Brighton | Franco Manca at Brighton Marina

With Brighton's growing food scene it is not a surprise that we are getting some top London exports. Last spring, we were buzzed to get a Franco Manca in the Lanes, Instagram was taken over with mouthwatering shots of Sourdough pizza's and it was THE place to go.

A year later and our Franco Manca has sprouted a sibling at Brighton Marina. There's been a major rejuvenation of the Marina in the last years, with a burst of great restaurants, and some not so great (I'm still not convinced we needed a second Las Iguanas or a third Bella Italia) and I have to say the Franco Manca is a welcome addition.

I personally don't often go into Brighton to eat, we've become true 'Hovites' and spend most of our lives in one of the local pub gardens, all of which serve great grub. But Joe and I often go to the cinema at the Marina and make a bit of a day of it by going for a walk and grabbing some food.

We were invited to down to try the new restaurant, which in case you are wondering, is located on the Boardwalk, giving it the bonus of a fantastic view and making it the perfect people watching spot. There is the option to sit outside, but the weather wasn't on our side during our visit, instead we took up a table at the window at the front.

The decor is the same style as the other restaurant, but I like the consistency and the style in general, the vintage mix and match tiles are a dream. I will say that the Marina Franco Manca is more airy, and spacious while keeping that homely feel.

The staff are super attentive, coming up straight away to get our drinks. They don't serve labeled beers or cider so Joe got the no logo larger, and I got a small glass of their Rose and an organic lemonade.

To start we got a platter of cured meat, served with rocket, parmigiano reggiano and fresh bread, which was lovely and surprisingly light, which was good as the pizzas are always really filling.

The Pizza menu consists of 6 standard sourdough pizza, with a meat and a veggie special on the board. Although, this seems like a small offering, I really do prefer going somewhere that has a few small dishes that they do well. Who needs the stress of trying to choose a pizza from 15 possibilities?

Joe (AKA the pizza fiend) ordered the tomato, mozzarella and basil adding the chorizo and I went for the Gloucester Old Spot Ham, mozzarella, buffalo ricotta and wild mushroom pizza, with a little bit of tomato.

The pizzas that come are a good size, not ridiculously big as some can be, and the base is great - often the main culprit in pizzas attack on my stomach, but sourdough seems to be my friend. The toppings are generous, without over loading the pizza. I like the fact that you can get a white and creamy pizza sauce if you are tired of the standard tomato too.

The pricing is very reasonable, so perfect for a quick lunch or pre-movie dinner. Not to mention on the second Tuesday of the month they actually hold a Pizza making class, for just £20, which I'm actually going to this week so will let you know how it goes.

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Brighton | Things I love about Brighton #PostcodePride

I'm sure I have said this a thousand times before, but I'm known for repeating myself, so I will say it again... I love Brighton. Apart from my uni years in Southsea, which is at least by the sea, I've got no experience of living anywhere else. People always talk bout Brighton being diverse and multicultural, it's definitely fair to say that we live in a small bubble, just look at the election result map.

When doing a recent address look up for our move I realised that it's hard to talk about my #PostcodePride without reeling off an endless list of restaurants, tours, shops, views or activities to do, so I am going to try my hardest.

Food

The Brighton restaurant/food game has really stepped up a notch in the last few years, with independent start ups appearing everywhere, Street Diner is a regular home to many of our finest food start ups. If you are in Brighton on a Friday between 11am and 3pm, pop along to Brighthelm Gardens, on Queens Road (the one leading down from Brighton station to the sea).

They have a plethora of foods, that will suit all taste and dietary requirements, with stalls catering for vegan and celiacs and cuisine ranging from Paella to cakes. One of my recent lunch break trips, led me to discover Steak Expectations, who served up this mouthwatering Steak and pomegranate flat breads. 

