Mesmerist, Brighton

This popular, open plan pub has a pretty good location in the heart of the city, between the Laines and seafront. The ground floor is dominated by the main bar area, which has a stripped out, drinking barn feel to it thanks to a shallow but wide open plan space in the centre of the room with minimal furniture. The room is bare boarded throughout, with large windows to the front and left and the servery along much of the back wall. The bar has a simple counter front, decorative canopy and fairly workaday bar back, with the counter broken along its length by a very large pillar. The place felt quite a bit more empty than it might otherwise have, as they were hosting a day of live music and had cleared a lot of space to the left to create a stage of sorts. What seating remained was entirely in the shape of high tables and stools, although plenty of tables had no seats and had to be stood around instead. A large staircase to the right leads up to toilets and possibly some sort of dining room or overspill area, but I didn't manage to explore up there for myself. Decor is minimal, partly due to the lack of available wall space, and the place has a bit of a corporate feel, despite the fact that they were hosting an alternative music festival. There's no cask on the bar, but plenty of craft keg options from the likes of Laines and Brixton made up the numbers. I sampled beers from both of these breweries and they were decent enough, although the Laines wasn't as good as when I tried it in their own seafront bar. This place was okay for a quick visit to watch some live music, but it felt like it might normally come across as one of those loud, cramped student bars, which aren't anyone's idea of a good time. Certainly not the worst pub I've been to in Brighton, but I have absolutely no desire to return either. Date of visit - 18th May 2024

Official site of Mesmerist - www.mesmerist.pub

Official site of Mesmerist - www.mesmerist.pub

Opened on August 10, 2010 this former Frankie and Benny's (or was it Old Orleans, can’t remember exactly which bland chain it was) restaurant location is now a splendidly different and spacious bar over two floors with frequent live music events and late night general partying in the upstairs room from 10PM to 2.00AM. With a décor more aligned to a 21st Century Gin Palace than a traditional pub, its Bohemian and slightly Burlesque atmosphere won’t be to everyone’s taste , but I like it because of its difference. With impeccable timing my visit on a Tuesday evening last month coincided with a quiet night with nothing on and annoyingly a band had been on the night before. But the bar does have three handpumps which have local Sussex brewery ales on, so I was able to console myself with a very decent pint of Dark Star Summer Solstice. Apparently if you are a party person best visited at the weekend when they hold “Shake Holla and Roll” party nights incorporating lots of 1940s and 50s Old Dixieland jazz and rhythm and blues.