The Smugglers Inn in Wealden

Four of us had a very enjoyable lunch at the Smugglers today, 3 good courses for ten pounds, it's unbeatable. The service was excellent, we didn't have long to wait for our food, the guys and gals serving us were attentive and friendly. The Smugglers have so many special offers available , today's was super value and very good quality.

Really like this restaurant. Great value for money. Nice food. Friendly helpful staff. Will visit again soon

With no booking and a very busy restaurant we were pleased they squeezed us in. The menu prices are surprisingly low but when packaged as 3 courses for £10 it sounded too good to be true. In fact we enjoyed an excellent lunch with prompt, friendly service. If only The Smugglers Inn was closer to our home, but if we're in the Pevensey area again we will return.

Got the midweek offer 3 course for £10. Worth every penny. Quantity and quality for the amount spot on. Had to call ahead to get a table a few hours later.

Went for lunch was told not to go , should have listened, it was the worst plate of food i have ever witnessed

Nice friendly staff. Food was standard pub grub fare but small resteraunt portions and cheap oven chips with more black dots than a dalmatian. We asked for mayonnaise and hat to share a thimbulful between the two of us. Will go elsewhere next time.

very good value, food is always a good standard and the service is good. the only thing i didn't like is the young waitresses wearing very short cycling shorts, it looks very unprofessional in my opinion . i think full length slacks are better in a restaurant

A lovely place to eat lovely atmosphere, really good staff, plus amazing value for money. where else could you possibly get a 3 course meal for £10. I had the Sea Bass , first time I have ever had it , it was very nice. For starters I had goats cheese and for Desert lovely Apple Pie. It is important to book.

Went for lunch, terrible frozen microwaved food badly cooked, avoid this place at all costs. Had fish and chips, the chips were frozen and tasteless, the fish was tiny and the peas were like bullets. You would have a better meal from your local chippy

We were a group of 4 and all ordered their Monday lunchtime fillet steak deal. 3 were OK, although all of the chips were dry and over cooked and one piece of fillet steak was simply gristle.

We had a lovely meal here. Nice & cosy inside & staff were very friendly. Food was good & very good value for money. Will definitely return if we are in that area again. Thank you.

Visited here for a family meal, the restaurant is really lovely and they have a really good menu. Food was okay, some of the meals looked nice, I had the bbq chicken and my chicken was tough and clearly overcooked. The chicken and scampi looked and tasted great though. Overall it's a nice enough place just not a standout restaurant.

My friends took me to the Smugglers for my Birthday. Three course meal for £10. The large glass of wine was £9.50 only had it because it was my Birthday. So drinks very expensive. They have to make their money somehow. The food was lovely . Service always good. Love it there. Will be going again soon.

went for lunch today 02/07/23 i had the roast lamb as did my guests, it was fantastic . the service was good and the staff very pleasant, as a local i must say its a great place and very reasonable prices

We have visited for lunch many times since The Smugglers Inn has reopened as a Restaurant ( it’s no longer a pub) and have always had a friendly welcome from the staff. We often take advantage of the special deals that are available if you sign up for the text alerts on your phone. We have taken friends who have then returned themselves. We have taken our young grandchildren and the staff engaged with them by talking directly to them when taking their orders and checking once we had our meals if everything was OK. One of our guests is a wheelchair user so when we booked the table we requested a table in the upper level which was easily accessible which the staff were pleased to arrange for us. We have found all the staff friendly and willing to talk even though it gets very when the special deals are available We have always managed to park however this might become a problem on busy summer days but there is a payable car nearby. The toilets are clean . We cannot comment on the garden service as we have not eaten outside but have taken our after lunch coffees outside. A special Thank You to Lily who served us last week who we had a conversation with before we left.

Fathers Day lunch. Pre-booked a table. Food was hot and delicious, good choice on the menu. Service was amazing and very attentive. Checked in at every course that everything was ok with the food. Seriously can’t find any fault with the service or food and...

Watch you dont get mugged off with the buy steak dinner and get one free, as after you have eaten to be told it dont apply unless you have downloaded the app beforehand but cant find this anywhere on the website....so check first, weve been...

Called into the pub today just for a drink got through the door and asked if we had book said no just come for a drink we were directed out of the pub to a kiosk type window to order drinks also asked for crisps...

