La Banca - Restaurant & Delicatessen in Chichester

This was our second visit to La Banca. We've enjoyed excellent meals both times. The staff are friendly and very efficient.

Without doubt the best restaurant in the area! Attention to detail from the decor, staff hospitality, delicious freshly made menu selections, it really is a memorable experience. If you have not yet already been it is a must!

Great atmosphere, great food, great service, would highly recommend. Elaine was especially helpful and knowledgeable about the menu.

A fantastic night out in the most amazing Italian restaurant you will find . The food was served hot and tasted just amazing . The rib eye melts in your mouth . Service was first class too . Thank you to everyone at La Banca for the perfect restaurant experience. See you all soon

We went for lunch to La Banca and it was fantastic. The food was amazing and the atmosphere is so warm and relaxing. Definitely recommend.

My travel party, on business, was looking forward to eating at La Banca. However, prior to leaving our hotel in Portsmouth, we checked the restaurant’s website and Google and found the restaurant was closed. Despite leaving the deposit of 50£ in good faith, La Banca refused to refund the deposit. That is ridiculous. Clear example of pennywise, pound foolish. As my party would have gladly rescheduled for another day. But, now I can clearly state I would never eat there and would never recommend it to anyone else. Lastly, the only thing more embarrassing than standing by poor customer service is misleading potential patrons about a sequence of events that simply did not occur. My recommendation for La Banca is better critical self assessment, continuous improvement, recognizing the customer is the most important part of any business, and just doing the right thing.

Required a £50 deposit to make reservations. On starting to head to the restaurant, saw that they were listed as closed. The hours on their website also showed them closed. As this was a business dinner, I had to scramble to find a different restaurant. Turns out the restaurant had posted their winter hours (which don’t take effect for another week) and was open, but refuses return my deposit despite the incorrect hours. *Response to La Banca’s 26 Sep response* Both your website and your Google listing listed you as closed on Wednesdays after 15:00. This is the *only* reason we did not go to your restaurant. Google maps showed you as closed when we started navigation at 1750. You are either mistaken on when your update took place or are being deliberately deceptive. It was an imposition and embarrassment to have to relocate a business dinner 40 minutes before it was supposed to begin. Additionally, I did not receive a phone call from you. That is flat out a lie. Screen shot of my missed call log posted as part of this update. Your behavior is unprofessional and uncalled for. I will be filing a complaint with UK Trading Standards.

Very disappointed in the management of the restaurant. We are out of town visiting. Our friend made a reservation and the website was checked prior to our dinner and the website stated they were closed. We elected to dine elsewhere yet the deposit was not refunded. This is my definition of poor hospitality. If there is confusion that could have been because of incorrect messaging chalk it up as a mistake and move on but to hold on to the deposit. Do not dine here. I have proof that the website showed it was closed with a time stamp. I am willing to take down this review if they refund my friend fully.

My family and I have eaten many times here...the food is sublime, the staff very professional and friendly I could not recommend this lively restaurant more highly if I tried Also, there is a beautiful back garden with wee cabins to sit and eat in...and to top it all...it's,dog friendly!

Went with friends, had been meaning to have a meal there for ages. Lovely atmosphere, great service and great food. Will definitely return again. Can't fault anything.

Fabulous place! Food exceptional. The staff were friendly and polite. Lovely surroundings, clean & tidy, a pleasure to eat there. Great place to dine!

Three wonderful experiences at La Banca during our holiday last week. The food and wine is top class and the service is just fantastic! A massive thanks; we fully recommend this lovely restaurant and cannot wait to return! A special thanks to the lovely lady who agreed to keep the kitchen open for us when we arrived late, and to let her know that the polenta cake was absolutely delicious! :-)

Food bland and uninteresting. Lamb dish with pasta was really flavourless. Pollo dish chicken was moist but with layered potato with polenta and rocket and cherry tomatoes no dressing on salad. Dish completely dry. Regularly frequent Italian restaurants this one so disappointing not to be recommended

Great place, we didn't eat, just had drinks, coffee was lovely, garden was gorgeous. The staff were lovely. Recommended!

Excellent authentic Italian dishes, even better service and a great garden. Highly recommended

The whole team were excellent. Service, food and atmosphere all good. Kids and a dog made to feel welcome and looked after. Thank you 🤩

Thank you for looking after us so well today. Great food and we enjoyed the Vault

Brilliant food and service. Recommend.

We went for dinner service was good but too much around you. The food was very bland. Shame really as food reviews looked amazing. We had the steak too well done when asked for medium, had the crap pasta very tasteless and the lamb orzo now this was totally dry and covered in old rocket salad! It’s a shame I think they try to hard with the fresh cooking and the lights when then serve up always going on and off hurt your eyes.

