THE KINGS ROAD, ST LEONARDS

November 2025. St. Leonards. Sussex.

There’s lots of unexpected things you learn about east Sussex after 30 years of ticking pubs and 3 staying in a caravan down there.

Rye isn’t as genteel as Mermaid Street suggests, Hastings has an old town (our lads missed it completely on their visit) and neighbouring St Leonards is one of the UK’s great seaside destinations.

No, honestly. I think the problem with a lot of folks perception of UK seaside towns is down to “Notes From A Small Country” and specifically Bill Bryson’s recollection of grim guesthouses.

The walk down Kings Road from Warrior Square station to the sea is a joy, a mix of cute shops, ghost signs and pubs with net curtains.

Decorated alleyways lead up to classic boozers like the Horse & Groom and Nag’s Head,

while Victoria surveys a beachfront packed with katsu fries cafes.

Better than Brighton, someone said.

I assumed I’d been to all the pubs in the village, but here’s music bar the Piper, taunting me with 4pm opening and a train back to Rye at 4.21.

I leave Mrs RM with a flat white in the food court at Heist, texting a clear instruction to take the right turn back up the hill away from the sea to the station we’d only left 10 minutes ago.

The Piper is a south-east London style cosy corner pub, music posters and brown wood,

local beers from Long Man and Three Acre.

“Sturdy marmalade by gentle mouth feel” says Mick of the Borough Beer House, but all I taste is the “vegan peach“.

It improves in the last few rushed mouthfuls, during which I simultaneously text Mrs RM.

“You started walking up the hill yet ?”

“No. There’s two (2) hills“.

I despair.

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Published by retiredmartin

Retired NHS, doing long walks around UK and the world to record the great bits. Focused on Good Beer Guide pubs and live music.

13 thoughts on “THE KINGS ROAD, ST LEONARDS”

  3. “and neighbouring St Leonards is one of the UK’s great seaside destinations.”

    (looks down)

    Blimey, I’d get dizzy just looking at that, even before I’d gone to the pub!

    “a mix of cute shops, ghost signs and pubs with net curtains.”

    Can a curtain really be a curtain if it’s just a net?

    Also, how can one see a ‘ghost’ sign? By definition surely they’re invisible.

    “Decorated alleyways lead up to classic boozers like the Horse & Groom and Nags Head,”

    I take it the Nags Head came about when one horse wouldn’t listen to the groom?

    “packed with katsu fries cafes.”‘

    I had to look that up.

    “Better than Brighton, someone said.”

    (sniggers) No comment. 😎
    (unless I’m confusing it with Bath?)

    “taunting me with 4pm opening and a train back to Rye at 4.21.”

    You daredevil you.

    “texting a clear instruction to take the right turn back up the hill away from the sea to the station we’d only left 10 minutes ago.”

    I have almost the exact same thing in my house over here. 😏
    (my wife needed help on her map march in the military; and for the first week after we’d moved to Edmonton, she drove by our house each day while I frantically waved from the front doorstep)

    “and brown wood,”

    Is there another kind?

    “It improves in the last few rushed mouthfuls, during which I simultaneously text Mrs RM.”

    Talented.

    ““No. There’s two (2) hills“.”
    “I despair.”

    Ye gads. It’s like looking in a mirror.
    #IFeelYourPain (as Si would say) 😇

    Cheers

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