BITE user comments - Hastings
Comments by Hastings
Dreadful chav city with very cheap beer, from a ten minute visit I came to the conclusion that most of the young customers were called "innit", avoid.
27 Sep 2008 07:43
The Senlac Inn & Restaurant, Battle
It's still full of drunken builders but the atmosphere is good with the music, not overly busy but friendly bar staff and service make it a 7/10.
27 Sep 2008 07:39
A pub that has lost its identity, it wants to be a restaurant but the braying donkey clientelle ruin the atmosphere, it has all been said before here but the ales are well kept, it's just a pity we didn't feel welcome enough to stay for a second pint.
27 Sep 2008 07:36
Had a couple of decent pints of Kents Best in here last night, the old place is very tired and run down with a very chav and ladette clientelle, the landlord is leaving in a few weeks and I was informed that the new owners are Rick and Sandra who have spent the last few years running the Blacksmiths Inn at Ninfield into the ground, I also heard that the brewery is going to do a large refurbishment. No rating as yet, judgement reserved.
27 Sep 2008 07:31
A great Sunday lunch and entertaining banter from "old" Joe Beckett at this immaculate olde worlde Sussex inn, the staff come and go but the family behind the bar remain the same, good pub grub, prompt service and the choice of well maintained beers complete the overall package for me. 15 miles from home but worth the trip every time, easily the best in the area.
5 Mar 2007 09:18
I heard yesterday that this once great pub is under new ownership as of next week, hopefully it will revert back to its former greatness. It is Greene King after all so the beers are never going to be spectacular but they are well kept at the moment, must be something to do with the current landlord constantly testing them all day every day.
3 Jan 2007 10:56
Drove past on my way home from work yesterday, it seems that it has been bought and refurbished by Greene King, will have yo pay a visit at the weekend.
28 Dec 2006 10:47
Kudos Mr MD Paul for standing up for your business in an open and honest way, I can't stand the tossers with grudges who try to use this site to knock someones livelihood, I will take the time to visit as well, Google maps says that the Miller of Mansfield is 112 miles from my house and a 3 hour drive so I had better leave early for lunch next week :)
BTW the Millers website has a spelling mistake on the Christmas luncheon page, the turkey main course is presented as Balentine, it should be Ballotine.
14 Dec 2006 10:14
I think the days of giro cashing in this pub are long gone, mind you reading the flowery bulls**t prose below I can understand what may have prompted your post, this little pub is a boozer that serves the community on the west hill, it's ok and welcoming to all who enter, the locals will chat with anyone, especially for a pint!
13 Dec 2006 09:10
And because it is an absolutely superb pub/restaurant, easily the best for many miles, I sometimes go here just to sit in the garden with a pint of Badger Best, the whole place is sublime and the food is to die for.
6 Dec 2006 17:28
I slipped away from a wedding reception at Windmill Hill Golf and Tennis Academy to visit this pub, I really shouldn't have bothered, overpriced wanabee gastropub that isn't up to scratch with the food or the ale, my complaint was met with "no-one else complains", I will not return.
2 Dec 2006 09:23
The John Logie Baird, Hastings
"Typical Weatherspoons."
really?? I have been in many over the years starting with The Moon Under Water in High Barnet in 1978, none have been quite as bad as this.
"Not sure why there are so many bad reviews."
Because the place has been a toilet for so long, home to the street scum, the staff would serve anybody regardless of how inebriated/aggressive they were.
"Maybe we didn't get the best experience going on a Tuesday night, but seemed all right to me."
Then maybe the new managers are starting to sort it out, possibly.
"Didn't sample the cuisine."
No? then you had a lucky escape.
1 Dec 2006 10:42
I am a bit surprised to see this pub in the top 10? dont get me wrong, it is a good pub for bikers and loud rock music with some excellent tribute bands, but if thats not your thing then it could be a culture shock.
