Sussex produce is king at Barney's deli in Brighton and Hove

At Barney’s delicatessen we are proud purveyors of the finest locally sourced products – Sussex cheeses, charcuterie, wines, hand-made chutneys, chocolate, oils and condiments.

We also offer bespoke hampers, cheese and charcuterie boards, bespoke wedding cheese cakes and corporate gifts and we stock a variety of continental delicacies and vegan options, including artisan vegan cheeses.

Baney's Hove

Our Hove branch also offers freshly prepared soups, salads and sandwiches for takeaway or eat-in and you can now enjoy a delicious glass of local wine or bubbles with a local cheese/cheese and charcuterie board.

We are based in Kensington Gardens, Brighton, and recently opened our second store in Portland Road, Hove.

We currently employ four staff – Safa Sahbaz, who runs the Kensington Gardens store alongside Sebastian Wiczling, and at our Hove branch we have Frazer Ives who stayed on with us when we took over the business from Black Radish, and our most recent team member, Sam Elliott who joined us last week.

Barney’s Brighton and, right, Michaela with the shop’s namesake. Below, a selection of products available at the deli Pictures: Safa Sahbaz

We opened our first shop in Kensington Gardens in October 2018.

Since I was a teenager it was my dream to own my own cheese shop/delicatessen, having worked in the sector for eight years before going to university at 24.

In 2017 I was diagnosed with breast cancer and later that year also suffered a ruptured appendix, followed by the announcement shortly after that I was to be made redundant.

My perspective on life had changed and so my partner Dawn Ellis and I had a long talk about what I was going to do – I didn’t want to work in the corporate world any longer, and so, with Dawn’s unconditional support, we decided to go for my dream and opened Barney’s, named after our dog after a number of our friends said “why don’t you just call it Barney’s?”.

Barney is a five-year-old cavapoo and we’ve had him since he was a puppy.

The pandemic has certainly been challenging for us, like every business. During the first lockdown we diversified into fruit and veg deliveries to locals when we saw on the news that people were struggling to get fresh produce. We have also developed our website, with local IT Management company AJT, and offer local and nationwide delivery with our local partner Retail Distribution.

A selection of products

We are passionate about what we do at Barney’s. We love working with our local suppliers and producers to bring our customers the best that Sussex has to offer. This is especially important with the pandemic – we MUST support our local farmers and producers or lose them.

I think it is testament to our customers that Barney’s has survived this pandemic. We had only been trading 14 months or so when the pandemic hit, that could have been fatal for us and we are deeply grateful to everyone that continues to support us.

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I think 2021 will still have its challenges but we’re ready.

On Thursday this week we will be launching our evening opening at Portland Road, offering cheese, charcuterie and wine, alongside a selection of our day menu (evening opening will be Thursdays to Saturdays until 10pm and Sundays noon to 7pm) We will be looking to partner with our local producers and suppliers in the future to offer wine and cheese tasting evenings too. We have a fantastic team, who have worked tirelessly and with commitment throughout lockdown, and without whom none of this would have been possible.

Would you like to feature as an Argus trader of the week? Email kate.parkin@theargus.co.uk