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    The Lion & Lobster

    4.2 (71 reviews)
    ModeratePubs
    Tue 11:00 am - 2:00 AM (Next day)
    Wed 11:00 am - 2:00 AM (Next day)

    The Lion & Lobster Photos

    THE LION & LOBSTER ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Casual
    Live music
    Good for groups

    Recommended Reviews - The Lion & Lobster

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    Sarah-Jane B.

    From the outside, The Lion & Lobster looks like someone has dropped a gigantic bucket of Tomato Ketchup over it. If you can get past the shocking red exterior however, you'll find one of Brighton's most atmospheric and friendly boozers. There's a cosy ground-floor bar with a roaring log fire, round tables and chairs for groups and bar snacks and an intimate area with candle-lit booths round the back. They have great live jazz bands on Thursday and Sunday evenings and a full bar of beers, ales, wines and spirits. The staff are also super-friendly and honest too. My friend left his mobile phone here by mistake and when he went back the next day, they'd saved it for him in the manager's office! Earlier this summer, they converted the upstairs from a B&B to a brasserie style restaurant serving great pizza and more traditional British meals. There's also another two bars with lots of alcoves and a large roof-top garden bar. Suffice to say, it was rammed every weekend I went and should be a big hit next summer too. If it wasn't for the wide-screen TV occasionally playing sports matches downstairs, I'd give it five stars!

    Ben J.

    Great place for a cheeky drink and FOOD! OMG the food is GOOOOOODDDDDD. It's such a big pub and it's got a different vibe around the venue. You've got the pub, the restaurant, the outside balcony, and the chilled garden area! It's just a cool place to go for a drink.It's just a great British pub! Just had a beer and nachos! Get yourself down.

    Poo on the floor!!!
    Christiaan L.

    I have been a frequent of the lion and lobster over the past couple of years.. I went again yesterday with my partner and my daughter. Usually the bar staff and waitresses are really really friendly and attentive, however yesterday was a totally different ball game... The staff were unfriendly and didn't pay a blind bit of notice to us during our meal.. We weren't greeted upon arrival as we usually always are and we didn't even get so much as a thank you or goodbye when we left. My partner ordered the cheese and ham toasty and I had the pork and black pudding toasty with piccalilli. Both toasty,s had ridiculously hard crusts that left mine and my partners mouth sore!! My first toasty actually had to be sent back as it was lick a brick on top and when I picked it up collapsed on the bottom totally in edible... Before leaving I needed to use the toilet which was the most disgusting toilet ever see from the pics... There was excrement on the floor and the toilet brush was in an old plastic food container and also covered in excrement.... For a pub with such a good reputation I'm sorry but this really really isn't acceptable at all. I really do like this place and I've always rated the staff, the atmosphere, and the food highly but from this experience I'm not sure ill return when the area has so many other places that are consistent.

    Roast!
    Caz H.

    Went here last night off the back of its great Yelp reviews and I wasn't disappointed! I wanted a drink, a bite and somewhere to watch the tennis. It delivered on all three. I sat downstairs in the cozy pub. Had to have a nosy around to find a table. I did go upstairs and explored all the different levels! Restaurant on the first floor looks nice too. Roast n a pint cost me about £15 and there was plenty of food, so good value. The staff were all super friendly and really helpful. One of them saw me trip and immediately came over to check if I was alright and offered to bring ice for my ankle. Don't be put off by its "old man's pub" feel as you first walk in.. There's more than meets the eye!

    Crab!
    Ada C.

    The food at the Lion and Lobster is like the difference between Clark Kent and Superman: nice but slightly dull local boy vs amazing, super hero (who saves pub food from the doldrums of standard bar fare!) I was expecting a pub menu of standard fare: burgers, salads, etc but it's more than just that. They had pigeon on the menu. Pigeon! This is serious stuff, people. I had an amazing, perfectly cooked whole cracked crab. The tartare sauce was a great pairing but I barely touched it as the crab was succulent and sweet. Delicious!! Perfect messy food to eat. Not so fun for my partner who had to suffer through a tedious session of me picking through the crab but hey ho. Relationships are all about compromise!

    Michael P.

    First, I love English Pub names .... makes you wonder what people were thinking. We were in Brighton Beach Sunday night at the best part of England on a Sunday is a proper Sunday Roast... like your mom (mum) would make. The Lion & Lobster was outstanding Sunday Roast. We walked a mile to check it out... place was packed with locals looking for a meal like their moms made. It was the best we have had. Check out the pictures. Also very cool was an art gallery on the second floor with local artists displaying work. It has a great staff and subtle English touches. Stop in for their food any day. But especially Sunday Roast. You will have a great meal and a cold pint.

