Petit Pois

If you were coming up with a blueprint for a great neighbourhood bistro, it would end up looking a lot like Petit Pois. The family-run restaurant ticks all the right boxes with solid French cooking, friendly service and prices that would have been a bargain five years ago.

Head chef David Roy is a constant presence in the open kitchen, while his wife Ivana patrols the cute tile-clad dining room, delivering classic French food to tables with efficient charm. Snails, frogs legs and duck rillettes, followed by mains of beef sirloin with boulangère potatoes and pan-fried fillet of bream with bouillabaisse jus will have Francophiles dreaming of their summer holidays.

Add in generous cheese and charcuterie boards, a nice selection of dishes for ‘les enfants’ and a decent French wine list starting at less than £5 a glass, and diners may well cancel their vacances entirely. Why bother crossing the Channel when there’s cooking and prices like this a pebble’s throw from Brighton Beach?

Cosy French bistro Petit Pois has long been a favourite among Brighton locals. This buzzy restaurant sits in the heart of Brighton’s Lanes, just a short walk from the seafront, and the comforting, easy going menu of French classics has garnered somewhat of a cult following over the years.

The interiors are rustic but still chic - there’s a warm, intimate vibe that emanates through the friendly service and homely interiors, matched by solid wood tables and mismatched tiling on the walls. At the far end of the restaurant an open kitchen pass gives a glimpse into the buzz of the kitchen during service. Petit Pois is perfect for a low key date or a catch up with friends and family.

The menu starts from a foundation of classic French cooking, and adds little tweaks and twists to make dishes feel a little more modern and contemporary. It’s a compact menu full of fantastic cooking, split into sections for meat, fish and vegetables, as well as entrees. Dishes include duck rillettes with toasted bread and pickles, bouillabaisse of local fish, duck breast with celeriac dauphinoise, broccoli stems and beetroot puree, and braised leek and spinach gratin with comte and roquette salad. There’s a real emphasis on quality produce here too, right down to the bread basket which comes with gorgeous Guerande sea salt butter.

Desserts follow a similar trend - creme brulees, madeleines or an apple tarte tatin with vanilla ice cream, for example. Petit Pois also offers a great value lunch prix fixe menu, as well as a kids menu and a Sunday roast menu, offering roast pork belly and caramelised apples, roast chicken, or beef sirloin. Alongside, the restaurant has a compact wine list as well as a selection of aperitifs, digestifs and spirits.