[Nic Crilly-Hargrave]

THE three Gladwin brothers have survived a decade in the restaurant trade – a mighty achievement.

They now run five restaurants in the capital, all based on a hardcore farm-to-fork philosophy inspired by their family farm and vineyard in West Sussex.

Sussex in Soho first opened a year or so before Covid. The premises is an iconic site on Frith Street: a stone’s throw from Soho Square Gardens and once home to the much-loved restaurants Arbutus and Bistro Bruno.

Sussex has a warm and beguiling atmosphere – ideal as autumn sets in. The low-ceilinged dining rooms are lit with candles, the flames reflected in the glossy wood panelling, painted dark green.

On the walls hang abstract and angular collages of English wine labels from decades gone by.

Unsurprisingly, there’s a big focus on wine. The Nutbourne vineyards were first planted in 1979, which is almost prehistoric in the context of the English wine industry.

We started our meal with a glass of their Nutty Wild, a pink sparkling wine made with 100 per cent pinot noir.

The wine list itself, which spans the old and new world, reflects their zero-waste ethos: the list is printed on recycled scraps from the floor of a paper factory.

This is a restaurant where it’s wise to focus on the snacks and starter-sized dishes.

We crunched on cute mini cornettos, filled with a whipped smoked cod’s roe from Gloucestershire.

They do a moreish pastry called a marmite éclair, filled with an umami-rich mushroom paste then topped with a dab of confit egg yolk and a slice of cornichon.

Starters include clever concoctions made with the last of this summer’s fresh produce.

A courgette salad is served with goat’s cheese, strawberries and a mustard vinaigrette.

I loved their dish of Sussex chorizo, squeezed from the skins then fried with crisped kale leaves. You scoop up the spicy mix with fragments of a thin crispbread studded with caraway seeds, adding a dollop of homemade yoghurt for lubrication.

If you’re still hungry, the mains are half a dozen meat, fish and vegetarian dishes, such as a whole Megrim sole with English wasabi sauce and samphire.

We finished with a zingy lemon cream tart, topped with a crumble of blitzed pistachios.

Sussex should be on your radar for any trips to the West End. They offer a pre-theatre menu, including a Sussex Beef Wellington to share. Their epic Sunday roasts are restarting, too.

The three Gladwin brothers each have a distinct role in this business. One handles the farming, the other is lead chef, the third runs front of house.

It’s quite a juggling act but they do it so well, with a razor-sharp understanding of what makes for a satisfying restaurant experience. As their motto goes, “what grows together, goes together”.
Sussex

63-64 Frith Street, W1D
020 3923 7770
Email: info@sussex-restaurant.com
Instagram: sussex_resto
www.sussex-restaurant.com