A convivial café: Brighton Beach House
Something is very convivial about having a ‘local’ café – a place where you can drop in for a morning coffee, or a drink after work, and be greeted by name and with a bit of cheek by a smiling staff member.
It is that vibe which you will find at Brighton Beach House, run by Donna and Scot Toon.
Donna explains “the concept of ‘local’ is very important to us. We are local ourselves. I grew up in New Brighton. It’s also about buying local, employing local and giving back to the local community organisations wherever we can.” This philosophy is evident in their local wine and gin lists. The Micro Greens are grown in South Brighton, the beers on tap are from local brewery Two Thumbs, and their house vodka is by local Christchurch distillery Heresto.
Donna and Scot may be local, but they bring to the Beach House years of hospitality experience of working overseas. “This café is a dream for us that has been cooking for years. We provide Kiwi favourites, such as eggs Bene, but we have also introduced some Asian flavours to tempt our customers to try new dishes. There is a Thai curry and pork and coriander dumplings, as well as Korean chicken bites and poke bowls, which change seasonally.”
Brighton Beach House has spacious indoor and outdoor dining areas, and is an excellent venue for functions. They also have a monthly quiz with Donna herself as the quiz master. A truly great “local”.
