On Saturday night my husband and I headed over
to Saltdean, Brighton to try out the newly refurbished Saltdean Tavern. The
restaurant has recently been re-branded as a Stonehouse restaurant specialising
in pizzas and carvery roasts. My first thought was that this was an odd
combination but actually upon being in the restaurants and seeing the breadth
of the menu and all the big family and friends tables I could understand that
there is logic in having opposites as the attraction it it means everyone in
your party can be satisfied and enjoy their meal out.
First Impressions
The restaurant is situated behind the old
Saltdean Lido, which is currently being renovated (over a very long term and
with a few tricky issues) so the location is super easy to get to and there is
tons of well-lit parking. The outside looks really smart and there is lovely
wooden play equipment for the kids, I know mine would love it and we'll come
back in the warmer months to enjoy the local area and a meal there.
As you enter the building you have a bar area to
the left and restaurant to the right and the refurbishment is lovely. The decor
looks really smart and very welcoming. You can see the chefs working in the
pizza preparation area as you arrive and that looks very inviting. There is
also a salad bar, carvery and ice cream factory on show too.
We arrived about 8.15pm, a quarter of an hour
after our reservation but this wasn't an issue to the restaurant, which made us
feel at ease. When we arrived there was not a clearly defined welcome area so
we just stood in the entrance and waited and a waitress took the initiative to
approach us. We told her we had a reservation and she checked this out and took
us to a marked table. There was plenty of space in the restaurant area and
between the tables so you could feel relaxed but the floor was full of crumbs
and the menus were sticky from split soft drinks and beers. So our first
impression was a bit mixed to be honest.