    Always a good sign when people are queuing for a pub to open!
    Laura H.

    Lion and lobster is an excellent pub- its got so many winding corners, stairs going up to different levels so you always find a new place each time! I booked a table for my boyfriend's birthday last weekend-there was 11 of us and they gave us a fantastic big room which was great as we could make as much noise as we liked! We all had roasts which were very good- cauliflower cheese is a must! All the food came steaming hot and at the same timd which was impressive as there were a lot of us! It was sunny out so we went up to the top roof terrace and spent the whoke afternoon in the sun with friends- great day and the lion and lobster is a great place to spend a birthday or any afternoon!

    Roast chicken and lamb with Yorkshire pudding and stuffing.
    Joy H.

    After a few attempts to try and enjoy a roast here, I've finally had the opportunity today! We managed to find an available table upstairs on the terrace as we didn't book a table. I've heard that they're known for their Sunday roasts and to my surprise, they offer a deal for a mixture of two meats for £9.95! You can also ask for Yorkshire pudding AND stuffing for an extra charge (might as well cause they're both delicious!). Service here is quick but it can get busy so you'll need to take the initiative to ask for sauce/cutlery as soon as the food is served. I'd rate the roast here 8/10! Well-cooked, large portions and all at a reasonable price!

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    15 years ago

    Bleeding brilliant place, great crowd and bloody good food if you want a nosh too!

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    Page 1 of 2

    Review Highlights - The Lion & Lobster

    Only today I was a bit disappointed by the Sunday Roast but I do love the normal menu.

    Mentioned in 5 reviews

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    Queensbury Arms - Photo taken from mybrightonandhove.org

    Queensbury Arms

    3.3(3 reviews)
    0.2 mi
    ££

    This tiny pub - also known as 'the Hole in the Wall' - is tucked away at the sea-front end of…read moreQueensbury Mews. Reputed to be Brighton's smallest pub, it has two small rooms either side of a central bar, serving a couple of real ales, and the usual range of lagers, wines and spirits. The decor is plush and cosy - rather like the inside of a theatre. This is appropriate, as the walls are covered with hundreds of old theatre posters and signed photos of theatre performers. (Or should that be 'artistes'?) It's reputed that Laurence Olivier (among others) once drank here. The staff are very friendly, and it attracts a loyal following of (mostly) gay men, although it's not exclusively gay. A perfect spot to escape from the winter gales on Brighton sea-front.

    The Queensbury Arms, weather it intends to be or not, is something a bit different. This pokey…read morelittle pub behind the Hilton is rich with the kind of charm normally possessed by an old Gay thespian. The seats are of faded pinkish velvet and the air somehow stuffy as though thick with back stage stories from days that have long since come to pass. It's not going to be everybody's cup of tea, but if you've ever watched the fast show's Arthur Atkinson story and aside from the comedy been taken in by the romance of 1950's theatre this place is well worth a trip. The drinks selection's not bad either it has the usual standards and last trip a made there I enjoyed some Harveys Sussex best and marvelled with complete ignorance at the signed monochrome photos across the back wall.

    Hop Poles - Open mic night !

    Hop Poles

    4.2(41 reviews)
    0.5 mi
    ££

    I hate leaving bad reviews but I am worried someone might DIE here…read more I ordered a whisky and after sitting down noticed it had fruit flies in it. I went back to the bartender and he apologized and then offered me another drink. I looked at multiple bottles and ALL of them had flies. I said they needed to throw them away and I would just take a beer. He gave me a beer free and then went outside to hang with my friend. I then watched him pour the bottles through a strainer and then back into the bottles. Not only did they never rinse the glass but didn't rinse the strainer that had the flies in it. So - Do NOT drink any whisky in this place. In fact don't drink any hard liquor in this place. Other bottles had flies but didn't see them "recycling" them. Bartender was very nice and amicable but this place should be shut down. Someone will get sick. No idea if they clean their beer lines or not but just stay away.

    Five minutes walk from Brighton Centre, The Dome and Corn Exchange, the Hop Poles is a great pub to…read morego to after a gig. I went here after seeing Kings of Leon and Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds earlier this year and noticed lots of other people from the shows wander in. The staff are friendly, the bar stock everything from Guiness and ale to quality spirits and the atmosphere is warm and bustling. There's clusters of wooden chairs and tables and a window seat where you can watch the world go by or strike up conversations with - equally intoxicated - locals.

