Cook it! Life’s a breeze

When it comes to good food and value, Breeze ticks all the boxes

Every time I visit Breeze Brasserie on Trafalgar Street I come away feeling two distinct things: I come away feeling very satisfied – a polite way of saying full – and I come away wondering why I left it so long to return.

Brighton and Hove has certainly turned a corner when it comes to dining, with national and international accolades for the food that is offered here in the city. Oh I know that there are many of you out there who still reckon that we are poorly served, but I challenge you to find a city or town of a similar size that offers such an amazingly diverse range of choices, from cheap and cheerful to fine; very fine indeed. And we are still the champions of independent businesses above national and international chain brands. That’s not to say that the chains are bad – some are great value for great food.

Here in Brighton and Hove, though, we have so many great local restaurants, and I rate Breeze Brasserie amongst them. Last year they even scooped the best family dining award at the prestigious Brighton and Hove Food & Drink Awards, and this year they only slipped back two places to a very dignified joint bronze – no indication of any drop in standards, but more likely that they made others look to their laurels.

It was a lovely late summer’s day when I popped along for lunch with Ms S., a favourite dining companion despite being one of those ‘veggies who eats fish’. In truth, she has a good palate and really enjoys her food, so she makes a perfect partner when it comes to slipping in for a review. She also has a hearty appetite; very useful when I fail after two courses and need someone to brace themselves for a pudding.

We started with bread and olive oil and balsamic. I like it, and for a moment it makes me feel virtuous about not eating butter. It was good bread too, with a really tasty crust. Ms S. kicked off with the spicy squid. I recommended it as I had tried it several times and loved it, and I know she has a penchant for a spot of chilli. It looked as good as ever and she made very light work of it.

I chose the mussels which I was told were wild. Well, I would be fairly livid too if I had been tossed in a pan with some garlic and shallots and a glass of white wine. I love moules mariniere, and I have to say I am tired of all the silly variants that have arisen with the advent of ‘fusion’. The classic allows you to taste the mussels, and this was perfectly classical with just enough light broth to spoon up at the end or, as I did, mop up with the bread.

Ms S. moved on to a salmon and asparagus risotto. It’s a favourite of mine too, and a dish that I avoid often since the advent of restaurants serving it in doll’s portions. I mean really, a main course should leave you feeling sated surely? At Breeze the portion is generous, and I mean that in every sense; plenty of soft rice, not too soft, and packed with fish and asparagus. To be honest, I am not sure I would have been able to finish it, but Ms S. did, clearing her plate. Which of course left me worried that she would not be able to step in to tackle pud.

I was torn in my choice, but in the end I chose a lamb dish with honey and mint. It’s a great combination of flavours that I have encountered in many cuisines so I was intrigued to see how it would be done here. My favourite version is an Indian dish that also has apricots, and knowing that the chef at Breeze is of Indian descent, I wondered how he would tackle it. I also chose it because it came with mashed potato, and I was in a mashed potato sort of mood.

The dish was excellent and the honey element well measured – a musky sweet edge rather than a cloying stickiness – and the mint was judiciously applied too. I loved the toasted pine nuts on top and the mash was perfection. By ‘perfection’ I mean that it tasted of potato, and not of dairy products. I know it’s fashionable to make your mash with almost half cream and butter to potato, but in the end the potato becomes a carrier for the rich dairy flavours. Breeze mash is potato heaven, smooth and creamy but retaining the real flavour of spuds. The vegetables were good too, hidden beneath the generous slices of lamb which actually kept them piping hot.

Of course by this point I was full and in no condition for a pud, which is a tragedy – and Ms S. declared herself out. Well, for a moment she did. I could see in her eyes that she hankered afer a sweet and sticky ending, so I agreed to share one. Of course this led to further debate but finally she settled on the chocolate pudding, a delicious idea except that it was an unseasonably hot day. She too realised this, and at the last moment bowled a curve ball and changed the order to banoffee pie.

I think banoffee is a dangerous choice; there are too many bad ones out there, too sweet and lacking in simple ingredients that I know were in the original recipe. I had a mouthful of the Breeze version, and it was pretty good. I would have liked some coffee in the cream, but it was well balanced with not too much dulce de leche and nice ripe banana.

With our meal we were advised to try a glass (large) of the picpoul, and good advice it was too, with so much more character than your average house wines. I finished with a heart stoppingly good double espresso, and after a few hearty goodbyes I waddled – yes I was very full – off into the afternoon sun.

Breeze Brasserie, 98 Trafalgar Street, Brighton, BN1 4ER, 01273 693377, breezebrasserie.co.uk

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