Bar 1828

Background

Bar 1828 was established in 2021 on the main high street of Seaham, not far from the Harbour. It is practically next door to the Byron Place shopping centre and just down the street from the Hat & Feathers Wetherspoons.

Image taken by Aiden Dawson

This bar is fairly modern, and it features a bar built from wood planks with a big wooden cut-out sign reading “Bar 1828” displayed at the top where the overhead glass racks are. Its downstairs room seats up to five on little tables with a combination of bench seats along the right hand side wall and wooden chairs to sit on. The bar is directly in front of you as you walk in.

The venue also has an upstairs, with another bar at the back of the upstairs room; this is where most of the buzz of activity goes on. There is a pool table and dartboard along with more varied seating. The seating includes comfy little armchairs around a coffee table, higher chairs facing the wall on the right hand side of the bar (with a narrow ledge along the wall for people to sit with their drinks) and high chairs facing the opposite low wall overlooking the stairs. The overall décor of the room upstairs is very edgy, featuring a sprayed graffiti wall. The flooring on both levels is hard smooth laminate floor surfacing. The inside is generally softly-lit by steampunk-style lighting.

There is also a jukebox in the upstairs room, the room being where events take place. The toilets are located down a corridor to the back of the downstairs room and the left hand side of the bar opposite the stairs.

Food and Drink

The bar offers different wines, bottled beers and soft drinks stored in their fridges. On tap, they have mainly draught beer and lager as well as cider with regular deals. They also make a variety of different toasties using their own toastie press, all made to order.

Image courtesy of Marc

Entertainment

They have a pool table upstairs which requires change to use. There is also a dartboard; all you need to do for that one is ask for the darts at the bar upstairs. A jukebox is also upstairs and they have a slot machine.

Events

They run all kinds of events including karaoke nights, Halloween parties, live music, bingo and quizzes. All the events are free to attend and no booking is required for events at this bar in Seaham.

Keep up to date with what’s on by following their Facebook here!

Accessibility

It is important to note that Bar 1828 is not the most wheelchair accessible venue.

Toilets

The toilets are located down a corridor to the left hand side of the bar downstairs. There are two single toilets; one for males and the other for females. There is NO separate disabled toilet, however the single toilets both have an alarm switch in them.

Wheelchairs

This is a venue with no wheelchair accessibility; there is no lift to get upstairs and there is a single step to get from the main bar room downstairs to the toilets, so it would be pretty awkward for wheelchair users to access the loo. You can physically get a wheelchair in and out of the front door to sit in the bar room downstairs depending on make and model. The nearest accessible toilet would be in the Byron Place shopping centre, located a short walk from the bar.

Bar Drink Options

There is an inclusive selection of drinks that caters for dietary needs; they offer gluten-free drinks (including some of their bottled beers) and low-alcoholic options as well. They sell drinks suitable for children too, including juice and fizzy drinks like lemonade and Cola, all sold by the bottle. If you’re a hot drink person, they have a little coffee machine and a kettle so you can order a cup of tea or coffee to go.

Dog Friendly

As well as being family friendly, this bar in Seaham is dog friendly. They offer dog treats and snacks, and there is always a water bowl on hand.

Parking

The nearest parking is the car park off Green Street, just behind the back of the high street and a brief walk from the bar. This car park also includes electric charging stations and disabled parking. Other nearby parking includes the Asda car park, which is a maximum stay of 3 hours and is a short walk through the Byron Place shopping centre. You can also park on the harbour car park just over the main road past the entrance to Byron Place.

Public Transport

There are plenty of places to catch a bus all around the area. The nearest bus stop is a very short walk from Bar 1828. Here, you can catch a bus going to/from Durham via the Number 71 service. Other bus stops include the interchange just past Costa Coffee on the A182 which has buses to/from Peterlee, Sunderland or Ryhope.

There is also a train station in Seaham that’s a short walk or drive from the bar; there is plenty of parking at the station. Trains can be caught here to/from as far as Newcastle via Sunderland and Darlington via Middlesborough.

Conclusion

We hope that you found this listing helpful in finding more places to eat and drink that are accessible in Seaham and County Durham. For more listings in the area, check out:

• Hat & Feathers Wetherspoons
• Hidden On The Harbour