Bill's Lewes Restaurant

Exceptional service from Emma and team, we were a large group of 13 people celebrating 5 birthdays. We ordered from the large group set menu. Everything was delicious and arrived at the table in a timely manner. All additional requests were accommodated with ease and a smile. The restaurant is so pretty and cosy when it starts to get dark outside. Thank you for having us and helping us celebrate such a special evening

From the moment we walked in, the staff were warm, attentive, and genuinely welcoming. The service was impeccable throughout our visit—friendly without being overbearing, and always on hand just when you needed them. It’s clear the team takes pride in creating a relaxed yet polished dining experience. The food lived up to every expectation. Fresh, vibrant ingredients shine in every dish, from the beautifully presented starters to the generous mains. To top it all off, dessert was a true indulgence, a perfect end to the meal.

As a food critic, my visit to Bill's in Lewes, the very birthplace of this now-ubiquitous chain, was a delightful reminder of its enduring appeal. Nestled in this amazing town, the restaurant truly shines, offering a welcome respite with its vibrant, relaxed atmosphere. From the moment we stepped in, the staff were exceptionally attentive, striking that perfect balance between professional service and genuine warmth. Our starter, a crispy calamari with a perfectly tangy aioli, set a promising tone. But the star of the show was undoubtedly the delicious burger. Cooked to perfection with a juicy patty, fresh accompaniments, and a soft, yielding bun, it was a testament to simple ingredients executed flawlessly. Bill's Lewes demonstrates that even as a chain, it retains a charm and quality that makes it a highly enjoyable dining experience. A solid choice for a casual yet satisfying meal in a picturesque setting. Nick #doctorfoodielondon

We were lovely served by Izzy and Dan. The hospitality is very good! My meat was first overcooked but they offered me a new meal, which was perfectly cooked, and compensation. I enjoyed the rump steak very much! The ambiance was so nice. We had a really nice talk about Lewes and so many other things. A lovely place to be for a good meal and perfect service.

it was absolutely wonderful, the staff were welcoming and perfect, exactly what we’d expect from a restaurant like this. it was lovely to see management doing their part to serving the guests and making every part of the experience fantastic….we would 1000% come again

Lovely place with great food! They have a fantastic choice for gluten free, the pancakes are delicious. It’s dog friendly too so my pooch could join in- with eating too, since they have a doggie menu too! I loved the decor and vibes here. Definitely recommend :)

The team were fantastic this evening. Nothing was too much trouble and each server was so kind and friendly. Food was quick and absolutely delicious. Fabulous value for money. Fergus was a delight, checking on his staff, rounding the tables and keeping things running smoothly. It didn’t go amiss that he was mucking in with all the jobs and doing a fine job. Everyone made a fuss of our (very well behaved) children after some older guests grumbled as we walked in with them. We go to hundreds of restaurants across the country but rarely find anywhere as good as this. Isabelle was our server, but Fergus and Alana were just superstars. Very very rare find in any industry - I’d hire them off you in a heartbeat. We can’t wait to visit again soon.

I am a huge fan of Bill's and regularly visit the Brighton and Chichester branches, and without fail, they live up to my expectations and previous experiences. The Lewes branch is the original restaurant, and unfortunately, it let itself down big time. I ordered scrambled egg with sourdough toasted bread. The bread was so lightly toasted it was just warm bread 🍞 with no crunch, no butter supplied, and the portion of overcooked scrambled egg 🥚 was disappointing and unappetising. I asked for the bread to be retoasted and waited 6 min to be brought a new plate of hotter bread, still pale with no toasted crunch. Waited another 6 min for proper browned toast, by which time my scrambled egg was cold !! But hunger won out over complaining again. We were a group of 9, and when we asked the waitresses to take individual payments, we were told that there were too many of us and to use a QR code on the table to pay. I am a tech happy person, but this was a complicated process that required you to have your card physically with you for the pin number, which some of us did not have ( that's the whole idea of contactless). In the end, I had to ask the manager to pay the remaining money the normal way. I was surprised when she informed me that we could have paid with the machine and I was wrongly advised. I will say thank you to her for taking the service charge off as part compensation for the hassle even though I said it was ok. I hope this was just a glitch in an otherwise fab restaurant chain... or was not even that busy on the day.

Lovely spot on High Street. We were visiting for the day and this restaurant looked very inviting. We snagged a spot outside on High Street, prime spot to take it all in. We tried The Bloody Mary's, cause why not. We added a bit of Bill's spicy sauce, and it was perfect. A good option for Saturday day drinking. We shared a bunch of plates. We ordered the garden sampler which included Halumi fries, Korean cauliflower and tzatziki. The Halumi fries were my fav. I've had better Korean cauliflower. The fries were perfect. The prawns were fresh and delicious. Lovely spot to take it all in!

