BRAVOs
BRAVOs

THE BRAVO AWARDS

Behind the Glory: What It’s Like to Win a BRAVO Award

The impact of winning a bRaVO

Winning a BRAVO Award is a game-changer for any hospitality business. It’s more than just a trophy—it’s proof that your venue is loved and celebrated by the paying public. This recognition elevates your profile, showcasing your business to potential customers and gaining respect among industry peers.

The impact on your team is just as powerful; winning brings your staff together, boosts morale, and inspires pride in their hard work. Plus, with heightened visibility, your business can expect increased footfall and enhanced marketing opportunities. A BRAVO Award doesn’t just acknowledge excellence—it helps your business thrive and grow. 🌟

Enjoy these quotes from BRAVO 2024 winners and past years, as they share what these awards mean to them.

Best Brunch – Oeuf

Wow, what an egg-citing honor to win Best Brunch in 2024 and Best Café in 2023 at the Brighton BRAVO Awards! A huge thank you to our amazing customers and the Brighton community for loving what we do—whether it’s enjoying Frumpets™ in our cosy corners, sipping juicy Bloody Marys in the Secret Garden, or soaking up those comforting Oeuf vibes with friends.

These awards have truly been a game-changer, boosting our online visibility, helping us rank higher on Google, and bringing even more foodies and coffee lovers through our doors. We’re so grateful for the support that’s made Oeuf Café a must-visit spot in Brighton. Here’s to brunching big in Brighton and Hove!

Amber and the Oeuf Café Team

Best International Restaurant – Nostos

We are absolutely thrilled to have received this award for best international cuisine – it’s a true testament to the hard work and passion of our entire Nostos team.

This recognition not only boosts our brand visibility but also strengthens the trust our customers place in us. It’s incredibly rewarding to see the impact it has already had on our business, with new customers discovering us and loyal ones celebrating alongside us.

We are deeply grateful to everyone who voted and to the BRAVO team for shining a spotlight on the vibrant, innovative community we’re proud to be part of. Here’s to an even brighter 2025!

Kyriakos Baxevanis – Nostos

Best Sunday Roast – Ladies Mile Pub

Being the winner of the Bravo Award 2024 for the best Sunday roast was one of our biggest achievements yet after 21 years in hospitality!!!! Sunday’s has always been buzzing here but since winning theres not a Sunday that goes past where we don’t hear….. ‘now I know why they won the bravo award!!!’

Business has definitely improved thanks to Bravo!!! Potential customers go online to do their research before going out and seeing award winning…. They come to us!!  

Myself, Paul, Jamie & all the staff feel incredibly proud!!! And grateful for all the votes from loyal customers & our community without them we wouldn’t be where we are today.

Gayle Newman – The Ladies Mile

Best Sussex Restaurant – Crabshack

We are delighted to have won best Sussex restaurant for the second year running.

It means so much to us all, especially as it is a completely public vote.

We are nothing without our wonderful regulars and thank them all so much for voting for us ! Can’t wait to see the award!

Sarah Tinker-Taylor, Crabshack in Worthing

 

Best Brighton Restaurant – terre a terre

We are staggered and delighted to have won this award for best Brighton restaurant, and beyond grateful to everyone who voted for us. Terre à Terre is the product of an incredible team, wonderful customers and a thriving restaurant community.

We’d be nothing without all these elements. Brighton and Hove is teeming with amazing independent hospitality venues, we’re so proud to be just one of them, and we all need the lovely people of the City to keep supporting us all as they’ve done so amazingly throughout these difficult times.

We feel very humbled to receive this award and look forward to feeding you all for a long time to come! And thank you to the Restaurants Brighton team!

Amanda Powley – Terre à Terre

Best Cocktail – The permit Room

Winning the 2024 Best Cocktails was an incredible feeling. Our team poured endless effort into crafting a cocktail menu that’s fresh and exciting for the Brighton bar scene. 

We can’t thank you enough for voting and supporting us – it’s truly been a game-changer, boosting our visibility as a leading name in cocktails in the city.

Looking forward to another fantastic year ahead.

Minnie & Hayley – Dishoom Permit Room Brighton

Best Coffee – Komodo

What an amazing surprise to receive the Bravo award for best coffee almost one year to the day since we opened! We are truly humbled.

The coffee we are lucky enough to brew has come on a long journey by the time we receive it, so thank you to all the awesome producers, and to our partners Kofra Coffee who source and roast to perfection.

Much love to everyone that voted, and to all the wonderful people that make Komodo such a lovely place to hang out and drink coffee. Thank you! Komodo x 

James Cowan- Komodo Coffee 

Best Lunch – Lost in the lanes

I am so thrilled to have won best lunch in Brighton in this year’s Bravo awards.

I am especially happy for my incredibly hard working, talented team, lead by head chef Sophie and manager Zoe.

We would love to say thank you to all our loyal customers by raising a glass of fizz together, just pop by one day and say ‘bravo’ and one of the team will pour you a complimentary glass!’

Natalie Demetriou – Lost in the Lanes

BEST SUSSEX PUB – THE EIGHT BELLS JEVINGTON

Thank you to everyone who voted for us!

