Pubs in Leigh on Sea, Essex*

The place to go for a lazy afternoon, pub quiz or last call

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• most pubs in old leigh
• The Grand has character and three big bars. Its studenty and a bit grungy with all ages. It can kick off occasionally. Vie is pretentious with terrible accoustics and a brash crowd not often a good advert for Leigh. Mariners is Ok. Ugos has no trouble and a much older crowd and the waitresses are lovely with great manners although again...the acoustics are BAD! Reds bar is even older. For real pubs I would try the Crooked Billet and Smack in the old town although in peak season the character of these places changes for the worse. For proper beer...the billet,Smack, Broker in Leigh Road and the Elms Wetherspoon on the London Road.
• Grand. Vie is a nice wine bar which has a great atmos, serves really great food at reasonable prices and plays good music too.
• If you want a quiet drink without being surrounded by Burberry wearing / Designer clad aresholes (and Leighhas more than it's fair share I'm sorry to say) then try The Ship, opposite Old Leigh. It's the kind of place the Burberry set would take one look inside and leave, which has got to be a good, good thing. The Sarah Moore, despite being pretty damn corporate, is OK, but insists on playing dreadful '80's music tapes and Dido albums in their entirety. That is not good.
• The Leigh-on-Sea Constitutional Club in Elm Road. Just a short walk from the Broadway this club has a live band every Friday and Saturday night and is very comfortable and well decorated. One point to note, it is a members only club and the age range is pretty much 30+ but all the same, cheap beer prices, no trouble, good company and a generally good place to go. Oh and they have a couple of fruit machines with 250.00 jackpots as they are a club. Take care going into The Sarah Moore pub. It's a bit yobish as can the Carlton be from time to time.
• The Grand is fine on weekdays, but can get very busy at the weekend. It's pretty horrible if their is a big football or rugby match on, but the jukebox has an excellent selection of 'alternative' classics.
• If you want an atmosphere, loud music and a lot of people then it's the Grand hotel. If you just want a quiet pint then The Carlton also in the Broadway
• Aaaah the grand! Been goin' there for longer than I can remember...over 13 years! Great on a Friday night. Like a local for many, and pulls in all sorts. Not too trendy (in the Reebok Classic way)...no wide boys as they prefer the hole that is Southend!!!!!! Enjoy the somewhat dubious decor....in need of a serious refit. Great in the summer with a huge carpark that has loads of benches. No need to go to Old Leigh, and have to stagger up Leigh Hill after a few bevvies...you'll know why if you've tried to run up it after 10 pints!!
• Grand, Peterboat, The Billet, The Alex is a gudd one(up in southend)
• Try the Sarah Moore Pub next to the police station. Good modern music, very few geezers and a more decent group of people. Nice pub for 20 and 30 somethings.
• The Grand!! Superb pub where you might bump into Ian & Lee, two London motorcycle couriers who're top blokes!!
• go to the grand
• The Elms along london road. Bellini (used to be TGF Churchills). Now a bar aimed at younger people. Riff Raffs along leigh road
• The Carlton in Leigh High Street (refurbished, late summer '95).
• The Grand is still there and always full.
• Raffles is a small wine-bar cum expensive German lager bar situated between The Grand and The Carlton on Leigh High Street.
• The Waterman's Arms is a new(ish) bar situated at the top of Thames drive. This is unusual as all this land belongs to the Salvation Army and they forbade licensing of pubs and stuff (must have changed the rules). They serve a mean pint of Caffreys.
• The "old town" has a fine pedigree of pubs, ranging from Southend's oldest boozer - The Crooked Billet (the best pint of Tetleys beer you have EVER tasted according to one of our sources), to The Peter Boat and then The Smack. All are well worth visiting, especially on a nice sunny day. The Ship (just over the railway line from The Smack) is also good for a decent pint.
• Also don't forget (for those sad enough to care) every Tuesday is folk night at the Ship.
• The Harry. Along the London Road between the Hadleigh Rd? London Rd junction and West Leigh Junior School & Eastwood Road. I've never been in there myself so cannot comment. Large car park, usually with a fair number of "flash motors" so probably a bit of a pseuds/"Essex-Man" pub. Used to be a restaurant/bar called The Black Rose until it was "done up" (massacred?) in mid 80s to cater for "the more refined taste..." However, if it's hard core pseudo/greedhead/yuppy (they still exist, albeit in much reduced numbers) that you seek then you cannot do better than a night in TGF Churchill's - next entry...
  Just writing in defense of The Harry Pub on the London Road in Leigh-on-Sea. OK so the prices may be high, but the staff are more than friendly and the beer is excellent (it won a Tetley award in 1995). Being a free house there is always an interesting selection of beers available and at certain times of the year they have their own beer festival usually lasting 1-2 weeks with an average of 30 ales from the corners of Britain. Finally the current manager is sports mad, so if you are looking for a pub with a good atmosphere to watch sporting events live on one of the three televisions, this is the place to come. Plus there is always a chap called Grant Jones drinking in there, nicest bloke in the world, so when you go in, ask for him.
• TGF Churchill's. Along London Road between West Leigh Junior School and The Elms pub. Built on the site of the Old Westcliff High School social building, this monstrosity is a shrine for all that is tasteless, mediocre and superficial in Essex (you'll catch me there most Friday nights). Serving dodgy German Schnitzlebraunerfartumbumhole lager (at a very reasonable 2 quid a bottle), the main gimmick is that your change is given to you on a little silver tray along with a tasty flimsy beermat for you piss-water (sorry, lager). Place also serves food. Usually rammed on Friday and Saturday nights with pseudo-wannabees, jack-the-lads and City-types all happy to fork out twice the going rate for 2.7% proof. Conversation ranges from: "Cor mate, nice motor" to " Cor mate, gotta a massive bonus so gonna pull a bird (etc etc)". Known as a pick-up "joint" of the highest order, the Sharons & Tracy's (with stillettoes and white handbag) seem to be naturally attracted to the high density of "blokes" with IQ's of less than 95 (and that's high). Think you get the picture.
• The Peter Boat Pub was a great place for a pint on Sunday mornings with a plate of cockles, ah memories!
• Coming from an Aussie that just happen to end up in Leigh-on-sea (of all places!!!) I also just happen to work at TGF Chruchills. In all of my 22 years on this Earth, have I never ventured into a more dodgy place than Churchills. Dodgy beer, food and regulars (not to mention how incestual ass of the staff were!). Actually I am joking, it is a pretty cool place if you just want a pint of lager and a good chat.

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Last updated: 2008-10-14