Market Diner

It is what it is, one Brighton’s most famous establishments. The food isn’t brilliant, the place isn’t the nicest, but it is a great place to be.
Fry up’s at 4am after clubbing is a tremendous idea. If you’re drunk, you come out sober. You see all sorts in there whilst tucking into a Gutbuster.

Fab and friendly last night grease party anyone? Yup. This is a joy for late night revellers, and if you don’t pull on a night out, at least it means you can have one of these MASSIVE fry ups not worry about it. Nobody cares anyway! This is one of those try before you die places, and one little fry up isn’t going to hurt is it?!

This is one of Brightons hidden gems that is an absolutely perfect place to head to after a late night’s boogie and booze antics. It can sometimes get a little too rammed and you may have to wait a while but its worth it!
The fry ups are greasy and are huge! Which is just what you need in the early hours of the morning and come on — its got to be a lot better than a doner kebab!
You do get some funny characters in here falling aslep in their food etc!

I know what you’re thinking; its 5 o’clock in the morning and I fancy a massive English breakfast… Impossible! Well, not in Brighton.
The alternative to kebabs is the student saviour the Market Diner. Selling such delights as the ‘gut buster’ and ‘mega buster’, here you will be provided with opportunity to gorge to your drunken heart’s content.
I recommend this to anybody, even if just once. The Market Diner is one of those guilty pleasures that rounds off the night in all the right ways. It might not make you feel better in the morning, but it’s glorious while you’re eating it.

There’s a harsh light to this diner, which startled me into ordering without thinking. Luckily as a default reaction to such events I will just say cheeseburger, and £2.50 isn’t a bad price for a burger that was pretty decent. There a couple of rooms full of seating, which I was surprised to see quite full. Also, all the bouncers from the surrounding clubs seem to come in quite regularly as one guy breezed in and made himself a cup of tea… charming. The diner is also a community outreach program where they employ ex cons to work in the kitchen and such, Mmm prison burgers. They’re open from 7pm until 7am, so if you find yourself caught short on an empty stomach remember the diner.

Ever wanted to bust your gut in the middle of the night? If the answer is yes and you either a) live near the Ocean Rooms or, b) are REALLY REALLY hungry, then get yourself down to the Market Diner. This is a real Brighton favourite, especially amongst the city’s student population. It’s common knowledge that a full English is a great hangover cure, but the aim here seems to be to beat the hangover altogether by eating the breakfast before going to bed. Brilliant! Open from 10:30pm every night and even providing beds for those who cannot find the strength to go home, the home of the «Original Gut Buster» is like a greasy A&E. Find me an IV drip filled with bacon fat stat!

This is the best place in town to go after a night of drinking.
It’s in a shadier part of town, but always come here in large groups. The place looks like a little hole in the wall, in part because it is. The service is. well, it’s service. You order at the counter and you sit down and they’ll bring you your food — make sure you ask for tea (it comes with most of the meals, but they won’t always give it to you).
The gutbuster is a good size dish to hover around and nibble at at 4am, but the mega gutbuster is the true test of a man’s worth. Definitely not for the faint of heart. I’ve only seen it cleaned once and that was a spectacle.
On a side note: Be careful of all the drunks at night. Last time I was here, some guy picked up my tomato and threw it across the room… I don’t remember what was said…

GENERAL NOTES
Please note this place is getting 4 stars for it’s hours almost alone. It’s a greasy spoon that is open something like 8pm-​6am. I love the idea of a breakfast place that’s only open during non-​breakfast hours. The perfect tonic after a night of gin and tonic. Cheap as chips.
MENU RECOMMENDATIONS
Go for it. Have the Gutbuster. A full English breakfast of eggs, bacon, sausage, ham, beans, tomatoes and fries (?).
SERVICE NOTES
Order at the counter, try to nab a table if you can.
LOCATION NOTES
One street east of Grand Parade at Morley. Sketchy.
HUMOUROUS STORY
Anytime you go to the Market Diner you’re bound to end up with a good story, it’s only a question of if you’re sober enough to remember it. The first time I went there I was just visiting Brighton for the day with a friend of mine and had met up with Guy, another friend who was a local. We did everything that night, including taking a taxi out to the marina to go bowling and finally ending up at the Market Diner on Guy’s insistence. Halfway through the meal Guy stood up abruptly and said «Right, train’s at 4, you know how to get there. Good. I was only a mirage.» and swiftly exited the diner before we had a chance to say anything back.

This one is still going? This is a classic piece of Brighton history, any clubber would be well advised to journey there. wonderful stuff.

Really classic greasy spoon. It’s open all night so the clubbers and he workers mix in together. Quite lairy sometimes. But it’s cheap as chips and the all-​day breakfasts are enormous, greasy affairs which just make the 3am feeling bearable. Tea with everything and that harsh strip lighting that makes it all seem too real.