Picture this: Three large buttermilk pancakes Sprinkled with fresh blueberries, strawberries, banana and mango. A pinch of toasted seeds and nuts. A scoop of good quality ice-cream with vanilla flecks. Great quality maple syrup dripped over all of it. Sounds good, right? Problem is, there was only one portion left and some other lucky bastard had ordered it!! Luckily, they had my second choice available - a mezze plate with olives, feta, melon, humous, guacamole, babaganouish and grilled bread. Was it worth the 15 minute wait and sharing the table with two others? It was lip-smackingly deeeeeeelicious.

I think that the original Bill's is the best Bill's, of course. We've been going for years and the place is lovely. It can be very tricky to get a seat, but once you're in, the food is great, the service is great, and it has charm. The mini cumberland sausages in honey mustard sauce [also on the menu in Horsham] are a winner. If you don't fancy a big lunch/dinner, the small plate menu is quite nice. The warm elderflower cordial is always a hit, and they make really nice lattes. For a relaxed afternoon or for a special occasion, Bill's wins every time.

I've been visiting Bill's Lewes for years. Although all their meals are very good and always have an exciting flavour twist, I think breakfast is undeniably the best menu. I always visit with my family so we've covered every item available between us. You couldn't go wrong with any option however the vegetarian breakfast being a tears to my eyes. Perfect poached eggs on gorgeous thick bread smothered in avocado and humous with a chili drizzle and perfect mushrooms. Truly it's worth being dragged out of bed at 8am (in order to travel 12 miles..!). It's truly my death row meal. In fact I'd consider murder if it was shot at one. My only downer would be the smoothies are smaller than they used to be.

Since opening in Lewes 2001, Bill's has taken off, representing everything that is great about the modern cafe. Now also to be found in Brighton's north lanes, this restaurant/cafe/green grocer is never without hoards of customers. As well as being a truly global market and deli, the restaurant also opens first thing in the morning, offering a host of organic breakfasts or sweets. Going on throughout the day, Bill's offers daily specials as well as a lunchtime and evening menu. Examples of some of the great things to be found here are 'Thai spiced pumpkin and coconut curry' a delightful mezze comprised of dishes like babaganoush and feta cheese. Whether you visit Bill's in Lewes or Brighton, expect it to be extremely busy. It is worth it though.

Only four starts? Controversial, I know, but let me tell you why... Its not because I don't love it, Bill's is a fantastic place to come for brunch or lunch. The food is great and they have started doing larger lunch specials such as lamb shank as well as the normal menu and the lighter meals and the great breakfasts). Today I went for the baked salmon with crushed new potatoes and hollandaise sauce - beautifully pink inside, cooked to perfection. I was too full for a pudding but my friends obliged, one having "the best pavlova" she had ever tasted (I tried some, it was damn good!) I don't even mind the fact that you have to queue for a table, it doesn't take that long and its worth the wait. The staff are friendly and helpful and the prices reasonable. My only slight niggle is that it has moved away from its original premise - Bill's started out as a local greengrocer, which then went on to provide food. Over the years, the restaurant got bigger and bigger, and the shop area smaller and smaller until it now only covers one wall as you walk in. Its no longer somewhere that you can walk into and browse at all the scrumptious produce. I loved this cafe-shop combo, and am already missing it now that it seems to be being fazed out.

Bill's is an amazing place to take someone who is visiting you from some lesser county where they don't have expensive greengrocerly fantasias - the cultivated cornucopian atmosphere is truly inspired and remains so despite the corrosive passage of time. Everything about the experience - from the carefully selected artisan products that line the walls to the heaps of fresh produce heaped in the (unfortunately shrinking) retail area - screams freshness and flavour and the joys of a perennial harvest festival at the kind of primary school where none of the kids ever have to bring tinned smartprice beans. So why only three stars? Well, first, the shrinking of the retail section is a shame. I can't fault the decision on a business level, but I think the effect on the overall feeling of the place has been diminishing - I preferred it when it was half shop/half cafe. Now it is a cafe with a gift shop and (secondly) I've never been that convinced by the cafe. The food is good - to an extent. But they have a habit of reinventing wheels in their authoring of recipes and I've always found that dishes seem to have one ingredient more than they need. You're forever finding an extraneous cardamon pod in your hollandaise or some other such addition that seems like a good idea in principle but that mainly serves to suggest that, here, the concept is the most important thing. It is a good concept, but sometimes you wonder if it might not be improved if the actual food shared equal billing with it. Go there, especially if you are showing off to visitors. You'll like the first visit loads; and the second - but maybe around the sixth or seventh you'll look down at the toasted walnuts in your yoghurt on top of the strawberries and bananas and seeds on your pancake and just wonder if, in life, it might be possible to have too much of one too many good things.

