Remembering the original challenge
Recall, if you will, dear reader, the heady days of early 2020. The days before lockdown led us on the inexorable decline from sourdough and Zoom parties to eating directly out of the fridge in our underwear, cameras off (hopefully!).
Back then I was covering the Great Moshimo Vegan Challenge on behalf of RB. There were whispers that all might not be well. Restaurants were experiencing increased cancellations, but few could imagine what would come next.
How It Worked
The Great Moshimo Vegan Challenge was an event in every gastronome’s calendar. Taking place over a series of heats, Moshimo would open its kitchen to competitor restaurants, each curating a vegan dish that met the brief: what would a fish restaurant serve in a future where overfishing has emptied our oceans?
Local sustainability campaigners, Moshimo co-owners Nicky and Karl, would host the night, with Nicky compering, Karl schmoozing, and the diners doing the scoring.
Thus, the evening shone a dual spotlight on the creative talent of Brighton’s independent restaurants and served as a stark reminder of a very real possibility. It was brilliantly effective. Then we plunged into lockdown and an unknown world.
Moshimo turns 25!
This year, Moshimo turns 25, and to celebrate this monumental feat, Karl and Nicky hosted a one-off Vegan Challenge. Back after five years, the event sold out almost immediately.
A sold-out birthday special
We arrived at the iconic Opticon building (designed to resemble a floating lantern) to find a queue of diners already snaking out the door as Karl and his team welcomed us into the buzzing restaurant. Behind the gantry, a gaggle of Brighton chefs prepped plates, with row upon row of jewel-like dishes tantalisingly lined up beyond reach.
Taking part in the challenge tonight would be:
- Bonsai Plant Kitchen
- The Reading Room
- Fumar of Hove
- Cashew Catering
- The Earth and Stars
- Market
We would not go hungry, promised Nicky, as Moshimo would be serving their own dishes between courses. Scoring was ‘blind’, with marks out of 10 for three categories: presentation, flavour and originality.
Course by course
Yum Yum Napa Roll
First up was Yum Yum Napa Roll: teriyaki ‘beef’ rolls, served with yum yum mayo and a fermented green tea and tangerine rice cake. This was a beautifully presented dish, the cabbage roll stuffed with umami-flavoured ‘beef’, making for a hearty start to the evening.
Bound in Layers
Next up came Bound in Layers: celeriac terrine, charcoal coral tuile, yuzu and caramelised onion velouté and lovage oil. This looked as sexy as it sounded. Served on a black plate, the cube of wafer-thin slices of celeriac wore its charcoal coral tulle like a hat at fashion week. More than just looks, it delivered deep layers of earthy celeriac flavour and sharp citrus from the yuzu.
Are Oysters Vegan?
Next up was both a dish and a question: Are Oysters Vegan? The quick answer is no, they’re not. But the debate was allowed since everyone was having such a lovely time. Our smoked oyster mushroom arrived in a charcoal and tapioca shell on a seabed of lentils. It was an impressively creative construction and asked the counter-question: why bother with oysters at all when oyster mushrooms are so tasty? (I’ve never eaten an oyster, so can’t answer it myself.)
Beefy Beet Tartar
Next up was Beefy Beet Tartar. This presented a brightly coloured, Japanese-style beet tartar with sweet and earthy flavours, complemented by a soft, fluffy square of milk bread and crispy shallot rings. A wonderful mix of flavours and textures.
Sandcastle
Sandcastle was probably the most fun of all the dishes: an arancini sandcastle, complete with edible flag, made up the main part of the plate. Decorating it were an edible wasabi starfish, which vanished in a puff of nose-stinging flavour as it met your tongue, and a tiny pickled fish.
Sweet Beet
Lastly we had Sweet Beet: smoked beetroot, hazelnut tare and hazelnut rayu. The simplicity of ingredients did nothing to hamper this dish. True to his word, I wasn’t hungry by this point but could have eaten this several times over.
And the winners were…
In first place with Sandcastle was Great Moshimo Vegan Challenge veteran and previous winner Cashew Catering.
In second place, with the opening dish of Yum Yum Napa Roll, was The Earth and Stars.
In third place came Market with my personal favourite of the night, Sweet Beet.
Our second dish of the night, Bound in Layers, was from The Reading Room. Fumar provided us with the question about oysters, and Bonsai Plant Kitchen impressed us with the flavoursome and textured medley of Beefy Beet Tartar.
Final thoughts
Although this was pitched as a one-off to celebrate Moshimo’s twenty-fifth birthday, I sincerely hope it marks the return of this fantastic and uniquely Brightonian event. There was certainly an appetite for it, and I don’t think I’ve seen a restaurant that full of excitement since, well, since early 2020.
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