Today, in the first instalment of my Brighton and Hove neighbourhood guide series, we’re exploring London Road, an overlooked area of Brighton no one thinks to visit, but should.

It isn’t as well-known outside the city as other neighbourhoods are like Hove and Seven Dials, but its distinct personality makes it well worth exploring.

There are pretty Brighton neighhourhoods and more ‘gritty’ ones. London Road is one of the latter.

Often described as ‘edgy’, it might not be the most attractive neighbourhood in Brighton, but what it lacks in charm and looks it makes up for in personality.

It’s unique for its student community, the largest concentration of charity shops in any Brighton neighbourhood, and a covered outdoor market promising a global feast under one roof.

London Road, Brighton: A Neighbourhood Guide

You’ll find it south of Preston Park, Brighton’s biggest and most beautiful greenspace home to a hidden garden and waterfall.

It’s sandwiched between a new development known as the New England Quarter and The Level, another favourite city greenspace that’s well-known for its skate park.

This post was originally written in February 2023 but has since been updated to keep it fresh.

Things to do in London Road, Brighton

book a session at the Luna Hut Sauna Café

The sauna trend in Brighton and Hove shows no sign of cooling. It also appears to be creeping further into the city away from the sea where it took off, if latest openings are anything to go by.

Introducing the stylish Luna Hut Sauna Café. It’s the second outpost from the folks behind Luna Wave Yoga – the OG opened next to their seafront yoga studio at the Sea Lanes Open Swimming complex near Kemptown.

It’s unique for two reasons: its setting under the city’s iconic Victorian viaduct which looms large over it and the fact it has a café. This is open to all and serves breakfast (seedy porridge pots and muffins), lunch (soup with pitta bread, quiche) and drinks.

Communal sauna sessions take place in the spacious and peaceful sauna garden and outdoor lounge out back, last 30 minutes and cost £8.

Find Luna Hut Sauna Café at 62 Beaconsfield Road, Brighton BN1 4QJ. Book your sauna session here

Listen to jazz at Brighton’s only Japanese jazz cafe

Ever since I read about jazz kissas in the Guardian, ‘niche Japanese jazz cafes stacked with coffee, whisky, vinyl and high-end audio systems’, I’ve become obsessed. With no plans to visit Tokyo soon, imagine my excitement when I discovered Brighton’s first and only jazz kissa in the Open Market a 15-minute walk from my house!

It’s named after a song by jazz legend, John Coltrane, and owned by two friends, Joe and Yuko, from Tokyo with design backgrounds and a shared love of music and food.

Lazy Bird has all the hallmarks of a trad jazz kissa, but with a brighter, younger, modern, inclusive twist featuring white walls and plenty of colourful artwork, a matcha-heavy drinks menu and food including Japanese pastries and desserts.

Order an iced matcha latte and a kinako biscuit, choose a few records to play on Joe’s vintage audio equipment including British tannoy speakers from the 1950s. Open from Wednesday to Sunday.

Find Lazy Bird at Unit 22, Open Market, Marshalls Row, Brighton BN1 4JU

Watch a film at the Duke of york’s Picturehouse

Brighton’s only independent cinema is also its most beautiful, occupying a historic building at Preston Circus which stands out from the crowd: look up from outside and you’ll see a set of stripy can-can legs on its roof. It opened in 1910 and is thought to be the oldest in the UK.

They show a mix of arthouse and mainstream big budget films. In my opinion, the best seats are the sofas up on the balcony near the upstairs balcony bar which come with a little table for your drinks and blankets to wrap up in.

Find the Duke of York’s at Preston Road, Brighton BN1 4NA. Check the listings here.

Find The mysterious London Road Stone Circle

London Road is home to the starting point – or end depending on which way you approach it – of an art installation hidden in plain sight. If you live in Brighton, it’s likely you’ve walked over it countless times without realising.

I’m usually an advocate for looking up, but next time you’re in the area, take a moment to look down and you might just spot one of 50 numbered stone paving slabs, set in a circle around the area as wide as the road is long, known as the London Road Stone Circle.

Read my full story about the London Road stone circle here.

 

Discover Queen’s Place

Unless you do yoga at Studio IO, you might know not this tiny hidden Brighton street of six black flint cottages exists. Discovering it feels like you’ve stepped back in time to another era when Brighton was a little fishing village.

