Maré by Rafael Cagali

Featured reviews

• G

  Google user

  ·2 months ago

  “Visited yesterday and was completely blown away. When the hype around a restaurant is this big, it almost feels destined to disappoint – but Mare didn't, not even slightly. Everything was exceptional. The service was warm, personal and incredibly knowledgeable, with every dish and every ingredient explained with genuine passion. The food was simply perfect. We had the Taster menu and I opted for the wine flight, which elevated an already outstanding experience. Brighton has waited a long time for its first Michelin star, and it really couldn't have gone to a more deserving team. Congratulations to everyone at Mare. It's a truly special restaurant, and one we'll be talking about for a long time.”

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• G

  Google user

  ·3 months ago

  “An absolute MUST!!! FOID WAS EXCEPTIONAL. The team were the best I've experienced in any restaurants. A very well deserved Michelin Star 🌟”

• G

  Google user

  ·4 months ago

  “Beautiful restaurant! The staff were really helpful as I’m 25 weeks pregnant. They knew exactly what I could and couldn’t have. But still made me feel I wasn’t missing out on anything. The food was stunning. The staff were all lovely! Very deserving Michelin star!”

• G

  Google user

  ·4 months ago

  “Today 29/05/26 at 19:15 we booked a specific table and the manager last minute decided to change it because an old lady ( the manager said ) decided to taken our table. How an old lady can decide to seat up to footstool table?🤔 when I looked at the table there was two ladies and one man all mid age and no one old lady. I became furious and frustrated because I felt mocked by the manager and even less we been located in a area where mould smells from the walls take possession of our senses of smell and we felt immediately uncomfortable. Food amazing and attentions to the details spot on. Waiters felt immediately uncomfortable for what happened to us and they’ve done the best as they can but the manager literally decided something unpleasant and he literally ruined our dinner experience. Dishes and services from waiters deserves to be on Michelin guide but organisation from manager needs attention and surely don’t deserve to be rated in Michelin guide because what he have done to us it’s very unprofessional and disrespectful. We won’t come back till the manager has been replaced.”

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• G

  Google user

  ·4 months ago

  “A mixed experience spoiled by lack of sentiment. We have eaten at enough starred restaurants to know what we like and don't. This is one of those that left us unsure about to its level of service. The relaxed service was I think meant to be just that. But I found having to ask for waiter for basic things like water or wine or cocktails menu on three occasions was not expected or wanted by us. We went for the tasting menu. The food was a very nice mix of flavours. I really enjoyed some of the sauces that were signature blend of Rafael's style. We got the lobster tail rice as part of the tasting menu. Which we were informed was the most popular famous dish for the restaurant. Between both of us it was the most underwhelming item we had. Overly rich rice with just the sweet lobster tail trying to change things up. Probably the most surprising thing we ate was the serving of the blackened crusty bread over coals with jamon. Not since Spain Dani Garcia ‘Lena’ in Marbella have we had a better posh bread course. A revelation. Something so simple with a little love was amazing and something we would come back for at relatively inexpensive price for what you get. From the rest of the menu, loved the cured fermented fish dish and the story behind it and where we were sat I had the fish just behind me. Other nice things. The cooked oyster starter. Spicy and tongue tingling. Reminded me of Peruvian food. The steak in its sauce was excellent. The biggest disappointment was that I mentioned that it was my partners 55th birthday. Was I expecting some sort of extra touch for the end of the meal or just through some part of the meal. Yes. But not even at the end of the meal did anything happen. Total, no recognition of her birthday occasion at the restaurant apart from a happy birthday from the staff when she entered. She was left really disappointed. We spent our son’s birthday at Coal shed the week before and even they bothered to do unsurprisingly a small plate at the end with a happy birthday wish with a chocolate. So we were perplexed as to the attitude of this star’d restaurant towards this. Was it down to cost of providing something small or was it down to attitude. A huge let down and left our experience very much ‘Marred’”

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• G

  Google user

  ·6 months ago

  “Tasty beautifully crafted dishes that are lovingly prepared and explained by the best staff. From the moment you walk in to the calm sage green oasis your every need is catered for. Staff are welcoming, attentive and knowledgeable. The atmosphere is relaxed, the background music just right, advice and information on menu choices was perfect. The flavoursome food is beautifully presented. No wonder they have a Michelin Star. Our staff were Frea, Jake and Ada humblest apologies if any of those names are spelt incorrectly. Thank you for a wonderful evening 😊”

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• G

  Google user

  ·6 months ago

  “All the staff at Maré were amazing and so accommodating to me and my husband bringing our 3 week old son. The wine and champagne were fantastic and there was plenty of choice on the drinks menu! The tasting menu really was perfect to get a taste of all the amazing dishes. I couldn't flaw one dish! The lamb tacos and fried oyster were particularly good!! Would definitely recommend and we will certainly be back! Thank you!”

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• G

  Google user

  ·9 months ago

  “My Partner and I were both blown away with how incredible the food, service and detail were. 10/10 all round . We had the tasting menu and couldn’t find a single fault with any of the plates. We were looked after by Jake and his team. We are excited to revisit again next year. Well done!”

• G

  Google user

  ·9 months ago

  “I had a lovely time at Mare. The atmosphere was nice, service was friendly and very attentive (sometimes a little too much so) and restaurant itself looked beautiful. The kiwi caipirinha and Sauvignon Blanc I had were excellent, both absolutely delicious. Perhaps I ordered the wrong dishes but I was left completely underwhelmed by the food, which was disappointing as I was excited to try Mare. I ordered the Octopus and Potato skewers, £4.50 for just one, not the three in the dish photographed. It was gone in one bite and tasted mainly of potato. Next up was the focaccia and sourdough bread selection. This was delicious, the olive oil and butter were lovely but it was £7 for 2 slices of toast. I then ordered the prawn main. At £44 I would’ve expected this to be bursting with flavours. The prawns were… nothingy, they just tasted like shop-bought prawns, no extra flavours from however they were cooked. The beans in the sauce were undercooked and tasted bitter. The green peppers were nice but I’ve had padron peppers elsewhere at cheaper places that were so much better. The sauce was nice but again no strong flavours. I ate the prawns and peppers, left the sauce and beans. On the bill was £3.50 for “water refills” which was confusing. Either the charge was for tap water, not legal, or for staff costs constantly refilling our water glasses. We weren’t asked if we wanted our water levels monitored quite so intensively and sometimes it felt almost intrusive when someone was mid-sentence and an arm appears between us with a water bottle. My dining neighbour ordered a steak, which arrived cold. We could’ve gone to Baqueano for a much better steak at £46 The other diners I was with raved about their food, they were very impressed, so maybe I was just unlucky. I really wanted to like Mare but with a bill of £95 it was not the treat I was hoping for. I’m sorry to grumble but thats a large amount of money for me and I expected so much more.”

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• G

  Google user

  ·11 months ago

  “What a fantastic addition to Hove! With a menu that has everything covered from small bite-sized offerings to sharing plates there is something for everyone. The atmosphere is slick, calm and inviting. Staff are knowledgeable and clearly talented. The food was exceptional and reasonably priced for the clear effort put into it. An a-la-carte menu in which every dish seems enticing just means I can’t wait to come back. I would highly recommend visiting this new restaurant which I’m sure is about to make a big wave in Brighton and Hove.”

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