Jump to: Restaurants | Pubs and bars
A decade ago, you could have counted Brighton and Hove’s recommendable restaurants on the fingers of one hand. Now, the city has been transformed by talented local and incoming entrepreneurs and chefs. Resident food writer Andy Lynes reveals how this seaside city now has a distinctive dining identity that’s well worth taking the train from London to experience.
Restaurants
Lost in the Lanes
10 Nile St, Brighton and Hove, Brighton BN1 1HW
This comes from independent restauranteur Natalie Demetriou and features head chef Sophie Taverner, once a human rights lawyer and now a chef who trained at Lyles. It's an all day affair, kicking off with breakfast all the way to a seasonally changing menu in the evening. Plates include Lamb Lemonato, their own crispy potatoes with bravas sauce or moules with buerre blanc sauce. There's a bottomless brunch at the weekend here too.
Follow them on Instagram: @lostinthelanes
No No Please
30 Preston St, Brighton BN1 2HP
This new bar and dining room brings something a little different to Brighton. A modern bar/lounge/dining room, it mixes South East Asian small plates with small-batch cocktails. The inventive menu includes dishes like the "fiery finger" (glazed tofu with go-chu sauce) and the No No Slow beef or veg coconut curry. As for cocktails, expect twists on classics like a banana old fashioned or a negroni with lapsang-infused Campari.
Follow them on Instagram: @no.no_please
Anakuma
50 Preston St, Brighton BN1 2HP
This comes from the brothers who are behind another hugely popular Brighton restaurant, Halisco. This is just a few steps from their original restaurant and it's billed as an Asian small plates restaurant. So you'll find a range of bao buns (filled with options like crispy sea bream or confit duck) as well as seaweed tater tots, BBQ steak, scallion pancake, corn ribs and more.
Follow them on Instagram: @anakumabrighton
Terre a Terre
71 East St, Brighton and Hove, Brighton BN1 1HQ
Recently a "Best Restaurant in Brighton" winner, this pinoeeing vegetarian and vegan restaurant has also celebrated 30 years in the city. There's a global feel to the menu here, with everything from aubergine zhuganoosh to karekatsu smoked tofu and fondue souffle on the menu. On Sundays, look out for their rosti menu, with a choice of rocket oil & spring thyme rosti or spinach rosti for your Sunday lunch.
Follow them on Instagram: @terreaterrebrighton
Furna
6 New Rd, Brighton BN1 1UF
Chef Dave Mothersill has headed up some of the best kitchens in Brighton including The Gingerman and The Salt Room and now finally has the perfect stage to showcase his prodigious skills. The best seats in the house are the comfortable upholstered stools overlooking the open kitchen where you can watch Mothersill and his team calmly putting together the intricate but always delicious dishes, such as veal sweetbreads with morels and roast chicken sauce, that make up the seasonal and locally driven tasting menu. The Parker House bread with smoked cod’s roe is outstanding.
Follow them on Instagram: @furnarestaurant
Palmito
16 Western Road, Hove BN3 1AE
There’s an exciting and ever-changing menu of small plates inspired by the culinary heritages of chefs and owners Kanthi Thamma (Hyderabad) and Diego Ricaurte ( Ecuador) at this intimate and casual restaurant in a converted takeaway in Hove. It’s already garnered a strong local following since opening in autumn 2022 and tables were even harder to bag following a rave review from Giles Coren. So book ahead to enjoy longhorn ox heart anticucho, Jersey Royal potatoes, aji panca and parsley sauce or grilled chicken thigh, hyderabadi cashew and coconut sauce with pickled cucumber.
Follow them on Instagram: @palmito.restaurant
Halisco
64 Preston Street, Brighton BN1 2HE
It’s full-on taco and margarita madness at this hugely popular casual Mexican joint located in Preston Street that’s locally referred to as Restaurant Row. But despite the noisy, boisterous vibe, there’s some seriously good cooking on offer with creative small plates such as sea bass with sweetcorn, tamarind and chilli to the range of tacos that might include braised beef brisket with bone marrow mayo.
Follow them on Instagram: @haliscobrighton
Dilsk
44 Marine Parade, Brighton BN2 1PE
Former 64 Degrees head chef Tom Stephens (who has also worked for Tom Kerridge among others) has thrown his hat into Brighton’s ever-growing fine dining ring with this intimate and stylish semi-basement room in Drakes, a boutique hotel on Brighton’s seafront. There’s a shorter tasting menu available Tuesday to Friday and Saturday lunch, but it’s worth going for the full eight-course plus snacks experience that includes dishes based around local seasonal produce and might include Orkney Scallop with cucumber, melon and smoked ham broth.
