So you've successfully avoided the crowds at the pier and headed down the beach towards Brighton's marina for a quieter paddle (or a spot of nudity - look out for the signs). If all that trying to make sandcastles out of pebbles has worked up quite a hunger, you could do a lot worse than have lunch at La Marinade. In fact, you couldn't do much better.
La Marinade feels like the small family restaurant it is; chef Nick Lang claims to be the only one of his ilk featured in the Good Food Guide who actually does all the cooking himself. His creations are in the modern European style with a strong lean toward Spanish and Italian flavours (prepared, he proudly states, with French cooking principles), and they are of formidable quality even by the ever-rising standards of the ultra-competitive Brighton and Hove restaurant market.
The £15 set lunch menu also represents extremely good value for the quality offered. There is a wide choice for each course, usually including the catch of the day: simply treated sardines cooked to perfection the day we ate there. There's a good commitment to family eating too, and children are particularly welcome at lunchtimes; on the next table to us two pre-teens sat happily picking apart their mussels and dipping their fries in the sauce.
For the curious palate, both set and à la carte menus (and ever-changing specials) burst with rich flavours and spices resonant of southern Europe and the Middle East, as well as the more familiar northern European combinations. This complex mixture was reflected in our plate of diver-caught scallops - in season the day we visited - combined with Spanish black pudding and served with spring leaves and a crisp apple vinaigrette. The starter of gazpacho was, by complete contrast, bright, light and refreshing - a perfect introduction to the meal.
There's such a great sense of imagination and inventiveness about La Marinade's menu that, sometimes, it seems as if it might all be a little too much for one mouth. But as soon as that thought hits you, another bright, strong flavour comes fighting through and wins you back round. A reasonable and well-chosen wine list starts at £12 - but if, like us, if you're there for lunch, you won't need any further encouragement to settle down for an afternoon nap on the pebbles. Your full stomach and sense of satisfaction will give you more than enough compulsion to do that.
· La Marinade, 77 St George's Street, Brighton, BN2 1EN
lamarinade.co.uk; 01273 600992
