On 14 Oct 2011 at 3:26pm Johnbo wrote:
This sunday I have family visiting and would like to take them out for a nice sunday lunch. Could anybody suggest somewhere that serves great food either in Lewes or surrounding areas?? Many Thanks
On 14 Oct 2011 at 3:36pm haphophip wrote:
The kings head serves fantastic roasts. Has got to be the best in lewes.
I wouldnt risk anywhere else. The kings head is the only restaurant in lewes to get into the newest good food guide.
Hope you end up there and enjoy the meals as much as i have.
On 14 Oct 2011 at 4:02pm Taff wrote:
Chalk Pit
On 14 Oct 2011 at 4:08pm bastian wrote:
Lewes arms, try the fish
On 14 Oct 2011 at 4:12pm haphophip wrote:
I wouldnt go to the lewes arms unless you are after a microwaved roast dinner. Food is terrible and all warmed up in a microwave.
Havnt eaten at the chalkpit in years but if it is anything like it used to be i would give it a miss as well. Just check tripadvisor many of the restaurants in lewes are well reviewed including the kings head
On 14 Oct 2011 at 4:15pm Feline wrote:
The Rose Cottage Inn in Alciston. Fantastic home made food very reasonably priced. But you must book as it gets very busy.
On 14 Oct 2011 at 4:54pm meiyou wrote:
Brewers arms, Snowdrop Inn. Not sure about other pubs
On 14 Oct 2011 at 4:57pm Other bloke wrote:
I'm amused at the terrible recommendations above.
The Kings Head is over-priced and portions small.
Without question the two best Sunday roasts in town are at the Pelham Arms and the Snowdrop. The Pelham Arms is roast is a bit posher, while at the Snowdrop you will often find that you have about 7 kinds of veg on the plate. Take your pick but get there early whichever you choose.
On 14 Oct 2011 at 5:03pm Annabel wrote:
Snowdrop always good, lots on the plate & unusual veg. Haven't tried the Pelham, but have heard good reports. Kings Head overpriced!
On 14 Oct 2011 at 5:23pm haphophip wrote:
i think the last few comments are a great example of the lack of taste that seems to have developed in lewes over the last few years. No wonder all the best restaurants are struggling when people have no idea what they are buying. Yes the kings head is a bit more expensive than some but you are paying for the quality. The kings head is top quality the snowdrop is ok but the pelham is poor,
On 14 Oct 2011 at 5:24pm haphophip wrote:
and just because your cheap dosnt mean it is over priced
On 14 Oct 2011 at 5:32pm leweslad wrote:
best sunday roast is at my house. But its all mine!!!
On 14 Oct 2011 at 5:54pm Annette Curtin-Twitcher wrote:
I love the food in the Snowdrop and the roasts are great.
A bit further afield, the Hatch at Colemans Hatch does wonderful food, but it's closer to restaurant prices than pub prices. The Shepherd and Dog at Fulking does good meals too, and the Griffin at Fletching (although the Griffin is VERY expnsive imo).
I'm boycotting the Rose Cottage, after my friend joined the queue to order at 1.45 and the people in front of him were told they couldn't have a meal as it was now after 2.00! Damned rude, I thought.
On 14 Oct 2011 at 5:56pm Southover Queen wrote:
I tread carefully here. Asking for recommendations for restaurants is always dodgy, and I caught it in the neck in the early days for giving the Kings Head the thumbs up.
It isn't cheap, but that's not the same as over-priced, and clearly if you look at their Trip Advisor ratings others agree with me - as indeed do the Good Food Guide as haphophip says. The food is locally sourced and of fantastic quality, the service is faultless and I've always found the portion sizes more than adequate. However if your main criterion is quantity then perhaps one of the other pubs would be better.
I've recommended my frequent visitors try the Pelham Arms, and the feedback for them is very good - I think they've improved considerably in the last two years. And I've heard great things about the Snowdrop too.
On 14 Oct 2011 at 6:04pm Independent Thinker wrote:
Haphophip, I don't actually mind when owners and staff (or their friends) come on here to anonymously promote their local businesses. Seems pretty harmless really. But trashing your competitors, rather than just talking yourself up, isn't very classy. Happens all the time on Tripadvisor which is why I don't trust the reviews there any more. For the record, I've had some brilliant meals at the Pelham Arms, Lewes Arms and the Snowdrop. Not knocking The Kings Head because the food was fine there as well. Nobody exactly at Michelin star standard yet, but we're kind of spoiled for choice for decent pub grub here in Lewes. And given how crowded they all get on a Sunday there's room for all of them.
On 14 Oct 2011 at 6:16pm Clifford wrote:
The Snowdrop is very good again these days. I fancied a snack at the King's Head the the other day and just got a bowl of chips. They were really good and a decent chip is often a clue to the quality of the rest of the food.
On 14 Oct 2011 at 6:46pm Southover Man wrote:
@Johnbo I work up on the High Street and get asked this question a lot by visitors to the town. I've lived all over the place before ending up in Lewes and I agree with Independent Thinker - we're spoiled for choice these days for pub food. I'm probably too much of a reverse snob to eat Sunday lunch at the Kings Head (I should grow up) - used to love the cheap and a bit filthy Sun lunch at the Fruiterers (but that was a while ago!). I admire the KH commitment to local sourcing, but other pubs often have a locally sourced item on the menu.
Really, take your pick - interiors are very plain, but great lunch at the Brewers; fab choice and range of veg at the Snowy; lovely lunch and a pint at the Lewes Arms; once had a great one at the JHT, but was already stuffed after a huge starter; never had a bad one at the Pelham. Though I would suggest you book - they can all get packed on a good day (for them)...
oh, have to add, the local Sussex rump steak at the Snowy I had recently was cooked to perfection (which doesn't happen often). I'd recommend one of those to anyone!
