Who knew there were so many dog-friendly restaurants in our city? Well, Maya the Romanian rescue for one. As we tucked into our dinner one wet and windy evening at Murmur, we were surprised to find a beautiful but rather anxious dog on the next table. “Don’t look her in the eye and she’ll be fine”, smiled Mum. 

Look, we’re dog people and a nervous dog on a couchette in one of our favourite restaurants is always going to be fine with us. But while we would normally have focussed by now on the delicious fish caught only this morning by Brighton’s own day boat fishermen, we found ourselves in a curiously unBritish chat about dogs. Maya, our new friends told us, was already able to use a word board to tell her new parents how she was feeling. 

“OMG,” squeaked our Gen Z daughter, ‘Do you follow Bunny on Tik Tok?” Of course they did. Bunny, it seems, is the talking dog who presses audio buttons to formulate whole sentences in order to communicate to her owners. “Maya kept us up all night last week”, said her Dad weakly, only slightly failing to follow the party line. “She was pressing ‘tummy’ ‘hurt’ ‘outside’ ‘medicine’ until I had to put a pillow over my head.” Why he didn’t just let her out, he didn’t say. 

It wasn’t like this in France. For three whole weeks this summer, we feasted on dog friendly vibes. From bites in bars in balmy squares to Michelin starred 12 coursers, Pickle, our 13-year-old Collie Cross was more than welcome. Even in the brasserie at the hypermarche where we sheltered from the rain while charging the electric car (again), Pickle was invited in. “C’est normale” said the waiter, giving him a bowl of water before we could ask. Dogs in France sit under tables and are mostly seen and not heard, although the waiters Pickle met generally stopped for a little ear rub and a chat. Only once did we find a giant poodle sitting on his Dad’s lap. But they were Dutch.

And, as it turns out, it’s pretty normal in Brighton too. Maybe dogs are welcome all over the country and we’ve just never dared to ask. So, we’ve decided to send Pickle out as chief reporter for a brand-new column for the Whistler, The Ruff Guide to Brighton and Hove (see opposite page). He’ll be marking Brighton restaurants on the quality of the welcome, the offer of a water bowl and the quality of the meat. Of vegan and vegetarian fare, it’s all about the meat taste. I did tell him that that’s not always the point, but, well, you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. First up, Kusaki in Preston Circus… 

Gilly Smith