Indian Restaurants Brighton: Where to Eat and What to Order

Manju's, North Laine: Gujarati Vegetarian Sharing Plates

Manju's at 6 Trafalgar Street, North Laine, cooks Gujarati vegetarian food built for sharing rather than the standard curry-house menu. The restaurant describes its cooking as home recipes handed down through generations, guided by an 86-year-old matriarch named Manju, and it makes a point of distancing itself from tikka-and-vindaloo expectations. Come expecting several small dishes across the table instead of one big main each, and ask the staff to help you size the order.

Two house policies change how you plan. The restaurant says it discourages large groups so conversation stays possible, which makes it a poor fit for a big birthday booking and a good one for two or four. It also says that newcomers unhappy with a dish, having given the kitchen a chance to put it right during the meal, will have the cost of those dishes refunded — a confidence trick you rarely see.

Book evening sittings as far ahead as you can: the restaurant's own guest reviews repeatedly warn that evenings sell out, while lunch may take walk-ins without any guarantee of a table. Menus and current serving days are on the restaurant's site, so check before you build a trip around a particular meal. If you want a meat-free meal in more casual surroundings, see our pick of vegan restaurants in Brighton.

The Chilli Pickle, the Lanes: Street Food and a Step-Up Bill

The Chilli Pickle, now at 6–8 Meeting House Lane in the Lanes after a move from Jubilee Street, is Dawn and Alun Sperring's long-established Indian street-food venture. Harden's describes a buzzing city-centre room handy for theatres and gigs, with cooking its reviewers rate as imaginative and a strong local following. That makes it the natural choice for a pre-show dinner when you want something more interesting than a quick bite.

Budget for it as a proper meal out rather than a cheap curry. Harden's suggests around £56 a head for food and drink, a figure that puts it firmly in step-up territory; check the current menu and prices directly before booking if the total matters. The same source notes the room's appeal to theatre-goers, so allow time for a full sitting rather than squeezing it in.

Indian Summer, the Lanes: Creative Cooking, Moderate Heat

Indian Summer at 70 East Street, also in the Lanes, is the second Lanes booking worth keeping in reserve. Harden's reports diners calling the cooking creative and delicious, taking Indian food up a level, with a minority wanting more spice. If you like layered flavour over raw heat it reads as a good match; if you order by chilli strength, temper expectations or ask for extra heat when you order.

Its position a short walk from The Chilli Pickle means the two work as alternatives on the same evening plan: try one, and hold the other for a return visit or a night when your first choice is full. Both sit within the tangle of streets covered in our What to Eat in Brighton guide, so you can pair dinner with a wander rather than a taxi.

Planet India, Richmond Parade: Vegetarian and Vegan, Eat In or Take Away

Planet India at 4 Richmond Parade serves pure vegetarian Indian food, with vegan dishes alongside, for eating in, taking away or delivery. It is the flexible option: useful when you want a meat-free curry at home, when a group cannot agree on a booking, or when you need something quicker than a full restaurant meal. The kitchen keeps the menu entirely meat-free, so vegetarians and vegans are not working around a handful of suitable dishes.

The site lists online booking alongside takeaway and a delivery service, so order or reserve through it and check collection arrangements when you do. If your priority is a low-cost meal rather than a sit-down dinner, our cheap eats Brighton guide covers other options at a similar level.

How to Choose Between the Four

Pick by occasion rather than by ranking. For a sharing dinner with one other person or a small group, Manju's in North Laine gives you Gujarati vegetarian small plates and a room built for talking. For a pre-theatre or pre-gig meal in the Lanes, The Chilli Pickle fits the bill, with Indian Summer on East Street as the fallback if it is full.

For a meat-free meal at home or on the hop, Planet India on Richmond Parade is the practical pick, and it is the only one of the four offering delivery. If you want the full range of Brighton's smarter rooms for a special occasion, our guide to Michelin star restaurants Brighton covers the top end of the city's cooking. Otherwise, remember that all four are central and walkable from the station and the seafront.

Booking and Timing: What to Sort Before You Go

Evening tables at the smaller rooms go early, so book Manju's and The Chilli Pickle as soon as your date is fixed rather than leaving it to the day. Lunch is easier at Manju's but the restaurant gives no guarantee of a walk-in table, so a booking is still the safer move if the meal matters to your plans.

Check each venue's own site for current serving days and menu before travelling, and confirm any group-size limits when you book — Manju's actively discourages large parties. To compare the named places one by one, browse Brighton pubs and food landmarks.

Which Brighton Indian Kitchen Should You Book?

Book Manju's in North Laine if you want a sharing-table Gujarati vegetarian dinner for two or four; book The Chilli Pickle in the Lanes if you want street-food cooking before a show and can budget around £56 a head. Hold Indian Summer on East Street as the second Lanes option, and use Planet India on Richmond Parade when you want meat-free Indian food to take away or have delivered.

Whichever you choose, reserve ahead for evenings, confirm current days and menus on the venue's own site, and treat the walk between North Laine and the Lanes as part of the night rather than a hurdle.