Moshi Moshi, Brighton Review

Typical price:

£25

We like:

The vibe; the sushi; the head-on confrontation of fishy issues surrounding sustainable seafood

We don't like:

The occasional flavour lapses; the lack of information about how else they're doing good -- there's nary a mention of waste management

SmartPlanet judgement:

Eating Cornish seafood in Brighton might seem a bit odd, but it's better than a bob in the eye with an intensively farmed salmon steak. Moshi Moshi sources its fish locally and uses free range chicken, pork and eggs -- and explains its stance on every seafood ingredient on the website.

Score:

Contact:

Nice Car Company at http://www.moshimoshi.co.uk
Telephone: +44 (0)20 7377 5040

Moshi Moshi claims to be Britain's original conveyor-belt sushi bar, with three restaurants in London and one in Brighton. The firm's involvement in the fish stock management initiative 'Invest In Fish South West' won it a Green Apple award in 2005, and this year it nabbed an RSPCA Good Business Award for its commitment to improving animal welfare. The ethical sourcing policy doesn't stop at fish, though: all Moshi Moshi's pork, chicken and eggs are free range, and the dashi (stock) is MSG-free.

Once you really start thinking about what's in your sushi, it seems like there's a new dilemma for every ingredient. Moshi Moshi's website explains its stance on tuna, salmon and squid, so the ultra-careful diner can do their homework in advance. We're not averse to a little light reading, but if you want to go for the supremely easy option, Moshi Moshi's 'clear conscience' sushi set uses the day catch from Cornish fisherman Chris Bean.

While Moshi's London restaurants are aimed at a quick in-and-out, Brighton's squat but striking location in a glass cube also attracts customers who are in it for dinner. They do the conveyor belt thing properly -- it's a long one, regularly reloaded as it snakes through the tables -- and if you've got the self-control not to just take, take, take, a seat at the bar will keep you entertained. Chefs work in the middle, efficiently rolling sushi, and though the cling-film-covered sushi mats might raise some eyebrows among masters of the craft, the results are fresh and neat.

We had to sit on our hands to avoid snatching at the bowls of edamame beans and coral-hued salmon sashimi (farmed at Loch Duart) while waiting for a bowl of spicy pork and vegetable miso soup, which needed a chopstick stir to get the chilli going. The aforementioned 'clear conscience' set features tamago (omelette) nigiri and three kappamaki cucumber rolls alongside the more interesting stuff -- good salmon nigiri and a solitary but wonderfully fresh mackerel nigiri with a silvery flash of skin and a tiny taste of the sea.

Three gunkan -- a base of sushi rice wrapped in a loose belt of seaweed -- were topped with sesame-sprinkled teriyaki mushrooms, opaque, wobbly scallops and spider crab. Only the crab, which we'd admired earlier as it trundled past, was lacking in flavour. A side order of vegetable tempura came crisp and hot, a decent indicator that the hot main dishes are well-handled, although the accompanying dipping sauce lacked character.

Though based on a buzzy, busy concept, Moshi Moshi is a strangely relaxing place to eat. Perhaps it's the warm glow of knowing that the young and endangered fishies and vulnerable seabeds are being left alone, by this chain at least.

[box]Essentials: Sushi plates cost from £1.20 to £3.50, sets £7 to £13, and hot dishes £8 to £12. Moshi Moshi is a short walk from Brighton Station. Opticon, Bartholomew Square, Brighton, BN1 1JS, England.
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Score breakdown:

 

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