Little Italy in Eastbourne

We popped in for a meal pre theatre. Waitresses were all really pleasant, reasonably prompt service. Food was ok - meatballs seemed not to be home made and whole dish was too salty. Other meals were ok. Cocktails seem pre mixed and overly sweet. Not bad, just mediocre really. I don't think we will be back I'm afraid

Popped in for a quick meal before the theatre. Nice cosy atmosphere. Pizza was good, carbonara Ok but pasta a bit beyond al dente. Had to wait a long time to order dessert - staff weren’t very attentive even though it wasn’t busy. V slow to bring the water we asked for. Desserts were disappointing - one clearly bought-in premade icecream dessert and an insipid vanilla cheesecake which had that “too long in the fridge uncovered” taste to it but not much vanilla taste. And the handbasins in the toilets had no soap in them, only hand gel - so 2020!

Have been here quite a few times now over the years and it never disappoints. Good food, fairly priced and a lovely place to visit.

Amazing Pizzas and beautiful atmosphere. The owner Zia is down to earth and accommodating from the minute you walk through the door. Thank you for an enjoyable experience.

First time here, lovely food and atmosphere.

Thoroughly recommend Little Italy. The staff are very friendly and attentive. A food and drinks menu to cater for all tastes. The food and drink are very reasonably priced.

SPENT THE WEEKEND IN EASTBOURNE AND WAS LOOKING FOR SOMEWHERE NICE FOR DINNER ON SATURDAY EVENING. LITTLE ITALY WAS PERFECT, GREAT FOOD SERVED QUICKLY BY VERY FRIENDLY STAFF. LOVELY ATMOSPHERE AND REASONABLE PRICES.

Some of the best Italian food I have ever tasted, served by friendly staff in a wonderful atmosphere restaurant. Would come again, and again, and again Thanks to all the staff

Not the best plating but the best food. Well done!

If you are ever in Eastbourne you have got to go to this place for more than one meal. My partner and I were in town for just 2 nights we went both nights. Food is incredible, atmosphere great and service was spot on.

4 visits to Eastbourne, 4 visits to Little Italy. Very glad this place is not closer to home! Greeted warmly and politely. Left to browse and enjoy the music. Served promptly with great food. Should be mandatory if you're in Eastbourne. Thank you.

Nice little restaurant but the chips were under cooked and we got seated by the washing up area and the fish was under cooked

Excellent service, menu of variety

Always good. Staff excellent and pleasant. Can highly recommend.

Their menu clearly states they provide Gluten free . As a result of this we booked a table, and drove a 40 mile round trip with high expectations. Took our seat at table, ordered drinks which were not presented and then were informed that they didn't provide GF food despite the online menu saying so. The waitress stated the boss was well aware of the online menu statement. Owners Get A GRIP OF THIS ITS NOT DIFFICULT in this day and age to update a website or god forbid , do GF pasta . We resorted to going to a small local pub who actually caters for celiac customers. I wondered how a proper purpose built restaurant can't yet a backstreet pub can. Needless to say, very disappointed with Little Italy Eastbourne . So many people are celiac nowadays and when a menu shows and offers GF pasta, etc and you go there , only to be informed they don't and the owner has been told by staff , you feel let down , misled and a tad angry at the unprofessional.dont care approach to customer service

Nice atmosphere and friendly staff. Food was overpriced and not the best. Wouldn't go back unfortunately!

Lovely restaurant. Great service and delicious food. Staff are attentive and helpful. Spaghetti Mare and Sea Bass highly recommended.

Pizza was so underwhelming, with a bbq base that wasnt on the menu. Horrible bitter taste. Seafood spagetti was very salty, olives were a supermarket special. Its a shame the place looks beautiful and the staff are attentive but would never come back. A dog sitting next to me in a restaurant is not what i like whilst i appreciate, while i realise others may.There are much more authentic restaurants around the area, wouldnt come back.

Very very disappointing. We booked a table here, arrived, and ordered drinks. I asked the waiter if they could make a pizza or pasta without cheese/dairy as I'm dairy-free so he went to speak with the chef and came back and said no! So we had to leave the restaurant and walked a few doors down where they offered me any pizza on the menu without cheese, multiple pasta dishes, or risotto! What kind of a chef can't make a pizza without cheese is my question?! Absolutely bizarre and makes you question who on Earth they have hired in their kitchen... If you have any dietary restrictions, I highly recommend you avoid this place.