Going on a hunt to find it makes a peaceful detour away from the noisy end of London Road near MacDonald’s and Aldi, on your way into the centre of town.

Discover more of Brighton’s hidden streets here. 

Catch a gig at the Rose Hill Tavern

This is a secret Brighton venue, in that few people know about it. Hidden along a residential street, you wouldn’t end up stumbling on it unless you live around here and are take a quiet route in and out of town, as I was when I ran into it.

Setting eyes on its beautiful, but worn facade, I assumed it had closed down until a friend put me right. It’s actually a thriving hangout, recording studio and arts hub in the former Rose Hill Tavern.

It’s run by artists and musicians and opens most days for live music gigs, spoken word and other events.

Find The Rose Hill at 70-71 Rosehill Terrace, Brighton BN1 4JJ

 

Where to eat in London Road

Café Rust

With its matt black facade, Cafe Rust stands out from the crowd of ordinary shops on unpretentious Preston Road. Push open the grand door to find a welcoming cafe that gets packed every day of the week. 

It wins local hearts for its rustic French farmhouse decor: think worn wood floors, light-washed walls, tiny vases of dried flowers on dark-wood tables, and the odd string of fairy lights.

Beautifully presented breakfast and brunch dishes are served all day, like eggs florentine, avocado toast, hearty full English breakfasts, and plenty veggie and vegan options like homemade garlic and herb beans on sourdough.

Salad bowls come with different toppings like spicy chicken and homemade cakes on the counter – think orange and rosemary – are impossible to resist. Order a mimosa at brunch if you’re feeling fancy.

Find Cafe Rust at 50 Preston Road, Brighton BN1, 4QF

Amari

Like a bull to a fighter’s cape, Amari’s bright-red exterior is ready to lure you in to this compact award-winning Spanish-inspired neighbourhood gem on Baker Street, a city treasure of independent Brighton businesses in itself.

It’s the latest restaurant from the brothers behind Mexican spot Halisco and Asian-fusion restaurant, Anakuma, both on Preston Street in central Brighton, and makes a great choice for a date night, quiet catch up with friends or a family celebration.

The simple décor doesn’t distract from the flavour-packed sharing plates, like red wine braised beef, prawns cooked in garlic butter and slow-cooked leeks with romesco sauce. The full-bodied wine list includes sherries, too, an ideal way to start the evening.

Find Amari at 15 Baker Street, Brighton BN1 4JN

The Open Market

The covered Open Market is a global feast under one roof: there’s authentic Korean and Japanese dishes like steaming bowls of ramen and fresh sushi rolls at Korpan, heart-warming Greek food like moussaka at Kouzina, flavourful Mexican tacos at Taquitos Casazul, home-cooked Bangladeshi and Goan dishes like dahl sambar soup and sweet masala chai at Mohammad Spice of Life; flaky, buttery French-style croissants at bakery The Little Loaf;  speciality sausage rolls at This Little Piggy;  local honey at Green Valleys and filling bagels at new hotspot, Bayit Bagels, where the queue often snakes out the door.

Find Brighton Open Market at Marshalls Row, Brighton BN1 4JU

Mogu Mogu

London road has edgy charm but this dainty, 12-seater postage-stamp Japanese café-style restaurant is a welcome break from all the grunge. It’s open for coffee and cake, lunch and dinner and takes reservations.

Expect small plates like pumpkin croquettes and big steaming portions of udon noodles, topped with either beef, seasoned chicken, mushrooms or pork and also rice bowls.

I come here for the karage – fried chicken – followed by cat pudding: a delicious novelty cat-shaped milk-based dessert.

Find Mogu Mogu at 81 London Road Brighton, Brighton and Hove BN1 4JF

KitGum Kitchen

Another postage-stamped size restaurant in the London Road area, Kitgum Kitchen, near The Joker started life as a pop-up in The Signalman Pub nearby. Thankfully it survived Pandemic challenges, proving just how good its small, shareable plates of East African, Gujarati and Ismaili food are.

Don’t miss the Daal palak – warming split and washed moong daal, spinach, spices served with a spinach purée, and carrot pickle; and the Kitgum Fried Chicken: coated in spices served with masala dill pickles and masala ketchup.