This pub used to be great with good staff a huge separate area for kids outside and brilliant entertainment in the outside stage Went Saturday for a drink outside and when entering was approached by a stroppy staff member who said "have you booked a...

Lovely fresh food, warm and friendly service and incredible value. We took advantage of the 3-course for £10 special and it was really good food. Amazing.. I don't know how they do it!

Been going to the Smugglers for years as nice spot to sit on a sunny day and were interested to see how it was under new management. Unfortunately we went in at the weekend and wanted to sit outside with some drinks, but were turned...

I've been visiting the Smugglers once or twice a year for a good few years now. The most recent visit didn't disappoint. The food is well cooked and presented, decent portions and good value

This pub used to be our regular lunch time watering hole after playing Bowls, decided to try again after closure and change of Management, My two lady companions both had the fish and chips while I had a steak, the ladies raved about how good...

A great building, 16th century, so mind your head! Good welcome, great service and we all enjoyed the food. In the process of updating the restaurant, but we ate at tables in the bar. In these after-Covid times all these social places need a boost....

Turned up after checking menu and they were open for it all to be closed.. no notice on door or anything. Turned right went up the road to the next pub along and was great. Shame and a let down. Hopefully a one off for...

Our first visit to the 'smugglers & it was very busy , service was slow & finally had to get our own menu's, food was good & generous portions, & good value..only criticism was the amount of dogs, think every table had one, I know...

UNDER NEW OWNERSHIP The previous owners were awful, an embarrassment to our Pevensey community. They did not last long and now we have nice new ones. Please disregard all previous reviews as it’s back to being great now.

I ordered a burger, which was excellent! The staff were very friendly and helpful. My husband ordered the scampi. The kitchen had run out of scampi so we were given a complimentary drink.

Very disappointing. We haven’t been here for a while and have previously had really good experiences but after today we won’t be going back. There were a range of mistakes and examples a poor service through out our visit. It stared with being served regular...

After a walk on pevensey bay beach in the evening with our dogs, we realised it was 8pm on a Saturday and time to eat. A fair few places in the area had already stopped serving food, so we travelled to smugglers inn Plenty of...

Firstly,told by the waitress (who was pleasant enough) that they had run out of fish and chips....not great for a Friday lunchtime. I wanted a main meal but ended up going for a tuna sandwich,bread wasn't the freshest. Then the most bizarre situation- we were...

I just feel no thought is put into the food prep. I had sausage mash and onion gravy. The sausages must have been the cheapest they could find and the mash I'm sure was fake and tasteless covered by what I can only describe and...

Just awful service. Ended up walking out after greeted with an un laid table, took our order for drinks which never turned up, placed order for food followed by 2 revists by the waiting staff to say a couple of the meal requests weren’t available……....

Went there today with three friends. I'm a fairly decent cook and was looking forward to a freshly cooked Sunday roast. There were two choices Beef or pork £14 I chose pork. Very pleasant waiter who took our drinks order and the four lunches. As...

Went for a meal Whole dining experience was very good Whutebait was fantastic And the wife favourite sticky toffee pudding was great too. Service was good throughout Thoroughly recommend this place.

Whilst walking around Pevensey, we decided to pop into the Smugglers to get a drink and a desert. We got a welcome’d arrival from the moment we walked in. The staff were friendly and the fireplace and relaxed atmosphere made it a lovely pitstop on...

Landlady provided a Christmas lunch at short notice due to booking mix-up [ Don't use 'Contact Us' thingy on website as it goes to brewery, not pub. Phone direct]. Much appreciated. Only problem was large portions; felt guilty about not eating it all! We've always...

Before or after a walk in the nearby castle grounds this is a nice pub to try. Well cooked local classics cooked to order. Great atmosphere.

just spent a week in a caravan in pevensey and was looking for a nice restaurant .saw this place on trip advisor and booked a table. what a lovely place .meals were superb and the staff were even better.it was so good we ate there...

Booked in advance snd based on reviews. Staff gave us a very warm welcome. Dining tables well spaced out and food good value and tasty, very generous portions. Would definitely return when in the area.

