The Briny [Portsmouth, Southsea]

medgirl · September 22, 2024, 1:33pm

This is a restaurant right on the seafront, near Southsea Pier. Usually there are a few outdoor tables overlooking the sea and some window tables with sea views but because of the current sea defence construction work, no outdoor seafront tables and views are very limited from the windows. There are some outdoor tables on a deck behind the restaurant but they overlook the road.

We went to celebrate the visit of a friend from Australia. She’s vegetarian and was happy with the vegetarian options on the menu, even though it is more of a sea-forward restaurant.

We started with cocktails (mocktail for the teen) and beer-battered samphire with vinegar gel to nibble on. No photo of the samphire, which disappeared quickly.

Spicy Mango Margarita
£9.50
Cazcabel Reposado | Cointreau | Mango Purée | Chilli | Tajin & Seaweed Salt

Bourbon Basil Smash
£9.50
Bulleit Bourbon Whisky | Ginger Beer | Lime | Basil | Grilled Peach

Pineapple ‘Marg’ (mocktail)
£7.00
Pineapple | Mango Purée | Lime | Tajin & Seaweed Salt

Then starters! Described as ‘small plates’ on the menu. I had the arancini, which was only a single one (should it have been described as an arancino then!?) - very tasty but would have been nice to have at least 2 or 3 for the £9 price tag! The server was attentive and heeded our vegetarian friend’s request to have the bresaola in the burrata dish separately (my son hoovered up the bresaola). The only other dish I tried was the crab, which was great, letting the fresh crab taste shine through. Everyone was very happy with the taste of the starters.

Cured Romsey Trout
£11
Fennel Salad | Charred Orange Dressing | Mascarpone

Burrata
£14
Isle of Wight Tomato | Bresaola | Nasturtium Leaf

New Forest Pork Belly
£10
Beetroot Relish | Black Garlic Ketchup

Brixham Crab
£13
Gazpacho | Cucumber Salsa | Crab Oil

Wild Rice Arancini (VG)
£9
Samphire & Carrot Salad | Sea Herb Emulsion

Mains, or ‘large plates’ as they are termed on the menu. My husband had the fish of the day, which was roasted sea bream with broccoli and something else I couldn’t remember. My son had steak and our friend and I had the gnocchi.

8oz Beef Sirloin
£30
Lovage Salsa Verde | Jus | Fries | Green Peppercorn Mayo Add Tempura Oyster £4 each

Truffle & Dulse Gnocchi VG
20
Cauliflower Velouté | Grellots | Roasted Cauliflower | Truffle Oil

The steak (requested medium rare) came perfectly cooked and with some unadvertised fried nuggets on top which my son identified as deep fried bone marrow. The gnocchi were nice, bit the roasted cauliflower was too firm for my personal liking - I can make better roasted cauliflower at home. The advertised truffle was too faint to be noticeable, which was slightly disappointing.

No room for dessert! The bill came to around £200 excluding service. We agreed the starters were the best part of the meal. Overall, a good restaurant for a special occasion - the decor and ambience are relaxing and stylish.

Harters · September 22, 2024, 2:45pm

NIce. You had my full attention at the mention of battered samphire.

medgirl · April 10, 2025, 7:53pm

Back to the Briny for a special occasion dinner.

We had a couple of cocktails while perusing the menu:

English Rhubarb Highball £12.50
Chase Rhubarb Vodka | Lemon & Ginger Tea | Apple | Soda

and

My margarita didn’t come with a straw or swizzle stick so I shamelessly used my knife to smash the chillies in the drink to make it more spicy. This was watched with great interest by an older lady at a neighbouring table. I suppose I could have just asked for a straw.

We decided to get a selection of small plates and sides to share.

Crispy Lamb Belly £12
Aubergine Ketchup | Yoghurt | Apricot | Mint Salad

Smoked Haddock Fishcake £11
Fowey Mussel | Confit Tomato | Mussel Cocktail Sauce

Chalk Stream Trout Crudo £12.50
Sesame Mascarpone | Citrus & Olive Oil | Fennel

Brixham Crab On Toast £15
Crab Dripping | Balsamic | Fennel Salad

Charred New Forest Asparagus £10
Wild Garlic Hummus | Panisse Chip

Purple Sprouting Broccoli £8
Lobster Butter

Skin-On-Fries £5
Seaweed Salt

We enjoyed every dish. Everything was balanced and tasty. The only thing I would say is the crab on toast was so rich I felt overwhelmed after eating only a couple of bites. I think it would have been better to have a wholemeal brown or rye bread rather than the brioche, which made the whole thing verge of cloying. I didn’t try the crudo because I’m not a lover of raw fish.