Steak Expectations - perfectly cooked Steak in Flat Bread with pomegranate salad. #expectsteak @expectsteak

A post shared by Lifestyle blogger | Lilla (@lillaloves) on May 12, 2017 at 5:43am PDT

We won't be silenced

Brightonians are quite political, we like to stand up for what we believe is right, stand up for those who have no voice and to stand up against inequality. This means that there are regular (peaceful) protests, against everything from fascism to breast feeding awareness protest. The biggest protest recently was against President Trump's Muslim Ban and his visit to the UK. 

Very briefly joined the protest. I'm so proud of my home town coming together to protest the #muslimban, our pathetic excuse for a prime minster and President "wankface". Being of Iranian heritage this has filled my heart. #buildbridgesnotwalls #lovetrumpshate

A post shared by Lifestyle blogger | Lilla (@lillaloves) on Jan 30, 2017 at 10:23am PST

Street Art

Whether it pays the bills or not, Brighton has a huge art community who like to get very creative, we are home to Jamie McCartney and his Great Wall of Vagina, after all. We love open house season; it's a great way to to find an excuse to day drink while nosing through peoples houses and admiring their home galleries. 

We are also home to a hell of a lot of graffiti. Banksy used the Prince Albert pub as a canvas to paint his controversial "Kissing Coppers" in 2004 and we are also home to MSK crew member Aroe, Cassette Lord and my personal favourite Minty, pictured below. 

Another @mintyonline special. #meditating #stormtrooper #starwars #graffiti #graffitiart #urbanart #igposseart #igpossestreetart #streetart

A post shared by Lifestyle blogger | Lilla (@lillaloves) on Sep 7, 2016 at 10:12am PDT

The Pavilion

I have a soft spot for the Pavilion, I spent much of my teens sitting in it's gardens enjoy it's beauty with my friends, I still go there sometimes on my lunch break. Summer days spent on the lawns sun bathing with a picnic hamper is a delight, there's a small cafe that does cakes, sandwiches and jacket potatoes.

The tour of the Pavilion is something I strongly recommend, it's history is truly fascinating, and if you get the chance treat yourself to a traditional High Tea, although be warned it's has a dress code, which states "wearers of t-shirts or jeans may not be permitted entry".

That's not all that the Pavilion has to offer, as based within it's grounds is the Brighton Museum and art gallery. It hosts exhibits for every one, from Brighton football fans to fashionistas.

The majestic Pavilion, looking like it's spring already, while the guys get it ready for summer. #brighton #pavilion

A post shared by Lifestyle blogger | Lilla (@lillaloves) on Feb 14, 2017 at 7:02am PST

The Sunsets

Having spent many a summer on the beaches of Brighton and Hove, there is one thing that can't be beaten, watching the sunsetting from the seafront. After a day on the beach a lovely stroll along the shoreline at low tide while the sun sets is so idyllic. But they are equally beautiful to watch with friends, sipping a rosé spritzer on the pebbles or at one of the many bars.

Sunset from the Marina #skyporn #sunset #sunsetbeach #Autumn #winteriscoming #brighton

A post shared by Lifestyle blogger | Lilla (@lillaloves) on Oct 30, 2016 at 10:35am PDT

If you are thinking of popping down to Brighton, then please ask me anything - I love helping people discover the best kept secrets of Brighton.

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Food | MOD Pizza Brighton Marina

Brighton Marina has just had a much-needed make-over, although we didn't need a third Bella Italia, a second Las Iguanas, or another GBK, there are a few additions that I was happy to see. One of them was M.O.D Pizza.

Joe is a Pizza fiend, boy loves his Pizza. I once went away on a family holiday without him and he ate nothing but Pizza for two weeks. I, on the other hand, have a love-hate relationship with Pizza, my mouth loves it, my gut hates it. I find that big chain Pizza places nearly always make me really ill, the independents tend not to cause me the same trouble.

My pizza issues did make me feel about worried about trying MOD, but I had nothing to be worried about. The way MOD is set up is similar to Subway, they have a small selection of pizzas you can order, or you can create your own beast, whatever you go for, no matter what you add it all costs the £7.47 (or £10.47 for a double base).

