Brighton - part two

After leaving the Brighton Bierhaus we set off in search of something to eat. The pub only served pizza, and that had to be delivered in and as I, at least, wanted fish and chips, we took a walk down to the seafront.

I had noticed several fried fish shops as we walked along the front earlier, but as is often the way of things, they all seemed to have disappeared when we actually wanted to find one to eat at. We crossed the road and took a look at the beach and the pier. Both looked their summer best in the bright, early June sunshine, but despite this there was still no sign of a place to eat.

After crossing back and diving briefly into the Lanes again, we struck lucky, with a fish and chip shop on the corner. The only problem was by now, son Matthew had decided he’d rather have a burger, than that most traditional of seaside dishes, cod and chips.

Cursing the fickleness of youth under my breath, we walked a little further, and found a restaurant with tables set out in front, but protected from the off-shore sea breezes, by a glass screen. Matthew wasn’t sure, I don’t quite know why, seeing as I was paying, but we nevertheless found a convenient table tucked away in the corner.

Looking back, number one son had allowed his blood sugar levels to drop. Rather typically he had skipped breakfast, and apart from a bag of crisps eaten on the train, had not had anything to eat. Combine that with two pints of a 5% beer, and it’s small wonder he was grumpy, but he demolished the house-burger and chips with aplomb. I'm not sure whether washing his meal down with a pint of Stella, helped or not, but his mood did seem to improve.

My selection was more reserved; haddock and chips with a pot of tea. This was far more in keeping with the seaside setting. Buddies proved a good place to stop off at, and other visitors to the town obviously thought the same.

There was a party of four blokes from Switzerland, sitting just along from us. They had obviously just got off the plane, judging by their suitcases complete with the IATA airport code labels, but were getting stuck into their fish and chips, as did the group from “souf” London who arrived shortly afterwards.

The afternoon was getting on, and we still had another pub to visit. The Brighton Beer Dispensary is situated just off Western Road, which is Brighton’s main shopping thoroughfare. We made our way along to this busy part of the town, skirting round the Churchill Square shopping centre.

Matthew works in retail, for a well-known hardware chain of stores, and wanted to check in on the firm’s Brighton branch. Talk about a busman’s holiday, but I went along with him, just to be nosey. A stock audit was taking place, as Matthew recognised one of the auditors, but with curiosity satisfied, we made our way to the Brighton Beer Dispensary.

The pub is located roughly two thirds of the way up a steep side-street, in the middle of a row of terraced houses.. Formerly known as the Prince Arthur, the Brighton Beer Dispensary  is a joint venture between Brighton Bier and the Southey Brewing Company, who are based in South London outfit. The main bar, with its exposed brickwork, is at the front of the pub, whilst at the rear is a small conservatory area with seating.

It was there that we sat after selecting and purchasing our drinks. I hadn’t come across Southey Brewing before, but given the proliferation of new breweries in recent years, this is hardly surprising. I opted for the 3.8% Southey Pale, which was refreshing and quite drinkable. Matthew’s choice of the keg Pilsner looked rather strange, as it was hazy, bordering on murky (London murky?). He said it tasted alright, but when I tried it, it was unsurprisingly very yeasty.

It was pleasant sitting out in the conservatory, but I had one eye on the time. We wanted to take the Eastbourne route home, so after noting there was a train departing at 6pm, we made our way back to the station. The train was busy with homeward bound commuters, and students, although most of the latter group alighted at Falmer, adjacent to Sussex University and, for the football fans out there, the Amex Stadium.

The majority of the commuters got off either at Lewes or Eastbourne, and we then had most of the carriage to ourselves. North of Eastbourne the line hugs the coast, as it passes through Pevensey and Norman’s Bay. We left the train at St Leonard’s Warrior Square, and after swapping platforms, waited for train up from Hastings, which would take us back to Tonbridge.

It  had been a good day out, and for me it was especially good to re-visit Brighton after all those years. We barely scratched the surface, beer-wise, so a further visit would be a good idea. Using my Senior Railcard, the return rail fare was a very reasonable £10.90. It is two and half times that amount, should you choose to travel via London, but then, why would you?

Brighton has much to offer besides good beer and good pubs, with a real sense of joie de vie to accompany its free spirit, and general quirkiness. It's therefore, not surprising that the town, very sensibly, voted Remain, by a large margin, in that divisive and totally unnecessary, “advisory”referendum.