Aberdeen Seafood on King’s Road, Brighton is in a standout location on the seafront opposite the West Pier. My partner and I spotted it as the former site of The New Club was painted an eye-catching blue this Summer and ‘Aberdeen Food’ signs went up and made the intention to visit.
This welcoming new place is run by charismatic restaurateur CK, who also runs the popular CK Bistro in Queens Road and Stir Fry by CK in George Street, Hove. We went on down to sample the comprehensive menu, which promises: “Asian-inspired small plates and bold flavours” and is “flavourful, familiar and made to share.” The well-thought out and descriptive menu immediately activated our taste buds with mouthwatering photos of various dishes. Aberdeen Seafood has a vast range of fresh seafood on offer: scallops, oysters, lobster, crab, mackerel and cod to name a few, as well as meat dishes.
We struggled to know what to order from the range of soups (£6 to £10), hot delicacies (£8 to £10), signature cold starters (£7 to £8), hot seafood tapas (around £9.50 per dish), signature seafood, noodle dishes (£10 to £11) and fish dishes. The seafood platters (priced around £70) looked tempting too. Our delightful and helpful waitress went through the whole menu with us, which was over and above service and gave us some really honest recommendations. And then CK generously shared stories with us about his Hong Kong heritage, the history of Hong Kong and all about his passion for food.
We settled on trying many different things from the menu, with extra recommendations from CK, and were grateful for our extra large table (thanks to it being a Monday-they’d have a super busy weekend!) to house all our colourful and delicious dishes.
CK’s wife makes fresh dumplings every Tuesday from 8am to 10pm. On a Monday night, we were able to nab the last ones – Sichuan Chili Oil Dumplings (£8). These packed a punch with spicy oil, which complimented the tender dumplings clearly made with love. We tried razor clams for the first time and they tasted similar to squid. We had Steamed Razor Clams with Garlic Vermicelli, which were garlicky and meaty (£9.50) and another razor clam dish, piled with fragrant flavour. One of the standout dishes that I am still reminiscing about was the Crispy Noodles with Mixed Seafood (£12.50). This dish was perfection: crunchy, moreish, full of fresh and varied seafood and a tasty sauce.
We also tried the “dangerously addictive” Golden Salted Egg Chicken Wings (£8), which was tender chicken coated in a unique flavour – creamy salted egg yolk sauce. A big thumbs up from us! The showstopper of the evening was the Wok-Fried Seabass with Black Bean and Chilli. Hearty (£24). This dish lived us to its earthy and fresh promise and wowed us on a huge platter in the middle of the table. The Seabass was everything I wanted from a full fried fish dish: crispy and tender. The sauce was smoky and satisfying. CK shared with us that the fish is placed in the deep fat fryer for 30 seconds before serving.
Another unusual dish we tried was the Malaysian Hainanese Chicken Rice (£11.50). For this dish, the chicken comes cold. My partner loved it and devoured it but it wasn’t my favourite. It’s always worth trying new things though! The food was complemented by the best sauces and dips, seasonings and garnishes. This is top quality food made with passion and the price tag is very reasonable for what you get. There were so many dishes we’d still love to try, including the Golden Baked Seafood Rice (£11.50) with tomato sauce, which sounds very comforting. The crab had also run out because it is so fresh, there’s not a never-ending supply every day.
Aberdeen Seafood Brighton’s tagline is “from Hong Kong to King’s Road, Brighton”. CK, who moved to the UK eight years ago, says that setting up shop and calling it Aberdeen “felt like coming full circle – a little reminder of home, right here by the sea.” He explained the Western culture of Hong Kong, due to its former colonisation by the British empire, and how things changed with it gaining independence in 1997 and the subsequent Umbrella Movement. Because colonisers named things in his country after their culture, like the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Hong Kong, CK decided to take the name of one of the UK’s biggest fishing ports – Aberdeen – for his newest Brighton restaurant.
“I put everything I love on the menu,” he told us. “I want to keep the taste and identity of the Hong Kong food to share…. Food is therapy.”
This was a hearty and generous spread of food for two people and it was an absolute delight to sample this incredible menu – a welcome addition to Brighton’s wonderful food scene. At 9pm, as we were still eating, CK joked that even though they closed at 11pm, he would leave us the keys to lock up.
The menu also has a range of sides including chips and vegetables. The vast drinks menu includes wines (from £23 a bottle), cocktails (£9 to £11), mocktails (£7.50), spirits (from £4) and liquors (£4). Dessert: Affogato (£7), Creme Brulee (£8), French toast with honey and butter (£7) and Eton Mess (£8) but after this feast there was no way we had space for that on this occasion!
Make sure you get down to Aberdeen Seafood Brighton and if you’re lucky you may get to hear anecdotes from CK. There’s something for everyone on the menu and something different to try every time. My top tip is to ask the wonderful staff for recommendations if you’re stuck for choice.
Address: 133-134 Kings Road, , Brighton and Hove, United Kingdom
Website: Facebook
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