Saturday day trip - BBQ Shack, Brighton

JD has always had a soft spot for BBQ and had read good reviews about BBQ Shack in Brighton. We had been planning on heading south to try it out for a while and finally got our act together one sunny Saturday in March. Luckily for us, traffic wasn't so bad - the only blip was wrestling with Brighton's one way traffic system on arrival!!

BBQ Shack is located in a pub called World's End which is north of the town centre. Food is served all day on a Saturday which was just as well since we rocked up at the unsociable hour of 4pm for a late lunch/early dinner. We both plumped with a 3 meat plate (the options range from 1 meat up to 6 meat plates!!) - portions were generous and meat was yummy, only gripe would've been that the Shack had run out of BBQ sauce.....a little worrying just before the Saturday dinner rush? Be sure to check out BBQ Shack if you are ever in Brighton town :)

My plate of ribs, pulled pork and link sausage served with onion rings and chips, extra side of slaw -  unhealthy but tasty stuff!!

Brighton eating - Jamie's Italian

For our final meal in Brighton, we decided to try out Jamie Oliver's new chain of restaurants, Jamie's Italian. It was conveniently located on the street next to our hotel meaning that we could pop in for lunch and then pick up our bag after before heading home. The restaurant was packed to the gills at lunchtime - cue "ka ching" for Mr Oliver!!

The decor of the restaurant was not what I was expecting at all - it reminded me more of a US steakhouse than rustic Italian restaurant. The food was pretty good though, a notch better than Carluccios but not cheap. I'm glad we got to try out the restaurant in Brighton but am not sure whether I would make the trip across town to the Canary Wharf branch when back in London :)

  Our starters of antipasti board and rustic tomato soup - our table was too small to fit everything so we were provided with a couple of canned tomatoes so the antipasti could then perch on them!

My main of clam linguini - very nice and the addition of cherry tomatoes and chilli gave it an extra oompf :)

Brighton eating - Riddle and Fins

Since we were by the sea, it seemed fitting that our one dinner in Brighton would be in a fish/seafood restaurant. After a bit of research on the web, we decided to head to Riddle and Fins - a popular champagne/seafood bar. We had a bit of a problem trying to find it in the afternoon (it is situated in the Lanes which is a warren of windy pedestrianised streets) but after a bit of guidance from the hotel reception, we found it no problem come dinnertime.

It was a lot more casual than I had expected (the whole of Brighton just has a laidback vibe though) - food was great but service was a little haphazard. I'm never too fussy about service generally but you definitely notice it when you get bad service :)

JD's starter of pan fried squid with chilli sauce - some of the best squid he has ever eaten, very fresh and super tender

My starter of crab cakes - nice but not outstanding (I really wanted to try their razor clams but unfortunately, they were not on the menu on the night)

 JD's main of crab linguini - nice but not "Sardo" nice :)

 My main of pan fried skate with caper butter - very simple but so delicious

JD's dessert of chocolate brownie - OK but my version is better and more chocolatey :)

My dessert of rhubarb pannacotta - perfect flavourwise, the only minor flaw was that it was not wobbly enough!!

Brighton eating - Bill's

Bill's came highly recommended in a magazine in our hotel room so we decided to head there for lunch and see what all the fuss was about. It's a pretty funky, part yuppy supermarket and part cafe/deli. We arrived early for lunch but the place was packed within half an hour, demonstrating just how popular it is with Brighton folk. Nice lunchtime food (think salads and sandwiches), great juice combinations and yummy (if not aesthetically pleasing) cakes :)

Cheddar buck rarebit - posh cheese on toast with some spinach, very good (JD ordered the steak sandwich, a little pricey but you get what you pay for - highly recommended!)

House salad