Brighton does brunch the way some cities do breakfast meetings — seriously, competitively, and with a queue. We went past the star ratings alone and checked which of these have actual, independently-verifiable award recognition behind them, correct at time of writing.
Starfish & Coffee, Queens Park — the multi-award winner
32 Egremont Place, Queens Park. Rated 4.8/5 on Google (1,411 reviews) and 4.5/5 on TripAdvisor (229 reviews) at time of writing — and this is the one with genuine, multi-source award recognition to back it up: Brighton Restaurant Awards (BRAVO) "Best Cafe" winner five times out of seven, Time Out's #1 Best Brunch Spot in Brighton & Hove, and a TripAdvisor Travellers' Choice award in both 2021 and 2022. That's not one lucky nomination — that's a genuine track record across three separate sources.
"The food is SO tasty, portion sizes are great... My absolute favourite café in Brighton," said one reviewer, while another loved it for a different reason: "Absolutely top-rate, tremendous vegan food and the most dog-friendly cafe I've ever visited!"
Oeuf Cafe, Hove — the most-reviewed of the lot
8 Third Avenue, Hove. Rated 4.7/5 on Google — and the most-reviewed venue in this whole round-up, with 1,663 reviews at time of writing. The overwhelming majority are glowing: "The food and drink when it arrived was presented so well and was very tasty!" said one visitor. In fairness, at that volume of reviews not every plate lands perfectly every time — at least one diner mentioned watery, underdone poached eggs — but that's a rare note in a sea of very happy customers.
Jo & Co, Hove
115 Church Road, Hove. Rated 4.7/5 on Google (702 reviews) and 4.8/5 on TripAdvisor (344 reviews) at time of writing — a genuinely strong rating on both platforms, and it doesn't need an awards angle to earn its place here. "All of the dishes looked amazing," said one reviewer, while another flagged exactly what to expect: "The service is always a 10... it can get busy at peak times, so book ahead."
Lost in the Lanes, The Lanes
10 Nile Street, The Lanes. Rated 4.6/5 on Google (1,265 reviews) at time of writing. The bread here gets an unusual amount of specific praise: "The focaccia bread is the best we'd ever tasted," said one reviewer, while another zeroed in on the brunch staple — "Honestly, it was the best avocado on toast I've ever had!"
The verdict
Starfish & Coffee is the clear winner — a strong rating backed by genuine, cross-checked award recognition rather than just star-rating alone. But Oeuf Cafe's sheer weight of positive reviews, Jo & Co's consistency across two platforms, and Lost in the Lanes' focaccia all make a very strong case for a second (or third, or fourth) brunch this month.