I had the Lucy Sunshine, which is artichoke, mozzarella, parmesan, red sauce - to which I added blue cheese and olives. Your pizza goes straight into the pizza oven when you order and then your name is called when it's ready.

Joe decided to get the Mad Dog (red sauce, ground beef, pepperoni, mozzarella and mild sausage) with added extra jalapenos. Being the huge pizza fan that he is, Joe decided to get a 'mega' pizza (£10.47) which has a double base. It is fair to see he was extremely pleased. They also do salads and sides, although the pizzas were more than enough for us. To drink, they have wine and beer, as well as iced tea, pink lemonade and the usual soft drinks. No doubt we will be back for a post-cinema meal soon.

Have you tried a MOD pizza? Would love to hear what you thought!

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FOOD | Jaime's Brighton Super Lunch Menu

In the last year, I have been doing a lot of treating myself. We have gone to expensive restaurants, binged on cocktails and definitely over-indulged ourselves. Our savings aren't growing as fast as it should, it's time to get back to being wiser with our money. But does that mean that we can't still treat ourselves? Of course not.

Normally we tend to go to independent Brighton and Hove restaurants - we have a lot of them and they are really good, and not all are costly.... unless you have all the margaritas... Guilty!! This means that we very rarely go to chain restaurants like Jamies Italian.

I used to work right above the Brighton restaurant on Black Lion Street and did pop to lunch on the rare occasion with colleagues, but that was before the Jamies Super Lunch menu came out - 2 courses for £10.95, or 3 for £12.95 - total bargain.

Joe and I ordered the Fritto Misto (crispy fried seafood and squid) and Pâté Bruschetta (chicken liver). Fried squid is a standard order of ours, but it's often a hit or miss dish, depending on the freshness of the squid. The few bits of squid were well cooked and not chewy, also the fennel was not too overpowering - we recently discovered Joe is not a fennel fan, but he didn't notice it. The Pâté was also lovely, and rich.

For main we both had the Gennaro Chicken Club, which is chargrilled chicken in a brioche bun with pancetta, spicy mayo, tomato, and lettuce. It was tasty, but not too filling. You could easily carry on with a shopping trip after this, without feeling like you need to sleep. If you want something a bit more filling, I'd say either order some fries or go for dessert... Which of course is what I did!

With a name like an Epic Brownie, you just can't say no. Restaurant brownies can be hard, or not gooey enough, this one was perfect and served with salted caramel ice cream and caramelised popcorn. It was totally tantalising.

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Brighton | Lady Chastity's Reserve - Can you solve the mystery this #Halloween?

This blog post is going to be as much a challenge to write, as the mystery was to solve. Wait, let me explain - I'm not saying that Lady Chastity is easy to complete, although we did do it with 9mins to spare #humblebrag, but I am going to have to try to explain how fantastic this was, without actually telling you anything about it.

For those of you who haven't done an escape room or hint hunt before - just do it. Get a good team together and just go for it. They are great - think crystal maze but more fun. In essence, you and your team are put in a room full of clues, riddles and an immersive story where you have to solve the puzzle in 60minutes or less. In the case of Lady Chastity's Reserve you are playing for a bottle of her aphrodisiac wine.

If you have done an escape room or hint hunt before, you will already understand what I am saying. You will understand the fun, the team building and how good it feels to solve the mystery or puzzle. I have done both before and really enjoyed them, so I knew I would love this, although it is slightly different to the ones before.

Lady Chastity's reserve is hosted in the back rooms of the Black Lion pub in Brighton, where you will be greeted by Gabriel, the games host. He's funny and filled with riddles and quick quips, but make sure you really listen to what he says before you get in the room. He can help you up to 3 times. Once in the sppoky room you will need to solve the mystery in the dark, each of you are armed with a torch to help you look for clues. Be careful while searching the room, there is plenty to make you jump.