Follow them on Instagram: @dilsk.brighton
Bonsai Plant Kitchen
44-45 Baker St, Brighton BN1 4JN
Beginning as a takeaway-only lockdown project in 2021, the young team behind this plant-based South-East Asian-inspired small plates restaurant has gained a loyal following since opening in 2022. It’s worth the short walk from the city centre to this neighbourhood restaurant, just off London Road, for punchy dishes such as som tam salad with pounded sour mango, cherry tomatoes, coriander with a sweet and spicy dressing and the range bincho grilled items such as miso, maple and wasabi glazed aubergine.
Follow them on Instagram: @bonsaiplantkitchen
O'Shio
87-88 Trafalgar Street, Brighton BN1 4ER
This casual corner site restaurant in the North Laine is regularly packed. Not surprising as it’s almost impossible to walk past once you’ve got wind of the incredibly tempting aromas emanating from it. The Japanese Korean menu is not fusion food, but two distinct and long lists of many recognisable classics from each cuisine so you can choose from sushi, tempura and ramen as well as bibimbap and bulgogi.
Follow them on Instagram: @oshiobrighton
The Ginger Pig
3 Hove Street, Hove, BN3 2TR
Local celebrity chef and restaurateur Ben McKellar’s gastropub-with-rooms that's set just off the seafront on Hove is part of a four-strong group that includes The Gingerman and The Flint House in the city plus the out-of-town The Ginger Fox pub. Start with a spiced margarita at the marble-topped bar then move through to the spacious and stylish dining room with its charcoal-painted walls, exposed ducting and polished wood floor for the appealing menu that mixes elevated pub classics such as rabbit scotch egg with modern British dishes that might include Confit duck with
Follow them on Instagram: @gingerpighove
Curry Leaf Café
60 Ship Street, Brighton BN1 1AE
The green and orange colour scheme of the interior of this perennially popular Brighton Lanes diner is as vibrant as the flavours of the authentic South Indians street food on the menu. Many of the dishes such as kadai vegetable curry made with cauliflower, peppers and okra spiced with ginger, coriander and fenugreek are vegan friendly but meat and fish eaters will not be disappointed with the likes of Peshwari lamb seekh kebab or Alleppey seabass and king prawn curry. The list of craft beers that includes the locally brewed Brighton Bier Pale Ale has won awards, so why not book the restaurant’s three-bedroom apartment and make a night of it.
Follow them on Instagram: @curry_leaf_cafe
Fatto a Mano
25 Gloucester Road, Brighton BN1 4AQ (and two other locations)
Brighton’s home-grown Neapolitan-style artisan pizza group has been so successful that it now boasts two London branches located in the Croydon and Shoreditch Boxparks. In its home city, whether you’re in the fashionable North Laine, in the Boho London Road area or have ventured into upmarket Hove, you are never far from a branch of this friendly and always busy pizzeria with its distinctive blue and white striped awning and showpiece woodfired oven. A recent menu refresh is a great excuse (as if you needed one) to visit to try one of the range of ‘Pizza Moderna’ that includes a pie topped with ‘nduja, gorgonzola and tapenade.
Follow them on Instagram: @fattoamanopizza
Plateau
1 Bartholomews, Brighton, BN1 1HB
You’ll find one of the best lists of organic, biodynamic and natural wines in the city at this lively centrally wine bar and restaurant in the Lanes. Exposed brickwork, bare wood tables and feature stained glass create a casual setting for the daily changing blackboard menu of eclectic small plates that might include wild venison pierogi with fermented chilli, all served to an eclectic soundtrack of jazz, hip hop and dub. The classic cocktails are among the best in town.
Follow them on Instagram: @plateaubrighton
China Garden
88-91 Preston Street, Brighton, BN1 2HG
This 40-year-old stalwart serves Chinese and Cantonese dishes that will be immediately recognisable to anyone craving crispy aromatic duck pancakes or steamed whole sea bass with ginger and spring onion in a familiar upmarket monochromatic setting. But a new generation of local foodies are seeking out the restaurant, that’s set just off Brighton’s sea front attracted by the dim sum menu (served daily between 12-4pm) that includes ox tripe, curried whelks and chicken feet in black bean sauce as well as more mainstream items including char sui buns.