Saturday evening meal for four, rang in the morning and booked a table. Made to feel very welcome as were our dogs. Good honest pub food and good portion sizes, I'm greedy! Some well kept ale and lovely friendly staff.

We called in for lunch after a visit to the castle. Warmly greeted and made to feel welcome. The food was superb the fish and chips the best ever according to my husband who chooses them when ever he can at restaurants. My burger was...

19 of us visited from a nearby campsite, having booked ahead. Sunday roasts, huge puddings and lots of drinks. Lovely place, really friendly staff and the food was really nice. Recommended. Great playground for smaller visitors too.

Lovely fresh food and amazing service, a nice atmosphere too with everyone smiling and happy! we will be back!

Super food, great service and very friendly staff. Highly recommended but also book if you can. We hadn’t booked but they gave us a table in their restaurant and we felt very well looked after. We will definitely be returning, it may even become our...

Came for a weekend break to Pevensey Bay stumbled on the pub near by. Amazing food, lovely staff, so friendly. Would highly recommend a visit

Found details of this pub in our Airbnb so headed out to try our luck for dinner. We hadn’t booked and were offered a table in their dining area rather than the main bar. This suited us fine. Staff were friendly, welcoming and offered great...

Returned after lock down and food and service were very good. Staff always friendly had a good evening

We were attended by Nadia, who was ever so pleasant. She attended to us with very professionally & also Landlady Peotra came to say hello to us. Food was very delightful & good presentation. There is a disabled access at the back which was very...

This was our first visit for lunch at The Smugglers. The staff were very welcoming, and we sat at a nice table by the window. Our drinks were bought to us promptly, and the menu and specials were fully explained, offering a wide choice of...

Had burger and chips at £14 for a homemade burger that was tasteless and dry, the cod and chips was just thrown on the plate upside down which really wasn’t that nice, Child’s cod and chips at £8 the fish was so small and swimming...

Lovely looking pub BUT manager has no manners nor no respect. Started arguing due to us letting her know the food is cold she sarcastically said “well from walking from there it will get cold” just to let you no this is a 15 sec...

Visited here today very covid secure with excellent food andbbrilliant team very friendly and welcoming WELL DONE

Having spent a week I’ve area and as usual looking for what seems to be the impossible, good food , nice atmosphere and great service we finally found it here at the smugglers inn. We booked for early service and settled down near the open...

We hadn’t booked and they found us a lovely table in the dining room for a late afternoon lunch. Fish and chips, steak & ale pie and veg tart were all great, as was the yummy brownie & ice cream and apple crumble. We’ll come...

Our group of six had a nice lunch here 7/10/2020 . Everyone very pleased. Worth a taxi from Eastbourne (99 bus stop nearby, cinch if you've got a bus pass).

We attended the covid friendly quiz night . Lovely food and great atmosphere. 1st Tuesday in every month...We will return.

We visited the Smugglers on a slightly cold Sunday was greeted by lovely staff. We was shown to our table right next to the open fire which was great a nice warm feeling. The food was all absolutely brilliant three Sunday roasts and two kids...

We phoned to see if the Smugglers Inn could make us Gluten Free fish and chips, and they said they could. We then had a lovely meal there, with the fish very fresh and well cooked, and the chips crips, and not greasy at all....

Great service and the food was excellent. The landlady and staff are very friendly and helpful. Recommend a visit

We were made to feel very welcome, the staff were really lovely. The food was delicious, large portions and very tasty My husband had the cottage pie and I the mac and cheese Will certainly be returning

We arrived at noon without booking and they were very helpful in finding us a table although clearly fully booked. Good food, excellent service and reasonable value for money. What more could you ask.

Popped in for lunch, shown the menu, walked out if I want to eat like a child I will go to Mac Donald's!!!! Sorry menu absolute tripe . I know we have covid but other places around here are managing. Only go in here if you don't mind eating obesity led food!!!!

I had called before hand to book a table and they were quite abrupt on the phone, I assumed they were busy due to eat out to help out and gave them the benefit of the doubt. Arrived at 12 and we were the only ones there, perfect.Spoke to lady working there and I assume that she is just abrupt in general. No real customer service to speak of and no niceties.On the plus side the food cake quickly, kids portions were quite large and hot etc. Strangely they served ham, egg and chips in a basket which was a nightmare for a 2 year old to negotiate. We sat in the garden which was nice enough. £9 for a kids meal is ridiculous for what you get. Fortunately I paid half of that but if I had paid full price I would have been very disappointed.This pub could be amazing. Sadly every time I have been it has been a massive disappointment. During COVID the manager has spoken of Facebook about the brewery expecting rent. I would have hoped that the lack of income would have made the staff appreciate customers coming but clearly not.

