Lockhart Tavern in Mid Sussex

A good venue in which to drink from their broad-if-unadventurous menu of well-kept cask and keg ales, as well as spirits, and wines. Not sure the frozen margarita machine is quite my thing... Friendly enough, relatively unpretentious and comfortable decor; a pleasant place to lose an hour or two.

Back to the Lockhart, been coming here since the grand opening night almost exactly eight years ago, mid-week evening with a friend. We booked to sit in the bar to eat, far better atmosphere, our table was waiting and we were warmly greeted. We had a great night. Staff were fantastic and the food was excellent. Prices have crept up, however - £24 for a cheeseburger, £18 for a small chicken burger - and the beer is a little hit and miss. Appreciate the LT started out as a Dark Star pub specialising in unusual beers but it would be great if there was a ‘standard ‘ bitter on, such as Harvey’s, now it’s an independent pub. Highly recommended.

Overall staff are very nice, beer is good, food portions are embarrassingly small, this was £18, the staff said they have used cod rather then haddock that’s why it’s smaller and thicker, it was tiny…. I’ve actually really enjoyed coming here over the last few years but probably won’t eat here again.

Good food and friendly staff. A good range of British and international beers.

Nice restaurant/ winebar feel, not a dusty old tavern. Friendly staff, good variety of cask,keg ales and beers. Didnt eat here but what was going past looked and smelled nice.

Meeting 2 other friends in house for drinks .arrived at 3.45pm and fairly busy. Sat end of table destined for diners. Friends arrived at 5pm moved to a table near the bar .obviously not reserved at this point or allocated for bookings. But then politely asked to move to another table. Believe it not this happened 4 times during my evening. The waitresses and bar staff still very polite and have to say with all our banter was very well received. Until the last move we were even suggested to go outside not only was it cold but had also on and of been raining..I personally would just like to say we wouldn't rush back.My own experience of 40 years being in the pub restaurant trade locally is very disappointing. You have limited space I do understand but you do need to know sadly what your custom is a restaurant or a pub don't be greedy and try to be both as a group of 3 people we spent best part of a hundred pounds. If this is your decision to make more money with people eating then the least you can do is place reservation times on tables in bar area so people are aware of times that people are actually coming to your table booked and not felt obliged to keep moving if other areas have been vacant to move to. Shame really enjoyed the atmosphere but not comfortable with the outcome. Perhaps the owners should consider a restaurant rather than juggling with both.A very disappointed first time visitor.

Cute pub, had a delicious Sunday roast!

Didn't eat so can't rate the food. . Staff very friendly though and a great atmosphere 👌

We were a group of 3 celebrating with food and drink over the lunch period. The menus for drink are wide ranging, something for everyone, and the sparkling Sussex wine flight deseves a special mention - great tasting local products. The food and service was spot on. We shall return.

Excellent service. Good food, but a bit pricey. A bit loud and echoy. I would return, were I to end up in deepest Haywards Heath again!

Visited for lunch today the chicken and chorizo kebab was amazing great service from Paul will definitely be back

What a bar should be. Great atmosphere, welcoming staff, good honest food and a great selection of local beers. No chain, out of packet, end of line beer barrels, just an uncomplicated but satisfying menu allow enough range to please but not too much to be overwhelming. I was out with a lager drinker who struggles to go too far away from Peroni but he found something he liked even! I had the cheeseburger which was well presented and tasted fantastic, very satisfied. I can see this being a regular visit.

Food was excellent. Polite friendly staff. Nice place to catch up with friends. Highly recommend and great on a sunny evening.

Spent over £100 on drinking margaritas. My partner accidentally knocked over drink which broke the glass. Didn’t have any of the cocktail. Got told if wanted replacement but not got told will be charged. Made to pay 12 quid. Not the money but the principle.

A delightful venue with a really lovely Sunday roast, enjoyed by all four of us. The service was very helpful and prompt.

Great spot, can see why the lockhart is considered an absolute staple in haywards heath. The food is amazing, you absolutely get what you pay for. Lockhart has a big and varied beer list which is brilliant. Wine list which I’m yet to try also looks good, I did try the frozen drinks which were lovely, ideal for summer. The 2 waitresses who served me were very attentive and clearly knew what they were doing, 2 girls with brownish hair. Will definitely be coming back.

Food was excellent. Great visit and location and my waitress Jade was amazing. Highly recommend!