On 14 Oct 2011 at 6:50pm Southover Man wrote:
...and it's probably about time I gave the Swan another go, since it got a new manager...
On 14 Oct 2011 at 8:41pm Peasant wrote:
I agree that the Rose Cottage, Alciston, is very good, if you can get in, but I wouldn't try it without booking. The Cock just off the A26, Ringmer, is a safe choice.
On 15 Oct 2011 at 4:56pm teacher wrote:
MacDonalds takes some beating. Try the Happy meal, the chips are crap and the burgers rough but the toy Wow! Ideal stocking filler.
On 16 Oct 2011 at 12:13am Tasteless wrote:
Quite agree with Independent Thinker. To start a thread, then 'respond' and then slag off the places genuine contributors recommend is cynical in the extreme. Its not the first time theve done that on here either. I don't spend my money with cynical businesses, and I won't go in the Kings Head. Pelham and Snowdrop are very good by the way.
On 16 Oct 2011 at 6:41am The Greek wrote:
Trevor Arms
On 16 Oct 2011 at 9:06am bevi wrote:
My view is that Snowdrop wins - excellent food, service, ales and staff - what more could you ask ! oh and dog friendly.
On 16 Oct 2011 at 9:07am bevi wrote:
My view is that Snowdrop wins - excellent food, service, ales and staff - what more could you ask ! oh and dog friendly.
On 16 Oct 2011 at 10:33am Southover Queen wrote:
Here we go again. On what basis are you suggesting that someone associated with a business started this thread? Why could it not be someone simply seeking a local POV on good places for Sunday lunch? This is, after all, a local forum so it wouldn't seem unreasonable.
I'm a big fan of the King's Head. I think they've done a brilliant job in sprucing up a tired business and it's quite clear that plenty of other people think so too, including the inspectors from the Good Food Guide. I am, for the nth time, not a member of staff, just someone who is delighted to have a good pub serving great food round the corner from me. I am assuming that haphophip is the same.
I don't think for a second that staff from the Kings Head spend their time on this forum in pursuit of free advertising and frankly I think it's insulting to suggest it.
On 16 Oct 2011 at 3:34pm LTlR wrote:
The Halland Forge very good Carvery .
On 17 Oct 2011 at 12:55am brixtonbelle wrote:
We had Sunday roast at the KIngs Head today, the first time we have visited since the revamp. The food was very good, but I did think the starters are a little fussy and the roasts were not as filling as they should be. If a pub presents a sunday roast, it needs to be a proper plateful. There were only two roast potatoes on all our plates !! You just can't do minimal with a roast dinner, however good the ingredients, people order it because they want good hearty filling food.
Personally I think the Snowdrop and the Pelham Arms are better value, the roast are just as tasty and much more filling and both use locally sourced ingredients as well.
On 17 Oct 2011 at 8:33am teacher wrote:
Johnbo, Whats the matter with a good home roast with the Family. Why sit with strangers when you could be at home in the warm having a good old chat. Its cheaper cosier and personally I think its better. The trouble is people today seem to think if they dont dine out they are missing out. Spend the money you save on a lovely 3 course meal and I am sure the family will muck in with the washing up. Why line someone elses pocket and sometimes moan after about the food when you can cook what you know is good. Cant stop there is a smell of burning from the kitchen.
On 17 Oct 2011 at 11:45am Lunch at homer! wrote:
Agree with teacher. Happy to eat out at other times but not at Sunday roast times. Incidentally, regarding the Kings Head - I was there on Saturday afternoon. It took 20 minutes to get served at the bar (the bar staff doubled as waiting staff and kept disappearing)! We went to sit outside and ALL the tables were covered in empty plates and glasses. It looked a total mess and doesn't encourage one to dine there, let alone drink.
On 18 Oct 2011 at 9:49am Independent Thinker wrote:
Southover Queen, you're absolutely right. It could just be a coincidence that a brand new user name pops up asking for suggestions for a good pub. Then another brand new user name pops up minutes later to lavishly praise The Kings Head (which does have perfectly nice food). Then that same new user comes back when forum regulars suggest other pubs and immediately trashes those suggestions, including a pub they admit they haven't been to in years. Then both new users disappear completely when a suggestion is made they're connected to the pub in some way. Yes, it could just be a wildly enthusiastic customer wanting everyone in Lewes to only eat in their favourite pub, despite the fact that would make it almost impossible for them to get a reservation there so isn't in their best interests to do that. And it might have nothing to do with wanting to do a bit of free advertising to a large number of local residents. Yes, all that is perfectly possible.
But not very likely.
On 1 Nov 2011 at 2:35pm The Kings Head wrote:
I just searched The Kings Head on Lewes forum (having not done so since the debate about our sign last winter) and found the above debate. Generally I stay out of these conversations as I am happy for people to make up their own mind, but I absolutely will not stand for people making accusations against us.
For a start, I eat in The Snowdrop and The Pelham Arms on a regular basis and I think that they are both fantastic, there is nothing wrong with a bit of healthy competition and I would certainly never bad mouth them online! With regards to the other pubs mentioned I have never eaten in them and therefore cannot comment.
Thank you to all those who have had nice things to say about us, we appreciate your support! To those who have found us over priced or our portions too small I would say that we are constantly adjusting prices and trying to increase the size of our meals wherever possible but our commitment to locally sourced produce as well as making everything from scratch does make us a little more expensive than some of our competitors. If you have not tried us for a while then please give us another go, we feel we have made big improvements in our portion sizes in the last few months.
I would like to categorically say that we have never anonomously promoted our business online, thankfully plenty of our customers do that for us. I hope that satisfies the Lewes Forum cynics!