I tried to book a table for 8 for Sunday 28th July so that we could have a family meal out. I have never eaten at this restaurant. I was informed that they did not take bookings for over 6 people - which I found very strange. I asked how we could get around this - possibly booking two tables of 4 but was told that this couldn’t be done! I am surprised that the establishment is so lucrative that they can turn away customers. There are a number of excellent Italian restaurants in Eastbourne, La Loca Del Duca, Pomodora, Rosetto, Rossi’s, Morgans etc so there will be no need for me to ever try this place in the future. Terrible customer service as played out & described in other Tripadvisor reviews!!

Food was outstanding 👌 visited twice in 3 days been a few times previous always superb well done will visit again this year 👍

Had pizza alfresco, very nice and pleasant. Well worth a visit even if for just a drink. Food good, atmosphere good, service a little slow but friendly and professional. Parking can be a pain, but found a spot in the sea front a few minutes away.

Terrible night . Booked online and they had no record of us . Found table eventually. Waiter came to take order . 3 of us wanted pizza . Was then told no dough for pizza . Then our starter came . Very nice . Half way through starter our mains turned up . We had to ask for them to go back till we was ready . Very poor night will not be returning. Had my mums 90th to arrange so now looking for another restaurant. The manager was told our concerns but showed no interest. But our waiter was very apologetic.

Lovely Italian restaurant just a short walk from the seafront and the Western Lawns. Garlic bread with cheese was lovely and pizzas were great. Service was prompt and polite. Pricing I thought was good value for the quality received.

Amazing place. Great food nicely cooked and good service. The atmosphere is also very nice.

Found this to be a gem of a place , food and service could not be faulted , with a really nice atmosphere. All our meals came out fairly quickly and hot , would definitely recommend.

Nice fresh food. Good service. Could do with better wine.

Mediocre food, not good value for money. Poor service. Needed to ask for cutlery, bowl for shells. With lacklustre service. Would not return.

Lasagna and pizza arrived suspiciously quickly -within 3 minutes of ordering.... Lasagna portion only contained 6 fork fulls. Had to take own cap off of the prosecco bottle. In and out in 25 minutes. Lesson: don't go in the first half decent looking restaurant you see....

Perfect service and quality food

Best place to eat. That Italin feeling kicks you as you step your first foot into this lovely place. Absolutely amazing. Pullo piccante its absolutely fabulous ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Decent food and service. Appears quite lunchtimes even a the weekend. Maybe busier evenings. Best garlic bread in town.

Lovely decor - romantic atmosphere. We were served by the deputy manager, I think, who was great - very attentive, entertaining to the kids, and gave us some helpful recommendations for the rest of our stay in Eastbourne. We had a lasagne, spaghetti bolognese and giardino pizza. They only do child portions for pasta. Lovely evening!

I enjoyed a very delicious margarita pizza 🍕 it was so good 👍

Really nice restaurant. Food was fantastic.

Today, I was chatting with my son who had just arrived in London. He said that foreigners spoke Chinese to us politely, but some people who knew Chinese were reluctant to speak. This was the first dinner of this trip to the UK. A handsome staff member used They communicated with us in standard Chinese. The most important thing is that the food is fresh and delicious, and has good reviews.

If in Eastbourne. A must. Perfect

Booked a Table @ 8 .30 tonight and felt rushed. Food good very unsettling ambiance 🙃

Great food, recommend to everyone

Never answer phone, terrible customer service. Blonde lady so rude

A very large and comfortable restaurant. Plenty of seating inside and easily able to cater for large parties here. The menu was fairly extensive and the food was very tasty. Their bruschetta was packed with toppings and tasted great. I would have no hesitation in returning.

Great food, great atmosphere, great service. Also they are dog friendly, brilliant. we all had different mains and everyone was impressed.

Had a pre theatre meal here last Friday. We had seafood pastas and pizzas and some very nice Frascati. Really enjoyed our food and in lovely surroundings. Staff efficient and very pleasant. Will return!

