The Crown Inn, Lewes

Set from the road a bit, this village pub retains more of its original layout than most, despite having been opened up a bit at some stage. The bar (with a real fire) is in the centre, with a dining room off to the left, more seating (and a log-burner) on the right-hand side and a small lounge behind that. I found a couple of Harvey's beers - Sussex Best and Old Ale (£5.20) - along with All Day Every Day from the even-more-local 360° Brewing available from the four handpumps.

Facebook page of The Crown Inn - www.facebook.com

Facebook page of The Crown Inn - www.facebook.com

We had tried to visit the Crown Inn earlier in the day, after having a drink in the nearby Royal Oak. However, a notice on the door stated that they weren't opening until 3pm. So, we returned later in the evening to find an extremely busy pub with a live band playing in the garden at the rear. It was difficult to get much further than the front bar, with queues of about 15-20 people constantly waiting to be served. We would probably have turned around and walked out again, had we not travelled so far to visit. Harvey's Sussex Best Bitter is unsurprisingly the regular beer here. A guest beer was Pig & Porter Jumping Frog, which my drinking partner proclaimed to be beer of the day. I would have ordered this, but noticed a good list of ciders listed on an A4 piece of paper stuck to screens over the bar, relics from the pandemic (the screens, not the ciders). The ciders themselves were left over from a recently held Jubilee beer and cider festival. Whilst not all of the original list was available, they still had Ascension Pilot, Lilley's Red Rabbit, SeaCider Blueberry Cider & Mango Cider and a 5% Tropical cider from somewhere in Kent. I did ask the barmaid who the producer was. She asked the landlady, who then asked the landlord. He promised to take a look in the cellar, but never did. My assumption is that it was from Kingswood. But I'll probably never know. Either way, communicating with the bar staff was extremely difficult, with the noise from the band, the crowds inside and the Covid screens. We did manage to find a quiet corner to drink our beer and cider, but the pub was far too busy and noisy to make a visit too enjoyable. Whilst the Royal Oak had more of an elderly clientele, the Crown Inn appeared much more suited to younger drinkers, or at least wannabe youngsters. I was probably lucky with the timing of my visit, to find such a decent cider selection. Although, Whatpub does seem to suggest that SeaCider is stocked in normal times too. Probably a good pub on a quiet afternoon or evening, but not really my cup of tea when a band is playing.

The Crown is Newick’s live sport pub so I wasn’t surprised to find a group of lads watching the plasma screen when I visited on a recent Saturday afternoon. However, I was surprised that they were watching rugby via Sky Sports rather than the Euro2016 match that was airing on BBC. This plasma screen is located to the right of the entrance where there is seating and a dartboard. Under the dartboard is a Toad-in-the-Hole box that is a popular game played in these here parts. Available from the bar that faces the entrance is a standard keg range alongside Hepworth’s Saxon Lager and cask offerings of Harvey’s Best and South Downs Apple Cider. A third hand pump had a reversed Harvey’s clip and a forth was unused. The kitchen is closed on Mondays, but on the other six days of the week is open for lunch from midday until 14:30 and for dinner from 18:45 to 21:15. An example from the menu is the Crown burger with chips for £10.50. Out the back is a patio area with three tables with chairs. Beyond are a large lawn with picnic tables and a children’s play area with climbing apparatus. I thought that this outside area was a very nice spot to enjoy a pint. The service was friendly so I would have no problem returning.

Official site of The Crown Inn - thecrownatnewick.co.uk