Bohemia: "some of the best bistro style dining to be found in the Lanes"

Thai shrimp, moules mariniere and burrata with tomatoes at Bohemia

Many people might think of Bohemia as a cocktail bar or purely an evening venue, writes Nick Mosley.

The reality is its open daily from noon for food and drinks and – in my opinion – has some of the best bistro style dining to be found in the Lanes. As an avid martini quaffer, I can also attest to their cocktails being mighty fine too.

Regular readers of my musings may recall I did a lunch review of Bohemia in the summer of last year and I raved about their sea bass dish. Looking back, it was definitely in my top ten dishes of the year so there was a high bar to meet on my recent visit at the end of October.

I popped by for a late lunch with a couple of colleagues on a Monday. Unsurprisingly the venue wasn’t particularly busy but we were joined by three or four other tables on the upper mezzanine level so there was a pleasant buzz of chatter accompanied by an upbeat yet unobtrusive soundtrack of vocal jazz standards.

As with my previous visit, the set menu is cracking value with two courses for £24 or three for £28, and a choice of three starters, mains and desserts. As there were three of us dining that worked out pretty well.

Whilst we caught up on Brighton tourism news and gossip, my regular guest Little Miss Greedy Guts and I sipped on cocktails whilst my other guest – who is the Queen of Brighton networking so I’ll anoint her with the title – had a fresh and fruity house white wine.

As I had another review to do later that day, I thought I’d go light so opted for the vegetarian dishes. If I’m perfectly honest, the starter dish of ripe, flavour-packed Isle of Wight heritage tomatoes tossed in basil infused olive oil and topped with a beautifully creamy burrata cheese would have happily fed me. The spherifications of balsamic vinegar added an extra level of depth, perfectly cutting through the cheese.

Little Miss Greedy Guts is a rather predictable diner; unless I force her hand then its always prawns and chicken. So unsurprisingly the Thai-style tiger prawns appeared and they were very much a work of art when it came to presentation. Four meaty head-on prawns in a rich, spicy soy and lime sauce topped with coriander and red chillies.

The Queen enjoyed a steaming starter of juicy mussels in a classic marinière broth of shallots, garlic, parsley and white wine. A simple and straightforward dish that was well-executed, although it definitely needed some crusty bread to mop up the moreish cooking liquor.

Japanese style aubergine at Bohemia

If I’m honest, I had mixed feelings about my main of miso and soya glazed aubergine. This Japanese-inspired dish is becoming ubiquitous on restaurant menus at the moment and I think its best kept simple. Visually the plating was pretty spectacular but I felt there was a bit too much going on with flavours and textures for my palate. The coconut curry sauce was delicious but there was simply too much of it and it overwhelmed the other elements.

Both of my guests opted for the fish and chips, which I eyed enviously. Fish and chips are one of my absolute all-time favourites; when done well they are heavenly. Bohemia’s kitchen not only nailed it, they smashed the cod out of the ballpark. Over a foot of perfectly crisp batter coating steaming ivory flakes of gently sweet fish with ‘proper’ chips and mushy peas.

Fish and chips at Bohemia

We whiled away a couple of very pleasant hours before my phone buzzed to remind me I had a lobster with my name on it at a restaurant around the corner so unfortunately we had to skip dessert much the protestations of Little Miss Greedy Guts who felt very badly done to when I said there was no time for a rhubarb crumble. It was like dealing with a toddler rather than a pensioner.

I already knew that service would be impeccable – Yasmin, Joe and Sam are superstars on the Brighton hospitality scene. Knowledgeable, professional and never short of a smile, they’ve got customer service in their DNA.

All-in-all, other than my personal niggle about the sauce on my main – which is easily rectifiable – I’d say this was a faultless and affordable lunch in one of the most atmospheric venues in the centre of Brighton. And as my guests attested, the best fish, chip and martini lunch in town.

Bohemia, 54-55 Meeting House Lane, Brighton BN1 1HB

01273 777 770 • www.bohemiabrighton.co.uk