White Rabbit — Restaurant in Great Britain

As a local Brightonian I have been in the pub many times, but this was the first time my partner and I came in for Sunday lunch. The White Rabbit is full of character and the staff are friendly. We ordered roast beef and roast chicken dinners. We were not asked if we had any alleges, but I mentioned that I have a dietary intolerance to leafy greens especial cabbage which gives me violent stomach cramps. After 35mins the food arrived, however my beef turned up with over 1/3 of the plate covered with cabbage, sprouts and red cabbage. I was frustrated as I was hungry and had to return the food. The manager was apologetic and the barman, that originally served me, confirmed my cabbage intolerance had been passed onto the kitchen. The manager even offered to comp my meal which I declined. He did give me a comp glass of cider which was nice. My partner's food was good so I asked him to start. I waited a further 10mins for my beef to arrive -the cabbage etc had been removed but half the plate was now empty. There was one half carrot, one piece of parsnip and two small roast potatoes. I would have hoped that there would have been some extra veg to replace the missing greens? When I checked the meat/meal and it was stone cold! I must admit I was even more frustrated now so I asked the waiter to remove my roast from the bill and decided to not order anything more as my partner was finishing his meal. I felt embarrassed that I had to keep returning the food.

The customers on the table next to us started to become verbally abusive saying all I did was moan. which upset my disabled partner. When I asked them the keep their opinions to themselves they then said I had made up my food intolerance and started swearing out load to the whole bar. My partner was now so upset that he stopped eating and drinking so we left.

THEN a man followed us out and accused me of being rude to his staff and that I was not welcome back! I told him the staff were nice but the two drunk customers on the table next to us were threatening. Maybe they were off duty staff who knows? The man then back tracked some of his accusations as he realised he was not aware of the whole situation but we felt very alienated, unwelcome and traumatised. This lunch ruined the rest of our day and left a sour taste...

I feel compelled to write this review about my terrible experience at The White Rabbit last Saturday, 17 July 2023. My friends and I had planned to celebrate our 20-year graduation anniversary at this pub, but it turned out to be an absolute nightmare. I had made a reservation early last week, clearly mentioning that one person in our group had a shellfish allergy, and another person required a gluten-free option.

To our dismay, when the person who needed a gluten-free meal attempted to place their order, they were informed that there was no gluten-free option available. This lack of accommodation was disappointing, but it paled in comparison to the treatment received by the person with the shellfish allergy, who also happened to be a carrier of an Epipen.

When this individual tried to order, the chef refused to serve them, stating that the kitchen is used by the landlord who cooks shellfish. This is an appalling disregard for the safety and well-being of customers with allergies. What infuriates me even more is that we had explicitly informed the pub about the reservation and received a confirmation the day before our arrival in Brighton. It is deeply frustrating and reflects a high level of unprofessionalism on the part of The White Rabbit.

In all our years of dining out, both in the UK and abroad, we have never encountered such discrimination or negligence. It is astonishing to witness a venue that fails to cater to its customers' needs, especially when they are fully aware of dietary restrictions and allergies in advance. As a result of this unacceptable treatment, we were forced to find an alternative place to eat, further inconveniencing our plans for the evening.

I strongly urge everyone to steer clear of this awful pub, as they clearly do not prioritize their customers' well-being or bother to meet their dietary requirements. The White Rabbit's complete lack of consideration and failure to provide a safe dining experience demonstrates their disregard for basic customer service. Save yourself the frustration and disappointment by choosing a different establishment that values and respects...

So this might be so completely not understood by UK citizens bc I am I am NOT a UK resident …but damn , I just can’t even begin to understand the ridiculousness of what I experienced after years of enjoying and visiting this cute spot . I mean , I was impressed 8 years ago when their irreverent sense of humor led them to place a tip jar with a little sign on it “the trump assassination, fund” on their bar counter - clearly we were encountering some very twisted if not fun people …sooooooo, there were 20+ very cool beer mats from a company called “Laine Brewery “ which is not a brand we ever heard of . I asked if it would be possible to purchase one . The answer was “‘we are given them from the brewery , we don’t sell them “ . Great , ok , they were free to you from your supplier, who wants you to sell their stuff …who would probably continue to give you stuff to advertise their product completely free , but you won’t take 20 pounds to sell me one - great . So I go back and ask for the brewery person’s contact info so I can try to purchase one directly - I’m given a website - I go on the website and it says I can purchase one for 16 pounds BUT they won’t ship it outside the UK (so ONLY UK addresses will work )- so I go back up to the bar and explain this and again offer the 20 pounds so they can replace the USED one they would sell to me for a brand spanking new one (meanwhile they probably wouldn’t even have to actually pay for one ) …again, bar person refuses - like seriously , you get the item for free and you won’t take money for one !!!! Sorry but I’ve got zero tolerance for stupid !!! Very poor customer service . I am just floored by the nonsense - it’s not like the company doesn’t sell the very same item to anyone in the general public (as long as you have a UK mailing address ). It’s not some exclusive to pubs item - they were just being difficult for no reason at all !!!! Maybe it’s a prejudice against Americans? Dunno but refusing 20 pounds for a 16 pound item is STUPID...