THE PLACE
When they are not touring the world with their techno percussion mine act, the Blue Man Group run an artfully lit eatery that keeps the local plumbers in business thanks to all the holes they make in their pipes. Oh, sorry, we’ve got confused. The title of this authentic North African restaurant comes from the skin-staining indigo robes that the Saharan desert nomads wear. That level of detail runs all the way through this six year old

THE MEAL
The traditional Taguella bread (£4.50), made with millet flour and not a million miles from savoury scones, is a great way to start the meal, and comes with delicious humous-like dips. Meanwhile the Merguez sausages (£6), spicy handmade lamb sausages, come with a huge, sweet salad and harissa. Our mains are a variation on a theme with the lamb shank – known as Adma Khrouf (£16) – as tender as any meat we’ve ever had, and given that Morocan twist by adding dates in with the vegetables. House speciality, the Khrouf (£11.50), meanwhile used cinnamon, prunes and chickpeas for a rich lamb tagine. Once we get over the idea of sweet flavours – fruit in the tagines, sugar on the salad, cinnamon on the cous cous – we really enjoy ourselves.

THE VERDICT
The Blue Man achieves something that few restaurants manage. It feels like being somewhere else in the world. The hectic décor and the seemingly random selection of African music both make it seem like a restaurant picked up and plonked in Brighton. And the food is great too, different enough to seem exotic but non-threatening for fussy eaters. If one of you wants an English-style stew and the other wants to explore new territory then The Blue Man is a nice compromise.

WERE WE SUSSED
The lovely waiter came over when we were taking photos of the food with our big camera but we reckon we just looked a bit mad. He didn’t bat an eyelid, of course, just beamed the big smile he’d been flashing all night. The happiest service we’ve had in Brighton – we’d expect the same

The Blue Man
11 Little East Street
(01273) 32 5529