This was published 12 years ago
Hotel du Vin & Bistro, review: Brighton's bold new wave
Brighton Beach.Credit: Getty Images
Stylish interiors, great food and sensible prices take a stay at a traditional English seaside town up several notches, writes Saska Graville.
I'LL admit it, I've never been a fan of the seaside town of Brighton - until a recent weekend changed my mind. A favoured haunt of stag and hen parties, and with a famous pier cluttered with tacky novelty shops and a tired-looking funfair, the Sussex spot (less than an hour by train from London) just wasn't my cup of tea. Think all the worst bits of the Bondi strip, without the sandy beach to make up for it (Brighton's seafront is pebbles).
But boy has it changed - although the pebbles remain. Yes, the gaggles of girls in tiaras and boys staggering after a few too many pints are still there but Brighton has acquired a chic streak. In among the Little Britain-esque crowds (and some of the sights you really couldn't make up), there's an emergence of something much, much cooler.
Chic streak ... a suite at the Hotel Du Vin.
Let's start with accommodation. Your choice for a Brighton night used to be old school and slightly fusty (think the Grand, where Margaret Thatcher's Conservative party conference was bombed by the IRA in 1984) or a cheap "dirty weekend" B&B. Thank god for Hotel du Vin. This British chain of hotels (there are 15 in total) promises stylish decor and great food (and wine, of course) at sensible prices. The hotels are always in interesting, quirky buildings and the menus and wine lists always impressive.
Brighton is one of the best. Housed in a mock-Tudor 1930s building just metres from the seafront is the 49-room hotel with a Pub du Vin next door. The look is grown-up and sexy, with a well-balanced mix of comfort and quirkiness. My bedroom was tucked in the eaves, with a weatherboard painted wood ceiling, sleek furnishings and a bathroom that I wanted to move into - huge walk-in waterfall shower, grey mosaic tiles and a large grey claw-foot bath on a raised wooden platform. Gorgeous.
As you'd expect from the hotel's name, wine and dining is a focus. A pre-dinner drink in the Pub du Vin is the perfect way to kick off an evening. With all the authentic touches of a proper British boozer, including jars of pickled eggs and onions on the bar and pewter tankards of local ale, the pub is a lovely addition to the hotel. But it's at dinner that Brighton Hotel du Vin really shines. With everything on the menu sourced from within 50-kilometre radius, my starter of seared scallops, cauliflower puree with chorizo and broad bean salad was mouth-watering.
As for my companion's whole grouse, game chips and bread sauce (it was the start of the shooting season), his only disappointment was that he didn't find any bits of shot, as warned by the waiter. And did I mention the dessert cocktails? How can you resist a creme brulee or tarte tatin martini? I certainly didn't.
A final foodie flourish came in the form of a farmers' market, set up in the hotel's courtyard on the Sunday afternoon to highlight the chef's commitment to local producers. Sampling cheddar from the nearby North Downs and raw-milk blue cheese from Kent, it was clear that Brighton (and Hotel du Vin) takes its gourmet credentials seriously.
If I sound obsessed with food, it's because this really is an area where "new" Brighton excels. Bill's Produce Store (billsproducestore.co.uk, no relation to the Sydney cafes) is a hybrid shop-with-cafe, packed with organic, locally grown produce and groceries. The menu offers salads, sandwiches and mezze plates and judging by the queue that didn't abate throughout the hour or so I was there, it's a big hit. As is the Lodestar Cafe, with its tables right next to the shingle.
But my favourite culinary discovery was Due South (duesouth.co.uk). I'm not surprised it was named best seaside restaurant in Britain by the influential Observer Food Monthly Sunday supplement. Eating oysters and fish soup as the sun shone and the sea sparkled under my nose, I could almost have been in Sydney.
Sitting on the seafront, it's clear to see that Brighton still attracts a mixed crowd and that's part of its personality. The smart Due South diners are worlds away from the jellied eel eaters on the pier and they sit alongside each other quite happily. You just need to choose which side of Brighton you want to experience. Walk east towards the pier and it's all noisy carousels and shops selling cheap tat and Brighton rock. But turn your back on it to head west and you'll find small galleries and cafes tucked into the arches that run under the road-level pavement. Castor & Pollux (castorandpollux.co.uk) is well worth a browse for its range of modern artwork, as is the neighbouring Two Kats And A Cow (twokatsandacowgallery.co.uk). Keep walking and the tacky Bondi-esque seafront turns into a conservation area of gleaming cream Regency terraces and squares. It's quite a sight, on a sunny day, to see such grandly elegant architecture shining in the light as waves crash on the shingle just metres away.
Yes, that shingle. If I could make one final improvement to "new" Brighton, it would be to bring in some sand. That would make the makeover complete.
The writer was a guest of Hotel du Vin.
Trip notes
Where Hotel du Vin & Bistro, Ship Street, Brighton, +44 1273 718588, hotelduvin.com.
How much Rooms from £135 ($215).
Top marks Delicious food and a vast and varied drinks list. Hotel du Vin's barman, Mike, is hugely knowledgable and his passion is infectious — I blame him for my dessert martini hangover, the irresistible concoctions were his creation.
Black mark Despite the hotel's efforts to get rid of them, a plague of pigeons nesting on the window ledges meant I was serenaded by their annoying cooing all night.
Don't miss Turn your back on the pier and walk along the beach towards the grand and beautifully preserved architecture of Bedford Square and Regency Square.
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