tourists and others who visit Devils Dyke. I have always had good service and no complaints. You have to accept it for what it is - and it aint a quaint country pub.
Good for walkers, cyclists, hang gliders, horse riders and anyone else who wants a pint and a piss.
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Apparently this pub has had a refurb when changing hands recently, well all I can say is why bother spending that amount of money and then making a complete hash of it to ensure that I won't come back? I can only echo previous reviewers who must be gutted to see no improvement in what could be a great pub.
The setting is great and while we were there plenty of tourists came and went and that's what I'll do; just once.
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Refurbishent doesn't appear to have improved the pub - it's now too dark to se anything! They should have spent the money on hiring staff so that you don;t have to wait ages to be served.
We did go here with the intention of eating but were put off and so only had a drink. If you want good food then visit the Shaves Thatch Inn nr Albourne - that's a proper pub with proper food.
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The interior has been ‘theme rusticated’, lots of old wood and old clearance furniture. It’s now very dark so you won’t see when it gets greasy. Uninspired heated catering packet food, like a Happy Eater with drinks. A bar snack menu at restaurant prices. Dirty glasses and cutlery with stains. The best thing about the place is the view. Avoid unless you are really parched or want to sit down out of the wind. If you want to search for a knife and fork, be offered condiments that 50 people have dipped into before you and drink out of a dirty glass you will be at home. Some of the staff try to please but they won’t have a job for long. Not the place to take children
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If you are cycling or walking up here you will probably be relieved to find a pub. It doesnt really matter if the food or beer isnt that great, the location means this pub shall always sell and make money.
There are ales like Sussex best bitter and 6x and plenty of other choices of beer, so its not a bad choice. The food was of a decent standard on visit today. Even if service was a bit slow. But you can't be too fussy when there are no other pubs around
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Crikey! You avoid a pub like the plague because it's decorated with 15 different types of floral wallpaper, serves no decent beer and thinks that a microwaved dish of nutrient free rubbish is **food** only to drop in to use the loos and find that it's had a complete make over. Progress!
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If your idea of cuisine is BBQ sauce on your chicken nuggets with your lukewarm Coca Cola, then this is the place for you. This pub does well because of its location on the top of Devils Dyke. If it is was in the middle of Brighton it would have closed yonks ago. Has no redeeming features whatsoever.
anonymous - 4 Dec 2006 17:32 |
Avoid at all costs. One of the worst pubs anywhere in the world. Diabolical food, beer and service.
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Terrible that such a poor establishment should be allowed in such a beautiful place. Packaged food, poor beer, not clean. A pub in a sussex beuty spot should reflect something of the qualities sussex has to offer, not corporate blandness
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8.5 out of 10? Are you kidding? This has to be one of the worst pubs I've ever been into. No real beer (gas tap only), do you people not know what a decent pub is? Yes the views are great but don't go up to the dyke and sit in a pub, go and walk about on the Downs and if you get thirsty walk down Fulking Escarpment and go to the Dog and Shepherd in Fulking - now that's a really great pub!
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No dogs, thank the lord. I'm sick of going to eat in pubs and having a load of bloody mutts stinking the place out and chasing each other around. Worse still, attempting to shag everything in sight. Christ knows where that divvy nickos likes to drink. Greece probably. Yes, that's it, the description above sounds like every pub in Greece that I've ever visited... It's a GREAT pub. pity they don't sell ouzo though, or vine leaves, or that crap domestos wine. Never mind, can't have it all ways.
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I like the pub, it's pretty and has nice drinks, i have only been once but id live there if i could, nice front door!
Salma - 11 May 2004 22:57 |
9/10 you must be kidding, pre packed food, poor beer and no dogs ! Its a poor 4 !
Nickos - 10 Feb 2004 17:47 |
This pub is excellent - I completely agree with Jemma's comments about the amazing downland & views. The only lights at the pub are bollards - which, if absent would lead to someone breaking their neck I suspect as it's pitch dark up there. There is a National Trust box outside with loads of details about the downs and forthcomming events etc. Inside the pub there is a huge map showing details of the downs, suggested walks and places of interest. The pub also sells the National Trust pamphlet on downland conservation and helps sponsor the bus (it's advertising on the back of the timetable). The pub doesn't own the carpark (it's the National Trust - I checked!) and rubbish is collected every day by Brighton & Hove council (I've often seen them whilst walking my dog). I've never seen them run out of parking but it does get very busy in the Summertime as the place is packed out. The pub are currently in discussions with the Trust and council to change the front carpark into a viewing area for the downs (see John's comments reference the view). Food excellent, family friendly. Definately worth a visit.
Simon - 15 Oct 2003 09:45 |
The Dyke Pub has excellent views but does nothing to promote or educate its users about the excellent chalk downland environment it sits on. Rubbish collection and parking problems are left to a charitable trust and the garish lighting is left on all night, greatly detracting from the atmosphere of the hillscape and adding light pollution. By all means, visit this pub, but take the time to go for a walk and appreciate the natural beauty of the place. Take your rubbish away with you and catch teh excellent open top bus which provides a cheap and enjoyable ride up from many stops in Brighton and along the coast.
Jemma Lowin - 1 Oct 2003 17:24 |
Brewers Fayre Pub / Restaurant at view point on the South Downs. No real ale. Good food. View from the windows partly spoiled by the car park. The 77 bus from Brighton goes there at weekends.
John - 13 May 2003 13:30 |
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