The sister restaurant to the slightly larger Brighton store, Bill's is organic food at its best. If you manage to grab a seat here (it's always heaving) then I can guarantee you'll have trouble ordering. Everything sounds good. The menu varies, but I recommend the salad selection (5 types of salad which leave you feeling surprisingly full). Other faves tend to be the meze plate, the steak sandwich or the beef chilli. The breakfast/brunch menu is equally as exciting, and the pancakes are delish. Oh, and did I mention the ridiculous cake selection? Possibly the most enticing display of sweet treat you will ever see. Bill's is also a great place to shop if you're feeling a little bit flush. They have a huge range of organic fruit and veg, all kinds of pickles and jams, juices, and even flowers. Recently bought out by a bigger company, there are worries of the store losing its independent/organic/local produce angle, but until then it's a must.

Judging by the good reviews of this place, I think I ordered badly as I was pretty disappointed with my burger. Initially I thought this place would be great, walking in to the rustic surroundings with deli style bits for sale on the walls. It wasn't too busy when we were in as it was quite a late lunch for us at 3pm. Service was great - fast, efficient and very friendly. We also really enjoyed our cool elderflower cordials which came served with plenty of ice as well as a slice of lime, lemon and strawberry, yum! I ordered the burger as I haven't had one since moving down here and it sounded pretty good as the first thing on the mains section of the menu, especially as it was £9.95 (plus £1.20 for added monterey jack cheese), I was expecting good things. Unfortunately when it came (the speed of which should have been a warning as we waited less than 5 minutes from ordering!), the burger looked incredibly greasy, more like I would expect from a burger van and when cutting into it was very dense and smooth with even more grease evident. As expected by this point, it wasn't a particularly nice flavour and I only ate half. I would say perhaps I have been spoiled by all of the great burger places in Glasgow but no, it really was just a rubbish burger. The rest of the bun contents were nice, fresh salad, horseradish mayo and delish pickles but the burger patty definitely let it down big time. Mum's haloumi burger was much better and she enjoyed hers although we were both disappointed with the fries which didn't seem freshly cooked as they'd gone quite chewy. Maybe this was due to us eating late but if you can't serve good fresh food all day, just limit the times you do serve. Overall a bit of a disappointment but I hope to go back and try something different with a more pleasant result as so many people seem to rate it highly!

I'll never forget the happy day that I stumbled upon Bill's for the first time...I was strolling through Lewes town centre with my mum, about to set off on a country walk, when suddenly we were confronted with what we thought was a weird and wonderful fruit and veg shop. Further investigation unearthed a lovely little adjoining café with incredible looking desserts and sandwiches piled up behind the counter. When a waitress walked past us with a fruit crush and a bowl of pavlova, we delayed the walk and sat down for lunch. Our food was so delicious (quiche and pizza served with various unusual side salads) that we returned post-walk for cake and tea! I was really excited when Bill's opened in Brighton and although the space is equally as beautiful and the food is just as exciting, I still pine wistfully for the original little Lewes café, every time I eat there. Maybe its because the Brighton branch is so achingly cool and so obviously popular. The Lewes café felt like my little secret, and whilst yes, it is now very popular, its genius is understated and it just feels a little more unexpected and for that reason, all the more special, nestled amongst the sleepy streets of Lewes. Maybe I'm clinging on to romanticized memories, but I'm sure the food is better too!

I have been several times over the years to Bills, Lewes - and yesterdays lunch was disappointing - we choose from the set menu - and though the starters - prawns, broccoli were okish - the main courses, all of - were not - Gnocchi was heavy, in a heavy sauce and pretty awful - my fish burger was forgettable ( the fish fingers seem to have been cooked and then cooked) the minute steak was really too tough - have to say, the waitress was GREAT - and gave us a pud and coffees free, due to the returned meals..... so my feedback would be to keep the standards up, even if you are very busy , still !! -

