The Pubs of Portslade

The pubs they are a-changin'

South Street, showing the former Portslade Brewery, complete with chimney

I live in Portslade, a small town about five miles west of Brighton. I have been here for fifteen years but had, until recently, only drunk in three of its many pubs. I was inspired to check out the others by the writings of beer bloggers Boak and Bailey. Not only have they recently published a fascinating history of the English public house 20th Century Pub they post frequently about the various hostelries in their adopted city of Bristol. These reviews, and their aim of presenting each venue in as positive a light as possible, set me thinking.

I should probably begin by attempting to explain exactly what it is that I look for in a pub. The first thing is decent beer. Preferably this should include at least a selection of ales on cask although the quality of many keg-delivered beers these days means that this isn’t always a deal-breaker. Another is the absence of TV screens although if they are present but ignorable I am generally prepared to accept them.

An important but hard to define quality is atmosphere. Even if a pub is empty there is always a sense of what it would be like when busy. A couple of the pubs that I visited had a defeated air. What causes that? you might ask. Sometimes it's something as obvious as the state of the carpets, the tables or the general decor but perhaps the most important factor is the manner and relative friendliness of the staff. Do they appear to be enjoying their work? All these factors will dictate whether or not I am inclined to call again.

When I put my list of hostelries together I decided that, rather than agonise over where Portslade started and finished, the simplest approach would be to use the postcode BN41, which meant that my sojourn also included Mile Oak and Fishersgate. Below are my findings.

Fishersgate

The bar at the Albion; handpumps not shown

In 2003 there were four pubs in Fishersgate. Now only two remain and they provide quite a contrast. The Stanley Arms was one of the first pubs I visited when I moved here, since it was the only Portslade pub listed in the Good Beer Guide. But I had never before visited the Albion Inn.

I probably didn’t see the pub at its liveliest, choosing to visit at 5.30 on a Tuesday but even allowing for the lack of activity it didn’t impress me. The large main bar, occupied by a handful of men of around my age half-watching a music hits channel on Sky, had a neglected feel to it. The bar had two handpumps that weren’t in use and even the Guinness was off. I was informed that this was because of St Patrick’s Day, yet that had been four days earlier.

Back bar at the Stanley. The main bar was even fuller!

The Stanley, by contrast, always feels upbeat even when quiet. They always offer half a dozen cask beers, mostly from local, often tiny breweries. There is regular live music as well as quarterly beer festivals where the main bar is dominated by many racks of cask ale. My favourite regular event though is cellar night. Every other Monday the Stanley serves several of its ales straight from the cellar at a discount and you even get to potter around among the casks. There are cold cuts available in the bar and if you're lucky you might even find a seat! 

A couple of years ago owner Steve Bennett announced his intention to sell so that he and his wife could retire. During the time since there have been offers, some of them from developers whose plans for the site do not include keeping the pub open. It’s very much to Steve’s credit that he has opted to wait to find a buyer that will keep the Stanley open. Meanwhile the Stanley continues to be the best pub in Portslade by a distance.

Portslade Town

The Blue Anchor

The vibrant centre of Portslade is generally referred to as Boundary Road although the road that runs from the Old Shoreham Road to Wellington Road has several different names along its length, depending on which part you’re in. Typically, the end furthest from the station is the part that is actually called Station Road. It’s there that you will find the Blue Anchor.

I was struck to discover recently that in 1978, the second year that I bought the Good Beer Guide, this was the one pub listed for Portslade. In those days the only cask ale served was Whitbread Pompey Royal, a fruity beer that I remember with affection. Now it serves two : Harvey’s Best and Long Man APA. When I visited, on a Friday night, the larger restaurant bar was empty but the smaller side bar was packed. I drank the Long Man which was OK.

Opposite the station, on the corner of Victoria Road, is the Victoria. This is a pub that I walk past most days on my way to and from the station but, like its near neighbour when it used to be the Whistlestop, it has never looked that appealing  or that busy. I visited on the Friday of the Cheltenham Gold Cup and the pub was busy with racing fans, all glued to the action on the small screen.