Photo: @dineinbrighton
The Coal Shed
8 Boyce's Street, Brighton BN1 1AN
For some of the best steak in the city, look no further than Raz Helalat’s stylish and modern diner hidden away on a side street close to the seafront. An impressively stocked bar makes a focal point for the ground floor dining room (there’s a second, more intimate space on the first floor) with its glass pendant lamps, dark-painted wainscotting and bare wood tables. Big chunks of meat (and fish) cooked over flames is the speciality here but don’t skip enticing starters such as grilled octopus with romesco and chorizo and hazelnut crumb. This is the last summer for the Coal Shed at this location, so try it while you can.
Follow them on Instagram: @thecoalshed
Easy Tiger
57 Upper North Street, Brighton BN1 3FH
Chef Sabu Joseph worked in top luxury hotels around the world before taking the helm of this long-term resident kitchen at the boho Hampton Pub in a back street close to Brighton’s Churchill Square shopping hub. The menu of Indian street food-inspired dishes includes a take on a toddy shop classic Kerala fried chicken flavoured with ginger, garlic and Joseph’s secret blend of spices, perfect with one of the pub’s many craft beers.
Follow them on Instagram: @easytigerbn1
Petit Pois
70 Ship Street, Brighton, BN1 1AE
This husband-and-wife sharing plates restaurant is a little piece of France transplanted to Brighton’s Lanes. Chef David works in the open kitchen, rustling up platters of snails with garlic and parsley and bowls of bouillabaisse made with local seafood while Ivana makes sure everyone is happy in the intimate and simply decorated dining room. A true family-friendly affair, kids eat for £7 and there’s a traditional roast made with French flair on Sundays.
Follow them on Instagram: @petitpoisbrighton
64 Degrees
53 Meeting House Ln, Brighton BN1 1HB
Chef Michael Bremner’s intimate Lanes destination was one of the first innovative small plates restaurants in the city. A new tasting menu concept has ensured 64 Degrees remains one of the city’s hottest tickets. Request a table at the open kitchen counter so you can watch the chefs prepare sophisticated, creative dishes such as guinea fowl with miatake, yeast, yolk and broth.
Follow them on Instagram: @chef64degrees
Bincho Yakitori
63 Preston St, Brighton BN1 2HE
There are always tables for walk-ins at David Miney’s authentic Japanese izakaya-style restaurant. But, as one of the most popular restaurants in the city (and deservedly so), it’s probably best to book to ensure you can enjoy the legendary pork belly skewers and teriyaki quail among many other delights. Look out for the daily chalkboard specials which are always worth ordering.
Follow them on Instagram: @binchoyakitori
Burnt Orange
59 Middle St, Brighton BN1 1AL
From the team behind The Salt Room as well as the Brighton and London branches of The Coal Shed comes this chic new bar and restaurant in the Lanes. The menu of wood-fired Med-inspired small plates might include flamed sea bream with basil yoghurt and mango dressing. It's a good late-night spot for some of the best cocktails in the city and a music programme curated by Fat Boy Slim.
Follow them on Instagram: @burntorangeuk
Chilli Pickle
17 Jubilee St, Brighton BN1 1GE
Husband and wife team Alun and Dawn Sperring have been wowing Brighton with their carefully researched interpretation of regional Indian cuisine for over a decade. Take a seat in their bright and lively city centre brasserie where the must orders include spicy firecracker chicken wings and the Jaipur chilli mutton curry. The lunchtime-only king thalis are things of local legend. They'll be looking for a new location next year.
Follow them on Instagram: @thechillipickle
Cin Cin
60 Western Road, Hove BN3 1JD
Restaurateur David Toscano and chef Jamie Halsall opened their casual Italian counter dining concept in Fitzrovia earlier this year to critical acclaim but Brighton and Hove is where it all started. Come for the reliably delicious pasta dishes such as rigatoni all'Amatriciana and tagliatelle with ragu of wild mushroom and mascarpone.
Follow them on Instagram: @cincinuk
Etch
216 Church Rd, Hove BN3 2DJ
Masterchef: The Professionals champion Steven Edwards recently extended his acclaimed modern fine dining restaurant into the next-door premises. Etch now has a bar area and extra tables where Edwards will continue to serve his polished, considered and delicious dishes that he tersely describes with just two words such as ‘monkfish, leek’.
