Eastbourne – Marine Pub
I have to credit this rather lovely pub in Eastbourne with some really engaging service on Friday evening. The 2020 Hike Norfolk trip to Eastbourne had to be suspended given the national pandemic, but we had 40 people signed up to go and the Marine were ready to cater for that number. To thank them for their assistance with that, I thought that I’d turn up with the 6 or 7 people from this year’s event that I thought would come along on the Friday evening. Given I didn’t know how many people there would be wanting to go for a pub meal on the Friday evening, I decided to risk just turning up.
With Ross, Dave and Steve with me, we turned up to the pub at their opening time of 18:00 and to my great concern, there were already about 20 people standing outside the pub. This really wasn’t ideal at all if it meant that the pub would be full. We reassured ourselves that at least we’d get a table and everyone else could always walk to McDonald’s. It transpired though that this was just another pre-booked group and they were being catered for in the conservatory area.
What the pub allowed us to do was really very kind. It primarily involved moving all their furniture around (and I think it’s fair to say that I had this situation sorted….) to suit our needs. It then transpired that there were 14 people all wanting food, which isn’t quite what I expected. However, the pub catered for that whilst remaining friendly and pretending that this wasn’t a bit annoying. I have to say, if I ran a pub again, I’d likely be surprised to see a 14 strong party turn up without a booking. But, these are challenging times and I imagine the money was useful.
The beer selection was adequate, with London Pride and Harvey’s Bitter available as the only two choices, so I had half a pint of each. They were well kept and presented a useful option, with a regional nod given the Harvey’s which is from nearby Lewes. The beers tasted as they should and they weren’t served too cold, as that always annoys me (I mean relatively, there are other things that annoy me more, like loud people in libraries).
The food menu and there was a specials list as well.
I had the pie last time I came here which was excellent, but I decided not to risk the steak one which was their offering this time as I worry there might be fatty meat (I’m a bit picky). Instead, I went for the fish and chips which was reasonably priced and neatly presented. And this was really rather excellent, with a crispy batter which had a depth of flavour, fish which flaked away and no greasiness to the whole arrangement. This was well towards the higher end of the quality range that I’ve experienced.
Overall, this was an exceptionally well run pub with the staff having excellent customer service skills. They were helpful even when some of our party presented a 10% off voucher and then tried to pay at the bar despite being asked not to. Not that I’m one for gossip or tittle tattle. Although, to be fair, we were a very well behaved group (well, I was) and weren’t loud, so they didn’t have to deal with any noise issues. They did have to deal with Dave getting shots, but he’s very social and endeared himself to them anyway.
I would absolutely book here again if I return to Eastbourne, because this high level of customer service for large groups is rare. For the perfect visit, being able to work out who ordered what is something pubs are doing better, and it was a bit muddled up here. I’d also ideally like some more craft beer options, but I appreciated that their real ales were well-kept. Anyway, it’s easy to find fault and I thought that the pub did a great job with a lot of food all being ordered at once. Very lovely and I’m grateful for their assistance in getting us a suitable section of the pub with nearly no notice.