Friendly, safe and pleasant.Staff and their hospitality makes this pub very special. The food (Sunday Dinner) could be tidied up lots of choice however was spoiled by the food swimming in the tasty gravy. Less is more Smugglers.Would visit again for the friendly smiles and hospitality.

Greasy food, too rich for us. Far too much dressing on salad and fillings in sandwiches. Left feeling stodgy and a little unwell.

very disappointed with the experience I had here. We were originally sat in the bar area and when I asked to move to the restaurant I was questioned as to why which I found quite rude. The answer being that I didn’t want to sit at a table next to the bar and in front of the entrance with my two young children (one a baby). After moving to the restaurant, which was empty the service was very slow. We were not informed there were any specials and found the menu we were given very limited. Our starters took about 45 minutes to come out and then we still carried on waiting for my sons dinner which we had asked to be served at the same time. The main courses were awful, I couldn’t even eat mine, my husband managed about half as he was hungry. We got up and left and paid at the bar just wanting to leave ASAP after a very disappointing evening. Also prices seemed to have doubled, left a complaint with restaurant which has been ignored. Very unprofessional.

Overpriced / overcharged, poor quality meal. Looked at the menu on the internet £12.95 for 3 course meal on Monday to Thursday. When we got there Starters £7 Main from £10 desert £6 so £23 total Service not included hardly following the spirit of the government help. They had just about doubled the price of their normal charge. No discount on soft drinks either. Some of the dishes were very plain, overcooked, not what you should expect. I have been here before but will avoid in the future.

Me and my husband really enjoyed our dinner and evening here. Staff were well organised. Despite restrictions in place for COVID the staff didn’t make anything feel out of ordinary and created a lovely bit of ‘normality’ for us. The food was gorgeous. Lovely specials and menu. Even a simple burger was cooked to perfection with good quality ingredients. Would recommend eating and visiting here. The dog also got a treat!

The deep fired whitebait followed by ham, egg and chips is amazing - fresh and piping hot. Wash it all down with a cold pint of Five Grain lager and you've got a perfect pub meal. Very friendly and enthusiastic staff, too.

It was a birthday meal for a 14 year old. We were greeted by name - always lovely as not local and staying at our caravan. The service was warm and felt totally COVID appropriate (our first meal out since). We had a range of dishes across the menu - and every meal was gorgeous and really good value for money. No skimping on chips!They were totally happy to make a couple of mildly odd adaptations to a dish or two - and brought out a birthday cake with some tremendous singing! Highly recommended from us.

Lovely old pub, great quality and value food well cooked and prepared and good beer topped off by friendly and very helpful staff. What’s not to love?

We are locals to Pevensey. This is the second visit since it changed hands. We went for the Saturday night steak and bottle of wine for £30....it was an excellent meal. The 5 piece group "Howlin Grooves" were playing 50/60 music (our era!). We danced till closing time! Well worth a visit.

New landlady who has brought the pub back to its great self. Well worth a visit and the food is good.

A group of us booked in for our "Christmas evening meal".On arrival the tables had to be moved slightly to accommodate a wheelchair which the staff promptly sorted out. There were approximatly 20 of us so we had to pre book our meal choice, again no problem. The food was served hot and everyone was served together. Most noticable was that the staff didn't start to clear the tables before everyone had finished eating, well done there, that's how it should be. Other resturants pubs please note!! Everyone enjoyed what they had and thoroughly enjoyed the evening. We had the lovely christmassy decorated room to ourselves, to us this was a bonus! Well done guys and gals, the price was right and the choice was excellent. The crispy duck starter was the best!!!