Follow them on Instagram: @etchfood
The Flint House
13 Hanningtons Lane, Brighton BN1 1GS
The most recent opening from chef Ben McKeller is the first of his five-strong group not to include the word ‘ginger’ in its name, perhaps indicative of the restaurant’s different style. This is the first to focus on small plates and cocktails which it does brilliantly. Ask for a table on the covered and heated roof terrace and graze on sweetcorn fritters with jalapeno mayo while you browse the menu. Order the good value chef’s menu for a selection of bestselling dishes.
Follow them on Instagram: @theflinthouse
Fourth and Church
84 Church Rd, Hove BN3 2EB
This wine bar, restaurant and wine shop has garnered a clutch of national reviews for its regularly changing menu of small plates and excellent wine list and drinks programme (Grace Dent called it ‘one of the greatest restaurants I’ve been to in the past few years’ in her Guardian review). Don’t miss the silky duck liver and Madeira parfait or the list of sherries, a particular passion of co-owner Paul Morgan.
Follow them on Instagram: @fourthandchurch
The Gingerman
21a Norfolk Square, Brighton BN1 2PD
The Gingerman may have recently celebrated its 25th anniversary, but local celebrity chef Ben McKellar has never rested on his laurels. With new head chef Britt Wardle (formerly of The Flint House in Brighton) on board, this intimate, neighbourhood fine diner is as much a foodie destination as ever. Refined, on-trend dishes might include duck liver parfait with kumquat, pistachio and nasturtium.
Follow them on Instagram: @thegingermanrestaurant
Kitgum Kitchen
9 Preston Rd, Brighton BN1 4QE
Unique East African meets Indian cuisine is the hook at this casual and cosy neighbourhood restaurant with warm, personal service and delicious food that’s worth seeking out on the city centre’s northern edge (make an afternoon or evening of it with a visit to the nearby Unbarred brewery). The menu changes regularly but might include Nihari, a Pakistani dish of slow cooked beef shin with bone marrow, ginger, coriander, lime and green chilli.
Follow them on Instagram: @kitgumkitchen
Little Fish Market
10 Upper Market St, Hove BN3 1AS
Chef Duncan Ray’s intimate seafood restaurant, tucked away off the seafront, offers one of the best fine dining experiences in the city. A recent refurbishment has breathed new life into the place and the food is better than ever. Highlights of a recent meal included crab with green Thai curry sauce and an oyster velouté with charred compressed cucumber and beer batter scraps. Order the wine pairing curated by Noble Rot.
Follow them on Instagram: @littlefishhove
Lucky Khao
1d St James's St, Kemptown, Brighton BN2 1RE
Set just off the Old Steine, close to the famous Palace Pier you’ll find this stylish, lively restaurant and bar that specialises in northern Thai-style barbecue cooking. Come for cocktails, music and local mutton massamam curry with hogget chop, cassia bark, toasted peanuts, jersey royals and coconut broth.
Follow them on Instagram: @luckykhao
Med
2-3 Little East Street, Brighton BN1 1HT
From local street food entrepreneurs Will Dennard and Jack Southan of Wolfsmouth fame, Med offers modern Mediterranean-inspired small plates in smart surroundings. The menu of simple but delicious dishes might include grilled sardines with mojo verde and tuna ceviche with kumquat and salty fingers.
Follow them on Instagram: @med.restaurant.brighton
Riddle & Finns on the Beach
The Beach, 65 Kings Road, Brighton BN1 1NA
This recently-opened, glamorous seafood restaurant and champagne bar is the sister of the long-established original Riddle & Finns in the Lanes and offers some of the best sea views in the city. Come for a glass of Sussex fizz or grower champagne and a towering fruits de mer platter or a more creative dish of braised octopus with confit egg yolk, miso yoghurt and pine nuts.
Follow them on Instagram: @riddleandfinnsbrighton
The Salt Room
106 Kings Rd, Brighton BN1 2FU
This is Brighton’s biggest and most glamorous seafood restaurant. Arrive early for a well-made cocktail such as a signature Salt Room Daquiri made with rum, strawberry, basil and citrus then head into the spacious buzzing dining room for seafood (and meat) cooked over fire including charred scallops with Café de Paris butter, pickled lemon and edamame.
Follow them on Instagram: @thesaltroombrighton
The Set
50 Preston Road, Brighton BN1 4QF
Chef Dan Kenny has relocated his long-running restaurant from the Artist’s Residence hotel to a long-term residency at the bohemian Café Rust, north of the city centre. The move has galvanised the chef’s cooking which is now arguably the most exciting and creative in the city with a new weekly-changing 14-16 course tasting menu centred around ‘big flavours, fat and umami’. A recent meal featured hit after hit dish, with highlights including a wickedly rich and delicious oxtail dauphinoise with oxtail gravy.
