Easy Tiger is one of Brighton's latest successful pub kitchen pop ups, and we have quite a few to choose from to be honest. I don't think any Brightonian will put up with your average pub grub any more; we're spoilt rotten and the only way is up - eradicating every frozen chicken goujon in the city by 2025.

Still, I have to say it does take a bit to drag me from the dining comfort of restaurants, old woman I am. But headed up by chef Kanthi Kiran Thamma this is one to take particular note of. Kanthi, formerly of Curry Leaf Cafe, is quite possibly one of the most passionate chefs for all things Indian you'll ever meet. The man practically levitates when talking his craft, even orchestrating his own chef-led food tour, The Spice Circuit.

The Urchin serve up an impressive looking paella on the Sunday and that's enough for me to foot the 3.5 mile walk in the sunshine to work an appetite up for.



It is particularly gorgeous for a pub. Muted greys and a contemporary nautical influence all around, it feels very much at home here by the sea and has a lovely garden area. You'll see the enormous selection of craft beer by the bar, thoughtfully placed where you can grab the bottles and have a good look before deciding.



For me my visit was the day after the one before so some bloody Marys were in order, swiftly followed by rock oysters and salt and pepper squid, cut on the long side. This gave great mouth feel (I still have not found a better way to describe that, it makes me cringe) rather than biting into rings. Regardless, the squid was tender and the coating perfectly crisp.



My wibbly scallops along with the coral, served simply with lemon and chives made them a masterpiece of themselves. Normally, I shy away from the coral, I actually don't like the gnarly end of seafood in general, but I ate the lot, cooked so the texture was perfect and the butter and citrus enhanced the clean sweetness of hero ingredient.

I also appreciated a decent portion of bread, from our wonderful Flour Pot Bakery, served in large wedges with either balsamic and oil or butter.



Onto the main show though, the paella, was a visual treat, uncovered at the table for a bit of theatre. Under the foil hid a colourful display of king prawns, mussels and cleverly, the tips of the squid, which looked lovely and a smart avoidance of food waste. The rice had the ideal bite and for me, the essential bit of a paella is the crisp edges, which luckily, this didn't lack. I would have like a little more piquant hit from smoked paprika and wedges of lemon to pep up the dish but minor points, it was still very enjoyable. The prawns were juicy and meaty; glorious to shell and get stuck in with. The sun was shining and this could not have been a more perfect dish for the day.

For desserts there is just a cheese board and a posset and they don't seem to "do" dessert here. No matter as this was one leg of a Hove food safari for me but you could end the meal with a dessert beer I'm sure they'd have like a rich, chocolatey porter.



Although, I'd come here specifically for the paella, the specials board read like a treat; langoustine ramen, goan style prawns, whole lobster and everyone around me seemed to be tucking into bowls of crab claw, prawn and chorizo gumbo eliciting a hard pang of food envy from me. Clearly I need to return to make a bigger dent in the menu.

The Urchin is a stylish pub but one with real substance in its catalogue of interesting beers and staying true to their vision with the food, rather than falling victim to the pub catch-all menu.



The Urchin
15-17 Belfast Street

Call me an old woman but I'm typically not a fan of dining in pubs (restaurant-pubs aside). I just find it so uncomfortable! Piling winter coats on tiny bar stools, cramped around little tables and typically cheek to jowl with the next table. Then there's elbowing away the resident pub dog's nose from my plate. It's just not my style.

But sometimes you just can't ignore the Instagram shots of gorgeous looking food any longer.

And I've become a big fan of The Pond actually, probably due to my new interest in beer, they always seem to have something on that I absolutely love. Plus it's had a really nice makeover featuring illustrated murals from local design studio See Creatures and doesn't THAT hague blue shade make everything better?

Before their residency at The Pond, Baby Bao had, and still do I believe, a regular Friday spot at  Street Diner. Fitting as it's, well, street food.