I have frequented the Smugglers Inn several times over the years and even spent New Years Eve 2017 there. Last Friday I popped into the Smugglers for a quick drink with family and asked for a double Brandy. The brandy was handed over to me in a half pint glass. I asked the lady behind the bar if I could have the brandy in a brandy glass and she replied “I’ve got the drink and I don’t care what I pour it in.” I asked if she had any brandy glasses. And she replied I’ve just poured a Baileys in the brandy glass, I’m not a mind reader I didn’t know what you were going to order! Her attitude was rude and sarcastic. I think she was initially embarrassed and to cover this was to attack! My suggestion for the owners is pop to Wilko and buy half a dozen of new glasses to prevent this happening again. Won’t go back in a rush.

I booked a table for our anniversary but on arrival was told the restaurant was closed but we could eat in the bar!!Trying to get to the bar itself proved very difficult due to it being completely engrossed by the "clique", including the owner herself.Nobody had the decency to offer me a way through and I had to go to the hatch to order.The food was adequate but due to the attitude of the staff and owner we will not be frequenting here again.

It feels so homely and pubby the minute you walk in, and a lovely greeting from the lady behind the bar. It's a popular pub, so book a table at weekends. The food it great, even the sausage focacchia with onion jam is great

I have been to the Smugglers Inn three times recently and so had no hesitation in recommending to friends. The food has always been good and the ambiance warm and friendly.However tonight there was a rock band playing who were too loud for the space they were in. We had to shout in order to be heard which obviously spoilt our evening. When he band had finished we were entertained by a couple of youngsters who's "rap" was tasteless at best, and disgusting at worst. I am surprised that the management allowed this to take place. Our waitress was understanding and tried to lower the sound level but without success. I was very embarrassed that I had suggested that our friends join us at the Smugglers.I appreciate that some people might enjoy the loud music and unacceptable rap, but felt that we should have been advised so that we could have made an informed decision whether to eat there or not.This will affect my decision as to whether I return or not!!

The Smugglers Inn in Pevensey was your average pub meal, nothing exceptional about it, but also nothing to complain about. The staff were friendly and welcoming and the beer was good.

Great to find a very dog friendly pub. Felt very welcomed and the dog was offered snacks and a drink too.(water). We decided to stay for lunch and the food was really lovely. Fab little pub. Fab food and great atmosphere.

Visited the Smugglers after going to Pevensey Castle, although we had pre-booked a table. Arrived early but the table was allocated to us so went straight through. Friendly bar and restaurant staff with top notch service. My husband and I chose different meats for our mains but both were delicious and ample portions, there were roasties, stuffing ball and a large selection of vegetables to go with it. Perfect meal for £12.95. Thanks very much.

We were 5 ladies on a weekend away staying near Pevensey. Booked a table for Friday evening at the smugglers inn. Lovely atmospheric traditional pub, friendly welcoming staff. Good menu - just enough choices and a couple of vegetarian options. Food is well priced pub dishes, wine reasonably priced too. Would highly recommend to those looking for a cosy pub with a very good traditional menu.

We had dinner. The food was lovely and cooked very well. The staff were very welcoming and with prompt service. Definitely worth a visit.

Booked a Big table. Starters ordered were ok and fairly quick. Then we had hour and half wait for mains. With no comm from staff. Food was so poor, “curry of the day” for £13 is one scoop of days old curry, two inch big thin uncooked Bhajis and half a tiny uncooked naan bread. Lamb roast was days old again. One of us paid £6.50 for a “Irish coffee” which only tasted off coffee. When questioned the staff, she went and got a coffee scoop thing and asked our elderly guest to smell it to prove it smelt of liquor, what kind of restaurant manager does that? Very very rude, miserable woman. So so rude. Sauces for 14 people’s roasts was 4 tiny McDonald’s sauce cups to share. Ask for more of anything and the two missing dishes that we had ordered and their complacent staff role their eyes, don’t answer you and huff off to go and find it.

visited this place again recently over the weekend with my daughter following a visit a couple of weeks ago with a friend. Having not been in the area very long and still looking around at the venues for when people visit, reputation and previous Establishment reviews had steered me away until a friend recently suggested we try this pub now under new management. The warm welcome (including to my dog) and lovely warm service from Chantel with the atmosphere of relaxed enjoyment together with the food and its presentation has been outstanding-I immediately wanted to return at the next opportunity and was not disappointed-my daughter thought this was the best place around here with the atmosphere and the character of the place and once again the service and very comprehensive menu was i can honestly say the best I have had in this type of establishment.

