BITE user comments - happychap
Comments by happychap
This pub is ok, without being great. I found it lacking in atmosphere and a bit expensive, not untypical of other pubs next to stations where it feels transient rather than like a hub of a community.
6 Sep 2013 16:28
I keep going back to the Lewes Arms hoping it's got good again after the Greene King saga and sadly it just hasn't. From being one of the best pubs in Lewes it's now mediocre. Maybe in isolation, if you didn't know how good it used to be, it's ok, but no more than ok which is a shame.
There are much much better pubs in Lewes in every respect - ales on offer, atmosphere, regulars, food etc etc. The Lewes Arms needs to find it's identity so it can start competing again and people can find a reason to go back.
10 Feb 2010 07:16
Further to my negative review below it's about time I updated it and said that Andrew and Romy have totally reversed the pub back to being a pleasant place to have a pint, meet friends and read the paper or play pool. The staff are fantastic and friendly, the food good and the atmosphere is always great. It's definitely far and away the best pub up that part of town.
All they need to do is have some more - and non-Badger - ales on tap and it would quickly be one of the best pubs in Lewes. Give us some more ale options and my friends and I will never need to go to the Brewers Arms again.
The only concern then is that it'd be too popular a pub and we'd never get in!
14 May 2009 08:55
Long been one of the better pubs of Brighton, before all the trendy Londoners started moving down this was the kind of place that helped Brighton build a reputation for being the place to be. Not sure if that means I should like it or not though!
25 Jan 2008 14:47
The clientele of this place last time I went looked like they'd stepped straight out of a program called Binge Drink Britain.
25 Jan 2008 14:42
One of the best pubs in Lewes - always vibrant, great ales (obviously being the brewery pub), friendly chatty staff, a real mixed crowd in ages and appearance(!), live acoustic music on a sunday night -basically, a hub of the town so everything a pub should be.
25 Jan 2008 14:32
I like this pub despite finding it odd (it's a bit spread out and despite being big doesn't seem to have much space, probably because most of the space is a through-passage for other customers). Friendly staff (priceless), a regularly changing great selection of ales, and never any hassle. Since the Pelham Arms went downhill this is where we go to for a quick pint in the evening / on the way home from work.
25 Jan 2008 14:29
Not as good as it used to be but still go there from time to time. Hoping it'll pick up soon.
25 Jan 2008 14:27
This has been my local for nearly 3 years now. Previous management (before Dec 2006) were friendly, easy going and kept the pub with a vibrant atmosphere and a friendly crowd. Even though it didn't serve Harvey's we'd go there because it was a nice place to sit and have a pint. If anyone knows where they've moved on to please post it here.
The now not-so-new management have changed it though - the atmosphere is gone, and it's less of a "local" pub and more the kind of place you'd expect in the middle of a larger town or next to a railway station - not friendly, regulars (the old ones no longer drink there) and bar staff don't recognise you even if you drink in there every week etc. I'm not asking for a cheery welcome but a friendly smile doesn't hurt. It's a shame when this happens to a pub and I have no doubt some of the people who go there now like it but it's lost something.
25 Jan 2008 14:25
The Black Horse Inn, Lewes
I've been here a few times and reviewed it before too, but returned again last week to see how it was now. Once you get past the smokers at the door you find that the bar has a good selection of ales. The refurb is still a bit too new so it looks like a pastiche, but it's not offensively so. I get the feeling it's a pub that needs to work out what it is. It could be thriving and challenge the Pelham Arms if it wants to go down the route of maximum success, or it can stay as it is with a few committed regulars and passing traffic but never be a "destination" pub on a night out for those who pick and choose as the mood takes them.
6 Sep 2013 16:35