A lovely bar to finish a walk at, with 6 cask lines to choose from I will likely be returning. The food was excellent, excessively I chose the Côte De Boeuf as a meal for one, the cook was excellent so I’d be happy to order my preferred rare if I had again. The place was packed as we left, so I’d definitely suggest booking to avoid disappointment

Came here to try out the Sunday Roast as I've heard good things about it. It was quite delicious though personally I felt the roast potatoes were a bit too dry for my tastes. The Yorkshire Pudding was fantastic though as was the Roast Beef. For starters I had the Korean glazed chicken wings which were heavenly and I would highly recommend them. Edit : - 13/7/24 - The Wagyu double cheese burger was amazing. Best burger in town.

Our server was hilarious! Very knowledgeable, great beer selection. We just had pub grub but it was tasty, served quickly. I'll go back if I'm in this neck of the woods again

Wow wow wow, delicious food, outstanding service (helpful, polite, friendly and kind) clean tidy with incredibly accomodating facilities for disabled access too. We will return!

Has great draught beers on tap! Very friendly staff behind the bar. The tavern also serves food

Incredible pub with a great atmosphere, broad selection of beers, and brilliant food. We had the Côte de boeuf which I cannot recommend more highly. The meat was such good quality and exceptional value at £50 between two, would highly recommend. The service was also excellent - Lydia the manager and Taela couldn’t have been more attentive and welcoming. I’ve been to the Lockhart on a few occasions when in the area and it’s been consistently 10/10, will definitely be back again.

Excellent, food, service and drinks. We were staying in Haywards Heath and decided to walk to the Broadway for dinner. Lots of bars and restaurants, however this one caught my attention. Simple menu, very busy on a hot sunny evening, and staff very welcoming. Ale and wine selection was excellent with knowledgable staff on hand to recommend ales. Food was really good, fresh crab linguine with lots of real fresh crab meat.

Visited the stylish Lockhart Tavern a couple of nights in a row, loved the beer selection and the food was excellent, but above all the service was superb. Accompanied by my elderly parents who are not so mobile, we were warmly welcomed by staff and so very well looked after. Thank you.

Sunday roast is delicious!! ig: yeri_the_chick

Great choice of beer and good food menu. Not cheap but I'm from the North.

Friendly team, table service, great selection of drinks, kegs and casks on rotation.

Lovely food and staff, great service all round

Booked here for a family meal, there were 6 of us. Booked through the website, which was hassle free. Arrived and were greeted and smshow to our table without delay. Lovely atmosphere. All the staff were friendly and approachable. We all ordered a roast dinner, and between us, we had chicken, pork, and beef. The food did not disappoint. It was amazing. Could not recomend this place highly enough. Definitely recommend without hesitation.

Avoid, not a pub, makes you order at your table then you wait… then afterwards you wait to pay… slow, expensive, mooot

Food was really good. Not badly priced but we were told we had to pay by 9 45 and leave by 10 but actually kicked out before 8.30

Visited the Lockhart Tavern on Sunday afternoon with my family. The bar itself is surprisingly roomy for being in a fairly small building, and does a great job at accommodating both drinkers and diners. I ordered the Korean chicken wings to start and, although they were absolutely delicious and the best I've head in years, they probably would have sorted a smaller person for a main! Not exactly a bad problem to have, but it did make finishing my roast pork main a little harder, which was a shame because that was also incredibly tasty and the meat just fell apart. I only had the one beer while visiting but they have a really good selection of keg and cask on tap being regularly rotated, mostly from local breweries which is always nice to see. The staff were very friendly and accommodating and I can't wait to come back here again.

Excellent roast dinner thoroughly enjoyed. Service very good as well.

Great pub serving excellent food and a good range of beer.

Overrated. Expensive. Decent quality but you can get same quality same price or cheaper in Brighton or London. I have had better elsewhere.

I have been a customer of the Lockhart ever since it opened and a very welcome addition to the Haywards Heath scene it was, particularly with regard to the range and quality of its cask ale offering. Generally speaking this is still the case. Latterly though the food offering has assumed a stronger portion and equally good it is too. However, since lockdown the Lockhart has maintained its table service only policy which makes it difficult at times to just pop in for a casual drink as you would expect to do in a pub. Despite being a regular, one feels at times as if you are treated like a second class citizen for just wanting a drink. With competition increasing in the town this approach feels short-sighted. I feel this is exacerbated by the lack of a welcoming and identifiable manager/landlord/landlady.

