The Permit Room
The Lanes | £39.50 PER PERSON | Bombay-style café-bar
Right in the heart of the Lanes, The Permit Room is Dishoom’s little sister. A vintage Bombay-style restaurant with music that’s very deliberately part of the night. Their party spread is perfect for groups: dishoom-style favourites landing in waves for everyone to share (the dream when you can’t decide between the chicken ruby or black daal). The set menu is £39.50pp which is a steal for what you get. It’s not subtle, and it’s not quiet, but if you want atmosphere, it delivers.
Verdict: If your group wants energy with actual good food (and doesn’t mind leaning in to hear each other), Permit Room is the Lanes booking that turns dinner into a full night almost by accident.
Atmosphere ★★★★☆
Value for money ★★★★☆
Girls’ night friendly ★★★★★
Good to know: For parties of 12+ they ask for a £50 table deposit (refunded if you cancel 24 hours before). They’re big on walk-ins, but if you’re a hen group at peak time, book rather than gamble.
32 East Street, Brighton BN1 1HL
Cecconi’s Brighton
Seafront | £££–££££ PER PERSON | Sea-view Italian polish
On the seafront inside Brighton Beach House, Cecconi’s is the making an effort table. Most definitely not a dinner with a cowboy hat, it’s grown-up glamour, but in the best way. On a terrace facing the water, it’s warm wood + marble-topped tables, with a members-club polish (because yes, it lives inside Brighton’s Beach House aka, Soho House). The menu is upmarket Italian: lobster spaghetti, beef carpaccio, veal Milanese, with some Brighton-specific dishes to add some south coast charm. It can get expensive if you’re ordering from the main menu, so consider pizza and cicchetti if you’re not out to spend that much.
Verdict: The Brighton main character dinner for girls who want sea views, martinis, and a polished room. More of a long luxe evening than a big night out, but sometimes that’s exactly what’s needed.
Atmosphere ★★★★☆
Value for money ★★★☆☆
Girls’ night friendly ★★★★☆
Good to know: Sunset terrace tables are the move. Later evening bookings feel more night-out; lunch leans calmer.
Marine Parade, Brighton BN2 1AY
Tutto
City Centre | ££–£££ PER PERSON | Italian small plates + spritz bar
Confession, I discovered Tutto via a scathing review, which set expectations somewhere around the floor. Which makes it all the more satisfying that it’s genuinely great. In a former banking hall just north of the Lanes, the Art Deco interiors alone are a visit: low-lit, dramatic, and easily the most beautiful room in Brighton. Food is made for sharing, and I (perhaps controversially) adored it. The beef carpaccio was 10/10, and if you want a rich and creamy pasta with just the right amount of truffle, you’ll find it in the carbonara tagliatelle. The takeaway? Don’t write off a restaurant from one bad review.
Verdict: A big, buzzy Brighton dinner where the room and the drinks are the main event, and the food keeps up more than you’d expect.
Atmosphere ★★★★☆
Value for money ★★★☆☆
Girls’ night friendly ★★★★★
Good to know: 1–10 book online; 11+ go via enquiry for a group booking. Card-only, which helps when the bill inevitably gets messy.
20/22 Marlborough Place, Brighton BN1 1UB
Blake’s Bistro & Bar
Regency Square | ££–£££ PER PERSON | eclectic bistro + late cocktails
Blake’s is an under-the-radar Brighton pick for groups who want atmosphere without chaos. Overlooking Regency Square inside the Artist Residence, it feels like someone’s very cool, slightly eccentric townhouse — mismatched vintage furniture, old signage, candlelight, a DJ in the corner. It’s intimate but not precious. You can be lively here without feeling like you’ve bulldozed date night. Order small plates and pass everything around (get the duck, always), then move on to cocktails because the bar runs late and nobody’s rushing you out.
Verdict: The low-lit we’ll just have one more trap; cosy, cool and quietly dangerous.
Atmosphere ★★★★☆
Value for money ★★★★☆
Girls’ night friendly ★★★★☆
Good to know:It’s smaller than it looks online, so book rather than gamble at peak time. There’s also a very girl math deal on Saturdays: small plates and a carafe of house wine for £30pp from 12–4pm. Not your main dinner slot, but worth knowing.
33 Regency Square, Brighton and Hove, BN1 2GG
Haus of Cabaret
Kemptown | £££ PER PERSON | dinner + full cabaret show
Update: March 2026. Triple check this one before booking, it had a notice sign on the door when I walked by, but there’s no updates on social media. Tread carefully before paying any deposits
And in a full 180, this is your not-so-subtle dinner. This is dinner with a stage. Haus of Cabaret is Brighton’s full dinner-show experience: burlesque, drag, comedy, themed nights – unapologetically OTT and absolutely not trying to be anything else. The food is part of the ticket rather than the main event, so if you go in expecting a Michelin menu, you’ll be disappointed. Go in expecting a spectacle and you’ll get exactly that. This one isn’t for locals, it’s for the Brighton hen weekends and girls’ trips that want a nighttime activity baked in.
Verdict: Book it for the show, not the soufflé. If your group wants a spectacle (and you’re okay treating dinner as part of the ticket), it’s an easy Brighton hen weekend win.
Atmosphere ★★★★★
Value for money ★★★☆☆
Girls’ night friendly ★★★★★
Good to know: They add a 15% entertainment fee to the bill to fund performances. Not a gotcha if you know it’s coming — very much a gotcha if you’re splitting the bill at midnight and someone suddenly notices.