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    Hop Poles - Ranking.

    Ranking.

    Hop Poles
    Hop Poles

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    The Mesmerist

    The Mesmerist

    3.8(18 reviews)
    0.6 mi
    ££

    As far as Brighton bars go, The Mesmerist is maybe as most versatile as you're going to find…read more Came here with a party of 30 people. I let Cat, the booking manager, know the situation, and she was a wizard at making sure everyone had the food that they ordered. We had a room upstairs to ourselves, and everyone loved the food and service. We all got what we had pre-ordered with Cat, and the people who didn't preorder were proffered dinner in a timely fashion. The food was great! I got the tomato tart and the beef cheek. I had never had a tomato tart before but really enjoyed it, and I thought the beef cheek was very tender. Other people raved about the fries. There were lots of vegetarian and vegan options. Drinks were good! I had a cocktail called "The Bees Knees," which I really liked. There are plenty of beers on tap, and the waitstaff gets around to bar belly-uppers quickly. The space is amazing. There's a second story, rooftop courtyard, and a large downstairs area for dancing, live music, picture taking, and a brewery/beer store attached. As someone who loves lots of diversions and micro-vibes within a bar, I really enjoyed bopping between all of these areas. What better way to finish off the night than to catch a trio downstairs playing motown and rock? These guys were terrific: the bass player/singer was getting the crowd dancing, and the guitar player and drummer were seamlessly providing a groovy beat. This band is good enough for a high cover and the Mesmerist brought them in on a Thursday night, no cover. Thanks for everything, Mesmerist!

    The Mesmerist is a bar in the very centre of Brighton. As far as bars go, this is definitely a…read moredecent one. As it is central, it is pretty much always busy - and particularly in the evenings - but it doesn't take long to get served as the staff are efficient. The decor is really rather lovely. It has a very vintage feel to it which goes well with the music that they play which I believe is soft jazz (I am not very good with those sorts of genres so please forgive me if I am wrong!). Upstairs, there are several tables and it feels homely but spacious at the same time. I have not had food here in a few years but from what I can remember it is very decent indeed.

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    The Mesmerist
    The Mesmerist - Sunday Roast

    Sunday Roast

    The Mesmerist - Chelsea Rose

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    Chelsea Rose

    Brighton Beer Dispensary - Brighton Beer Dispensary outside

    Brighton Beer Dispensary

    4.5(6 reviews)
    0.2 mi
    ££

    I'm a big fan of BBD! It's not huge, but it's a welcoming space, with a great selection of bottled…read moreand draft craft beers and ciders. They also have a mystery light and dark beer selection that changes regularly, which they reveal once the cask or keg is finished. There's almost always a selection of Kernel, Partizan and Beavertown beers, in addition to some fine Belgian brews, like Delirium Tremens. The only reason I haven't added a 5th star is that a few more kegs would not go amiss here. Oh, and most importantly, they have deep fried gherkins that are FLIPPING DELICIOUS. Their chips are great too, but deep fried gherkins. Fried pickles. yes yes yesssss. The bar staff and proprietor (proprietrix, really) are friendly and fun (I suggest going during Oktoberfest for lederhosen looks and some great German keg brews) and it's a welcome addition to the growing craft beer community here in Brighton.

    Yes! A small little gem with a nice selection of various beers. They do keg and cask (which I am…read morenot to familiar with, but the bar keep explained the difference to us, but I think it got a bit lost to us) with different beers, both local and more not so local. We got to taste some of the beers before we decided as well and were explained what they tasted like as well, which I like. The place might get a bit crowded since its not the biggest one in the world, but it was a cozy little place and I would love to go here if ever in Brighton again. Did not have the time to stay for long, but I liked what I saw. They also to quiz and have a selection of board games if you are into that. Oh yes, they also do burgers and some sides, from the menu it felt tasty, but we didnt try any of their food, so I cannot tell. All in all, glad we walked in on this place. You do not have to be a beer geek to go here or add all your beers to untappd, but its a place where you can try a lot of different beers for sure.

    Photos
    Brighton Beer Dispensary - Oktoberfest 2014 - Sunday afternoon

    Oktoberfest 2014 - Sunday afternoon

    Brighton Beer Dispensary - Real ales and Belgians and craft beers oh my!

    Real ales and Belgians and craft beers oh my!

    Brighton Beer Dispensary - Brighton Beer Dispensary onion rings

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    Brighton Beer Dispensary onion rings

    The Lion & Lobster - pubs - Updated May 2026

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