Every year brings its ups and downs to the bar and restaurant scene but the good news is that in Brighton and Hove it is still relatively buoyant, writes Nick Mosley.

Throughout 2019, many of our most well-known restaurants received recognition from notable food guides and awards including the AA, Hardens and Waitrose Good Food Guide.

October saw the 2020 Michelin Guide published, with The Set in Regency Square joining 64 Degrees and The Chilli Pickle as Brighton’s only Bib Gourmand holders.

Meanwhile Etch by Steven Edwards reached 16th place in the Hardens Bites top 100 UK restaurants earlier in December.

Established hospitality businesses have taken the opportunity to invest in their offering this year.

My Brighton hotel in Jubilee Square has refurbished its destination bar, Merkaba, while The Grand hotel ditched its GB1 seafood restaurant concept for Cyan, a more flexible casual dining venue with small and sharing plates.

Hove’s food and wine stalwart, Fourth and Church, took the opportunity to refresh and revamp.

The venue’s Paul Morgan said: “After four years in business we really knew what was distinctive about us and what our customers desired more of.

“Eager to present a clearer brand, increase capacity and comfort and improve appearance we jumped into a refit and rebrand.

“Getting the message that we are a social sharing restaurant that offers explosive, flavoursome small plate dishes matched with niche wine, quality spirits and outstanding sherry was key to our refurb and we were not going to wait till Brexit to do it.”

A number of seemingly infallible household name chains such as Jamie’s Italian have disappeared from Brighton, victims of an inability to rapidly adapt their business model to a changing marketplace.

Although chains have felt the squeeze, some new small and large multiples are scouting around the city for suitable premises including Mowgli, an Indian street food chain from Liverpool, Sri Lankan food specialists The Coconut Tree and US casual dining chain Eggslut.

The renowned Erpingham House from Norwich is also looking to establish a site in the city, bringing even more meat-free dining options.

Notable new openings this year include former Food For Friends owners Jane and Ramin Mostowfi taking on a new property on East Street.

Focused on local and seasonal produce from the land and sea and cooking on open fire is Kindling’s unique selling point.

The Gingerman group of restaurants made its first foray into the city centre with the opening of Flint House in the new Hanningtons Lane.

It is without doubt the anchor business of this new development in The Lanes but there are still a considerable number of empty shops that need to be filled to make this area bustling.

Wild Flor in Church Road in Hove has been making waves and is a well-received addition to the quality dining options at that end of the city, with its wine list rapidly recognised as one of the finest.

Was 2019 a good year to open a new restaurant?

Co-owner James Thomson said: “ We’re extremely happy to be in Hove and many of our demographic are very pleased about it too for reasons such as parking/walking distance from their house. For all the great press we’ve been fortunate to have and all the social media presence we’ve tried to create, its word-of-mouth that brings the majority of new custom our way.”

Champion of all things sustainable Douglas McMaster closed shop in Upper Gardner Street in the early summer.

A passionate and at times outspoken chef, he once claimed that “Brighton is not the town for such a forward-thinking restaurant”.

Silo has relocated to a new premises in Hackney, East London.

The Upper Gardner Street unit has been replaced by 640 East, with a focus on small plate dining packed with local and seasonal produce, alongside an interesting cocktail offering.

Two particularly sad losses from the food scene are cheesemonger La Cave à Fromage which closed suddenly during the summer, and Pascere in Duke Street which shut last Christmas.

Opened in a blaze of glory, the restaurant received acclaim from some of the UK’s top restaurant critics including Giles Coren, Tom Parker-Bowles and Marina O’Loughlin.

Pascere’s founder Amanda Menahem said: “While we had a loyal and growing customer base, the site and location proved challenging.

“We had high rents and not enough space. We regularly had to turn customers away at weekends something any restaurant business can ill afford to do.”

Bison Beer also decided to close its original site in East Street this Christmas.

Owner Jack Cregan said: “The decision is based purely on business realities, with a number of off-licences home and away also closing this year.”

Bison still has three other sites in the city and is working with Arundel brewery on a range of beer collaborations under the Next Level Brew name.

With numerous openings on the cards, including the launch of the Sessions Market food hall in the newly refurbished seafront Shelter Hall in the spring and even the Palace Pier jumping on the vegan bandwagon with a new concession, the future for Brighton’s independent food and drink scene appears positive.

Yet consumer spending across the entire retail and hospitality sector is still flat, meaning restaurants need to innovate their product and engage head-on with guests.

With a considerable proportion of the income of Brighton restaurant revenue derived from visitors rather than locals, we can certainly enjoy the quality and variety on our doorstep but should never take it for granted.

To ensure the continuing survival of our independent food and drink scene, buying local has never been more important.