The best ways to spice up your life with Indian food in Brighton and Hove

Curry has been high on the culinary agenda in the UK for many years, whether eaten out, delivered in or, much more frequently now, cooked from scratch at home as we become at one with a pestle and mortar.

But let’s face it, having a delicious, aromatic dish lovingly prepared by the experts and placed in front of you while you have a drink and a chat with friends, eating out is still the very best way to enjoy a curry.

Back in the day, we were perfectly happy with a mild chicken tikka masala as our curry of choice, but over the last decade we have become bolder, happy to experiment and try dishes most of us can barely pronounce.

There are now more than 9,000 Indian restaurants to choose from in the UK and some of the very best of them are right here in Brighton. Lucky us.

Thanks to TripAdvisor we have gathered together the cream of the crop, the nice-iest of the spiciest if you will.

Indian Summer currently sits at the top of the pile with a four and a half star rating based on 1,248 reviews.

Owner Byron Swales said: “We are delighted to be number one on TripAdvisor.

“We strive very hard to continually improve our service and menu from listening to our customers feedback here at Indian Summer.

“Adapting dishes to help with dietary requirements is key to customer satisfaction, as well as ensuring service is of the highest level to give everyone a memorable dining experience.”

Read on for the best of the rest, and don’t blame us if you have to go out for a curry tonight.

Curry facts

The UK’s first Indian restaurant opened more than 200 years ago in Portman Square, London, and was called the Hindustani Coffee House. 

The word curry comes from “kari”, the Tamil word for spiced sauce, which was originally a thin, soup-like, spiced dressing served in southern India.

The tallest stack of poppadums was 1.72m and was created by Tipu Rahman at The Tamarind Restaurant in Northampton in October 2012.

The largest curry weighed 15.34 tonnes and was achieved by the Indian Chefs and Culinary Association in Singapore in August 2015.

In 2013, a consultant radiologist called Ian Rothwell successfully ate the world’s hottest curry at a restaurant in Lincolnshire. It contained 20 Naga Infinity chillies, giving it a 6m ranking on the Scoville scale.

The largest naan bread ever made weighed 32kg and was made in Toronto, Canada, in April 2016.

The longest curry delivery, ordered by Jon Wise and James Crisp was delivered over 11,701 miles from Christchurch, New Zealand to Manchester, UK.

Bayleaf, St James’s Street

Bayleaf is the baby of the Indian restaurant family but has made a huge impression on its clientele in the six short weeks since it opened.

Manager Muki Rahman said: “It’s been brilliant so far, our success has been down to word of mouth among the locals. Everyone here is so friendly.

“The weather here this week has slowed things down a little but hopefully that won’t last too much longer.”

Muki recommends the Naz Butterfly for starter and the Chicken Nilgiri for your main.

MANJU’S, Trafalgar Street 

Manju’s is family run and one the newest Indian restaurants in Brighton, opening less than a year ago.

As you enter, you are greeted by two brothers who work the room telling stories about their 81-year-old mother who is busy in the kitchen below preparing your meal.  Gujarati Manju grew up in Uganda and was taught to cook at the age of 14.

In 1972 she arrived in London with just £12 and two young boys.

Finally, the octogenarian has had her dream realised and now runs her own restaurant, arriving early every morning to grind the spices and make the Indian snacks by hand.

Indian Summer, East Street 

Founded in 2001 by Minesh Agnihotri and Byron Swales, Indian Summer describes itself as the vanguard of the new wave of modern Indian restaurants.

They aim to bring authentic cooking to Brighton via their team of chefs, who have all worked in some the best restaurants across India.

Indian Summer is listed in the Top 100 Restaurants in the UK by the Cobra Good Curry Guide and claims to offer “truly pan-Indian fine dining”.

The slick décor, leather-bound menus and attentive service make dining there feel like a special treat, somewhere to go to celebrate an occasion, or simply because you deserve it.

Curry Leaf Cafe, Ship Street

This bright and contemporary Indian restaurant is the first of the growing Curry Leaf Café chain and opened in 2014.

It offers delicious South Indian street food and curries and has a decent menu of craft beers to complement your meal perfectly.

The café offers the chance to grab a quick something for lunch. Come the evening, the menu has more substantial dishes such as thali platters, dosas and tandoor naan wraps.

Memories of India, Brighton Marina

This well established restaurant opened 14 years ago and is a popular with those visiting the area.

There are plenty of regular customers too, who pay a visit to the Memories of India team on a weekly basis.

Members of the kitchen team hail from various parts of India and aim to create dishes with a modern twist while using a balance of tasty but healthy ingredients.

Butter chicken is a big hit with diners so bear that in mind next time you are marina-bound.

The Chilli Pickle, Jubilee Street

You would be hard pressed to miss The Chilli Pickle with its eye-catching colour scheme and vibrant décor.

It is owned and run by a well-travelled husband and wife team, Alun and Dawn Sperring, and offers an exciting selection of Indian food prepared by a team of chefs with specialisms in different regional cuisines.

Planet India, Richmond Parade 

Planet India’s menu is entirely vegetarian thanks to the Gujarati heritage of the husband and wife team who run the restaurant.

Nilesh and Mamta Rupani opened Planet India ten years ago in Brighton and it’s a firm favourite with locals and visitors alike.

Non-veggies need not worry – you won’t go home hungry. The menu is a mouth-watering mix of tasty Indian dishes to fill the emptiest of bellies.