Best Italians in Brighton or: How I Survived British Food Scene

Eating out in Britain is hard if you don't know the rules. I haven't seen this much special lunch offers, pre-theatre menus, and kinds of food that are available only specific days of the week in any other place. For instance, some pubs have Indian food only on Tuesdays, Sunday roast is only available on Sundays and if you are looking for a burger on a Sunday, don't even bother, because apparently on Sundays, everyone eats the roast or starve in the Brighton's food scene.

Well, not necessarily. Thank god there are the Italians. However, in Britain, you cannot get the whole Italian dining experience in one single place. First of all most of them lack the most important component of Italian dining experience: table linens and linen napkins. The places that serve great antipasti might fail in pizzas and good mains do not necessarily guarantee good starters. Take this post not as a guide to eat in which Italian restaurant in Brighton, instead take it as a guide on what to eat in those restaurants.

Three Great Pizzerias: Very Italian Pizza, Morelli Zorelli and, Pronto in Tavola

These three serve decent Italian pizza, prepared with authentic ingredients and all taste great. If you prefer a thinner base choose Morelli, it is also my choice, Pronto is a bit thicker and VIP is the thickest, though none of them have that bad doughy taste you get at American chain pizza places, they are all crisp and delicious. Morelli also has a stone and flame oven, if you like the taste those ovens add to the pizzas. They all have classic Italian varieties as well as their own innovations, check their menus before you go and find the one you like.

However, do not go to any of them expecting a fine dining experience, go for a lunch or a casual dinner. They are all pretty small and cramped restaurants. Except for the VIP, I wouldn't recommend you to have any antipasti, though even if I recommend them you may not able to find anyhow. VIP has an extensive antipasti menu. I haven't tried their antipasti as the pizzas are pretty big, but considering they use the delicious ingredients they put into pizzas, I cannot think how it could be bad. Most people prefer Morelli and Pronto for takeaway service and they are right to do so, because such delicious pizzas deserve better dinner tables. Also, Pronto does not serve alcohol, but I do not know their bring your own bottle policy.

Great Location, Good Pizzas, Passable Mains, Unsatisfactory Antipasti: Zizi Brighton

Zizi was one of the first restaurants that I have ever been in Brighton because its location is very convenient. It is located right in the lanes, in a corner suitable to watch the people passing by, trying to comprehend the demographics of Brighton. It has good interior decoration as well, with a beautiful stone and flame oven in the entrance, wooden decoration and large windows to use the natural light.

In Zizi, I usually prefer to eat pizzas, being tempted by that fire oven. They have a good variety of pizzas, served in two shapes, and with two choices of dough. I like the Classical Florentina when I want (or need) to eat light and prefer a Rustica Piccante when I want something heavier.

I usually find their mains as passable though not delicious and their antipasti platters usually end up being unsatisfactory. Thus, if you would like to eat decent pizza in Brighton but at the same time have a finer dinner experience with waiter service and good wine, choose Zizi. Its location is also perfectly convenient for continuing a night out, circled by vibrant nightlife of Brighton.

At first look, you don't give Carluccio's much credit due to its decoration resembling a fast food joint. It is indeed a chain restaurant owned by infamous Antonio Carluccio, though the taste of the food is beyond expectations.At Last the Antipasti I have been Searching for: Carluccio's Brighton

To begin with, the restaurant serves great sharing as well as small antipasti platters, tasty pastas, and one of the best marinated steaks I have ever eaten in my whole life. They have three antipasti platters, meat, vegetarian and fish andyou can spend a night, or a sunday lunch, just digging into them by enjoying the fine wines they serve. The meat platter includes Italian classics like Parma ham, Milano ham and Mortadella, vegetarian platter has mozzarella and a variety of vegetables including deliciously cooked artichokes and aubergines. They are all served with freshly baked foccacia.

It is not as well located as Zizi, though it is still central. Nothing can be too far in Brighton anyway. Go there for a relaxed evening, enjoy the antipastis, then choose between the delicious pastas, or even a steak if you could survive the antipasti before getting full.

Real Italian Dining Experience with all the Necessary Linen: Casalingo Brighton

Casalingo is a proper Italian restaurant, located in the Preston street of Brighton. The restaurant is traditionally decorated with linen tablecloths.

Staff are well informed, attentive and if you are a regular, they become warm and humorous as well. I have great respect and appreciation for a good service, which I miss very much in the UK food scene. In Casalingo, the staff makes you feel they will take care of you to ensure you have a flawless dinner.

The owner, Angelo, is always available behind the bar, to attend to your needs and make sure you survive the steep steps of the bathroom after a couple of drinks!

Everytime I go to Casalingo, I go with a determination to taste the varieties of pasta, but at the end I fail to do so, getting tempted by exquisite meat and fish dishes. In our relationship of three years, I could only eat pasta once in Casalingo, a linguine pescatore, which was rich and delicious, though it is harder to find decent Italian meat or fish dishes in Brighton than it is to find decent pasta, so I recommend you to go with the mains as well. Casalingo is an Italian you go with the people you love sit for a pretty long time, eat and drink, every steps of a proper dinner. Start with an aperitif, preferably a Campari Spritz to begin the night. Then order a fine Italian wine, and do not ever commit the sin of skipping the starters. All kinds of starters are delicious though my favourites are: prosciutto e fichi and gamberoni al piccante.

Casalingo is an Italian you go with the people you love, to sit for a pretty long time, eat and drink, every steps of a proper dinner. Start with an aperitif, preferably a Campari Spritz to begin the night. Then order a fine Italian wine, and do not ever commit the sin of skipping the starters. All kinds of starters are delicious though my favourites are: prosciutto e fichi and gamberoni al piccante.

Everytime I go to Casalingo, I go with a determination to taste the varieties of pasta, but at the end I fail to do so, getting tempted by exquisite meat and fish dishes. In our relationship of three years, I could only eat pasta once in Casalingo, a linguine pescatore, which was rich and delicious, though it is harder to find decent Italian meat or fish dishes in Brighton than it is to find decent pasta, so I recommend you to go with the mains as well. I usually eat from the seasonal specials presented in a different page of the menu. I remember Osso Buco and Dover Sole to be delicious. Also I remember a ravioli with artichokes to be wonderful, though I haven't seen it for a long time.

For desserts, go with the classic choice and have a tiramisu. They also sometimes have a Lemon Tart, or was it a cheesecake, I don't remember the proper name as I am usually a bit tipsy by the time we eat dessert. But both of them are homemade by sticking to the original recipe and delightful.

So you think you are done with your dinner after you have a dessert and a coffee, you couldn't have been more wrong. There are tasty Italian digestive liquors to be enjoyed before you finalize your experience. Also, the chocolates they bring with the bill are very good and they go well with the limoncello, enjoy them together.

I prefer Casalingo for any special occasion if I don't want to risk disappointment.  It is not only an authentic Italian restaurant, it also guarantees an authentic Italian dining experience with its decoration, its staff and its linen. Although they can not help some shortcomings, how can you find Sorrento lemons, Napoli tomatoes or fresh mozzarella in UK, it is the best you can get outside of Italy. They offer you a night out from the windy streets of Brighton into the warmth of Italy. And be careful, they are not soulless professionals who see you as customers they have to bear, apparently prices may vary according to customer attitude!