Café Plenty | Breakfast review
Updated March 2026: Cafe Plenty closed in 2019.
You might remember my review of Cafe Plenty a few months ago, in which I reviewed the place as a fairly new discovery. Throughout my previous visits, I’d only ever tried the fresh food from the counter, but never off the menu. Luckily for me, the lovely guys at Plenty recently invited me down to try out their breakfast menu. Who was I to resist?
I’m a big fan of Plenty’s aesthetics, from the incredibly tempting food counter to the bright spaces filled with art. The pieces on the wall change from time to time, which keeps the place looking fresh and interesting.
Coffee
Having had coffee at Plenty both hitting and missing the spot so far, I tried another flat white. The foam level was too much for a flattie and more on the side of a latte, but the tastes coming through from the espresso were still good. The same can be said for my plus one’s mocha, which needed less foam but the taste and temperature was there.
Breakfast
The breakfast menu is pretty varied, including bacon or veggie butties, French toast, eggs Benedict and a full english. Always one for a sweet breakfast, I chose the French toast, whilst my friend went for a full english.
I get pretty excited when I see French toast on a menu, as not too many places do it. It was perfectly sweet and cinamonny with a nice crisp to the bread. There was a good amount of maple syrup to soak into the bread, although I could always use more.
The only disappointment I had here was finding out afterwards that I could have had bacon as part of the dish, which sadly wasn’t advertised on the menu board. However, at just £4 for french toast with maple syrup, that is an absolute bargain!
Onto the full english, and just look at the size of it! I was definitely keen to steal a few forkfuls from the plate. The sourdough toast was soft and chewy whilst still maintaining a good crunch, accompanied by tasty salted butter. I liked the texture and smokiness of the bacon, but my friend thought it tasted a little oily.
The star of the show, however, was actually the black pudding! My companion is definitely braver than I when it comes to black pudding, but he told me to try it and it was great, actually tasting like rich sausage. The sausages themselves though, were quite odd, with a dry and strangely grainy mouthfeel. Overall then, with disappointing sausages and everything else being on the better side of alright, this wasn’t a standout full english.
I think that perhaps Plenty could do with giving some more detail on some of their dishes, as it’s not entirely clear what will be arriving on your plate. The full english doesn’t state what’s included, and may be off-putting when coupled with a slightly higher price of £9.50.
Third Place
As I’ve said before, I really like Plenty as a place to relax and spend some time. Having enjoyed my French toast, as well as several lunches and coffees there previously, it’s definitely still a third place for me.
Where is your top breakfast spot in and around Brighton?
*We were invited to Cafe Plenty for this meal, so on this occasion it was free of charge. As always, all thoughts and opinions are honest and completely my own!