The Newmarket Inn, Lewes

The Newmarket Inn is a very big L shaped pub and a ten room hotel that is run by Relaxinnz who manage over twenty other of these types of establishments. There is a large car park and there is some seating on a decked area by the entrance. Being located adjacent to the very busy A27 the entrance is at the rear of the building away from the fast flowing traffic. The main body of the pub is full of conventional seating and some of the tables were set for dining. There is a food serving area at the end of the bar with heated lamps, but I didn’t see any menus and the kitchen was probably closed when my wife and I visited early on Sunday evening as we doubled the occupancy when we walked in. A horse theme runs through the pub and at the rear there is a TV that was showing a film on Channel Five that the other two customers were watching. There was also some Country and Western music playing in the background and again at the rear of the pub are a pool table and a dartboard with an oche that was being used to store the high chairs. The bar is stocked with standard draught and two of the hand pumps were unused leaving two drawing Harveys Best. The Newmarket is one of those places that thousands of people drive past every day, but nobody has a reason to stop unless they are specifically going to the pub as it is in the middle of nowhere. So it’s not a great place to go for a few beers, but as a hotel it is ideally situated for tourists who wish to explore Lewes, Brighton and the surrounding villages around the South Downs.