Viva Brighton Issue #69 November 2018

FOOD
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Pascere
A Saturday lunch to savour
With its understated
elegance and intimate
atmosphere, Pascere is
the perfect choice for
an evening out, but, as
my friend Frances and
I discover one autumn
afternoon, it also makes
for a decadent lunch
spot.
From the comfort of
the smart interior and
our seat in the picture
window, we watch
the Saturday shoppers being blown about a
blustery Duke Street. Decked out in deep teal
woodwork, marble-topped tables and brushed
golden surfaces, Pascere is a very civilised place
to hide out from a wet weekend.
The menu is equally refined, with three
choices each ‘to start’, ‘to follow’ and ‘to
finish’. We both choose BBQ brassicas,
trompettes, girolles and Tunworth to start,
then tuck into the springy beetroot focaccia
served with whipped Jersey butter.
Soon, an artful arrangement of seared
brussels sprouts, broccoli and the most
delicate mushrooms is served. The dish is
small but perfectly formed with a superb
balance of flavours.
Frances chooses the cornfed chicken breast
to follow. It is, she reports, perfectly cooked,
with a crisp skin and a melt-in-the-mouth
texture, served with a sweet potato cream,
parsnips and golden beetroot. She savours
every bite. It becomes clear that sharing is to
be limited to slivers.
Likewise, my confit Pippa potato, smoked
savoy, brown sauce and black truffle is
Photo by Lizzie Lower
something I’d rather
keep all for myself. I’m
not sure how one goes
about smoking cabbage,
but it is sublime, with
a little tomato adding
sweetness to the salty
smokiness. Combined
with the soft, waxy
potato, the lightest
pecorino foam, al dente
root vegetables, and
dabbed with the intense
sauce, it is one of the
most delicious plates of food that I’ve eaten in
a long time.
The service is excellent, too. The staff are
warm and conversational; not overdoing
the notes on provenance and preparation
but enthusiastically knowledgeable when we
want to know more. And this is food worth
talking about; the sort of food that has earned
Pascere a spot in The Good Food Guide (one of
just 23 Brighton restaurants that feature).
We’re not ready to rejoin the world yet, so
we order cheese and gelato. The cheese is
very nice, but it is eclipsed by the gelato. One
quenelle of pistachio with an intense taste
of marzipan is complemented by another
flavoured with coffee, and all scooped up on
a wafer of bitter chocolate brioche. A mild
scuffle breaks out over the last spoonful.
At £78 (without wine), it’s not an average
Saturday afternoon lunch bill, but it’s been far
from an average lunch. Pascere has garnered
its fair share of rave reviews since it opened
in the summer of 2017. Here’s another (well
deserved) one to add to the pile. Lizzie Lower
8 Duke Street, pascere.co.uk
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