Sussex British Bistro. Discover Delicious South Of England Dining In Soho.

Anthea Gerrie Travels From Her Home County To Soho To Sample Wholesome South of England Fare At the Sussex British Bistro.

A food writer’s life is full of surprises, especially for country cousins in the capital. One week I was in Shoreditch at a burger bar named for a Texas city, the next in Soho at a farm to fork bistro proclaiming my home county, Sussex, as its monicker.

Sussex British Bistro, emblazoning its name across its very urban frontage, certainly comes with the looks of its country namesake – grass-hued exterior and forest green interior panelling with red leather booths lending bare wood posh pub tables a touch of class. But rather than local beers, the pub-like bar counter lists the rare breeds of cattle from which steaks can be ordered to sizzle on the robata grill.

Sussex steaks? Probably, although the Gladwin brothers do not restrict themselves exclusively to the produce of Nutbourne, the family farm run by Gregory in West Sussex, the smarter side of the county. One of his brothers, Oliver, is the chef, while the other, Richard, describes himself as “restaurateur” of Local & Wild, the company the trio formed in 2019 to promote hyper-local sourcing and support British farmers. Those rare breeds can therefore be relied on to come from southern farms and coastlines, like the Hampshire trout from just across the Sussex border.

A slightly hit and miss lunch happily came with enough wins for the tastebuds. While home-made wild yeast bread did not look as wild as it sounded and seemed dubious value at £5 for two smallish slices, the accompanying butter churned in house with caramelised shallots was delicious. Hampshire trout croquettes topped with trout roe and a dab of chili mayo (£9.50) made for a truly scrumptious starter, while a tiny, mushroom Marmite éclair (£4) which seemed a compelling culinary concept to explore seemed ironically, rather than literally, named.

No taste of Marmite, but so truffled I was tempted to think that in this case Marmite was used as an adjective to suggest a dish you could love or hate rather than one containing any yeast extract.

Steak tartare came with a pedigree, the high-quality grass-fed beef dressed with matchsticks of crisp potato in a generously priced portion at £13.50; a very well-dressed salad of Sussex lettuce leaves, radish and cucumber slices (£6) was the perfect accompaniment. My companion pronounced her duck breast (£32), served in thick tranches rather than fantailed, perfectly cooked to her taste and dressed in a darkly elegant jus, with roast beetroot, pumpkin puree and greens making a perfectly nutritionally balanced plate.

With heartier appetites we could have gone full carnivore with Tamworth pork chop (£28), Gregory’s spring lamb or an indulgent Sussex fillet Wellington for two to share at £95. Even vegans are catered for in the robata grill section with, on the day we visited, a meaty celeriac steak with tahini yogurt, mushroom and walnuts (£22).

I had been looking forward to the quintessentially county-specific Sussex pond pudding, but there was none, not even a pudding menu – of just three options the only one containing the lemon which is the hidden surprise within a Sussex pond was a set cream. However, an old-fashioned chocolate mousse proved to be the star dish of the meal – old-fashioned in a good way, like the chocolate pudding of my youth, served in a generous portion with an unexpected top hat of yummy honeycomb toffee.

My fairly priced glass of Luberon rose (£9) from a short list of wines available by the glass went as well with this as the starters and steak tartare, and my companion was very happy with her mocktail, a. Sussex fruit fizz featuring ginger beer, cranberry, lime and pineapple soda (£8). Who knew they were growing pineapples in Sussex? Not me until I left the county and travelled 50 miles to Soho to discover what delights were being nurtured and harvested at Nutbourne Farm.

External and internal images (C) Holly Farrier