Growing up by the beach, was something I always took for granted. Where the sand is golden, like a morning sunrise and the waves are strong and blustery. Seems like only yesterday, I spent my post A-level revision sessions wandering down the promenade for some fresh air. Now I find myself in a the completely opposite situation, waking up to a city of tall skyscrapers and smog. Nonetheless, more educated with a degree behind me now. However, my love for being near the sea never leaves.
Since it had been a little while since I found myself dipping my feet into the unruly waters, I booked a last minute getaway to Brighton. Especially as it is a city I haven’t visited before, even though it is only 60 minutes away. So I took the opportunity to kill two birds with one stone and get out of the city. Along with my childhood memories of the beach, I brought along one of my friends from my Bournemouth schooling days. Having reconnected in London only a few months ago, it just felt so appropriate to visit together.
Lunch reservations in place at 64 degrees, we set off from London on a bitterly cold yet sunny Saturday morning. New adventures await!
Arriving into Brighton, we quickly rushed off the train and set out to sea. See what I did there…
It felt so good to be by the sea again, even if there was a million pebbles to walk over first. I have to admit, I do prefer soft golden sand between my toes rather than stepping on hard stones in shoes. Nonetheless, the sea was in sight!
We had an hour before our reservation for lunch, so decided to wander around and see what Brighton had to offer. People most definitely thought we were slightly crazy, like we have never been to the beach before, let alone grew up near one…
I mean, it’s incredibly hard not to. Brighton has so much character, it’s insanely cheap (compared to London) and is so pretty! It’s definitely a place to come if you love seafood. It reminded me of home a bit too, with the rocks on sale, the post card racks and clean white washed buildings.
I was most excited to head on to Brighton pier though. I’ve heard so many things about it, especially in the summer when all the rides are open. Alicia and I reminisced about our days on the carousels, eating candy floss out of the bag whilst collecting shells for our sandcastles. Those days were the best!
Also, can we just talk about how pretty these views are from the pier? The water is so blue and the pebbles almost looks like silky sand. The British Airways i360 is motion too, we’ll be heading up there later on but first… lunch!
Everything being so close in Brighton, it was just short of a ten minute walk from the beach to 64 degrees, making us quite early for our booking. However, we will welcomed with open arms ready for our sitting.
The menu at 64 degrees looked incredible. I loved how it was separated out into fish, veg and meat, making it easy to choose dishes accordingly. We mulled over the menu, whilst watching the chefs prepare dishes, sipping on our favourite concoctions.
I think chefs are incredibly talented, especially the way they plate and elegantly prepare dishes.
Just seeing the dishes being prepared definitely helped us secure what dishes we wanted to eat. We were recommended to have between 3-6 dishes if we were sharing. However, Alicia is a huge seafood fan and i’m the complete opposite. Therefore we decided to share the cod dish and then order two dishes we wanted for ourselves.
Whilst we waited for our food to be cooked and prepared, we were given a couple slices of granary bread served with smoked butter with a sprinkling of sea salt on top. It worked really well and made something quite simple, a lot more enjoyable.
The first dish to come out was the cod served with almonds and mussels. Alicia dared me to eat one of the mussels as I was so adamant not to. No surprise though, I wasn’t a fan at all and was happy for A to finish the rest. I think it’s the texture and the sea-like taste that completely puts me off. I never find I ever get that taste with cooked fish though, hence why I love cod.
The cod was chunky and cooked to perfection. The flakes of fish came apart so easily and was so full of flavour. The butter gave it a lovely creaminess and the almonds and al-denete sautéed onions gave it a contrasting crunch. Wonderful combination though!
The next round of dishes was the squid with chickpeas and pancetta for Alicia and the parsnip with Sriracha sauce and sesame seeds. Alicia absolutely loved the squid, especially as it’s one of her favourite seafood dishes. Apparently it was well made with lots of flavour – she even tried the tentacles and approved! There is a first for everything. I even tried a tiny bit of the squid, from the edge but the texture was just out of my comfort zone. Although my dish was exquisite! I absolutely loved the flavours of sweet and hot from the parsnip and the sauce. Especially with the fried crisps on top too, just wonderful.
The final round of dishes, Alicia went for the Empanadas covered in barbecue sauce with coriander purée and I went for the Roly’s lamb with spring onion and gochujang. I tried a bit of Alicia’s Empanadas, which were lovely – true authentic Spanish flavours. A delicious savoury parcel filled with vegetables with the sticky, tangy barbecue sauce. So good! The lamb was cooked medium served with a spring onion salsa and sauce. The idea was to put everything together and wrap it with a gochujang leaf. Divine but very filling!
We decided against having dessert, because we had our hearts set on a traditional ice-cream from the little huts on the promenade. As a palette cleanser, we were served a scoop of orange and carrot sorbet. A refreshing way to end our meal at 64 degrees.
I would certainly recommend this restaurant to anyone if you live in Brighton or are just visiting. There are only 20 or so seats in the restaurant, so be sure to book first.
After lunch, we set off back to the promenade to have ride up the British Airways i360 experience to get a birds eye view of Brighton.
Since it was both of our first time to Brighton, we decided to christen our visit on the i360 with a glass of champagne. Leaving another piece of myself in another city. How can you not toast to these views either? Breathtaking…
The whole experience lasted about 30 minutes as it slowly ascended, spend a good 5 minute at the highest point before slowly descending down again. I loved the way one two of the buildings that ‘We ❤️ Brighton’ painted on their roofs to make one caption. So spectacular, when you can see such pretty street art from above but you could never tell it’s there if you were just walking by.
We finished up our day out in Brighton with our much anticipated ice-creams and once last stroll along the beach, before heading back to the big smoke.
What a wonderful way to spend a Saturday. It truly makes you appreciate living in such a beautiful country and being able to explore other parts at the drop of a hat.
If you haven’t been to Brighton before, I would definitely recommend it. Even if it is for a day trip, like we did!
Star Rating for 64 Degrees:
Until next time…