Left there feeling hungry and ripped off.

This is now my favourite Restaurant. I have been twice over the last few weeks and both times it has been amazing. The staff are so friendly and helpful. The food is "to die for" . The first time they had a lady singing, she was really good, perfect for the atmosphere. I Love it

Such a great place. AMAZING FOOD !!!. lovely people and very kind. please if you are thinking of coming DO!

The food was just as amazing as Neil’s service. I am new to La Banca and I was treated like family. 11/10 would recommend!!

Great Dinner. Some of the best pasta we've had. Would 100% recommend and come back.

We had a wonderful meal at La Banca. The food was the best so flash and tasty and a chef with so much passion for his craft. Perfect service as well

This is a gem of a restaurant in Selsey. We ordered the Steak panini for lunch, it was all freshly cooked and delicious. Staff were very attentive. A lovely pretty Italian style garden, full of geraniums. Highly recommend, I’ll be back again.

We had a lovely experience here for a birthday celebration. The garden is lovely! We booked a birthday experience, but nothing to make it special unfortunately. The starters need a lot of extra seasoning, scallops and soup of the day (note chef) we had the pressed lamb as a main and that was truly amazing (highly recommended) Yes, we would visit again, but just for mains.

The food was wonderful, great little garden out the back. Great service with very engaging and friendly staff. Thanks for a great meal.

This is our 4th time at the restaurant in the past 6mths. The first 2 were good, 3rd was average and today was terrible. I do t think I’ve ever eaten food with absolutely no flavour at all. They have changed the menu which has no description of what you actually get, and when you do get it you may as well eat ice. Sadly we shall not return again and feel very sorry for the owner who may not be aware.

Do not eat here! Me and my son got severe food poisoning. I let the restaurant know and then I never heard back from them

I live in Selsey and it's the first time I've been to this restaurant. Great service from Elaine who was friendly and helpful. A gorgeous sunny day so I was seated outside and ordered a main with vino. Compliments to the chef. I was happy with everything which you wouldn't think by looking at the pic with my sunburnt nose😀 Anyway, salute La Banca🍷

A great place for eating, probably not for children (didn't see a kids menu). Small but sufficient menu, after all most people know what they like and that was covered forus

Great friendly restaurant lovely staff fantastic food would highly recommend 👌

What a wonderful afternoon, great service food was 10/10 - highly recommend the Puttanesca (and gluten free option)…… ohh and can’t forget to mention the trio of deserts absolutely delicious! Big thank you to Elaine for her guidance and patience when trying to choose from the menu trying something new most Definitely paid off!

Great food. Excellent service and fabulous atmosphere

Excellent restaurant, really good prices and value. Amazing dishes and daily specials . Lovely restaurant in a converted bank with really attentive staff and great service

What a lovely restaurant, a pleasant surprise. The food was delicious, I had slow cooked shin beef and my husband had the crab linguine. The service was excellent. Looking forward to returning.

We enjoyed a lovely lunch at La Banca during our stay in Selsey this week. We visit often and we’re really pleased to have found this place. We were there for lunch and most of us opted for the lunch menu which is very good value. The quality of the food was excellent, portions generous and the tiramisu was really good. The service was welcoming and the lovely lady that looked after us was so helpful and friendly. We had our 2 children with us (9 & 7) and this wasn’t an issue at all - a main was shared between both but I’m almost certain they would adapt for smaller appetites if asked. We look forward to visiting again!

We had a lovely meal today at La Banca. We all had different starters that were beautiful as we shared them and all opted for the crab linguine which was amazingly sweet and lots of crab. Everyone looked after us so well, very attentive and friendly. Would definitely recommend

Really really nice, very enjoyable lunch time. Food was excellent

Highly recommended. Terrific menu with some lovely specials.

First time here with my son and grandaughter (mother's day treat).excellent food excellent service and a lovely atmosphere.. we will certainly be coming here again..Thank You..

Highly recommend this lovely independent Italian restaurant. Delicious food, nice atmosphere, the owner and chefs passionate about Italy and its produce. Highly recommend.