I was impressed by the superb, wood-panelled bar, which looked almost worthy of having a preservation order slapped on it. Sadly, the same could not be said of the beer. They had one ale on cask, the ubiquitous Sharp’s Doom Bar. It was horrible. 

The Railway Inn

It would be interesting to know how trade at the Victoria has been affected since the transformation of its neighbour, now restored to its original name, the Railway Inn. Owner Zoe Rodgers had already worked her magic on the George Payne, a neighbourhood boozer buried in deepest Aldrington. The Whistlestop must have presented a different kind of challenge but she rose to it. A dreary-looking Sky Sports-showing pub with a dodgy reputation has been turned into a modern, inviting, family-friendly gastro-pub. The food is excellent, although not particularly cheap, and the pub offers a selection of four well-kept cask ales, plus two ciders. Most are old favourites, such as Harvey’s Best and Adnams’ Ghost Ship, but there are regular guest ales from the likes of Gun, Langham and Bedlam.

Southern Cross

The Battle of Trafalgar

The road that runs parallel with Boundary Road is called Trafalgar Road. In 2003, there were two pubs there, one close to the Southern Cross junction, the other further down towards the coast road. Now only one remains, the one at Southern Cross. It’s called The Battle of Trafalgar and like so many of the pubs in and around Portslade it had never looked especially inviting to me. To be fair, the exterior does look neat and bright with its immaculate boards bearing details of forthcoming sporting attractions on Sky.

But this pub surprised me. I visited early on a Friday evening and found the atmosphere lively if not yet busy. The interior was U-shaped, with one side housing the pool table, dart board and a small stage; the other had tables suitable for dining. That was where people were sitting. I was greeted cheerily and I ordered a half of Gales Seafarer’s Ale. It was very tasty and I was prompted to try their other cask ale, even though it was Doom Bar. That too was decent, suggesting good work in the cellar. I posted my reaction on Facebook and within minutes got a delighted response from the pub staff!

Mile Oak

The Mile Oak Inn

The Mile Oak Inn is the only pub in Mile Oak but it’s a big one. It has three bars; the one on the right is a large function room, the left is the TV room and there is a small, cosy snug at the front. I visited on a Tuesday afternoon and it was the snug that held all the customers. Sky Sports News was on, previewing England’s friendly against Italy, which prompted much discussion of Gareth Southgate and his probable squad for the World Cup. They had one cask ale available, the inevitable Doom Bar, but it was well-kept. The problem was, well, it was Doom Bar!

Portslade Old Village

The Stag's Head. Feel free to hiss at the Watneys' sign

When my wife and I moved into Portslade, in the old village, pretty much the first thing I did was to size up the two nearest pubs. The St George was bright and from the boards outside seemed to be mostly about Sky Sports and karaoke. Peering through the net curtains I could see handpumps but no pump clips. There was nothing to recommend it to me so I tried its neighbour, the Stag’s Head. They did at least have Gales HSB and Bass on cask but neither was in especially good nick. The pub itself felt lethargic and lacking in atmosphere. I have visited from time to time since, each time hoping that the place would have livened up.

I was surprised in 2015 when the pub made an appearance in the Good Beer Guide. I paid a visit and found things a little bit livelier. They were now serving three cask ales but still none had the kind of zip that I was hoping for. Now, three years later, things are much improved. On a recent visit I had a very decent pint of Long Man APA. They also had Harvey’s Best and Brains’ Rev James on offer. The board outside now advertises regular live music and beer festivals.

A few days earlier I had finally paid a visit to the St George. The handpumps were still there and they were still unused. The pub was dead. True, it was a Monday evening and there was no football on TV, but the brightly lit bar had no boards with details of activities at the pub. I had a half of Guinness and beat a hasty retreat.

The future

Enjoying a pint of Fallen Acorn Twisted Oak at the Stanley

As I mentioned, in the time that I have lived in Portslade there have been a number of pub closures : the Gardner’s Arms, the Midway, the King’s Head, the Halfway House and the Harbour View, in other words a significant reduction. That might be about to change, however, with the news that the premises currently occupied by Portslade Learning Centre, at the junction of Church Road and Boundary Road,  might be turned into a micropub. With a trendy coffee shop just opened on the same block, is Portslade about to transform into Hipster City? Watch this space!