28 Nov 2006 10:28
The John Logie Baird, Hastings
I am sure you did mr anonymous - 23 Nov 2006 19:44 but not in this dump, I will give you the benefit of the doubt and assume that you placed this comment on the wrong page, if not then you are a liar.
24 Nov 2006 08:48
I was here visiting my daughter a few weeks ago and had a great time in the Plough, excellent food and wines, Paul and Sarah were the hosts if I remember correctly? and I also heard that they had spent about 50k of their own cash on the refurb, brave people in this day and age, whenever someone new takes over this sort of pub there are always a few locals with a grievance who register on this site to slag off the pub and big up the nearest ale house, then they slink away back under their rock, this is a very good pub with very experienced owners. 9/10
19 Nov 2006 08:53
Definitely a recurrence of the multiple personality disorder that afflicts some of the users of this site from time to time, when will the owners of these businesses or their well intentioned friends learn? self praise is worthless, if the pub is rubbish then better it. I have not been here since it was reopened by Martin and Peter, I will visit at the weekend and see for myself, I always try to give an honest unbiased opinion but if it's below par then I say so.
17 Nov 2006 10:04
A nice pub but not up to the "rave" reviews here, the ales were good and the food was OK, overall 6/10
16 Nov 2006 09:40
LOL, I used to live here as well and drink here occasionally and can only agree whole heartedly with stwutter, the other reviews must have been made by the pubs own management or a being from a parrallel universe.
29 Oct 2006 07:52
The Ostrich Hotel, Robertsbridge
A pleasant pub with a good welcome, tasty dining and very good wine, this was my first visit, the first of many if it stays this way.
27 Oct 2006 09:46
Don't just stay away, run away as fast as your feet can carry you, unless fighting the day trippers with pool cues is your idea of a nice day. Please avoid.
14 Oct 2006 06:51
I can't see why "Going here is a must" it's ok in a plastic sort of way and the food isn't terrible but like most of the old town it is aimed at taking the holidaymakers pounds. It always has new owners and hasn't been really good since it was "The Penny Farthing" many years ago.
14 Oct 2006 06:42
Cheap beer and cheap nasty food in a conservatory that leaks! Apparently this place won an award a few years ago, maybe for the dirtiest bars in Sussex, check out the cobwebs in the restaurant, maybe they are a rustic "feature"? Avoid.
11 Oct 2006 12:10
Visited the Sawyers again after a two year gap and was not impressed, we never actually managed to eat. Arrived at 6.10pm ravenous, asked if food was being served, nice cheery barman said "yes at 6.30" great, we bought a pint of rather flat XXXX and a bottle of wine and relaxed on the leather sofas in readiness for a rump steak. The staff all seemed to be kids who randomly roamed about, the waitress arrived at 6.30 and sat down for a fag and so we waited on. after much chatter about who was going to do what we were given menus to read placed inside books?? presumably to read during the long wait?? At ten to seven we had suffered too long, I asked the barman what was occuring "we had a busy lunch" was the reply, and still the restaurant wasn't ready for customers, we left the premises bemused and starving. I won't be rushing back, maybe I should leave it another two years?
27 Aug 2006 09:31
Nice pub in a very rural location, staff are friendly and the welcome was good, the ales are definitely well kept with good line cleaning practises obviously in place. The food was poor to middling, service slow but pleasant. there are better places to dine locally.
31 Jul 2006 15:58
"Local Pub of the Year for 3 years running" and it beggars belief after visiting. Nothing really bad but nothing really special, average food, average beer, pretty location. I don't know why or how it has been awarded this accolade but I wouldn't bother visiting again.
27 Jul 2006 10:40
As someone who dines regularly in good establishments I am interested that someone needs to post such a comment anonymously, goodbye old head chef, I think you will find that a very creative, dynamic and talented new head chef is about to take this pub/restaurant to new heights.
11 Jul 2006 08:05
An OK pub in a great location. The food is pleasant enough, mostly very normal "pub fayre" though the standard can vary, it's definitely better than the catering inside the castle grounds,the beers are well kept and the welcome is good. I wouldn't go out of my way to visit though.