Lovely bunch of staff. Alice in particular was amazingly 👏

I'd give the Lockhart 4.5 as a restaurant but 3.5 as a pub. The food is great, especially the amazing chicken wings. Restaurant service is really good. Great roasts. Popping in for a pint is more difficult experience than it used to be though. Seating only so one has to wait to be seated, wait for a beer menu, wait for the order to be taken, then wait for the beer to be delivered. It can sometimes take 15 mins from entering to getting a drink, if a table is available. Choice of beer remains good, but I sense a slight decline in variety in recent years.

We had a beautiful evening on the Christmas Eve here. Everything was much more than just perfect!! Amazing food, amazing beer, amazing atmosphere. Thank you!

Lovely food, excellent service and a pretty bar.

Nice pint of Dark Star Hophead.

Great work Xmas meal and drinks here. Other than the amazing beer selection, shout out to the staff who were amazing 😍 ...polite, attentive, funny and very patient.

Excellent meal in a wonderful atmosphere. The ladies serving were marvellous. Thank you. The spicy wings were a real highlight.

Lovely place with great and friendly service. Lots of choice of local craft beers on tap and a kitchen that served an amazing Korean fried chicken burger.

Really nice environment and atmosphere

Good place with plenty of choice on tap and on cask. Well kept cask. A few local beers to. Pub split in two with area for eating and open area for drinkers and eating. Looks popular as busy on a Tuesday. Would go back there for the food

Popped in for a drink and some chips with some friends. Had a warm welcome, table service was good and drinks and food arrived hot and quickly. Relaxed atmosphere inside, toilets nice and clean ... would definitely return!

Looking forwarded to try the Sunday roast but unfortunately for my guests and myself, the lamb had so much fat, it could not be eat it. Vegetables were bland. Not a good meal.

Great food and friendly staff, Korean chicken wings are awesome

Absolutely fabulous boozer. Delicious nosh (great vegan dishes), friendly staff and good ale. What else do you need?

Love the idea of table sharing, which is written on each one.

Highly recommend the Korean chicken wings.

My family & I had the most wonderful meal yesterday at The Lockhart. We were a table of 7 & each one of us enjoyed the experience just as much. Staff were friendly, welcoming & extremely accommodating to us. The food is five star.. there is a wide selection of dishes to suit everyone’s taste buds! It came out well presented, completely fresh & the focus on the flavour is outstanding. All members of our table went for different options, all exceeding our expectations. We also loved the cosy vibe & atmosphere that the restaurant provides for its guests as well as the unique drinks menu, offering specials such as the ‘frozen margarita’ which I have never seen in Haywards Heath before! It’s very tasty! All in all a 5 star experience from us & we would recommend to anyone looking for an excellent recommendation in the Haywards Heath area.

The lockheart is ALWAYS busy. For good reason, it is excellent. The drinks are always rotated and kept refreshed. The service is very good and the food is delicious and always cooked fresh. The prices are expensive and there is service charge added but having previously found both of these annoying and a little excessive I now honestly think it is justified by how good the bar restaurant has become.

Fantastic Sunday lunch today, delicious roasts, friendly and attentive staff would highly recommend

I love this place. Best chicken wings ever. Super friendly staff.

Great location and a great place to eat/drink. Loads of beers and wines to choose from and plenty of cocktails as well. Korean Wings are to die for and should definitely be something to go out of your way for. Very helpful and friendly staff as well. Have been a couple times and by no means the last.

Great food, Excellent keg and cask selection. Have the Korean wings, it's a crime not to.

Always have a great experience at the Lockhart and our visit last weekend was perfect! The food, beer and service is 1st class. Would highly recommend!

I've eaten here a few times over the years, but this was not the best experience service wise. The waiter appeared fairly uninterested to be in hospitality, and messed up not writing down our order by getting it wrong. Our group of 4 didn't feel special nor particularly welcome. The food was good, not great, and punching a bit on prices. We'd just been to another bar nearby which was exceptionally welcoming so that may have coloured my experience. Addition: I'm grateful for your comments on my review Lydia, and do hope that things improve. We've all had price rises of course, it's the value of spending that matters most now. Best wishes to you.