The bill:

digga · April 10, 2025, 8:04pm

Nah, you took the more earth-friendly route!

Fabulous looking meal and so happy that it was for a special occasion. We need more of those moments these days.

medgirl · April 10, 2025, 8:06pm

Thanks! At least they use paper straws (which was in the highball).

GretchenS · April 10, 2025, 8:19pm

I swooned over the crispy lamb belly but it all looks fabulous! That looks like value for money for a special occasion meal. Lucky you!

Harters · April 10, 2025, 9:20pm

That all looks good.

Chalk stream trout seems to be the ingredient impossible to leave off menus in recent months. It’s everywhere at the minute (and not tried it as I’m not keen on trout)

Nangbaorou · April 13, 2025, 6:57am

I’m in Southsea next week. Was the crispy lamb belly as good as it looks/sounds? I might have to go and get one (or two)!

medgirl · April 13, 2025, 7:03am

It was very good - a cylinder of perfectly cooked lamb with no ‘fillers’. Like a very posh kebab!

medgirl · January 3, 2026, 5:10pm

Back to The Briny.

No alcoholic drinks for us at a weekend lunchtime. Just sparkling water. We were seated at a really nice table and the weather outside was excellent - super cold but crystal clear.

At one point a dining family sat outside with their giant fluffy dog:

My husband and I opted for a mix of small plates. My son had a small and a large plate.

Langoustine Soup £12
Sourdough | Rouille | Aged Parmesan

This was very nice. But would have been nicer if there were a few chunks of langoustine involved or a small langoustine on top. Langoustine does not feature anywhere else in their menu, so why they have this soup featuring is a bit of a mystery to me. The rouille-topped bread was amazing.

Chalk Stream Trout Gravalax (sic) £12
Horseradish Cream | Beetroot Relish | Treacle Soda Bread

I’m not a fan of cured fish but hubby enjoyed this. I hate a bite of the treacle soda bread (served as a tiny warm ball) which was excellent.

Dorset Crab Cake £13
Apple & Coriander Salad | Brown Crab Emulsion

This was the one ‘miss’ of the meal. Too bland and overpriced. Crab bits not chunky at all. Needed some thinly sliced chillies or something spicy to liven it up.

Wild Mushroom Arancini (VG) £10
Allium Velouté | Pickled Leek

No photo. The pedant in me grinds her teeth when the description says arancini and they serve a single arancino (but perhaps to be expected after the ‘gravalax’). The penny pincher in me weeps when that single ball of rice with a bit of mushroom costs £10. Son enjoyed it very much so at least it wasn’t a miss.

Beef Sirlion £32
Beef fat fondant| Grilled Roscoff onion| Beef croquette

Skin-On-Fries £5
Seaweed Salt

I stole a few of these fries - perfectly cooked. I like that the malt vinegar was brewed, aged and bottled at The Old Nuclear Bunker in Cornwall!

Roasted Heritage Carrots £6
Black Garlic Ketchup | Crispy Kale

These were very moreish and made us feel good about eating some vegetables.

Choux Bun £10
Eggnog | Pear | Spiced Chestnuts

This was a nice dessert but the spiced chestnuts were missing in action.

The service was slightly ‘off’. A pleasant enough young person was the main server but they weren’t really switched on and other members of staff kept having to step in belatedly or be requested by us for things. At one point a slightly severe older man started whisking away our finished plates etc without any interaction at all. He was quite abrupt and at one point a knife flew off the plate and onto my son’s jacket he had draped over the spare chair. There was not a word of anything like oops or sorry from the severe man. It was a bit bemusing and off-putting and probably contributed to my son not feeling like he wanted dessert. But having visited this restaurant quite a few times in the past several years, the service is probably their weakest aspect.

Harters · January 3, 2026, 7:13pm

I wonder if consideration is being given to bringing it back into use as its original purpose? Only half joking.