83 St George’s Road, Brighton BN2 1EF
Burger and Lobster
The Lanes | ££–£££ PER PERSON | steak + lobster + cocktails
The real win here is the set menu: two courses for £20, which at these prices, in this location, is genuinely hard to argue with. Beyond that, Burger & Lobster in the Lanes is your Brighton crowd-pleaser — a stylish, slightly dark, buzzy room where the menu reduces decision-making to land, sea, or both. Start with oysters and fizz and suddenly everyone is fed, happy, and nobody had to agree on anything difficult. It won’t be the wildest table of the weekend, but it will be the easiest booking you make.
Verdict: The zero-drama booking: oysters, cocktails, set menu, done.
Atmosphere ★★★★☆
Value for money ★★★★★
Girls’ night friendly ★★★★☆
Good to know: There’s a private dining room for up to 22 if you want your own space.
15 Market Street, Brighton BN1 1HH
Adelfia
Preston Street | £45 PER PERSON | Greek taverna + live Greek Nights
Adelfia on Preston Street is an authentic Greek taverna that welcomes groups with open arms. But that’s not why it belongs on this list. The headline reason: Greek Night. Live Greek music, singing, dancing, and plate-smashing paired with a set menu price point (ours was £45pp for a 3-course) that’s hard to pass up. This is your Stavros Flatley meets the seaside moment. It’s not polished minimalism; in fact, it’s not minimal at all. It’s loud, unapologetically authentic, and forces you to get involved. Food is authentic and built for sharing — lamb, stifado, spanakopita — and if you want something that feels like a night rather than a meal, this is it.
Verdict: Dinner that turns into coupious amounts of clapping and an ‘OPA!’ vocal stim you can’t shake for a week.
Atmosphere ★★★★★
Value for money ★★★★☆ (especially set-menu)
Girls’ night friendly ★★★★★
Good to know: Greek Nights sell out, book early and lock in your headcount. Set-menu pricing usually applies on event evenings.
13/14 Preston Street, Brighton BN1 2HN
Pearly Cow Brighton
Seafront | £££–££££ PER PERSON | soft-glam steak + seafood
Pearly Cow is your classy option. Right on King’s Road with the sea a few steps away, it’s low-lit, plush, and feels like a boutique hotel-restaurant in the best way. The atmosphere here doesn’t come from a DJ, or shouts of OPA! It comes from the warm, intimate underground room and the hum of a full house doing the same thing you are. The menu is open-fire steak or seafood, so it’ll never be the cheap option, but it is worth it if you’re willing to spend more. If you’re a bigger group, the snug sits just off the bar and seats up to 18, giving you your own little bubble without losing the buzz of the main restaurant. Share something from the grill, have a natter, and let the cocktails do their job.
Verdict: Seafront glamour without the theatrics, polished, grown-up, and worth dressing for.
Atmosphere ★★★★☆
Value for money ★★★☆☆
Girls’ night friendly ★★★★★
Good to know: It’s cashless. Sunday roasts soften the bill if you’re booking smart.
124 King’s Road, Brighton BN1 2FA
The Coal Shed
The Lanes | £60 PER PERSON | fire-led steakhouse + DJ bar
Tucked just off the Lanes on North Street, The Coal Shed is dark, dramatic, and built around fire — open grill, big steaks, oysters to start. The energy shifts later when the DJ kicks in, and the bar pulls more of the focus, which makes it a natural two-part evening: dinner, then stay. It’s not cheap, especially for a hen weekend with mixed budgets, but the £60pp set menu takes the guesswork out of the bill. The sweet spot for groups who want to celebrate something properly without going full chaos.
Verdict: Steak, cocktails and a DJ-led bar that makes leaving feel optional.
Atmosphere ★★★★☆
Value for money ★★★★☆
Girls’ night friendly ★★★★☆
Good to know: There’s a strong pre-theatre set menu if you’re doing an early slot before heading out.
Clarence House, 30 North Street, Brighton BN1 1EB
No No Please
Preston Street | ££–£££ PER PERSON | Southeast Asian plates + serious cocktails
No No Please is the Brighton booking for girls who care about drinks as much as they do dinner. On Preston Street, it’s small, low-lit, and a little chaotic in the best way. The cocktails are batched in the cellar, which means they come out fast, consistently well-made, and dangerously easy to keep ordering. Orange wine flows, and the Southeast Asian small plates are bold without being try-hard. The staff will actually walk you through how much food you need, which is rarer than it should be, and you leave feeling looked after. The walk-in only policy adds a spot of uncertainty, but go early, and it’s usually fine.
Verdict: The cool, low-lit Preston Street table where the drinks are as serious as the food.
Atmosphere ★★★★☆
Value for money ★★★★☆
Girls’ night friendly ★★★★☆
Good to know: Walk-in only. Go early if you’re a big group, especially Fri/Sat.
30 Preston Street, Brighton BN1 2HP
Burnt Orange
The Lanes | ££–£££ PER PERSON | fire-cooked small plates + late DJs
Tucked in the Lanes, Burnt Orange is a low-lit, warm restaurant with open fire cooking and a bar that quietly becomes the focal point as the night rolls on. The music isn’t background here; the DJs make sure of that from 9:30 pm. But importantly, the food holds its own: a Mediterranean and Middle Eastern-leaning menu that’ll leave you wanting to go back and order everything you didn’t get to. It’s busy, it’s noisy in the best way, and it knows exactly what it’s doing.
Verdict: Dinner that accidentally becomes the night.
Atmosphere ★★★★★
Value for money ★★★★☆
Girls’ night friendly ★★★★★
Good to know: Book late on a Saturday if you want the DJ; earlier slots are more food-led.
