Goat Ledge Cafe Light Breakfast, Honest!

I've been mentioning the Goat Ledge Cafe many times over recent years, for example, when it reopened for takeaways after the first lockdown (blog), and in my last blog, and I keep on saying I must write a blog about the cafe soon. Anyway, I thought I'd have a light breakfast there today.

Okay, not as impressive as the light breakfast I had on the Pier recently (blog), but a similar price. The bap/bread roll/bread cake came out a wee bit flattened, so not so great to look at, but a decent amount of tasty bacon (sorry vegetarians, I'm sure they have something for you too). I've had a few drinks on the beach there too over the years, mostly with my brother and sister-in-law, and their daughters and her friends. Convivial indeed. But yes, by choice, in future I'll go to the only facility for me on Hastings Pier and a breakfast in/by Casa de Pier at the Pavilion.

Lighter Breakfast on Hastings Pier...

I was passing Hastings Pier earlier, and on another impulse I decided to sit in the shade of the Pavilion, and have a late-ish breakfast sandwich at Casa De Pier (facebook). The view for me (above) was lovely, the lapping of water on the shore below me was relaxing, I was sitting in the shade to cool down (I had been walking in the sunshine along the promenade) on the west side, close up to the building to keep out of gulls' views, hopefully, and I was successful.

I asked for a mug of tea and a bacon sandwich, then as a second thought asked for mushrooms as well please. What I got is shown in the image immediately above; I'd already started drinking the tea. Not quite the bacon and mushroom sandwich in untoasted bread I was expecting (would have been in a breadcake or other version of a bap elsewhere in the country), but bacon in toasted bread and mushrooms on the side, which I enjoyed immensely, and probably meant I received many more mushrooms than I would have got in a straight sandwich, and I love mushrooms. Not bad at all for a little over a fiver, I shall return, no doubt about that, nice one!

Hastings Floods, oh yes, and Hastings Pier.

Well, following our second town centre flood this year (January blog), where water flooded out of this manhole cover (above), where is it?!? It now appears they couldn't/didn't fix a replacement manhole cover, and now it's fully tarmac. I shan't go into the possible resulting complications...😲

Of course, the drain opposite the Carlisle pub had been fixed, hadn't it? I'm shaking my head as this has been going on for ages (eg blog), and the drain that replaced the raised drain into the sea is often now below seawater, NB High Tides, and seawater just pushes back up the drain. Priory Meadow and much of the town centre used to be Hastings harbour, eg in 1066, thus much of it below seawater... I'm shaking my head now, Southern Water still don't seem to have figured all this out!

Oh yes, and Hastings Pier, the company that was running it, Lions Hastings Pier Ltd, ie the company owned by the owner of the Pier, went into administration earlier this year (blog). However, Gulzar, the owner, said that no way would the Pier close, only "over my dead body" he asserted (Sussex World), indeed, he has "£100 million in reserve to keep it open." Why hasn't he spent any money on the Pier for its upkeep then? Or for improvements? Or a new pavilion on it like the Friends of Hastings Pier (blog) planned for in their bid; just what was in that brown envelope?!?

And La Belle Vue, in the central pavilion, had to close down for now, sadly, although I believe they have plans to reopen in the future. It all looked so positive when I visited and had a few beers back in May (blog). I shan't go into the problems there, but no doubt having the excellent view obscured by stages, boxes and speakers didn't help for a restaurant called La Belle Vue. 

But La Belle Vue has merged with Casa de Pier (blog) in the remaining pavilion, and this is still open, pretty much all that was open on the Pier at the weekend...

Good luck to both businesses! 👍

Casa de Pier Bar Restaurant is open on Hastings Pier...

The Casa de Pier Bar Restaurant is now open on Hastings Pier (facebook) for coffees and snacks, and the 'Mediterranean' kitchen open for lunches and dinners from 12.00 noon until last orders at 9.00pm/21.00 hours.