As six over aged 60 quiet local businessmen we visited this restaurant for our Christmas gathering. We were very disappointed to find a restricted menu and on asking why we were told this was down to “seasonal restrictions”? We ordered drinks and our meals and about 2 hours later we asked for the bill. This duly came and without examining it in any detail one of our group, having checked it included a 10% tip, divided the total figure by six and then rounded that figure up to the next pound meaning each of us would pay £38. We were astonished to then be asked by the waiter/paying machine if we would like to add a further 10%, 15% or 20% tip to the bill. When we said that our payments already included the automatically applied 10% tip the waiter said they were unaware this was included already in the bill!!! Once we had collectively paid £228 we finished what was left of our drinks, put our coats on and went to leave the restaurant. Suddenly aggressively and accusationally we were confronted by the owner and other staff and prevented from leaving the restaurant. They said that they had got the bill wrong by not including some drinks and that we had to pay another £45. We would have had no issue with this except for the manner they dealt with the issue. We had no idea of their error and yet we were being accused of trying to avoid paying the full bill. After a very angry argument we agreed to pay the difference between the extra £45 and the £23 tip that had already been included in the original bill. None of the above was our fault and completely spoilt what had, up until that time, been an enjoyable evening. This is a restaurant that we have used in the past as a group and individually with our families. None of us will ever cross that threshold again. I would advise everyone eating here in future to completely check their bill and in particular watch out for the scam of getting you to pay a tip twice.

Good italian restaurant to visit with julio iglesias music !

Honestly a great place for a nice time to be able to talk and catch up over great food. Very nice staff, fully recommend.

Three g good food good service good price

Beautiful place service and food was great really recommended. Thank you for having us . We definitely be back

The staff were exceptionally nice and helpful, the food was amazing and the service was very good .

Checked on internet for closing time 9.30, contacted the restaurant to confirm, yes that’s correct, arrived at the restaurant at 8.30 . Ordered a glass of wine. Told the waitress I was waiting for a friend. Was told by the waitress we are closing soon. I ordered a spaghetti, it came inside five minutes. Then the lights started to turn off and the furniture was being packed up. Staff said good night to each other. I was left with one member of staff who put here coat on the table next to her. I left my food and the restaurant. The lights were all turned off before I got to my car. Very disappointed, I am a friend of the owner, I think he would be horrified. Sorry but honest. I was feeling very disappointed. George

Popped in by chance. Very lovely traditional Italian restaurant. Kept thinking Al Pacino would walk in. Staff all very smart and suited. True Italian vibe. They squeezed booking in on a very very busy Saturday. Pizza was lovely. Service excellent. Vibe chilled Italian. Thanks

So we turned up after great reviews from friends and family however this was not the case. From sitting down at the table, to our starter, main and dessert it was very poor. When I mean poor this is the whole establishment not just the food.

Lovely for a casual or date night, great food selection, and service. Pizza was amazing, chicken with Bbq sauce and ravioli in photo

Sympathisches Lokal mit italienischem Flair im Kino-Stil mit Schwarz/weiss-Fotos früherer italienischer Filmstars. Aufmerksame Bedienung, gutes Essen, passende Hintergrundmusik. Das bestellte Knoblauchbrot ging vergessen und war aber trotzdem auf der Rechnung - deshalb nur 4 Sterne.

Very accommodating. Found us a table as we hadn’t booked. Service was ok and friendly. We had two pizzas 1 was tuna nice but over loaded too much tuna ( nice to get enough but it was to much) the other a spicier one. But probably used jalapeños from a jar but tasted like they used some of the vinegar from the jar. It was pretty vinegary.

We had a fantastic family lunch to celebrate my husbands birthday. The food was absolutely delicious & the waiter was really polite friendly and accommodating. Highly recommend this place! Perfect spot right by the sea too.

Some of the best pasta I've had in a while, reasonaby priced, what's not to like?