Find Kitgum Kitchen at 9 Preston Road, Brighton BN1 4QE

Bardsley’s Fish and Chips

I’ve been raving about Bardsley’s – Brighton’s oldest chippy open since 1926 – since I started the Ellie & Co website in 2016 (here and here), well before The Guardian and other national media started talking about it.

It’s another local food gem hidden along quirky Baker Street unique for its dining room filled with old music hall memorabilia I talk about in my Secret Brighton guidebook.

The secret to their success is in freshness of the food. Everything is cooked to order, served crispy, golden and piping hot – and they serve wine! The staff also couldn’t be more welcoming. Book ahead if you plan to visit at the weekend.

Find Bardsley’s Fish and Chips at 23A Baker St, Brighton BN1 4JN

 

Where to drink in London Road

Curio Cafe bar

Finally, the French cafe-bar concept has come to Brighton! Curio is a cool casual spot in a green-canopied corner building right next to the Duke of York’s Picturehouse. It’s just what Brighton has been missing.

The decor of nostalgic European  advertising posters, yellow cafe chairs, wooden floors and paper shades combine to give it a 1960s Paris feel. 

It’s open from 8am until as late as 11pm on some days, for coffee, cakes and sandwiches, by day; and wine, cocktails and small plates by night.

Menu favourites are: the sticky Japanese honey toast, the garlic roast chicken sandwich, egg breakfast buns and Parmesan sprinkled croquettes. 

Find Curio at 1 Clyde Road, Brighton BN1 4NN

Bar 50ml

This mysterious shop with a black facade is home to newcomer, Bar 50ml, run by Stef from the unsung Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, and specialising in Mediterranean-style aperitivo cocktails.

I tend to stop here for a pre-dinner refreshment on my way into town. Alongside excellent negronis and Aperol spritzes, they serve focaccia sandwiches and charcuterie plates.

Some drinks also come with their own individual snacks like the 50ml Martini, perfectly paired with chunky pieces of Parmigiano Reggiano. It’s worth visiting Bar 50ml for this alone.

Find Bar 50ml at 10 St George’s Place, Brighton BN1 4GB

 

Where to Shop on London Road

Atelier 51

Tucked behind Costa Coffee on Providence Place is Atelier 51, a unique artists’ studio and shop, started by local printmaker, Sarah Young, and her partner, Jon Tutton. It hosts five resident artists in its studio spaces, whose work you can browse in ‘The Hand Made Shop’ at the front. A nice spot for escaping the shopping crowds on London Road.

Find Atelier 51 at 51 Providence Place, Brighton, BN1 4GE

London Road Charity shops

London Road may have the highest concentration of charity shops in any Brighton and Hove neighbourhood, thanks to its big student population. In the quarter-mile stretch of street starting near Curio you’ll find 12.

Here they are in no particular order: British Heart Foundation, Mind, Martlets Hospice, Oxfam, Cats Protection League, The Sussex Beacon, Age UK, Scope, Chestnut Tree House, British Red Cross, PDSA and DEBRA UK.

The Smallest Bookshop in Brighton

Brighton’s Open Market is home to a lovely bookshop which claims to be The Smallest Bookshop in Brighton. Only true Brightonians know of this diminutive bookseller I discovered quite by chance one Saturday on a wander through to pick up croissants from French bakery, The Little Loaf.

It’s the size of a market stall and my new favourite place to browse. They stock second-hand books at reasonable prices including plenty of classics as well as more obscure cult reads.

Where to stay in London Road

Most Brighton hotels I like to recommend are located nearer to the centre of the city, but there are a few nice unique Brighton AirBnBs nearby worth considering.

The closest to London Road is this sleek and peaceful apartment set inside an old Victorian corner shop very close to my favourite vintage cinema. It’s great if you like to be on the fringes of the city-centre action, a good night’s sleep and local neighbourhood life.

A little further away near Preston Park are these options: this detatched home for two full of character is your best bet if you like to leave the city behind at the end of the day and access the countryside, or this secluded garden flat in a Victorian terrace. Both are good choices for regular visitors who enjoy the feel of staying in a leafy suburb.

Final tips

London Road in Brighton is a small neighbourhood and easy to walk around. It’s 10 minutes from the North Laine shopping area, Brighton station and central Brighton, and 20 minutes from the seafront.

London road map

You’ll find a useful map of London Road addresses of note below and here.

If you want more inspiration, my secret guidebooks will get you excited to explore the city further.

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