Star Inn (Old Town)

You'll find the Star Inn tucked away on Rockingham Place, in that bit of Eastbourne where the Victorian terraces still feel lived-in rather than gentrified. This is the kind of pub that doesn't need to try—locals have been coming here for decades, and you'll notice it the moment you step through the door. The crowd's mixed: shift workers, pensioners, the occasional tourist who's wandered off the seafront and stumbled into something genuine. You get a decent pint, honest pub food if they're doing it, and the sort of conversation that happens when people aren't performing for Instagram. It's the antithesis of the chrome-and-concept bars proliferating down the high street.