First In Last Out, Hastings

Notable in ale circles for the on-site brewery, half a dozen pumps dispense the range of FILO beers. There's also a cider keg on the bar and the usual lager offerings. It may just have been the mid-afternoon time that I visited, but I struggled to enthuse about this one. It's obviously popular, though, winning awards, and with a regular crowd. I think I'll have to arrange an evening visit to see the place a little livelier.

I also thought this place was really good. The pub itself it as others have described, with a warm welcome , warm fire, and comfortable atmosphere on our visit on Saturday. It boasted five handpulls, four of which serving from its own FILO brewery, and Everards Elixir was guest on the fifth. Very difficult to decide between the FILO beers, having liked each of them when helpfully given tasters! We ended up on Old Town Tom (not as gingery as previous brews, the barman reflected, slightly dolefully, though we liked it a lot) and Churches, an excellent American-hopped pale ale. I understand the brewery part of the operation has recently moved to a barn about 150 yards down the road for expansion reasons, and the area to the rear of the pub is being redeveloped into a better kitchen/dining area. Definitely one to return to.

I paid a long overdue visit to the FILO on a recent Saturday night and after hearing such good things about the place I was looking forward to a couple of pints. It was very busy and all of the seating had been taken up, but there was some comfortable enough standing room where I enjoyed two of the three offerings from the FILO brewery. Adnams Regatta was also available from the bar that sits next to an open kitchen, which was thankfully not in use during my visit. The interior is cosy and there are some booths along the left hand wall. The advertised beer garden out the back is completely covered and feels more like an extension. Obviously being enclosed there is no smoking and drinks are not permitted outside the front of the pub where the smoking takes place. I don’t recall any music playing and I didn’t spot any TVs in the pub, but there is a case on the wall in the rear extension which looked as though it could hold a plasma screen. I though that the atmosphere in here was good and the staff were very friendly, even when telling me off for drinking out the front. I would have no problem returning.