The Crown, Hailsham

Sizeable old inn on the High Street; indeed, the only pub in the original shopping area these days. You enter a busy but surprisingly basic public bar, although the rear lounge and side dining room are quieter and more upmarket. Just Hop Back's Summer Lightning (£4.75) available from the four handpumps on the front counter, together with a reversed Doom Bar clip on another.

Official site of The Crown - crownhotel.southcoastinns.co.uk

Official site of The Crown - crownhotel.southcoastinns.co.uk

This was formerly a Courage pub called the Crown Hotel and is part of a company called RelaxInnz who have a group of hotels across Southern England. It would appear that this is one of the smallest of them and is also a listed building which can only be a good thing in a Town Centre that has been vandalised by the construction of three supermarkets. The front bar is wooden floored with modern style tables and chairs. There is a dining room to the left. At the back there is a small carpeted bar that is more traditional in style. On my weekday visit in January no real ales were available but there were signs that they would be available at busier times. Apparently it caters for younger folk at the weekend, probably the only one of the four remaining pubs in central Hailsham that does. This isn't that bad a place but due to the lack of real ale it doesn't get a rating.

This is a large L-shaped establishment that has a separate dining area to the left and a bar of little atmosphere in the centre where the main entrance is. Access is gained to a more pub like area through a door to the right and although nothing special it is the only place in the area to watch Sky Sports. It was reasonably busy during my visit a couple of Saturdays ago as most of the crowd had settled in to watch the Arsenal v Spurs 13:30 kick off match. There is a standard and premium draught selection and although the Landlord and Bombardier were off Pride and Flowers IPA were available from the two functioning hand pumps. I didn’t think much of the Guinness and ended up leaving most of it, but the service was friendly enough once the barmaid had stopped gassing to the locals. There is karaoke every Thursday from 20:00 until midnight and accommodation is available. To be honest I thought that this place was a bit uncomfortable and had been thrown together at some point to try and maximise profits by being all things to all men. I cannot envisage a return visit.