The Ginger Pig

At first glance, it looks like your average, old-fashioned town boozer, but The Ginger Pig is actually a light, airy spruced-up gastropub, serving expertly cooked “upmarket” food at reasonable prices. From the team behind Brighton’s much-loved Gingerman restaurant, this boozy venture also follows the ‘seasonal and local’ ethos – with a few telling add-ons from elsewhere. “I’ve never had a bad bite here”, notes a fan, who reckons the cooking is “to die for”. On offer, there might racy on-trend starters such as crispy pork neck with kimchi purée and grilled lettuce or pickled mackerel with cherry tomatoes, grilled fennel and pickled cucumber, while mains could take in anything from burgers and bone-in sirloins to roast monkfish with spiced potatoes, crispy squid, black garlic, spinach and curry velouté. Desserts often show a retro twist (chocolate and cherry sundae with almond praline, for example), and the drinks list stretches much further than your average pub offering – note the barrel-aged cocktails and English sparkling wines. Service is “just fabulous”, and “amazing roasts” also get the vote.

Top gastropub The Ginger Pig serves traditional food sourced from Sussex’s finest suppliers. Upstairs, there are 11 en-suite double rooms for those who want to make a gastronomic getaway of it, but its ground-floor restaurant is without a doubt a dining destination in its own right. It's part of the wider Ginger Restaurant Group, which has a total of four restaurants in Brighton including The Gingerman, The Ginger Fox and The Flint House. The group is headed up by Ben Mckellar and wife Pamela, who were both born and bred in Brighton.

The Ginger Pig is the second restaurant to open from the husband-and-wife duo, located on Hove Street where it specialises in an ever-changing seasonal menu of simple and uncomplicated dishes. To start, you might expect to enjoy the likes of buckwheat cavatelli with cavolo nero, pistachio and tarragon pesto and pangritata, or tempura fish tacos with picked kohlrabi slaw, chipotle crème fraîche and jalapeños. Mains feature locally sourced meat and fish, including Wild Sussex brill with fondant potato, chard and cep butter, as well as chicken and smoked ham hock pie with braised carrot and mash. Desserts end things on an indulgent note with a milk chocolate and miso tart, dark chocolate ganache and hazelnuts.

Kick off your meal with a drink in the bar. Here, classic cocktails are complemented by ‘Pig Classics’, while a selection of Champagnes, wines and premium bottles offer a tipple for every taste. A number of coravin wines allows the restaurant to offer an even larger selection.

The Ginger Pig is open for all-day dining and as such offers breakfast and brunch. Think breakfast toasties with bacon, onion jam, Emmenthal and a fried egg, or shakshuka with hazelnut and almond romesco.