Visited for the first time on a Saturday evening and enjoyed a lovely dinner - excellent food and very prompt service! We were made to feel very welcome and the atmosphere in the pub was lovely. Easily the best pub in Pevensey at the moment - spot on.

We were on a family holiday at Pevensey Bay, we went to ths smugglers for some dinner and it was perfect so much so we went back on two mor occasions, the food is second to none I would highly recommend it

A bit disappointing after reading these reviews, the Sunday lunch was Beef, there were no other meats to choose from. The Beef was overcooked and my daughter could not eat it, in fact she probably would have choked if she had eaten it. It wasn't awful but I was left a little disappointed as i was looking forward to it.

Hubby took me out for a meal at the Smugglers Inn on Saturday night. ( 31st August)

Nice little country pub, stopped for lunch had prime beef burger and wife had jacket potato - food was quick and very nice, some people have said it was expensive? But I didn’t find it so, £30 for lunch and two alcoholic drinks! Not what I call expensive. Nice bear garden, lovely sunny day

Me my wife and son waited an hour and a half for fries and houmous last Sunday. The woman replied to us when we asked where our food was, you was told it would be a 45 min wait, not, we are sorry for the delay. Basically her reply led us to write this review.

2pm booking they had no record of for 6 adults and 2 children. Told us a half hour wait which turned into an hour and 15 mins What annoyed me most was the attitude of the staff So never again !

Love it...love it...such a wonderful place....food is exceptionally good, and I mean good...was so pleased we starved ourselves before going ..that meant we had started, main course and believe it or not a pudding...had to be rolled out, but my goodness it was so worth it. The service is so very friendly...informative and professional...thank you ...so atmospheric x

Popped in their twice in the last time. During the first visit a crowd of elderly people 'shipped by bus' were there. Considering that the pub crew had to serve 30+ people in the restaurant they did a good job in the pub. Service was good and beside the standard menu one could also choose from a daily changing additional special menu.Waiting time was relatively short, the quality of food was good. During the second visit the pub as such was filled appropiately. The service was not as good as during the first time but still ok. Food was good.

The salads are to die for. I had the goats cheese, beetroot and walnut salad and there was so much walnut and goats cheese which is normally the thing you get the least of and they fill the plate with lettuce - well not at this place they don’t! Husband had chicken and bacon salad and said it was beautiful. They also let dogs inside and are very happy for them to be there.

We went to the Quiz night which happens on the First Tuesday of the month with some friends. We arrived at 6.30pm, the quiz started at 7.30pm. We ordered our meal and when it came we were pleased with both the promptness of the service and both quality/quantity of the food. Staff were very pleasant, good ambiance lots of fun during the quiz. This pub is run by two sisters who are good fun anyway. If you are thinking of going to the quiz you will need to book.Parking was good at this pub.

We’ve visited the Smugglers quite a few times since the new owners took over. We always get a warm welcome, food is always great – plenty of options on the menu with daily specials. On the whole it’s good value for money, although some of the items seem a little overpriced. But they do also have special offers on certain days such as Fish and Chip Fridays.

Super nice service and lovely food. Good choice with specials to choose. Comfortable in a calm atmosphere.

I used to visit this pub a lot because of its excellent food and service. Not any more. At the beginning of the year it went under new ownership so I thought I would pop in to see what changes they had made to the menu. Quite a lot. My friend ordered the ploughman's with ham and I had prawn cocktail to start with. After a considerable wait our food arrived. The ploughman's didn't look appealing, my friend had to search for the slither of ham, the coleslaw was not homemade and no butter served with the bread. My prawn cocktail was the worst I had ever had. The plate was swimming in sauce with a few prawns hiding the liimp and soggy lettuce. My mains fared no better 5 scampi with frozen chips and peas. Yes I know what you're thinking why didn't we complain. To be honest if they can't get it right the first time God only knows what they would have served up the next time. Maybe they have a new chef I don't know. I expect some teething problems when you take over a good establishment but not after 5 month. I was really embarrassed as I had been talking this pub up to my friend saying how fantastic the food was. Well I know for next time but I won't be holding my breath. I hope you have a better meal and service than we did!