Our little gay cafe

Welcome to Greyskull — A Café Run by Two Husbands

When we decided to open a coffee shop in Hastings, the last thing on our minds was “we’re going to run a queer café.” We never considered our queerness to be a key feature. We just wanted to build a place that combined the two things we love most: Daniel’s speciality coffee and Sean’s home-cured bacon.

We’re husbands, and we’ve never made a secret of that — but we weren’t leading with it either. It was just who we are. And pretty quickly we noticed we were getting a lot of queer customers. Gay people, trans people, people who just quietly felt comfortable here. It was lovely, and a bit unexpected, but it felt natural.

When Hastings Pride weekend came along, we decided to make a few queer videos for social media and put up our Pride flags (permanently, not just for the day). And suddenly something shifted. The posts got a lot of traction. Lots of lovely queer people came in to give us support from miles around — and not just during Pride weekend.

And that was the moment we realised something we hadn’t planned for at all:
Greyskull had become a queer space simply because of who we are and how we show up.

We set out to build an amazing café for everyone, but we’ve been humbled and touched by how much the queer community has come out to support us — and we want to make sure we’re giving back to that community whenever we can.

🌈 Why the World Still Needs Queer Cafés

Queer spaces have changed a lot over the years. When we were younger, most queer spaces were bars or clubs — loud, late, and often the only places we truly felt safe. These days, many of us love being out in the world, choosing the best cafés, restaurants, and shops without thinking twice about whether they’re “queer enough.” And honestly, that progress is something to celebrate.

But at the same time, we can’t pretend the need for queer spaces has disappeared. Far from it. If anything, the need has shifted. A lot of us don’t want or need the old-fashioned idea of a “gay bar” anymore — but we do still need places where we can exist without having to wonder how someone is going to react when we walk through the door.

And for some people in our community — especially trans and nonbinary people — that need is still urgent. There’s still too much hate, too much hostility, and far too many businesses trying to quietly sit on the fence.

That’s where queer cafés matter.

Daytime spaces.
Warm spaces.
Spaces where you can actually hear yourself think.
Places that feel calm and human and normal — but also unmistakably safe.

Queer cafés aren’t just about rainbows in the window or posting at Pride. They’re about creating environments where queer people can just be, without having to shrink themselves or scan the room first. They’re also about making sure the most vulnerable parts of our community know exactly where they’re welcome, supported, and protected.

We didn’t create Greyskull with a big queer concept in mind — but we’ve seen firsthand how much it means to have a place like this. A daytime queer-friendly space. A “gay bar alternative,” in the gentlest sense. A spot where queer people, trans people, nonbinary people, couples, families, and anyone who needs it can sit down, exhale, and know this is their space too.

And that is something we’re proud to stand behind openly. Not quietly. Not when it’s convenient. Not for a single month of the year.

Just always.

A Warm, Inclusive Space for LGBTQ+ Locals & Visitors

• We’ve learned that creating a queer-friendly café isn’t about big gestures — it’s about all the small things that make people feel at ease the moment they walk in. And for a lot of our LGBTQ+ customers, especially trans and nonbinary people, those small things matter far more than people realise.

At Greyskull, nothing is forced or performative. It’s just us — two husbands running the place, happy to see you, happy to chat, happy to make you feel at home. And because that’s the energy we show up with, people respond to it. We’ve had customers tell us they feel safe here in a way they don’t often feel in other everyday spaces. That means everything to us.

Here’s what we hope you feel when you visit:

• A genuinely safe space — not neutral, not “quietly supportive,” but openly and actively welcoming.
• Trans-friendly from the ground up — not just tolerant, but intentional. (Yes, even down to having trans flags on our toilet keys so nobody’s left wondering where we stand.)
• No gatekeeping of who belongs here — queer, trans, nonbinary, questioning, allies… everyone who shows up with kindness is welcome.
• Normal, calm, daytime vibes — more “queer coffee bar” than “gay bar,” if that makes sense.
• Brighton energy without needing to live in Brighton — we love the number of queer visitors who make the trip over.
• A place to land — for locals, for visitors, for people who are just passing through and want somewhere they don’t have to shrink themselves.