Been meaning to try here for a while and called up in the week to book a table for Saturday night. Whilst booking I spoke to a lady who I asked what they could do in the way of gluten free. She listed some dishes that could be done, one of which was arancini which I was really surprised about. She told me that they make each one fresh to order and have a gf breadcrumbs they can use for coeliacs as, she said, they have a lot of gluten free customers. Anyway, we ordered arancini x 2 (1 of each) and a scaramoza cheese to share. The chef said categorically he could not do the arancini gluten free. When I explained to the waiter what the lady has said on the phone he didn't offer anything by way of apology or explanation. I asked if they had gluten free bread to do bruschetta, he said no. I ordered the scaramoza. We cook this a lot at home and I felt that £10.50 for this dish of 3 slices of lukewarm cheese was a bit hard to swallow, excuse the pun. For main course we both had crab pasta. I think I misheard the waiter when I ordered my gluten free one because the gf pasta was absolutely revolting. My husband said his "normal" pasta was nice but we both felt the portions were too small. In summary For £142 we felt it was very overpriced especially as we both left hungry. £160 including service. Staff need training on gluten free options 5 menu items were not available that evening which was disappointing. Draught beer coming in only a half pint or 2 pint option is very strange. Gluten free options need changing - very good gluten free pasta is readily available in supermarkets now, as is bread. These days if you consider yourselves gf friendly not having gf bread is not really good enough. The food generally tasted good (although we felt a lot was underseasoned), and the menu was appealing (had they had all items available) All of the staff were very friendly and pleasant. Unfortunately we won't return.

I enjoyed it but felt it was overpriced- not much of an atmosphere when we went there. Felt it was trying too hard to be fine dining instead of good, honest Italian food. I was still a bit hungry to be honest. Would probably try again though because the staff were very nice.

Came to Selsey as a drive out and Came to La Banca for lunch. Staff and owner made us very welcome. Had the Cheeseeee and meat platter good selection 👌 Toilet and hand washing facilities were excellent. Will definitely be back. Big Thumbs up 👍

Such a good place to visit, very friendly relaxed atmosphere and very good food! Just what selsey needed hopefully it does well and we can visit again in summer 😊

Always a pleasure to come la banca, everyone is so friendly, food is unbelievable especially the selsey crab linguine! Couldn’t recommend more!

Excellent, food was amazing very friendly , they catered for my intolerances, the head chef came over to see if all was ok .staff very friendly.

A friend and I had dinner last night at La Banca. Food was fabulous with a lovely atmosphere. Will definitely be going back.

Great addition to Selsey high street! Four of us enjoyed a lovely meal, sat acc very friendly and welcoming.

Unrivalled hospitality, great food and dog-friendly with noticeable attention to detail. The garden hut was perfect for our party 🎉 of six adults and a dog. We could not have chosen a better place to celebrate my husband’s big birthday. Stand out dishes were the scallops, spaghetti puttanesca and crab linguine. Highly recommended. Thank you La Blanca!

Visited this independent restaurant last night fir the first time. Staff were friendly and helpful nothing to much trouble. Service was great. The menu was varied with daily specials. Our food was delicious beautifully presented. We also liked being able to see the kitchen where the magic happens. Thank you for a lovely evening. We will be back.

Delicious food in this cozy top restaurant. It was a Monday evening, not really busy, but here you will be helped with passion and by people with a love for the profession and good knowledge of Italian cuisine. The owner from Malta talked about his restaurant in Selsey. We, my brother, my wife and I can really recommend this restaurant to you. Had a delicious Sirlon stake and can definitely recommend it.

We had a lovely lunch at La Banca today. The food was excellent, freshly made with local ingredients and the service was really great. We would highly recommend going here, such a great find.

Exceptional in every regard!... came down from nearby chichester... and it knocks spots off any restaurant up there... my advice to any west sussex folk is get down here before is becomes difficult to book!

Absolutely amazing food made with fantastic local produce. The owner and his staff made us all feel so welcome when 14 of our family decended on his restaurant while we were on holiday in Selsey. A real gem of a place to visit. You won't be disappointed.

Fabulous evening Fabulous food beautiful surroundings x

My husband and I have had a lovely evening at La Banca. Lynn greeted us at the door and it was no problem to take our dog indoors as it started to get a little breezy outside. As we were the only guests - we arrived just before 8pm and they kept open longer just for us! - we've had Lynn's and the young chef's full attention! 😃 We even had a private tour of the rest of the restaurant, which only opened a few months ago. Before they were turned into a restaurant, the premises housed Barclays Bank, hence the Restaurant's name "La Banca". We both had pasta for mains - Crab Linguine and La Banca Fettucine - and both were delicious! My husband couldn't resist the Tiramisu, which was light and yummy. Lynn also made a fuss of our dog and gave her a doggie treat! And not to forget the toilets. They are well worth a visit, just because they have quite a unique design! All in all, we have had a thoroughly enjoyable experience and would 100% recommend a visit! And we surely will be back when we visit Selsey next time!

Absolutley beautiful meal, seeing the food freshly prepared in the open kitchen. A great variety of dishes on the menu will definatly be back again and recommending.

