Black Lion in Brighton and Hove

Became our local during a long weekend trip to Brighton during the Marathon weekend

We visited early evening on Good Friday. The staff were not the friendliest. (I was next to be served but one female member of staff blanked me twice and chose to serve much younger customers.) And it is severely overpriced, even for Brighton! £21.30 for two mediocre glasses of wine in pretty grotty glasses! Plus there were two rowdy patrons sitting near us goading the staff and spoiling the atmosphere for everyone else. That was standard for most nights on the Black Lion, apparently! The door staff were lovely though and understood our reasons when we explained why we were leaving after one drink.

Ordered a roast dinner it looked lovely , but the plate was cold and the food luke warm ,by complaining, not sure what would of been done to my dinner and by walking out , I did not have time to go somewhere else. I did say to the waiter/staff when he took our plates away. He said sorry. I was not going to put a review online , so I emailed them to say for future customers, but I did not get a reply.

I ordered a roast . It looked lovely , but the plate was cold and the food was luke warm . I did not complain as I was not sure what would happen with my dinner . Also I could not walk out as I did not have time to look elsewhere. When the waiter/staff took my plate he asked how was it , I explained , he said sorry . I did email them to say I would not put a review online,so they could learn for their future customers. But they did not reply.

We had 3 lovely roast dinners and a kids meal. The food was really tasty. The staff were great and it was good value. It was a friendly atmosphere and felt cosy. Would highly recommend.

Perfect for drinks with friends. Great vibes, music and staff. Can get very busy though! We will be back again for sure..

Nice selection of drinks. Photo booth is a cool feature

Great venue but sooooo busy and crowded most days and evenings. Too loud and noisy for oldies like me

Had halloumi and falafel and fries. Loved it staff are realy nice

This place looks nice from the outside but please don’t order food.. it’s so bad! Sent back two cold dishes (bit into one of the meatballs) the same dishes came back within an inch of their lives and the meatball still had teeth marks in it 😂 come on guys at least try to disguise it. One of the staff said read our reviews! Shame I didn’t read before we came in. By the way they have two pages on trip advisor so take a look at both. Avoid avoid avoid!!! P.S The food photos don’t belong to this pub!

Lovely place polite and chatty staff.

It's really cool that the old structure is impeccable. But I found the cost to enjoy the drinks and food to be very high.

Very nice pub with very friendly staff who explained the types of beer to me in detail. Unfortunately I didn't eat anything, maybe next time!

I must be getting old, the pub has been modernised too much, lost its old fashioned vibes, now just an ugly cafe/pub thing.

Staff behaviour towards customers was not good. Went to this place with lot of expectations and research and experienced the worst service.

The bar tenders were not welcoming nor gave a good service. Would really recommend to have better bar tenders or improve their services.

Lovely bartender Mia, great atmosphere great drinks

Mia behind the bar was great! So professional and great service!

Mia was great, service was quick and efficient. Couldn’t recommend more

Mia is Amazing great moves and so lovely!!! Xx

Julia was amazing I love her to bits. Best bartender in Brighton

guilia was so lovely and great service great atmosphere always and the music is great !

Friendly welcoming staff, great atmosphere but food was a bit of a let down esp as it was not cheap. Gravy on susage and mash tasted like it was from granules, mash was lumpy. chips serving with the burger was small.

Black Lion was fantastic! We came here for some food in the mid afternoon and Giulia sorted us out and made us feel very welcome! Absolutely recommend

giulia was excellent and great dancer

Giulia was an amazing bartender with such great recommendations! Definitely recommend coming here

julia is a lit person and pub is vibes!! come 2 dis pub #yas

amazing service from julia, so lovely

Julia was a fabulous bartender💕

Lovely pub, good garden. Julia is the best 🙄🙏.

Solid bit of kit lovely drinks, julia sorted us right out

Julia was a lovely bartender and made our night unforgettable.

Julia was absolutely amazing, best service, couldn’t do enough for us. Reasonable prices, nice garden. Would go again x

Ren = 10/10 service. Perfect pour. Excellent energy.

Gulia & dulcie are ten out of ten love black lion

Came here on a Monday and I’ve been served by Giulia, she recommended me some banging cocktails and had a fantastic time! Will definitely come back

Lovely place lovely people. Cheers to ren

Briliant staff, thanks Ren! You’re a star!

I love Guilia, she makes the best Japanese slipper ive ever tasted!

Giulia and dulcie were amazing, thankyou so much for your lovely service xxx

Was a great visit, great atmosphere, great food and even better service.

Giulia what is the most amazing beautiful kind bartender ever. we love her. she is fantastic .

Came here in on a Tuesday with a group of friends and had a wonderful service by Giulia, Julian and George. The cocktails are banging btw

Julia was amazing! Best server ever! Would definitely come back!

Giulia is the best, always enjoy my time in Black Lion

Julia made the best vodka lemonade

Giulia is the best bartender I have ever had, incredible with the shots and cocktails

Honestly just a great pub.. nice vibes, good tunes and nice cozy lighting. Got a few cocktails and they were really nice

Julia and Julian slayed the service !

Julia was great and very helpful , I asked for recommendations on sessions ipas and she pointed me in the right direction. Thank you very much Julian and julia

Food is wonderfully homemade, and the service from the bar is excellent. thank you to Giulia for a wonderful night.

Visited with a group of friends for couple of hrs. Great atmosphere & nice spacious pub

I love black lion, the staff is so nice and awesome, pub is so lively and the vibe is unreal #vibe #cometoblacklion #fitbirds

Such a good place, with lovely atmosphere, and great service! Giulia, Rebecca and Noah have been lovely with us! We had a great time!