We popped our heads in Saturday afternoon and asked if we could book a table for the evening at 8.30pm, no sorry have to be earlier as we have to be cleared up by 9pm. So we arrived earlier 8pm.....table wasn't really made up for the type of restaurant it was...no glasses etc. Ordered our drinks and food (with a young lady, very nice)... My Glass of Merlot was then bought to the table by a young lad....in an ice cream sundae type of small glass!!......mmmmmmm for an italian restaurant they should know how to serve their wines.....I called over a more senior lady and asked if I could have my Wine in a proper wine glass...she sort of stared at me and tooted...my husband asked me, "did she just toot"?? I said yes but thought it was in annoyance with her staff.....how wrong was I!!...they were serving all their wine in these glasses.....all for under measuring....my glass didn't hold the volume I paid for... Food was good...shame!!! we won't go back because of the way we were treated..... Also loads of locals were coming in and being served after 9pm..mmmmmm

I would say the best italian restaurant in Eastbourne. The staff is very friendly and welcoming, the meals are made fast and wont keep you waiting for long and everything is kept very clean.

We were introduced to this place by some friends when we had a pre theatre meal last night. (26 Aug 23) The welcome was friendly and efficient and food was amazing without too much waiting. We all only had the main courses only as we may have been pushed for time to get to the theatre on time. Lasagne - Spaghetti Mare - Pizza - Caesar salad - Were all very good. The starters and deserts coming out all looked very good to.

First time at Little Italy and we loved it! We sat outside and it had a lovely atmosphere. The staff were all so helpful! Food was delish, especially their Diavola pizza! Would recommend to a friend and will deffo be back!

Upon entering the restaurant on Wednesday evening a very reluctant manager got up from his seat to seat us. Offered us a 4 seater table when we went to sit down it had not been cleaned and still had food on it. I refused the table on this basis. He then offered us a 2 seater table but was still moaning why we didn’t except the 4 seater table. Bear in mind I hadn’t even sat down. I told him I wouldn’t sit at a table that hadn’t been cleaned or food taken away. It was clear he didn’t want to serve us and I said to my boyfriend let’s go. The manager then kept repeatedly saying as we were walking towards the door bye bye bye bye. Incredibly rude and filthy place. Would NOT recommend or ever go back.

Déco agréable du cinéma Italien. Service parfait. Les plats sont très bons. J'adore.

This could be a real gem, but is totally let down by a very rude waitress, who clearly doesn’t want any business there. We arrived on a busy Sunday evening; politely asked for a table for 3. “No” was the response and a shoo of her hands out the door. Luckily, a lovely young waiter stepped in and showed us to a table he had laid for us as he saw us waiting. This young waiter and the rest of the young waiters were wonderful throughout and the food was great (Thankyou chef) however the whole experience was let down by this one waitress who couldn’t be any ruder to customers if she tried! Being sat by the door was quite a bizarre experience, cringing at the rude way she would speak to customers and rolling the dice on whether she would actually accept business or not (despite tables being free). Some people got lucky, others didn’t, it was really quite random! I actually felt embarrassed for the young waiters she had working with her, who had far more customer service charm than she did. Such a shame as it would be a real little gem otherwise.

Excellent meal, service and atmosphere - one of the best meals I have ever had! Thank you 😊

I would love to give a higher review but unfortunately many of the waiting staff bring it down. When you first walk into the restaurant and wait to be seated, many waiting staff walk past you pretending not to see you, especially as my elderly grandma cannot stand for long periods of time without seating and we were ignored even if they saw her walker. We’ve been before and have had decent servers who are quite nice, but it tends to be the younger and newer servers who are nicer and more useful. Unsure if tips are centralised but we gave a tip to our waitress as she was the only good one all night and the best we’ve had and another waitress came and took the tip for herself although she hadn’t served us at all. My grandma wanted to eat here over Airbourne weekend, so we called and they told us they weren’t taking reservations over the busy period which is understandable. However, when we walked in, there was a woman before us to which the waiter told her there wouldn’t be any tables for an hour because of reservations, which confused us as they had told us they weren’t taking any. So we said to the gentleman we were denied reservation because of Airbourne and he confirmed that, despite what he had told the woman before us. We pointed at the tables that were free and had “reserved signs” on them, and he said the restaurant was fully booked. Given our experience this evening and having read other reviews about the empty tables, it seems as if they leave them “reserved” to avoid having a full restaurant to serve, which seems a bit lazy to me. The food is alright but generally just average; the calamari was very soggy and probably the worst I’ve had and the mussels were somewhat tasteless but the sauce was good. The menu is quite restricted and also too expensive for what it is. The price doesn’t reflect the quality of our service and food, for reference we spent around £120 for 3 who had starters and mains. Wouldn’t recommend unless you don’t mind spending extra for average food and bad service.

