Review: Anakuma

Anakuma has had a bit of a rocky run since opening at the end of 2023. When I returned to Brighton after a year of being away, I was thrilled to see it had opened just up the road from its older sibling, the beloved Halisco. The menu immediately grasped me so I visited as soon as I could. There was still some refining to do, but when I heard about their new fusion menu, I booked without hesitation. Everything sounded so good, we just couldn’t hold back.

We were warned about the amount of food we'd ordered but by no means discouraged, we knew what was coming and exactly how much of it. Let me break it down so I don’t keep you. The menu is split into four sections: snacks, small plates, tacos, bao buns. Getting a few dishes from every section is a must, no? Here we go, from the top.

Snacks:

Friendly start with the homemade kimchi and pickles, the latter being the special of the day. There was a flavour so unique in the pickles it took us nearly the entire meal to identify it. I’m not sure what went into the brine, but they had a herbal tinge similar to a cup of strong green tea. It was unlike other pickles I’ve had with a totally different tartness to the daikon sharing the same bowl. Homemade kimchi was a nice change from the storebought variety, we felt it lacked a touch of salt but the depth of flavour was enough to overlook that.

Next up, katsu devilled eggs with a rich Japanese curry sauce. I think devilled eggs are quite a treasure and should be given a lot more attention than they have been thus far, so thank you Anakuma for allowing them this moment. I wasn’t sure what to expect here- the katsu element was expertly executed in a thin, crisp layer coating each half, a creamy dollop on top with pickles to garnish. They did a great job on the smooth curry the eggs were nestled in; I couldn’t help but spoon up the remains.

The chicharrónes with wasabi, lime, and coriander came out with the chipotle miso soup. Chicharrónes are traditionally served in much larger pieces so this may have been better described as pork belly bites and although they were crispy, I was after a more intense crunch. I found them more fatty than meaty, again could’ve been helped by serving in bigger chunks. Soup struck me as odd considering the menu leans heavily towards sharing. The description excited us however we were missing the hit of smokiness chipotle is known for. In my humble opinion, less toppings in the soup would have let the flavours come through; the busyness didn’t work in its favour. That aside, my favourite part of miso soup is the seaweed and silken tofu which I was grateful to find lots of in each spoonful.

Small Plates:

First off, we were after the beef birria soup dumplings, a prime example of Mexican Asian fusion, but were regretfully informed they were not on offer that evening because the chefs were still perfecting the recipe. I think this goes to show how important it is to the team that everything they produce is of a high standard.

Although they’re titled ‘small plates’, these were so generously portioned and that’s absolutely not a complaint. Veg first: grilled padron peppers with Tajin and garlic mayo, Halisco corn ribs with Tajin and paprika butter, grilled tenderstem with ancho satay sauce and peanut crumb. Padron peppers are usually something I skip but I’ve grown fond of them. These were very simply charred and salted as they should be, the Tajin adding a gentle kick. A contrast in textures would have been nice, possibly a crunchy chilli topping or a different dip.

I’ve always had a bit of a personal issue with corn ribs in that they’re never as easy to eat as one may think. They always get stuck in my teeth, always undercooked, always in some weird sauce and served as a vegan replacement for actual ribs which they most certainly are not. But these corn ribs, oh wow. Low effort, high reward. I put in hardly any work only to be gifted with the popping of juicy kernels, each of them with deliciously roasted skin. My only qualm here was the butter. There was so much of it, it was dripping all the way down to my wrists and both hands were occupied with corn, unable to grab my napkin. Acceptable when eating in the comfort of my own home but not ideal in a public setting.

The grilled tenderstem surprised me. Broccoli is always good but even better when it’s a little charred with a nice crisp on the floret. The satay sauce was dense in a good way, packing so well in the crevices of the broccoli and balanced by the crunchy peanut crumb.

On to the stars of this ‘course’, shall we say. The tostadas, beef tartare with a golden egg yolk and chilli de arbol, and king prawn Thai aguachile. I always assume I’ll prefer seafood to meat, but the beef tartare stole the show entirely. We split the egg yolk and watched it coat the beef, which note, had been chopped and not minced. Because of this, the meat was lean, its natural taste really came through, and the light hint of chilli de arbol didn’t taint it in any way. Texturally, this was heaven. Zesty king prawn complemented the luxurious tartare, keeping things light and refreshing. What I really appreciated about both of these was the tostadas split in half so well with minimal mess making them very easy to share. I’m not sure if this happens often or if we just got lucky, but that’s what I call a good omen.

Tacos:

If you’ve looked at the menu, you’ll have noticed three tacos: crispy oyster mushroom karaage with teriyaki mayo, and Korean chicken with chicken skin mayo, both with a delicate slaw. The third, a Modelo battered cod with guacamole and a chipotle mayo. Reading all of those one after the other, a heavy presence of mayo is noticeable, which in my opinion could have been replaced with something a touch more interesting.

Like I’ve said time and time again, I’m a fish girl, so naturally, my first bite was of the battered cod. It was hot with an airy beer batter. The fish tasted clean, it was glossy and complemented well by fresh guacamole. What stood out most to me was the quality of the tortilla. A good tortilla tastes like its ingredients which these most certainly did.

I must be honest, when the tacos came out I couldn’t tell which was mushroom and which was chicken. This is partly due to poor eyesight, but mostly due to the fact the mushroom was battered, and the chicken was not. There was no indication on the menu that the chicken would be battered, but when I see Korean chicken I assume Korean fried chicken. I accepted defeat and got stuck in. Chicken first, a strong char with slight sweetness surrounding it, and a squeeze of lime to top it all off. Oyster mushrooms excite me particularly when they’re fried, but I’m afraid to say these didn’t quite hit the spot. The karaage aspect was fantastic, remarkably crunchy but it totally swallowed up the mushrooms. Sadly, I couldn’t taste or even see any mushroom, but I enjoyed the crisp nonetheless. Larger pieces of mushroom would have withstood such a substantial batter, but I’ve found a lighter tempura batter is a better accompaniment for fragile ingredients.

Bao Buns:

Finally, we’ve reached the end. If you’re still here, well done. To round things off, a pork al pastor bao, coming with a pineapple ketchup, onion, and coriander. The pork here was completely different to the chicharrónes, being far less fatty and less chewy due to the grilling. Pineapple ketchup lent a fruity sweetness with a peppery bite from the onion. This was a luscious combination only brought down by there being a bit too much bao.

You know what, this review got so long I completely forgot we had dessert. Can you believe we had dessert? This evening’s dessert was a deep fried cinnamon bao with a scoop of coconut ice cream, dusted with crushed pistachio. It was between chocolate sauce and pistachio sauce- we shared a look that said ‘both’, and both is what we had. The bao was crisp and far fluffier than expected. We discussed whether vanilla ice cream would have been better but agreed vanilla is predictable, the coconut provided a necessary lightness. I had a variation of the same dessert on my visit last summer; why fix something if it isn't broken, right?

Anakuma, you truly surprised me, I look forward to watching the menu evolve in the coming months. You all better keep your eyes peeled, there's exciting stuff going on here.