I would really recommend going if you are looking for something spooky and different to do this Halloween and beyond!

Have you done an escape room before? Let me know what you thought of it.

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Food | Azaros Dhaba Hove Review

I do love a good curry – this can’t be a surprise, there isn’t really a food I don’t like. Oh, wait, there is – who on earth created crab sticks and what did we do to deserve them? Anyway, here I am getting side tracked again.

Back to curries. I very rarely tend to go out to eat curry, in fact, I don’t remember the last time I went to one in the UK. We used to go to the one down the road from the villa in Spain once in a while. I guess for me it’s a takeaway food, you know what I mean, you order the same things from the same place every time.

A couple of months ago, things changed when I was invited to review Azaros Dhaba. I’d heard great things about the restaurant, but because I was stuck in my curry rut, it was never high on my list of priorities.

Tucked away on Church Road, in what from the outside, looks like a tiny space, is Azaros. In a traditional setting where female head chefs are almost unheard of, Azaro Dhaba is not only challenging the ‘norm’, but they are also changing the way we think of the much-loved ‘curry house’.

Head chef Kirti Patel and husband Az, who attentively sees to the patrons, followed their life-long dream of setting up a restaurant that represented them and offered proper Indian food and culture with a contemporary, Dhaba-street food twist.

Azaro Dhaba offers proper regional, locally sourced, desi-food that is carefully selected for a truly authentic, Indian experience with a gastro-meets-contemporary vibe. They also cater to everyone’s needs, whether you’re dairy-free, gluten-free or vegan.

Greeted by Az, we were shown to our table, and given a drinks menu – get a cocktail they are amazing – I had a Mangollini. Az is a great host, you feel like you are in his house, he talks to you as if he has known you forever and is filled with so much knowledge (he would be really good on your pub quiz team). The more you talk to him, the more you hear how passionate he is about his culture, the food they serve and the history behind Indian food.

We started our meal with poppadums and 6 amazing chutneys, all made on-site at the restaurant. They were all fantastic. These were accompanied by Chevra (Indian street snack) and Far Far (like Indian crisps). We also had some sneaky gluten free onion bhajis - these are my new favourite thing! I could just eat these all day and be happy.

For main, I chose the Meat Thali, which is a mixture of several traditional Indian and desi dishes. Although there was a lot on my plate, it wasn’t overwhelming, the dishes were incredible, most notably Dadi-Ma’s dhal makhani was divine – I am not a big lentil eater, but I could not get enough.

Joe went for their Award winning Hyderabadi Biryani which is cooked covered with parda (bread) to lock in all the flavours and fragrances. He was defeated by the dish, but found it delicious and would order it again.

Since going to Azaro’s, I completed Whole30 and as a result, will be cutting down on gluten and dairy – so I see myself making a few return visits!

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BRIGHTON | Deliveroo Review - Aw that rhymes!

I love to go out for a good meal, but sometimes nothing beats a takeaway on the sofa, snuggled in front of the TV. Previously, we had a stack of menus for takeaway, the dodgy chicken shop down the road, the standard pizza place, that is guaranteed to give me pizza tummy, or the Indian that is always much better in your mind than in your mouth.

Brighton and Hove now has a better option - Deliveroo. Whether you use the website or the app - it is simple to use - just order from the plethora of places and watch its progress to your table in real-time. You can even follow the delivery driver as they cycle to you.

What I like the most is the places that you can order from - all firm favourites, or places that we have heard nothing but rave reviews from. I know I mention Coggins and Co. quite a lot but the thought of getting the Rarebit burger while binge-watching a series on Netflix with Joe is pure heaven. The only downfall is trying to keep Sega away!

Coggins usually has a longer waiting period than other places on offer, but for me, it is well worth the wait. I am a bit obsessive with checking the app and questioning the delivery drivers route, but what do I know! The burgers and chips are always hot when I get them and the delivery time (compared to the kitchen to table time) does not affect the quality of the food.