Went here tonight Sunday 13th aug I am by no stretch a regular but I do frequently visit this establishment and normally you get such a lovely welcome, but no not today it could of been considered rather rude but as I am not sensitive it shrugged it off! I was told to sit down as it is only table service (why but why only table service???) Anyway I sat down at the table and waited patiently to order my drinks, then again had to wait for my drink which was passed to me with the waiters fingers all around the rim of the glass (oh yummy) so I marked where which part of the glass I could drink from! While I was sat at the table my hands got covered by something sticky, great! While I was supping on my bear another group came in and the staff were as rude if not ruder to them! Where have your nice friendly staff gone?? One member of staff kept on sneezing and coughing all over the place (could of been hayfever) but this isn't what you want to hear!

Came in for the first time this evening, was served by 2 of the managers, Lydia and Anna! They were fantastic, they were incredibly knowledgeable about the food menu and the wine list, we let them decide our courses based on what they recommended and they didn’t disappoint! We had wings and Satay to start, followed by sirloin and jerk chicken, couldn’t fault anything, would recommend

A very nice venue with tasty food and friendly staff. A good German lager was on offer amongst other beers. And reasonably priced.

Great pub/eatery with excellent choice of beers and good food. Nice atmosphere and very good service. Recommended.

A fabulous Sunday Lunch. Great choice. Good wine list and lots of beers too. Highly recommend a visit.

We were really excited to eat here after reading reviews and seeing pictures of the food. However, It didn’t quite live up to our expectations. The staff were great, the drinks were good and they have a nice menu and drawing activity for kids. The Korean fried cauliflower was so delicious and the best thing we tasted. The bavette steak was a let down, tasty but very chewy and we weren’t able to finish it. Small and uninspiring selection of desserts also. I will add, they kindly didn’t charge us for dessert to make up for the steak. Overall, not a bad experience but there’s room for improvement.

Great service! V good choice of craft beer and a decent Korean burger. Friday night sorted.

Nice and welcoming place, frequented by people of all ages. Wide variety of beers and fair menu, not many courses but excellent variety. We tried fish & chips and a cheeseburger, which were really excellent, as well as a mixed salad which was also very tasty. The staff is friendly and approachable.

It's a mandatory place for the beer lover. Even more if you are vegan it has some of the best finger foods you will ever try. Great place, service, food and beer selection.

It was OK. Steak was overcooked as were the chips so a bit dry. Wine was nice and the atmosphere was good the desert was amazing but very ritch so glad we shared

Korean wings were amazing. Good beer and the staff nice and attentive.

Superb beer selection. Great table service. Really good food. Loved it.

Prices on the high side but the food and service are excellent. Not a beer drinker but the variety of other drinks are also great!

The pork belly roast was delicious and the staff were lovely! Definitely going back in the future.

Good servers and vegan options with both drinks and food.

I would love to give a higher review but we were very disappointed by our visit to The Lockhart Tavern. They have a great selection of local beers, really nice food and a lovely atmosphere. What let them down was the service. Although the staff were very friendly, they insisted on table service and wouldn’t let us order at the bar. This was an issue because the service was very slow. I would like to give them a second go but was really put off by the inability to order at the bar. Didn’t feel like a fun pub experience but more like a sit down restaurant.

Absolutely amazing as always! I have honestly fallen in love with this place, I discovered Lockhart Tavern at the beginning of the year and have easily been here more than half a dozen times already 😅 amazing food, service and environment!

Rudest staff you can imagine, avoid

One of the best, if not the best, place to eat in Haywards Heath. A few staples on the menu plus seasonal dishes that change. Well cooked and packed full of flavour. Great selection of wine and other drinks to compliment. Friendly service and fun atmosphere.

Bar / Restaurant. Unfortunately it's gone downhill. When it first opened you could go for a great variety of classic choice of beers or ciders etc and a variety of reasonably priced good food. It's now turned into a location with more difficulties in getting a pint than I thought possible! They have reduced the options available. You now can't order at the bar, you must be seated and must open a tab. You are not allowed to stand at the bar and view what they have, you MUST be seated. Unfortunately these changes from when it was opened to what it is today have not worked for a nice evening out. If you want to go out to sit down for a good chat and try a variety of something classic or different, there are now plenty of choices in the area I and a number of friends will be going to, simply because of what decisions have been made in how it run. It is a shame, you never know perhaps there is a possibility that it may improve in the future.

Cracking food - Korean sauce is incredible, they should sell it in jars!

Very friendly and helpful staff. Food is not that amazing but good quality, especially the vintage tomatoes in the salad. A bit on the pricy side but worth it for a night out.

