After reading glowing review after glowing review of Sugardough, I finally managed to get over the border to Hove to pay them a visit. The issue was I waited until I was on a dairy free diet trial (feeding a windy baby). And what I liked most about Sugardough was that, despite a huge selection, there was NOTHING I could eat under that dietary restriction. With no apologies, the food here is created for taste and everyone knows that baking includes truckload of dairy. As it should be.
So instead I watched the constant queue gorge on amazing looking huge pies, quiches, gorgeous tarts, pastries and cakes. They are super busy here and for an uninspired stretch of retail near the King Alfred is quite an achievement. Word on the street is that they are looking to come to Brighton. Here's hoping.
The interior is really cute too with lots of antique furniture and display cases to give it a homely, lived in vibe. If you can secure yourself one of the few tables, it's a really nice spot for lunch or breakfast.
But really, I was here for the pizza (what, really?!), which they sell al taglio (by the slice). Unlike the classic Neapolitan style pizza, this is closer to Roman style and even closer to a type of pizza they sell in Italian bakeries (never pizzerias) called Pizza Rossa. This typically is a dough base cooked in large trays with copious amounts of olive oil. This results in almost a fried quality to the base and if you are lucky enough to get a corner piece, you'll find it slightly charred and chewy. Probably the most delicious thing you'll put in your mouth. But unlike the pizza rossa which is only ever topped with tomato sauce and herbs, Sugardough have more variations like roast vegetables or (a Roman classic) Potato and rosemary.
Although not quite exactly like the pizza rossa back home, it's pretty close and worth a trip to get yourself a slice.
I did get to try a loaf of the bread though, an unusual potato, rosemary and garlic loaf, which I really enjoyed. All the bread looks great, especially the beautiful spelt loaves.
Happily, I'm now back on the dairy, so I'll definitely be back to sample a lot more.
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