I have been meaning to get out to the The Jolly Poacher—a neighbourhood food pub on Ditchling Road—since they opened in 2012, particularly as they are related to the acclaimed Jolly Sportsman in East Chiltington. So it was with some serious anticipation that I finally made it through the door.

I discovered Little Blue Smokehouse's food at Street Diner and I thought they were great with their pulled pork and brisket filled rolls, making pretty much everything from scratch from the sauces to the pickles. They cure, brine, dry rub and smoke, going the extra mile for their food and I tip my hat to them for it.   
And as it turns out their food translates very well into the pub environment unlike some street food which should remain firmly kerb side. Pint of beer and squidball? No ta.

I know I don't often eat or post about pub food but honestly this is one of the most exciting menus I've seen recently, restaurant or not. It's full of everything you really want to eat; smoked confit duck hash, pulled pork rolls, brisket chilli, mac and cheese bites with bacon jam, smoked fish chowder and even the bread comes with BBQ butter and BBQ gravy dripping. Clearly a lot of time and love has gone into crafting this menu.

It's been so long since I visited La Choza, the people who brought the sort of Mexican food I actually want to eat to Brighton. Formally, the offering was absolutely terrible and you'd only go for a stodgy tex-mex stomach liner prior to your big night out.

But up rocked La Choza in all of its shocking pink glory and we loved it.  The food was fresher, the flavours vibrant and the environment was fun. Service was a bit hit and miss and quite slow though and the last few times I tried to fit in a visit during a work lunch, my food would turn up an indigestion inducing 10 minutes before I had to rush back to my desk.

So yes, its been a while but then this week has seen me visit twice, once at the original restaurant and my first trip to the Hare and Hounds site (don't mention it as the new Shoreditch, don't mention it as the new Shoreditch, don't...)



My standard order was always the burrito with 14-hour pulled pork and hot sauce. A feed and a half. But time to diversify, so I chose the soft corn taco’s with chicken and their homemade chorizo. This was a lighter, fresher choice and I was very pleased with it. There was plenty of crunch from the shredded radish and the chicken was juicy and packed with flavour. The house chorizo was crumbled and spiced beautifully, probably very different in texture to what most would expect from it. I'm also a total chilli head so appreciated all of the fresh slices over it as well as the crunchy side salad.



My friend had the awesome street food salad which is a citrus and heat heavy with plenty of crunch and interest. There are also some pretty good specials to look out for like mackerel, seabass, mutton, goat and even cactus.

We did make an almost embarrassing point of needing our order within the hour and food arrived with a good leisurely half hour to enjoy. The staff were particularly lovely that day actually, engaging and fun.

A few days later I popped over to the Hare and Hounds which houses the La Choza pop up kitchen. This time I went for their burrito bowl which was layered with refried beans, green rice, cheese and sour cream. I topped this with the slow cooked beef.



This time the food turned up almost alarmingly quickly. I think I managed to pay, take a photo of the sign and sat down as the first of the plates turned up. I was less enamoured with the burrito bowl here, just mainly for the fact that the cheese had been melted into a congealed, greasy single layer which acted as a lid to the rest of the ingredients underneath. I imagine Mr. Microwave was at play here. Shame as the rest was good. The meats seem to be what La Choza really pin down well, the beef had a lot of spice, not just from gratuitous heat, but with subtle undertones of mellow spice and herbs.

We also ordered a bowl of nachos which I imagine go down a treat with the drinkers in the pub at munchie o'clock.

I'm glad I remembered how much I like La Choza. Although I may stick to the original venue (but eating in pubs is not really my thing and hell, the restaurant looks like a joyous fluro pinata on overdrive - I love it), the food is sunny, uplifting and invigorating. I sure won't be leaving it so long until my next trip.

http://www.lachoza.co.uk/

Main Restaurant:
36 Gloucester Rd,
Brighton, BN1 4AQ

Hare and Hounds:
London Road