Great atmosphere, lovely food & wide selection of drinks, will be back for more.

Lovely meal with friends. I can recommend the Korean chicken burger and chocolate brownie.

We had a fab night out with good food and beers

We went there with a group of 30+ people for a company`s lunch. Despite only 2 chefs the food was coming swiftly. Must say the staff did a brilliant job. It's a nice place with a good selection of beer but mind that ordinary cheeseburger is £17... Thanks.

wonderful staff big portions which is brilliant. and food was amazing.

Love this pub especially the Sunday dinner

Joe, Taela and Alice were great, best service I’ve had and a great recommendation on beer from Joe

Great little place, big choice of local beers and ciders, scrumptious food. Good service, attentive but not overwhelming. It's worth stepping in.

I came here with a couple of mates for a few very nice beers, and some very good food. It was very busy for a Wednesday evening, but I can understand why. There is a very good choice of beers and the food was also good. I had the Korean Cauliflower burger, which was very tasty. What my friends and I were most impressed with though was our lovely server Lydia. She was very attentive, hard working , friendly and knowledgeable, and after being involved in the hospitality industry for many years, I can see she has a big future ahead of her.

Best Sunday Roast I've had in a restaurant or pub in a very long time. The potatoes were piping hot and crispy which never seems to happen, along with generous meat serving and tasty gravy. Would recommend the pork belly which had the perfect crispy skin. So good!

I went there for lunch with a friend after a long walk and we were looking forward to a nice lunch. It was quite disappointing really. The food was very average. I went for the coq au vin which was served inside a huge puff pastry! It was very dry despite the sauce and to be honest didn't taste nice and the mash was dry too. My friend had vegan lasagna which was ok. The sparkling from Sussex was quite decent. The staff was ok but slow at taking our order. It was also cold despite being indoors. Overall disappointing and will not go there again.

Out of the city and for the first time here at The Lockhart Tavern! An excellent menu of drinks and a variety of food were ace too! Would recommend those chicken wings, wow something else, really good! It's a short distance walk from the station at Haywards Heath, so if you're heading to Brighton or up to London and want to go somewhere good prior or in-between then this is a great shout. Solid A***** for the fresh and well-prepared food. LDT x

If you pay £16 for a veggie roast here, you will leave really hungry, as there's only half a carrot and parsnip and a few stringy beans under those puffed up yorkies in the photos. I hope that is enough detail for an honest review but maybe the venue will decide to slag me off personally in response, as they have done for other reviewers. However, I hope they grow up, take the feedback, and understand that someone would only go out of their way to leave a slightly negative review if an experience was genuinely underwhelming enough.

Pub with restaurant feel, rated highly for roast dinners by locals, but seemed very average. Roast dinner rating system: ⬇️ 1 star available for each: Atmosphere: 0.5 Staff friendliess/service: 0.5 Meat: 0.5 Gravy: 1 (loads of flavour) Potatoes: 0.5 (not crispy enough!) Yorkshire: 0.5 Veg: 0.5 Sides: 0 (sold out) Size: 0.5 (small ish if not paying for extra sides) Price: 0.5 (see above) 5 out of 10, doesn’t live upto the hype!

We called up and managed to get squeezed in for a last minute Sunday roast. Upon arriving, they quickly noticed I was on crutches and managed to sort out a table for us in the dining area to save me from using the bar stools. We were served by Matt who was an absolute star, so attentive, friendly and perceptive. I ordered the 3 course set menu as I had been recommended the Korean chicken wings and I am so glad I tried them. They were delicious!! My partner tried some of mine and Matt noticed and brought over a small plate for her too. Best wings we have ever had!! Selection of drinks was lovely (including a good choice of non standard soft drinks), and refreshing to see half pints being offered at 50% of a full pint, so great for trying a few of their fantastic local selection. I had the roast beef and my partner had the pork belly. Neither of us have had a roast as good as this in a very long time! Both the beef and the pork were cooked to absolute perfection. Nothing was too much effort for Matt who made us feel incredibly welcome. The food and service were fantastic. Thank you Matt, the chefs and all of the other waiting staff for a wonderful dining experience.

Very good food, especially the chicken wings! Lovely staff so friendly and kind and delivered very good service. Would 100% recommend

Had a fantastic lunch here on Saturday 14th, great drinks (particularly awesome bloody mary), superb food, very well topped off with a super solid team on the top of their game. It had been a while, but we’ll defo be back soon 👌🏼