We’ve worked hard to make our gem of a village pub a real destination and are over the moon to be your Sussex pub of the year!

The Eight Bells, Jevington




best takeaway – Social board 

Thank you to all our customers who voted for us in the BRAVO awards. We have worked so hard since 2018 to have the sexiest sandwiches in Brighton and are looking forward to making many more for all of you!

Big thanks to our fantastic staff for putting so much effort into taking part in the BRAVO awards. We are so happy!”

Tomasz Kowalski – Social Board

 

BEST team – il bistro

We are so delighted to win the best team award as this is the award that means the most to us.

Every one of us dedicates our lives into what we do to provide the best experience possible for our guests. Our ethos at IL Bistro is the customer isn’t a king or queen and that’s because they’re a friend. I believe our attitude towards what we do is the reason we have been trading for nearly 50 years.”

Abe – Il Bistro

 

best for vegans – bonsai plant kitchen

My team at Bonsai were over the moon to have received the “Best Vegan Restaurant“ award two years running.

To see what started as a small pop-up during Covid grow into a real restaurant concept three years on still feels somewhat surreal.

BRAVO was one of our first awards that we won and has always been a big supporter. Working with them over the past few years has been massively beneficial for us. Thank you to everyone who voted last year, and a big thank you to the Restaurants Brighton team!

Dominic Sherriff – Bonsai Plant Kitchen

BEST wine list – fourth & church

‘We are thrilled to take the top award for Brighton’s Best Wine List and are extremely grateful to everyone who voted for us.
 
Our wine lists, retail shelves and online offerings are packed full of eclectic, niche bottles sourced from the best indie merchants and small artisanal producers.
 
Our small but perfectly formed team of wine professionals strive to offer the best advice and service to all of our customers, so the award is such positive recognition for all the amazing work that our producers and team perform on a daily basis, without which there would not be a Fourth and Church wine list.
 
The annual Bravo awards play such an important part within the local hospitality landscape and the awards are significant in generating plenty of interest from new customers who may not have visited us previously.
 
We have seen the far reach of the Bravos really get the Fourth and Church brand out to a new audience and generate growth within our community and beyond.
 
Thank you to the team at Restaurants Brighton for all their efforts and a great awards party!!!!’
 

Paul Morgan – Fourth and Church

eat well for less – halisco

Both me and Mo are humbled to win the award, we really felt like we were strong contenders and it paid off nicely!

And a massive shout out to all of our customers who voted!

Ali – Halisco

 

 

BEST for the family – moksha

We’re delighted to win another BRAVO!

The team tries to make everyone feel welcome and being a family business it’s great to win the family-friendly category this year.

Oli Trafford – Moksha Caffe

 

 

most sustainable – majahma

Woooooowwwweeeee!!! Thank you Brighton! Sustainability is at the core of how we set Majahma up, so you can imagine being voted most sustainable really means the world to us.

We’re so lucky to be making food we love, in a way we love for a town we love. Thank you all so much for voting for us. Nish, Roo and Team Majahma xxx

Nish Fatania – Majahma

 

BEST brighton PUB – The eddy

As a small family run pub, we feel totally honoured to have won first place in the category “Best Brighton Pub” as absolutely we weren’t expecting it!

After having won “Best Local Pub” last year, it just goes to show that size isn’t everything and we must be doing something right!

Thank you to Bravo for this inspiring competition and to all our locals who voted and love the pub as much as we do.

Hatt Eaton – The Eddy

 

best cafe – starfish and coffee 

To have won a fifth BRAVO just blows my mind.

We have always aimed to be the best in every department of what we do, so to have won the Best Cafe award, which recognises not just our food & drink, but also the environment, the team and our place in the local community means so much to us.

We’re just absolutely thrilled and can’t thank everyone who voted for us enough!

Tony Marks – Starfish and Coffee

 

best cafe – starfish and coffee 

To have won a fifth BRAVO just blows my mind.

We have always aimed to be the best in every department of what we do, so to have won the Best Cafe award, which recognises not just our food & drink, but also the environment, the team and our place in the local community means so much to us.

We’re just absolutely thrilled and can’t thank everyone who voted for us enough!

Tony Marks – Starfish and Coffee

 

Winners Quotes from previous BRAVO winners

The BRAVO Awards have been celebrating Brighton and Hove’s vibrant food scene for many years, with plenty of delighted winners along the way.

These awards recognise the city’s best restaurants, cafés, and bars, as voted for by the public, making them a true reflection of local favourites. Winning a BRAVO is a huge achievement, and over the years, many venues have shared what it means to them.

Take a look at past winners and see how these awards have shaped Brighton’s dining scene, highlighting the creativity, passion, and dedication that make this city’s hospitality industry so special.

The Little Fish Market – Winner of best restaurant 2020

All the team at The Little Fish Market are thrilled to have won the BRAVO for Brighton’s Best Restaurant. We’re so grateful to our loyal customers for taking the time to vote for us. So, thank you to you all.

Duncan Ray – The Little Fish Market, Winner of Best Brighton Restaurant

Robin Hood – Winner BRAVO Best Pub 2019

Winning the award for Best Pub was a great feeling, and we were grateful to all of our lovely and loyal customers who voted for the Robin Hood. We knew we had a good customer base, but we didn’t expect them to be so kind and to take the time to vote for us.

