A La Colthard/ The Urchin Hove

I am not the biggest fan of gastro-pubs. As often or not, the seats are uncomfortable, the prices not far short of a decent restaurant and the cooking and service are not always reliable.

I had , however, heard good things about the Urchin, a sea food pub in Hove with 100 craft beers as it was favourably reviewed by the restaurant critic of the local Brighton newspaper the Argus. The Urchin is owned by Nick Jemim who was general manager of the Royal Oak Pub at Poynings and he opened and refurnished this pub, formerly the Bell, with Brad Jacobsen. Both own Small Batch Coffee so are very much budding entrepreneurs.

Aside from the craft beers which we did not sample it’s very much a sea food restaurant. I ordered the crab soufflé with pear and stilton and then moules marinieres, both recommended by the Argus restaurant critic. My friend ordered langoustines and prawns. I was not wholly convinced by the concoction of flavours of crab, stilton and pear but it was an innovative dish.

The moules arrived in a brass-coloured covered pot in which it was cooked in simple white wine and garlic sauce. One feature I did like was the friendliness of the waitress. I arrived first and it was not long before we were on first name terms and in girlie talk!!! Amber – for that was her name – was helpful in guiding us through the menu with her recommendations. I do not really like the mix of tomato and shellfish so steered way from the Bouillabaisse. We had a bottle of Picpoul and 2 glasses of red with out cheese board which I needed as the jelly desert was minuscule. My friend took the bill but I guess it was £100 for two.

It’s a small restaurant with a terrace outside thought not in the most prepossessing part of Hove. It will not benefit from location but it will embed itself like its name in Brighton restaurant life.