9 Jun 2006 16:29
"I'm sure they weren't bought in frozen as you can certainly tell" The lamb shank is served in every cheap pub for miles, it comes in a plastic bag with the gravy! microwave on full power for 2 minutes. I rest my case. By the way the landlords name is Terry and I agree he is a laugh, never disputed the fact, just stated that the food is all bought in frozen which it is.
5 Jun 2006 09:58
Absolutely the best food served in any location for many miles around, not just pubs, but any food establishment, we dined on Friday in a full restaurant, the extra mature steak with hand-cut chips was outstanding as was the lobster sausage with tandoori foam, in fact all of the food was top quality as was the service and wine, I even spotted a famous pop star dining in the corner! The Curlew is an experience, not cheap but the prices are justified by the quality. The mini plate of dessert selection has to be seen to be believed, it's a work of art in itself. A few chatty locals make this place an ideal social destination. Superb.
5 Jun 2006 09:44
The John Logie Baird, Hastings
The food in this Wetherspoons has to rate amongst the worst in the country, it is simply abysmal, how anyone can continuosly get it so cold and tasteless at service is incredulous. The staff have all graduated from the school of indifference and rudeness with distinctions. A family pub? I think not, especially with the aggressive street life that inhabit the place for most of the day, they moved the street drinkers out of Hastings town centre with by-laws, they now reside in the John Logie Baird.
29 May 2006 12:41
The New Inn is now a miserable shadow of a once good restaurant, all of the food is bought in frozen from "Juggs" ( I witnessesed the gigantic delivery) the vegetables are cooked to death, the stench of the dirty frier oil can be inhaled from the car park, sadly this pub is sinking faster than a lead weight, which considering the fact that six months ago it was the best food pub for miles is worrying. The owners lack of interest is quite apparent, simply plonk yourself in the Public Bar for half an hour on any afternoon and listen. I truly hope somebody with a passion for "real" food takes this pkace over soon, before it becomes irretrieveable.
29 May 2006 10:25
Not a place to visit if you are in a bit of a hurry and want to eat, if this pub was a person it would be best described as "so laid back he's horizontal" but it is clean, welcoming and a calm little rest spot just off the main High Street, beer is OK staff are OK, in fact the whole pub is just OK.
27 May 2006 08:17
A warm welcome in the High Street. The Bull is always worth a visit when in Battle, the beers are well kept, the food is reasonable and fairly priced, the staff are easily engaged in friendly banter and humour can quickly fill the bars with relaxing background noise. A bit of a gem.
27 May 2006 08:13
A pub to be avoided! full of unwelcoming rude oiks, serving cheap, nasty "food" that almost defies description, the beer is insipid, the place is dirty and the staff couldn't care if you didn't enter the premises, so be warned, do'nt bother.
27 May 2006 08:02
This is a beautiful little pub restaurant steeped in local history, it has a warm friendly welcome and a pleasant ambience that cannot be instilled, the lunchtime trade is quite brisk whilst the evenings are more mellow and easygoing. Under new ownership this year the pub is quietly developing into a pop-in must when visiting Battle. The food however has a long way to go, it aspires to great things but in reality does not live up to the promise, a halfway attempt at being a gastro pub without the food level required, whilst attempting to hold on to it's previous reputation as "Good Pub Grub", in reality it has become neither. However what the pub does do is serve good beer! in a relaxed and genial atmosphere, friendly chit-chat is easy to come by in the bar with attentive and positively welcoming staff. Well worth a detour on the way up or down to the coast from London or further afield.
27 May 2006 07:57
Blacksmiths Inn, Ninfield
Empty and soulless with a barman (boy) who likes to read his book in between the tedious task of having to serve us. The pub across the road had at least 80 customers eating, probably because they are serving a plate of cheap grub at under four quid, but this place didn't have any customers after we left.
27 Sep 2008 07:56