10/10 all round, atmosphere and staff are all exceptional and so welcoming. THE best spot in brighton🫶⭐️⭐️

Get night to start the night great beer gardens definitely coming here again

Nice place to chill and chat with a drink

Great pub with a beautiful garden at the back. Probably the best in Brighton. Friendly staff, excellent fish and chips, Sussex smokie was to die for. Toilets were spotless as well! Fantastic job, well done guys👌

Giulia is absolutely fantastic, came here on a Wednesday and she made us amazing cocktails! Will definitely recommend their 2 for £12 offer

Great roast dinner and a drink in the heart of the Lanes ..Lovely

Giulia was the best server! Amazing atmosphere and great drinks! Would come back !!

Fantasist team, been here many times and always loved the experience. Giulia is incredible n always helped us with what we needed

A friend had told me to go for a Sunday roast here and I'm so glad that I did. It was my first ever Sunday roast, so I can't compare on that front, but everything tasted very good! The staff were all very friendly and seemed to enjoy dealing with customers and talked happily to each other when not busy. I love seeing that. A good work environment makes for a better experience as a customer as well as the workers.

Live Music , Local Beer , Good Atmosphere!

My friend bought me a drink and brought it outside for me but when I needed the toilet he wouldn't let me in. Probably on a proper power trip!

A pint in here costs £7.05!!! Absolutely ridiculous. Not even this expensive on the seafront. Won’t be drinking in there again

A tale of two nights - went there on a Friday night in October and it was really good, great atmosphere and friendly vibes. I went back on the Saturday and it wasn't as good and the crowd was very off and so was the DJ.

Really good food although not a massive selection. Sharer plates for 1 are an alternative to a main Good beer selection, not bad on value either. Staff were nice and friendly. It was virtually empty on the night I visited, this suited us but might not be your thing.

Perfect for a bit of lunch, I enjoyed the belly pork. Nachos looked great. All our group enjoyed their meals. Good friendly service.

Bar was rocking thanks to live band🎤🥁 belting out the covers & crowd dancing, good selection of drinks served by friendly bar team. Outside seated booths at back made chats audioable & drinkin more relaxed.

Rebecca and Julia have been nice every time i’ve been here

rebecca’s service is amazing!! lush service

Drinks a bit pricy for my liking but the staff were great. Only had one drink and moved onto the font

10/10 Julia is amazing she made my table feel so welcome and couldn’t recommend this place more

Visited here on Wednesday, they had 2 for £12 cocktails. Tried a couple they were great.

Came for a few drinks with my friends, Dolcie and Julia are some of the most attentive and friendly bartenders I've come across, absolutely bangin COCKTAILSS

love this boozer, top tier joint, cant wait to come back, for a good old boogie. the staff are so lovely look out for the muscley bar tender kilian, # heart throb.

Absolutely fantastic service, everyone was really nice and friendly. Great service and will be back again

the at osphere is very welcoming, the staff are superb and very frieny, would 100% reccommend if in the area.

A traditional pub, with a great atmosphere.

Came three years ago and had the fish and chips. banging. Visited again today - still great :D pea purée, thick rectangular chips and proper crispy fishy.

Had an absolutely great time! Giulia went above and beyond to make sure my friends and I were looked after. Definitely recommend booking if you need a table.

Really great atmosphere and the cocktails are unbelievable. Would recommend :)

The Black Lion! What can I say!? Amazing! A wonderful venue that gives you space to enjoy yourself. Giulia's cocktails are to die for! I love the Japanese Slipper cocktail the most.

Had a lovely date and the cocktails were even better. Brilliant service by an Italian women with great trim

Lovely pub ,had the rugby on loads of Lovely staff great garden with great live music, never had to wait to be served with good prices especially for a pub in a good location. Would highly recommend and will definitely go back

We came for a pint and lunch in the daytime and it was a lovely atmosphere.. great food and lovely staff, Evie served us

Amazing pub, would recommend! Ren was especially friendly and helpful ☺️

It was a nice afternoon out. I met some friends, they had food. It looked great. I bought 2 drinks, one was a beer that was over £7, the other was a single G&T, also over £7. This was at 2pm on a Thursday afternoon. I know it's the centre of Brighton, but this is ridiculous. I live in Brighton and know many other pubs around this location that are much cheaper, even places along the seafront are cheaper than this.

Amazing staff Giulia was fabulous

Had a great time at the black lion, Food was amazing, packed with flavour. Drinks were delicious

Honestly my favourite pub to visit in Brighton. LGBT+ friendly and the staff are absolutely lovely! Great food and atmosphere. 10/10

The pub looks better from outside than inside. Friendly staff, great selection of food and drinks! Delicious gin & tonics!

great service, and nice garden out back :) ren was lovely xx

Guilia the bartender is so sweet and attentive, she makes the most amazing cocktails I’ve ever had, can’t fault her service and all the bar staff are incredible :) big up the black lion!

Ren and Jacob, lovely bar staff, really helpful kind and attentive, would 100% recommend for a trip to Brighton 💕

Guilia is the most fantastic bartender ever, never felt more at home in her hands!!

I couldnt believe the standards of cleanliness that ren upkeeps at black lion! Would definitely recommend for a sanitary night out (although things can get messy they never get dirty ;)) Can’t wait to return!

Ren was a great bartender, really friendly and helpful!

Ren was absolutely great with service and our drinks, provided great recommendations on what to have and clearly had an extensive knowledge on product range