A fantastic Italian Restaurant. Delicious food cooked in front of you, thanks to the open kitchen. I highly recommend the gnocchi and the limoncello cheesecake. The service was excellent, very friendly, polite and knowledgeable. Even the toilets are well worth a visit as they are beautifully decorated.

Really don’t know why this is called An Italian restaurant, there is nothing Italian about it. Staff appear inexperienced with next to no customer service interaction. On entering, the entire place smelt of burnt fat. The food was bland to say the least and the only steak on offer was T bone at £39.00! Hardly affordable for most people in this cash crisis’ environment. We had a small bowl of pasta with a few small bits of meat and the smallest serving of cheese costing £23.00. No Italian restaurant touches eg offering Parmesan cheese or an offering from a huge pepper mill. No sign of any Italian nationals. Expensive and poor value for money. When we mentioned we weren’t happy the bill was discounted but it didn’t make up for a very disappointing experience. Would definitely not recommend and would definitely not return!

Title: Outstanding Dining Experience Review: I recently dined at La banca and was blown away. The ambiance was cozy and elegant, and the service was impeccable. The menu offered a delightful selection of dishes, each beautifully presented and bursting with incredible flavours. The staff were attentive and knowledgeable, ensuring a memorable experience. I highly recommend LA Banca for an outstanding dining experience.First class. Looking forward to returning soon.

I absolutely loved my visit to La Banca. The atmosphere is wonderful. The decorations chosen are so stylish which makes it a pleasure to spend time there. The owner clearly has great taste. As a Selsey local I'm thrilled to have La Banca on the high street because we don't have anything nearly as nice nearby - going there honestly made me feel like I was on holiday in Italy. The food is delicious - the menu is clearly very thought out and has a selection of delicacies that are hard to find as high quality elsewhere. I particularly enjoyed my starter - I had the aranchini which was a real treat! The service was very good too - the staff were polite, friendly and attentive. All my meals were served promptly and with a smile! Thank you to the team for making my evening so enjoyable - I would recommend La Banca to anyone who enjoys Italian food and vibes.

Just had a lovely lunch at La Banca excellent food freshly cooked great service ,have also eaten here in the evening and that too has been a lovely experience

Fabulous food and decor, love this restaurant. I love the fact that the owners are hands and spend time with each customer. Felt so welcomed and had a wonderful experience. Definitely worth a visit or two or three.

Fabulous food, great atmosphere, wonderful staff, highly recommend!

I recently dined at an Italian restaurant La Banca with my mum, and I must say it was a delightful experience. The food was absolutely fantastic, exceeding my expectations in every way. From the moment I walked in, the aroma of freshly prepared Italian dishes filled the air, instantly whetting my appetite. I ordered a variety of dishes, including a chicken and a vegetarian dish, and each one was cooked to perfection, bursting with flavours that transported me straight to Italy. The staff at the restaurant were incredibly warm and friendly, making me feel welcomed and well taken care of throughout my visit. They were attentive, knowledgeable about the menu, and happy to provide recommendations. The restaurant itself was immaculately clean, creating a comfortable and inviting atmosphere. Overall, I highly recommend this Italian restaurant in Selsey. With its outstanding food, lovely staff, and clean surroundings, it's the perfect place to enjoy a delicious meal and experience the true taste of Italy can’t wait for my next visit!

A bitterly disappointing evening. Tiny portions, missing meals, rude owner. Avoid

Second time to this lovely restaurant. Great setting in an old bank. Service is friendly. Pasta does taste home made - yummy. We will be back

For a restaurant 5 weeks old, La Banca is doing a really good job. Food was tasty and main portions decent. The tasty nibbles from the chef was a nice touch. Wine menu is solid with some good value choices to be had. Decor is light, bright and well put together. Staff are friendly, helpful and not pushy. With a few tweaks to the size of the starters and a brush up on their operations, they'll be a go-to in Selsey. Will happily come again and look forward to another pleasant experience:)

Wow 🤩 Absolutely amazing restaurant. From the talented experienced team to the mouth watering dishes and ambience! I cannot recommend this restaurant enough. Keep up the good work! 5 Stars.

A big thank you to Neil and his team for a delicious dinner and lovely experience enjoying my 70th birthday this evening. We will certainly be back again👌👌

We had lovely evening, pasta dishes very good, but salad bowl very expensive for few leaves of rocket. Staff and owners very welcoming. For new business just starting up we wish them every success, we will be back and recommend to friends and family.

To be fair. The restaurant needs to fine tune its menu. The menus are in the smallest typewritten, hardly visible. The lady at the front desert counter, needs to smile. Expensive for what you receive. As a local I would take guests here again, hopefully . Waitress was excellent. Local crab in the main dish was hardly tasted sorry.