Deceptively modish, Ben McKellar’s new place stays true to his tried and tested formula
The Flint House, 13 Hanningtons Lane, Brighton BN1 1GS (01273 916333). All dishes £4-£14 (apart from shared steak at £42), desserts £8, wines from £23
Being on trend in the restaurant business isn’t difficult, if you’ve got a few miles on the clock: sniff the air to work out which direction the robata grill smoke is blowing from; flick through a few mags with a grizzled “I can do that” frown. It doesn’t matter that you made your name, say, knocking out a massive raviolo or ripping off the Tatin sisters. Why shouldn’t you now do some ersatz take on somewhere called Asia you don’t know much about outside of a sweaty mini break at the Park Hyatt Tokyo? If that’s what the Swarovski-encrusted iPhone crowd want right now, give it to them. Buy in a few trinkets wholesale from that department store in Nihonbashi, stack the fridge with Cristal and offer up a menu full of miso-smeared cod and dishes that punch you in the face repeatedly with gochujang. Yours for £100 a head.
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