Polpo

Brighton outpost of a Venetian “bacaro” chain – think small plates. Food was tasty for sure, especially fried gnocchi and the meatballs.  Oh, and chocolate salami dessert (slices of a fondant/biscotti/fruit mix – hard to explain!).  Unfortunately service was very poor and we really struggled to get any – perhaps an off night – and the place, perhaps due to success, is crammed with tables and thus unpleasantly loud.

Verdict: Ok

Location: 20 New Road

http://www.polpo.co.uk

Archipelagos

Cosy Greek restaurant, nice but nothing fancy decor-wise, but extremely friendly and helpful staff, and a delicious mezedakia (mezze!) menu. Especially recommend ktipiti – mashed feta with olive oil, oregano and paprika. Lovely meal and actually very reasonably priced.

Verdict: Awesome

Location: 121 Western Road

http://www.archipelagosbrighton.co.uk

Smashburger

We watched this joint open with interest, having vaguely heard the name before. Well, it’s really, really good.  The burgers are melt in your mouth tasty. You can either have normal fries, which are good, or smash fries, which have garlic and rosemary – can’t decide which is better, but all good (although pro tip, you don’t need a large fries). Nice place and excellent service. About the only drawback is it’s pretty expensive, especially for a soft drink (£3.25!).

Verdict: Awesome

Location: 53-54 North Street

https://smashburger.co.uk

O’Shio

New “Japanese and Korean” restaurant that would be much better advertised as “Korean with sushi and sake”. Tried a bit of sushi, and it was excellent, but £2.30 for one salmon sushi is too much. So stick with the Korean menu, with all sorts of hotpots and other delights. Had a tofu and pork hotpot and it was amazingly good and all up pretty cheap. Only downside is, as many Asian restaurants are, it’s a bit packed in with tables.

Verdict: Awesome

Location: 87-88 Trafalgar Street

http://oshiobrighton.com

Market Restaurant & Bar

Tapas joint where you can sit around the “bar” with them making tapas behind; there are tables, but “bar” is best.  Top points on everything – really awesome staff who couldn’t be more friendly and helpful, very nice cocktails.  Food – really great.  We had pork belly, squid, crispy pig croquettes (a special), macaroni cheese, and more, all rock solid.  For tapas, very big servings, so I would say treat their suggestion of 3-4 dishes and a side each very conservatively.  We had 3 each with a small side and it was huge.

Verdict: Awesome

Location: 42 Western Road

http://www.market-restaurantbar.co.uk

The House Restaurant

Bills itself as a bistro in a converted Victorian house, and it is.  Really nice staff, and a very pleasant open (if echo-y) space – lots of wood.  I had steak benedict which was a delicious steak with black pudding, egg and bacon with root mash; really rather good.  Garlic focaccia tasty and acres of it, although could stand to be more garlic-y.  Couple of starters had didn’t set my companion’s world on fire but mine was really, really excellent.

Verdict: Awesome

Location: 37 East Street

https://www.thehouserestaurant.co.uk

The Rose Hill Tavern

Looking at the web results for this, there was a heroic effort to save this pub from developers for the community (ed: see comment below). Power to them, but as a result I guess it feels like walking into someone else’s house. Could be funky and cool, instead you feel like you’re intruding. I feel bad for saying so but the staff can’t be bothered either; best go to a real pub.

Edit: See comment below, I’ve removed the website. Apologies to the community effort, sorry it didn’t work out!

Verdict: Don’t go

Location: 70-71 Rose Hill Terrace