The food was superb and just the right amount, atmosphere cosy but spacious. Service great, everyone was very pleasant.

I've walked past this restaurant for the past 25 years and had never ventured in, always deferring to my 'favourite Italian' in Eastbourne. The Spaghetti Mare I had last night 'has changed all that !' superb food served by a friendly helpful team, so I'll definitely be back.

It was pleasant enough. Calamari to start, which honestly wasn't great. The sauce that came with was pretty bland. I had a Chicken Pepperoni Calzone, which packed some great heat. I enjoyed a lot. We ate at 6 pm, it wasn't packed but had a good atmosphere. However staff we not that tenterive. Had to ask for more drinks more than once. Overall, it was an okay experience. There are a lot of Italian restaurants in Eastbourne. This one doesn't stand out.

We were a party of 9 and made to feel welcome throughout the evening. We had different pizza and pasta dishes which were freshly cooked and delicious. I can definitely recommend the Spaghetti Mare which was the best I've had in a long time. Give...

Came with Friends on Saturday. Greeted by friendly staff at the door. My mojito was good and friends enjoyed their beer. The pizzas were one of the best I’ve ever had and the bruschetta was excellent. All the staff were polite and attentive and made...

This is a dump big time sloppy untrained staff and far too young to be working in a restaurant and low low quality microwaved heated food, and my god the waiter who was the tall very skinny guy actually was standing at the bar till and was picking his nose so not what you want to see when the next min he is bringing the food out and to top it all last orders for food is 8.30 on a Saturday night a total waste of our Saturday evening. So not sure where all the other reviews come from maybe they are thought up by friends and work colleague , Keep away that’s my advice as it’s a unhealthy dirty place serving cheap pre cooked and heated food by young kids.

This is a very cheap low quality place. The food was I think pre cooked and microwaved and the wrong orders came to our table and then snatched away with no apologies. The young tall skinny kid who seemed to be in charge was too...

Group of friends for an evening meal. Lovely night out with delicious food. Staff friendly and helpful.

Meget hyggelig betjening og kjempegod mat

Fantastic restaurant, when in Eastbourne for the tennis we always have to visit.

Absolutely worth the trip to Eastbourne , we came across this Little place as it is just around the corner from the Congress Theatre 🎭. If you haven’t been to this restaurant you definitely need to give it a whirl xx The food was outstanding , delicious and great portion size , staff are welcoming and friendly, we managed to get a table even though we hadn’t booked in advance so thank you for that . Shall definitely be back soon

We were excited to try Little Italy for my parents wedding anniversary having read mostly positive reviews and as lovers of Italian food. Sadly, the day we went (a Saturday evening) it was all the negative reviews that applied! We’d booked a table for 4 at 7.30pm and arrived right on time. No front of house staff to greet us so we stood in the doorway and waited for at least 3 or 4 minutes (with some staff looking at us!) until eventually a waitress came round the corner and saw us. Numerous empty tables in the restaurant however we were given booth style seating on the left away from the main seating area which was nowhere near as nice (the place where people have a drink whilst waiting for a table). Felt like we’d been shoved in a bit of a corner. Prices on the menu were significantly more than the prices we’d seen on an online menu. The seats were too low for the table which made eating a meal difficult, especially for my elderly parents. The wine was served in beer glasses (we asked if they had wine glasses but they told us they were the wine glasses!!). The glasses were also warm from the dishwasher… not great for white wine. We were then incorrectly advised about the whitebait which were quite large and quite bitter in the mouth. Pasta dish was ok but we have better at home. Pizza was average. The chicken dish we had was very peppery (no mention of pepper in the menu description) and the chicken was tough and chewy. We couldn’t even eat most of it. No-one came to ask if everything was ok during the meal so we couldn’t say anything. When they eventually cleared the plates we mentioned about the chicken being tough but the waitress just smiled broadly and nodded as if we’d told her it was fantastic!?!! We were asked if we wanted dessert but we said no thank you… the waitress then went to get dessert menus!! Suffice to say we decided against dessert and coffee after such poor starters and main courses. The service was poor throughout. Eventually we managed to get the bill (approx £100). Food and service was worth nothing like that amount. We then left feeling pretty cheated by the whole evening. We even walked out past the same tables in the main seating area that were still empty!! Having eaten out at a lot of different places over the years, this sadly ranked as one of the worst. Such a shame as we want restaurants in our local area to be great but we’ll never go back. My advice… go elsewhere… :(

