The Bear Inn, Etchingham

The Bear Inn is a pub, pizza restaurant and motel next to a council car park that is used by ramblers and dog walkers for access to the foot routes around the village and countryside beyond. Inside, the oversized bar area across the rear wall makes this large pub feel very wide and thin. There are three sections of counter with drinks service for the restaurant area to the left and bar area to the right separated in the middle by what looked like a check-in desk for the accommodation found out the back. There’s a row of seating across the front windows and a white washed inglenook with log burner sits by the entrance to the right. In the right rear corner is a raised area with a pool table and dartboard as well as a projector screen that compliments a few televisions. These were all off while some background music played during my Wednesday late afternoon visit, but Sky Sports is advertised, as is live music. At the rear is a tiered beer garden with picnic tables, a couple of covered seating areas and great views over the East Sussex countryside. Standard and premium keg were available from the counter that also supports at least three hand pumps, but only one was in used drawing Harvey’s Best, so I decided to go for a pint of Kronenberg. The service was polite, but any character this place once had was missing during my visit and somehow they’ve managed to create a town centre boozer atmosphere in a rural Sussex village. I've given an extra point for the views.

Fine-looking old inn with a more modern extension and an additional accommodation building (unusually these days described as a motel). The large, partly opened-out interior comprises general seating areas along the front and to one side - including a pool table on a slightly raised section - and the restaurant at the other end, all refurbished with a mix of traditional and modern elements. The views from the rear beer garden are also quite a feature. Just one real ale available from the various handpumps, and (totally predictably) this was pouring Harvey's (£4.45).

Official site of The Bear Inn - www.bear-inn-hotel-burwash.co.uk

Official site of The Bear Inn - www.bear-inn-hotel-burwash.co.uk