We were in Brighton for a mini weekend break. Heading off from work on Friday, it was already 8-ish when we arrived at Brighton. Once checked into our AirBnB and put down our bags, we immediately went out for dinner. Our AirBnB host pointed us towards a nearby street and informed us there would be quite a few halal food options for us to choose from. Soon enough, after a quick stroll we randomly walked into the Plaza Grill House and ended up discovering quite a gem.
On the outside, Plaza Grill House looked just like a typical Middle Eastern takeaway grill house. To be honest. there are a few other halal Middle Eastern restaurants on the same street that looked more like a proper restaurant. But we just somehow had a good hunch about the place and decided to head in there.
We went straight in and picked a table. The menu was very extensive, offering a wide range of grills and classic Arab dishes. Here is what we ordered:
Plaza’s Special Soup (£3)
To start with, we got soup. The Plaza’s Special Soup was made of chunks of lamb, tumeric, onion, garlic, tomatoes & Arab spices. It smelled incredibly nice upon serving and its aroma was just so alluring.
Albeit a spiced fragrance, the soup was not spicy at all. The flavours were immensely fragrant and palatable, with a great tang to it, while the lamb meat was super tender. Also in the soup was orzo, beans and vegetables. It was a pretty generous portion and definitely quite a satisfying starter after a long day!
Warwak (£4)
The Warwak is basically vine leaves rolled with rice and olive oil, and is served with parsley and lemon. They really reminded me of Greek Dolmades which I absolutely adored ever since visiting Athens two years ago. They are actually quite similar but this one carried a more citrusy flavour. It has a more acidic tang to it plus a relatively more mushy texture.
Lamb Mousaka (£7)
When I first saw Mousaka, again I immediately thought of the Greek Moussaka, which is like a vegetable lasagna. The Middle Eastern Mousaka, in a nutshell, is fried aubergine cooked with tomatoes, onion, garlic, sweet pepper and a choice of meat (the menu offers either chicken or lamb). The dish was also served with rice and salad.
I chose lamb as my choice of meat. The meat was cooked tender and tasted very juicy. The sauce was amazingly flavoursome and smooth to taste either. It was simply perfect with rice and flatbread. The rice was cooked with tomatoes, saffron and other Middle Eastern spices, which was absolutely delicious and had a flawlessly fluffy texture.
Lamb Kabsa (£8)
For the other main dish, we went with a classic Lamb Kabsa, a traditional Arab mixed rice dish with meat.
Visually it looked very simple but very appealing with this homely feel to it. The rice was impeccable as mentioned above. As for the lamb, just like the other dishes above, was nicely tender and featured a good little kick of spices. This one seemed to be even better as the lamb was slow-cooked to a ridiculously tender texture where it just tears and falls apart upon touch.
Ginger Mint tea (£2)
Last but not least, with the humongous portion of food, we ordered a pot of Ginger Mint Tea just to help with digesting all the foods. It was nice and warming, with a sharp spice from the ginger.
In summary…
We were glad that we trusted our guts and visited Plaza Grill House. Don’t let the outside fool you. Despite looking just like a typical kebab takeaway shop, it could also do a nice sit-down meal. It was extraordinarily cheap as well and we left with such a satisfied belly and happy wallet.
RATING:
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Food
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Value
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Atmosphere
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Service
Halal Status
Everything is halal at Plaza Grill House
Address: 104 Western Road, Brighton BN1 2 AA