We don’t believe queer people should only go to queer spaces — far from it. But we also know how important it is to have places that feel unquestionably safe, soft, and human. If Greyskull has become that for people, then we’re doing something right.

Coffee, Brunch & Fire-Cooked Food — Made by Us

For all the talk about community and queer spaces, at the heart of Greyskull is something much simpler: we really care about what we serve. Daniel’s spent years working in speciality coffee, running flagship shops and obsessing over beans, extraction, flavour — all the nerdy stuff that makes a cup of coffee actually great. And Sean’s always been the one in the family curing bacon, cold-smoking fish, tinkering with sauces, and generally being a bit too excited about breakfast food.

Everything we serve comes from that mix of craft and obsession.
Our bacon is home-cured and cold-smoked.
Our eggs? Cold-smoked too, because why not make them taste incredible.
Even our mackerel gets the cold-smoke treatment.
Our sauces are made in-house.
Our brunch menu is short, deliberate, and made with proper care.

It’s the kind of food we love eating ourselves — comforting, flavourful, handmade — and it’s been amazing to see how much our LGBTQ+ customers appreciate that. A lot of queer people tell us they come here because it feels like a queer brunch spot, but with food that actually tastes good, not just “gay-themed café food."

And for anyone who’s made the trip from Brighton, Eastbourne, Bexhill or further afield, we take it as a huge compliment. You’re not just coming for the vibes — you’re coming for the coffee, the bacon, the care that goes into everything we make.

At Greyskull, the queerness isn’t the product.
The product is the product.
And it just so happens to be made by two husbands who pour a lot of love (and a bit of smoke) into every part of it.

More Than a Café — A Queer Community Space

• Somewhere along the way, Greyskull turned into more than a café. We didn’t plan it, and we definitely didn’t brand it that way, but the way people use the space has made it something special. It’s become a kind of daytime queer community spot — the sort of place where you can sit for a while, breathe a bit deeper, and just exist without having to scan the room.

We get such a mix of people through the door.
Queer couples on weekend dates.
Trans and nonbinary customers who tell us they feel genuinely safe here.
Creatives working away on laptops.
Locals reading books.
Friends catching up.
People who’ve travelled from Brighton or Eastbourne because they heard we were “a queer-friendly café with really good food.”
Families.
All sorts.

It’s not a gay bar — and honestly, that’s part of the charm.
No loud music, no nightlife energy, no pressure.
Just a calm, warm place where queer people (and anyone who wants to be around queer people) can be themselves in the most ordinary, everyday way.

That’s what makes this feel like a modern queer space.
Not exclusive.
Not themed.
Not a rainbow museum.
Just naturally queer because of who’s running it and who feels at home here.

And if Greyskull has become a little hub for queer life in Hastings — a gentle, daylight version of a gay bar; a place where you can get great coffee, great brunch, and feel genuinely welcome — then that’s something we feel incredibly proud to hold space for.

Come Visit Our Gay-Owned Café in Hastings

If you’re queer, trans, nonbinary, questioning, an ally, or just someone who loves good coffee and good food, you’re more than welcome at Greyskull. Whether you live round the corner or you’re making the trip from Brighton, Eastbourne, Bexhill or anywhere along the coast, we’d love to see you.

We’re tucked inside St Andrew’s Mews — a little hidden corner just off the main road — and once you step in, it’s all pretty simple: great coffee, home-cured and cold-smoked bacon, proper brunch food made with care, and a vibe that somehow ended up being quietly, naturally queer in the nicest possible way.

Come for the coffee.
Stay for the bacon.
Or just come to sit somewhere you don’t have to second-guess whether you’ll feel welcome.

Greyskull is here for everyone, but we’re especially proud to be a place where our LGBTQ+ community can feel at home.
We’d love to have you by.