We were very proud to win the award, so we decided what was best was to tell as many people as possible, including writing it on the side of our pub on a large blackboard. This caught many people’s eyes who then either congratulated us or decided to check out the best pub in Brighton and Hove.

It’s great to be listed next to such prestigious, reputable and delicious businesses in the Bravo awards. Here’s to Bravo 2020.

Chris Dodd – Landlord, The Robin Hood.

Purezza – Plant Champions Winner 2020

The BRAVOs are Brighton and Hove’s biggest independent awards voted for by the people who really matter – the general public.

It’s a real showcase of amazing restaurants, cafes, bars, and eateries of all shapes and sizes and a true love letter to the Brighton food scene. Any venue can be featured, and anyone can vote – it’s a chance to give some love to the venues you care about… and if that happens to be us at Purezza, then we’d love your vote for 2022!

Purezza, Plant Champions Winner 2020

The Roundhill Pub – Multi-Award Winner

The BRAVOs are a highlight of the hospitality year in Brighton. There’s always lots of buzz in the six weeks of voting and the results are eagerly awaited.

We were so honoured to have won Best Roast and place in the top 20 for a few other categories. We had a huge response from winning the award, making the news in multiple countries.

Our booking increased and added even more credibility to our business as we were only a couple of years open. Also beating the many great roast sites really means anyone can win it if they try hard enough.

The Roundhill Pub, Winner of Best Sunday Roast

The Grand Hotel Brighton – Winner Best Afternoon Tea 2019, 2020

Both our team and our returning guests were very excited about the award, it’s incredibly motivating to be recognised in the BRAVOs and has doubtlessly encouraged new guests to visit to try the best afternoon tea in Brighton!

Winning a BRAVO is a great feeling. It’s been a lovely achievement for my team who create the outstanding components of our very grand tea, and knowing that it’s all voted for publicly makes it an even more valuable accolade for us.

To win this award, we did what we do best, focusing on delivering an exceptional experience for every one of our guests. It’s not just all about the components of the tea here; it’s our whole team and the atmosphere of the Victoria Lounge that makes it such an occasion.

I think having these awards motivates and inspires businesses, and creates a bit of healthy competition amongst the chefs! It’s fun and interactive getting involved, and we enjoy working alongside Restaurants Brighton to help promote the culinary highlights of our city.

Alan White – Executive Chef, The Grand.

etch. Winner of Best Restaurant 2019

Winning the Best Restaurant BRAVO was a very proud moment for the team. Not only to win but to be publicly voted for makes it so much more special. We are in debt to the local support we have received since opening in 2017.

During the competition we campaigned using social media but most importantly verbally to our guests when they dined with us.

Being a small local business has its challenges; by raising awareness of independent restaurants the BRAVOs really help bring in guests who want to support local enterprises. Winning a BRAVO has helped us to establish ourselves in the Brighton & Hove Food Scene. I also believe it has helped get new guests to try our restaurant.

Steven Edwards – etch.

Moshimo – Winner BRAVO Most Sustainable Restaurant 2019, 2020

MOSHIMO is a restaurant that has been founded on ethical and sustainable food. Our goal, policy, and brand is about providing Clear Conscience Eating, and has been for close to 2 decades. We eliminated single-use plastic bottles from the restaurant before David Attenborough brought the issue of plastics to light. We’ve been offering plant-based menus before the word ‘vegan’ ever crossed Beyoncé’s lips. We proudly work directly with local and national government to eliminate food waste, and continue to lobby on a global level to end overfishing through our groundbreaking Fishlove campaign (www.fishlove.co.uk). We work directly with our community of local suppliers to create better and more sustainable supply systems.

We’re overjoyed to have won the BRAVO Sustainable Eats 2019 and 2020 award for all of this. We do what we do because it’s the right thing, but we are incredibly grateful to the Brighton and Hove community for supporting us, and really this is a big ‘thank you’ to them for choosing to eat in a way that better serves this planet.

The Real Junk Food Project – Multiple AWARD winner

We were thrilled to win Eat Well for Less. We are unique in offering food on a pay-as-you-feel basis, and so it’s important to us that we’re accessible to everyone regardless of ability to pay. Winning certainly improved our profile in the city. We find many more people have heard about us because of the BRAVO win, and that was a massive benefit during our recent fundraising efforts

It’s so important to engage with your community, so the BRAVO voting gave us an excuse to keep banging away at our messagIng around fighting food waste.

The folk at the BRAVOs are great at publicising all the winners and, to be frank, it’s a valuable marketing resource for which we’re thankful. I think it also fosters camaraderie with other local businesses which certainly benefited us in our recent fundraiser.

Paul Loman – The Real Junkfood Project.

Hungry for more?

Blog post
Winners Announcement | The 2024 BRAVO Results and Highlights
Winners Announcement | The 2024 BRAVO Results and Highlights
Brighton Restaurant Awards 2020
Our picks
BRAVO Hall of Fame
BRAVO Hall of Fame
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