Having been to the notting hill carnival & having a couple of coffees....I decided to go and visit friends in Brighton. Come lunch time i was ready to eat...something not too big. My friend being a local resident of brighton, Bills was recommend, as always i was keen to go with the flow and try something new. The place used to be a green grocer hall, where there used to be traders. This had now been converted to a huge hall with lots of tables on the ground and a few more on the first level overlooking the hall. You can still buy some quality produce from the shelving down the right hand side of the hall. Having sat down and pour another "coffee" to initial hair-of-the-dog, i was recommenced a fish finger sandwich. With little resilience, i decided to order the sandwich to gain a feeling of nostalgia. Having manchester roots and grown up with my mums version of the sandwich, i thought nobody could top that..... Until then! The fish fingers where no birds eye standard, they were mini breadcrumb cod fillets, in fresh bread and rocket with fresh tartare sauce, served with fresh cut potato fries (circa£8). We also had some olives with bread and oils, they were of an equally high standard, i really would recommend this place if you are in brighton and are looking for a decent lunch!!

So this is the original Bill's apparently, and although I am a fan on the whole I tend to think of Bill's as a breakfast place rather than anything else, as I have always been disappointed by their other food burgers and alike I have always been disappointed by. Bill's is always busy whether here, Brighton or the one in Manchester. I do enjoy a good breakfast and this is why they do get more than 2 stars, to be fair I do also like Bill's on the whole, I just find that they don't really live up to the hype, and they need to try and do a little harder to make their other dishes as good. I will be back but mostly because they do good poached eggs on toast.

I absolutely love Bill's. It's always a good sign if there are a bunch of people waiting outside a restaurant because good things rarely go unnoticed for an extended period of time, I think. Although the prices are a little expensive, you know where the money goes when you taste the food. The food is fresh and organic, and some would consider that posh, but somehow the grocery store/restaurant still retains a quaint charm somewhat like a really busy bed and breakfast in the countryside. The staff are all young and friendly that genuinely care about your comfort while you're eating, so service was top-notch and the atmosphere is warm and inviting. I went in for breakfast/brunch and ordered the all-day breakfast that consisted of two big buttered slices of toast topped with two sunny side up eggs, side of bacon, sausage, tomato and mushroom. All washed down with a glass of fresh squeezed orange juice. Needless to say, after the meal I had to be carted out of there because I was too full from the fairly large portion of food. It was the perfect start to a great day of exploring in the town of Lewes

Delicious food and lovely atmosphere with a lot of space! Bill's burger and watermelon juice tasted amazing! Would definitely come back here again :)

You wouldn't think you could beat the Bill's in Brighton, but this, the Lewes Bill's, the original Bill's, outstrips it. Where to start?! Firstly, I would like to get married here it is so beautiful and charming. It's one large room with fruit and veg beautifully presented down one end, ceiling high shelves of pretty tins, oils, jams, a spiral staircase....sigh...and then the other half of theroom filled with black wooden tables. It is much smaller and cosier than the warehouse converted Brighton version. However, because of it's smaller more intimate size, it can also get incredibly busymand full of hub-bub. Most of the time I love that, it cheers me up and makes me feel I am in the thick of it. Sometimes it does make me curse the well-heeled locals out for lunch, making me queue for a table! The food is just as good as Brighton- in fact the eggs benedict are always better, better hollandaise, better poached eggs.

Five of us went there for Father's Day, the first time for all of us, with high expectations. My daughter and I had the sea bass which was tasty with a good combination of flavours and well cooked. My son had the beef stew which he sent back as he thought it was a very small serving for £14. Some extra was added to the plate with no problem. My husbands steak was tough and my grandson's halloumi burger, though enjoyed, was also disappointingly small. The chips were oven chips and not very hot. The deserts were good although the strawberry pavlova had only one strawberry which had been cut very small to scatter over the meruingue. We were disappointed and felt it was overpriced. Won't be going back.

The food is okay but I always feel like it's slightly too expensive for what it is. Inexplicably packed all the time. Quite a nice, relaxed atmosphere. A great place to meet friends, the staff are always friendly. The toilets need a serious refurb!

I love Bill's. The food of course is excellent but it is the staff who make it such an enjoyable experience. They are genuinely nice and even though the place is always busy they are attentive (but not overly so) and charming, I was on my own today and normally that would make me feel awkward and slightly self concious but there is such a buzz to Bill's that I felt perfectly relaxed and happy. I had Eggs Benedict that was sooo good and a pot of tea. I cannot speak highly enough about the tea. A simple enough thing to prepare but all too often it is disappointing, the tea I had today at Bill's was perfection. So in conclusion 5 stars for everything, the food, the staff, the ambience and of course the tea.