Wonderful food!!!! Amazing staff and very attentive. Great atmosphere and will return time and time again. Vongole, carbonara, seafood spaghetti and chicken in sauce was so tasty! Highly recommended!

Nice venue, good service, food decent. A little pricey but portions are a good size. All in all would be a place we would visit again. Thank you

A pre theatre meal was booked the day before, it was a hot evening and lots of people sat outside and just inside the restaurant. We were given a table at the back of the restaurant, near the pot wash, we asked if we could sit nearer the front and were told no they were fully booked. Those tables sat empty throughout our meal. The sound of cutlery clanging from the back of house, no customer service what so ever. Had a lovely dessert at the cafe next door. A disappointment.

Best Lasagne in the City. Very good!!! Thank you. Top Ambiente👌🏼

Nice atmosphere and wonderful staff. Food very average but ok and drink prices very expensive hence the 3 stars...

Reasonably priced food. Not the most flavoursome - at least what we had. Very popular with the pre theatre crowd. Quick turnaround. Fairly small menu

Limited menu for my tastes but what I ate was very good.

Nice food, lovely atmosphere charming staff

Best Chicken ever. Nice and tender. Polo Al Pepe, very recommended

Julia and I go to Little Italy every time we visit Eastbourne. Although we only stayed at The View Hotel, our favourite hotel, for 5 nights we actually went to Little Italy twice! It really is a must go to restaurant in Eastbourne. The Monday...

Excellent meal, friendly staff and good atmosphere.

We visited for lunch on a Saturday whilst out and about. There were just a couple of people when we arrived but gradually more and more came in. The food was well presented and tasted delicious. The waitress was very efficient and pleasant. We will...

Staff were very rude on arrival, no atmosphere. Table was sticky and chair was rocky. My girlfriend suffers with severe autism and it was a sensory overload for her. Will not be returning!!

Food was amazing, first time we have been and would defo be going back

Fabulous restaurant , relaxed atmosphere, small piece of Italy in Eastbourne!, Food was lovely especially the pizzas! really friendly and helpful staff. enjoyed our evening here and would definitely be back again.

Okay dinner although there are some better places

Little Italy this is not! A few posters of Italian movies does not an Italian restaurant make Ok I admit it, I'm a Londoner and a bit of a foodie, so standards are high, but really! this place is terrible. We started with olives and focaccia, focaccia it was not, Cheap, nasty, white bread, served with a balsamic vinaigrette that made me wince. Then the mains, my friends had the carbonara which they both found to be oily and too salty with over processed pork. One friend had the margarita pizza, again too salty, and the base tasted like the cheapest frozen pizza you find in the supermarket. Another friend had the spaghetti and meatballs which she described as mmmrrrr... I had the ravioli with spinach, which wasn't too bad, the sauce was obviously from a jar, but it was at least edible. The staff were polite enough (although one did butt into a conversation aggressively) and they weren't exactly bursting with positive, happy energy, which I'd really like from an Italian restaurant. It's so easy to get Italian food right, you didn't. We won't be coming back to this place. Come on Eastbourne.. Up your game.

Called here while on holiday in Eastbourne . The food, service & atmosphere was second to none . What a find & would recommend to anyone

Booked a table on Thursday night for a table for two on Saturday told yes we have a table for two for 7 o’clock arrived ahead of time due to taxis only to be told they did not have our booking but they had tables...

During our stay in Eastbourne my mum and I booked this restaurant as it was close to our hotel. The food was excellent and really good value for money. We enjoyed it so much we went back a second night. We would highly recommend a...

Excellent food and the service was second to none

I was very interested in this place from the very beginning, as soon as I saw it from the outside, upon entering, we were greeted by friendly staff who chose the place, we were given a menu and asked about the choice of drink and...