Vista Bar Cafe @ The View Hotel, Eastbourne

Hotel bar, but open to all with its own entrance. Modern furniture and decoration, but the view to sea from the full-height windows is the main draw here. However, draught beer is not a strong point, with a dull keg selection of Guinness, Stella, a pair from Camden - Hells and Pale (£2.40, half) - plus Magners cider.

Official site of Vista Bar Cafe (The View Hotel) - www.theviewhoteleastbourne.com

Official site of Vista Bar Cafe (The View Hotel) - www.theviewhoteleastbourne.com

Vista Bar Café is the bar of the View Hotel, although it has a separate entrance and is open to non-residents. Steps lead up to a terrace with some seating. There is a ramp, but it is all the way around the other side of the hotel. Inside there is a large open plan seating area with views of the sea through the floor to ceiling windows. The bar runs along the rear wall, I counted eight draught taps that were badged with a standard and premium range including Stella, Becks, Boddingtons and Guinness. There are no televisions and there was no background music. I was very surprised at how busy it was for early on a Saturday afternoon in February. Every table was being used, and this is quite a large bar, so the food must be very good.