Follow them on Instagram: @theset_restaurant
Shelter Hall
Kings Road Arches, Shelter Hall, Brighton BN1 1NB
This once derelict Victorian shelter on Brighton’s seafront was beautifully restored and now houses a stylish food market and bar. Order via an app from a changing line-up of seven independent chef-led kitchens that include burgers, bao buns, pizza, Mexican food, souvlaki and more.
Follow them on Instagram: @shelterhallmarket
Wild Flor
42 Church Rd, Hove BN3 2FN
Wild Flor is to Brighton as Arbutus and Racine were to London; a great neighbourhood place that over-delivers on the food and wine front. Enjoy carefully selected aged wines at reasonable prices (and much else besides on the regularly updated wine list) with a comforting plate of Braised beef short rib with blackberry and cornichon. Sunday lunch is particularly good value.
Follow them on Instagram: @wildflorhove
Bars and pubs
The Brick
45 Preston Street, Brighton BN1 2HP
The Brick might just be the perfect pub, although you might well describe the intimate and stylishly decorated space as a ‘taproom’. But whatever you call it, there’s a carefully curated list of excellent German and Czech-style beers and lagers, comfortable booth seats, a great retro soundtrack and Sri Lankan food including hoppers and kottus courtesy of The Lankan.
Follow them on Instagram: @brick.brighton
The Urchin
5-17 Belfast St, Hove BN3 3YS
Hidden away on a side road in deepest Hove, this neighbourhood gastropub is well worth seeking out for its top-notch seafood and wide selection of craft beers all served in relaxed but stylish surroundings. Feast on whole crab with lovage and wild garlic butter and a glass of Larrakin beer, made in the pub’s own on-site microbrewery. In good weather ask for a seat in the secluded courtyard.
Follow them on Instagram: @urchinpub
The Pond
49 Gloucester Rd, Brighton BN1 4AQ
This independently run craft beer pub in the North Laine and close to Brighton railway station underwent a smart designer makeover a few years ago with a dark blue colour scheme but still retains the original woodwork from when it first opened over a century ago, giving it a timelessly elegant but inviting feel. As well as the selection of signature bao buns with fillings such as Thai coconut chicken with som tam and satay sauce, there’s a range of sharing plates that include Sichuan chicken wings
Follow them on Instagram: @thepondbrighton
L’Atelier du Vin
North Laine, Seven Dials, Q Square
This group of three prohibition-style cocktail and wine bars not only offers atmospheric surroundings and delicious well made classic and modern cocktails but also one of the finest wine lists in the city, packed full of gems such as Sassicaia Tentua San Guido 2009.
Follow them on Instagram: @latelierduvinbtn
The Golden Pineapple
14 Ship St, Brighton BN1 1AD
An intimate bar in the Lanes offering a list of modern takes on classic cocktails and specialising in tequila and mezcal drinks such as Cafe XO made with Ileagal Mezcal Joven, coffee liqueur, creme de cacao and oat cream, all paired with a short menu of small plates.
Follow them on Instagram: @gpshipst
The Hole in the Wall
Queensbury Mews, Brighton BN1 2FE
A tiny historic back street pub recently renovated by local landlord legend Jim Paine who has a strong following in the foodie/hospitality world. There's a regularly updated chalkboard of artisan craft beers and ales.
Follow them on Instagram: @theholeinthewallbtn
UnBarred Brewery and Taproom
19-23 Elder Place, Brighton BN1 8UJ
Hidden away in an unloved urban corner of Brighton behind London Road is one of the city’s hippest craft beer bars. In good weather, sit on the open-air terrace and sample some UnBarred brews that are only served at the taproom.
Follow them on Instagram: @unbarredbrewery
Also in Brighton...
Bardsley's - For fish and chips from this local favourite that's been here since 1926
Fika - For the best breakfast and brunch rolls, this has two branches, one in Hove and a second in the new Sea Lanes swimming centre development on Brighton’s seafront.
Black Rain -Track down some of the best coffee in the city here
Lickle More - This food truck offers some highly rated Jamaican street food.
Bison Beer craft beer bar group have some great resident pop-ups at their Hove bar and their Bison Beach Bar at Sea Lanes on the seafront.
Namo Thai at The Eagle Pub - For modern Thai street food in a much-loved back street Brighton pub
More seaside eating
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