The Connaught

Great gastropub. Good locally sourced food that changes seasonally, dog friendly atmosphere and warm fireplace for winter and terrace for summer. A bit in the pricey side.
Every time I go I am happy.

This used to be a real spit and sawdust type of pub, with some very unsavoury looking characters hanging around inside and outside. But it was taken over and refurbished and is now stylish with a buzzy atmosphere and also serves good food too from posh burgers and fish & chips to eat in the bar area or you can be seated in the restaurant area. The food is ever so slightly overpriced, but tasty none the less.

My wife and I recently decided to see what all the fuss was about with this place. We booked a table for Sunday lunch.
When you arrive, it has that familiar «gastropub» feel that so many places are now doing. I personally don’t mind this, although it is a bit generic.
We were not welcomed on arrival and had to wait in line at the bar to be shown to our table. Given that it was fairly quiet, we were also surprised how hard it was to catch the waiter’s attention.
The menu was rather limited, but looked interesting. We ordered some olives to nibble on and then both went for the Sunday roast main.
Our food arrived quickly — so quickly in fact that we had hardly had any chance to nibble on the olives — what a shame.
The meat and roast potatoes were both good and worthy of 4 stars. Sadly the same cannot be said of the cold veg and dreadful Yorkshire pudding (dry, tasteless, cold cardboard). Being served cold veg is one of my absolute pet peeves, so forgive me if I get worked up over this!
At this price point, I was a bit disappointed with the meal. Also, we were not offered any sauces (mint sauce, horseradish etc.). We had to try and catch the waiter’s eye for this while our food got cold (er).
Overall then not awful, but not really competitive at this price point either. When you have only 1 glass of soft drink and one main each, 35 pounds including tip for two is not bad, but there are several cheaper options with better food and service close by.
Indeed, if you like this kind of bistro food, in my opinion Brasserie Pascale in 2^nd Avenue offers clearly better food and service for roughly the same price.
3 stars from me for being not bad but not really good enough at this price point, especially since there are so many good options for roughly half the price within a few minutes.

This brick built giant-​sized gastro pub is a fabulous dinner joint and has some of the classiest décor around for pub dining. They locally source their produce as much as is humanely possible, which although not personally my biggest concern in a restaurant, it is a big plus point when it comes to helping out local farming businesses and providing fresh and tasty food stuffs. I am a big fan of daily changing menus and this place has one, I don’t know why more people don’t do it. It is a great way to keep creativity in the kitchen and your regular customers inspired by what’s on offer. They have a fantastic beer garden here also making it a brilliant daytime choice in the Brighton spring and summer. I was also impressed by the huge array of wines on offer that compliment the diverse and ever changing menu.

This is a top pub, acting as the perfect advert for the unique Brighton/​Hove style that is so welcoming and modern.
The pub is larger then most in the area, seating at least a 100 people, if not more. It has clearly been decorated recently, sporting a turquoise décor with modern art prints scattered around.
The atmosphere is probably second to none, attracting a young 20 – 30 something professional crowd.
The only question mark would have to be over the prices; while we all know the south east is expensive, £4.20 for a pint of Peroni (rare to be draught), is expensive, very expensive.

Superb food, more restaurant quality than typical pub, but you can still pop in for a pint by the open fire.
Fab, great refurb and highly recommended!

Has been done up recently. Now doing local produce food. Very good.

I love walking into a pub and smelling an open fire — especially when its freezing cold and raining outside.
We popped into the Connaught last night for a couple of pints after not going there for years and were really surprised. The whole place had been gutted and refurbished in a really tasteful way; perfect lighting, comfortable seating and two huge murals on the walls, one of Johnny Rotten and one of Iggy Pop.
We sat at the bar and had a good view of the food as it came out. It was fantastically presented and smelt appetizing. On the menu were starters like pumpkin and pecorino ravioli or seared scallops with mains such as Seabass fillets or saddle of venison. When we looked at the bottom of the menu, we noticed that day’s date, this we were told was due to the fact that the menu can sometimes change twice daily depending on which produce arrives. Lovely to see.
There were a good selection of lagers and real ales availble and the bar had a really nice atmosphere (we noticed Fatboy Slim with a group of mates enjoying himself in the corner!) but as Maria the Assistant Manager said ‘we’re all about the food — we try our best to make it as fresh and free-​range as possible and to buy it as close to home as we can.
We’re definitely going back for dinner.