Kindling Restaurant Brighton
Newly opened in December 2019 on East Street in the Lanes, Kindling restaurant Brighton is the newest fine dining experience to join the famous 'restaurant street'.
Kindling restaurant Brighton gathers inspiration from the seasons, the local environment and elements. The concept focusses on meals that are for sharing and food that is good for the body and planet. Central to the dining experience is the element of fire which used to cook with, adding depth of flavour. But also as a focus within the restaurant, recalling our primal instinct to congregate for warmth, community and sustenance.
Inside Kindling Restaurant
The decor at Kindling is pared back and elegant, using reclaimed timbers and natural tones, inspired by the restaurant's land, sea and fire concept.
What to expect
The food at Kindling restaurant is 'good food, done well' balancing nutrition with wow factor and respect for the environment. Diners can expect show-stopping starters and bar snacks such as crispy pork skin with gribiche (see our video below). Seasonal mains might include delights such as local Saddlecoombe hogget with salted apple, celeriac, quince and onion.
With its emphasis on dining as a social activity, the Kindling Feast menu is an impressive addition to the menu. The family-style feast is perfect for parties or special occasions (although the people at Kindling would say the feast is a special occasion in its own right, and we're inclined to agree!).
New year new offers
This year Kindling are bringing some exciting new offers to their lunchtime menu. If you're out in town on a lunch date or meal break then make sure you take advantage of their two to three course meal options. They both included wine and are available Tuesday to Saturday. Or, if its someone extra special that your meeting, then you might want to sample the Sharing Plate. You'll have the choice of either a succulent 400g Ditchling Angus Sirloin or a whole local catch. This offer is available Tuesday to Wednesday and both are served with fries, grilled hispi and a perfectly paired bottle of wine. Keep an eye on weekday offers via the Kindling website or sign-up to their newsletter.
On Sundays, there's a family set menu for groups of two or more, beginning with a selection of snacks followed by a full roast, given the Kindling treatment, and gorgeous sharing desserts. The menu is equally well placed for plant-based as it is for meat and fish, including a full vegan Sunday set menu.
The Kindling restaurant team
Kindling's owners, Ramin and Jane, are well known on the Brighton food scene, having owned Food For Friends for 15 years, establishing it as one of Brighton's most successful restaurants and a trailblazer for vegetarian and vegan dining. Adding to the team chefs Holly Taylor and Toby Geneen with Phillip Scott (formally of Michelin starred St John Restaurant, London) running the front of house, all bringing excellence to the Kindling restaurant experience.
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Our second visit to Kindling and equally as good as our first and probably more impressive as we arrived to a full restaurant and tables being ‘turned’ throughout the evening. Our first visit was only a few days after opening and they were already setting an excellent benchmark but with a full restaurant this time and an all different pressure the standards and experience didn’t drop at all.
We received a warm welcome and the conversational hum of a buzzing successful restaurant was evident. The service was personal, engaging and delivered with a smile. The food was excellent and we were delighted the menu had changed since our last visit. Again we had the ‘taste of Kindling’ menu, which was excellent, and we struggled to find which course was our favourite – the humble carrot dish was superb and the textures in the leek dish excellent.
We left a review after our first visit and suggested that if Kindling carried on in the same vein it had started it would become a favourite in the Brighton dining scene and based upon our experiences it will be right up there.
We will be back but only periodically so it remains one of our special / favoured restaurants within Brighton. We’ll certainly continue to recommend Kindling to friends.