Karen’s Diner to open in Brighton

Karen’s Diner is to open one of its deliberately rude restaurants in Brighton on 13 August, marking the group’s first permanent outpost on the south coast.

It comes after the brand, which sits under Australian parent company Viral Ventures Global, announced plans for rapid UK expansion, following openings in Islington and Barnet, in north London, and Birmingham.

Speaking to The Caterer about the latest launch, Paul Levin, who oversees the operations of Karen’s in the UK, Ireland and Europe, revealed: “The fact we’re on the sea is quite fun. We can have walk-ins during the day for Karen’s bar as well as Karen’s diner. Other than that it’s your usual rude, hard experience.”

When asked about how the Brighton crowd might react to the deliberate insults from staff, Levin said: “I think they’ll absolutely hate it. They are such a nice, quiet bunch, but I’ve seen them in a football match and I’m sure they’ll give as much Karen as we give out.”

The permanent site comes off the back of a Karen’s on Tour pop-up held in Brighton earlier this year.

Levin added: “We did a pop-up a few months ago just to test the atmosphere. We don’t have anything on the south coast, which is wrong, so Brighton is really exciting for us.”

In terms of further openings, Karen’s has secured a site in Northern Ireland which is due to launch in October. “We are just finalising discussions in Dublin,” Levin added.

The food offering will be “much the same”, with typical dishes such as the Basic Karen burger with Wagyu beef, Swiss cheese, tomato, lettuce, beetroot and garlic mayo; Karen’s Best Breast burger with grilled chicken breast, bacon, Swiss cheese, lettuce, tomato, avocado and peri-peri mayo; and loaded fries.

There will be food and drink options for vegetarians and vegans, but Karen’s Brighton stated: “Don’t expect Karen to be happy about it.”

Levin added recruitment has only just started and he has encouraged “as many local faces in Brighton as possible” to consider applying.

“If you think you’ve got a career in being rude, visit our jobs tab on our website," he said.

Photography: Sarah Lucy Brown