As well as, delivering delicious burgers to my doorstep for dinner, you can also order Breakfast from Langelees, ice cream and cake if you're in the mood for sweets, or treat yourself to the new lunch box from award-winning The Chilli Pickle.

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Although I regularly use Deliveroo, on this occasion I received a free Coggins &Co, delivery in return for this review. Once you try the Welsh Rarebit burger you'll see why!

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Brighton | 5 Local places to shop in Brighton and Hove (actually)

A week ago I was at an event for The Body Shop, if you didn’t know It’s just been their 40^th Birthday. One thing about The Body Shop is that it started off as a small independent shop in The North Laines, Brighton. While at the event they ran a selfie competition for their new campaign #EnrichNotExploit which led me to pledge to support local suppliers. Seeing as I won the competition, the prize was an awesome Ben Eine print, I thought I should start at home, telling you about local businesses, that I love.

Wick Candle Boutique, 120 Portland Road, Hove

Located next to Joe’s Barber shop, Wick Candle Boutique, as the name sells a large range of candles and incense as well as luxury soap, bath oils and salts. The second you walk into the shop, you are engulfed in fragrances – not as overpowering as it sounds I promise. They stock several ranges that are exclusive to area, as well as locally sourced candles.

As well as stocking cute Scrabble Letter candles, they also have expensive and luxurious fragrances for both women and men – Joe often has a mandle (man-candle) burning in his shop for his clients. They also do beautiful gift wrapping.

Coggins and Co., 87-93 Dyke Road, Brighton

I have already reviewed Coggins, and am actually about to feature them again shortly. I love a good burger, a few years ago the idea of me ordering a burger in a restaurant was laughable. But along with everyone else, and likely their mums, I am now forever on a hunt for the BEST BURGER in Brighton. Or at least I was – I found my ‘best burger’ at Coggins. It is the Mushroom Tapenade burger, served with Beef dripping chips and their garlic mayo. I order it every time we get a Deliveroo, or if we go to the restaurant. Joe is also very partial to the Bacon Cheese Burger (my close second).

 

Posh Totty Designs, Sydney Street, Brighton

Again, another brand that I have featured before, which has grown massively in the last few years is Posh Totty Designs. Stocking gorgeous jewellery, home ware and gifts, this local brand opened a second shop last year and also open a pop up shop on Brighton seafront in the Summer.

They sell lovely items which can be personalised, adding that lovely special touch to a gift and also have a wedding collection – not only does this include wedding bands, but gifts for bridesmaids.

Their stock is available on Not On The High Street as well as their website.

Market, 42 Western Road, Hove

Joe and I dropped in for lunch here a few weeks ago after several recommendations – it was so worth it. They have tapas-esque menu, as well as a normal one, which is great for me as I often get FOMO when ordering food, which means I can order ALL the food – not to mention they make amazing cocktails and décor, stunning. Ordered the Welsh Rarebit, Pig Cheek (divine), Buttermilk Chicken with Blue cheese sauce, as well as the Blue venison fillet – it was all so delicious.

Considering the quality of the food and the ingredients Market is very reasonably priced.

The Ancient Mariner, Poets Corner, Hove

Now my local, and my favourite pub in Hove, or atleast one of them, The Ancient Mariner is great all year round – when the weather is nice it’s the perfect location for outside drinks, not only do they have a beer garden, but they also have booths outside the front of the pub so you can bask in the sun. In the winter, they have a lovely covered area so you can sit out if you are partial to a dirty cigarette as I am. The drinks are reasonably priced, especially at happy hour, or if you live locally and your street is listed as the street of the week!

The food is good too – the Sunday Roast is really good – but you must book in advance to secure a plate – it’s very popular. As well as allowing kids, the pub is a dog-friendly and even features some of its regular pooches in a really cute photography series.

Do you shop local? What's your favourite indy shop or restaurant?

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