Pizza Express in Lewes

Among the countless food chains, Pizza Express seems always to be one of the most reliable as far as food quality and service are concerned. The one in Lewes was no exception. Unprepossessing and even rather shabby from the outside, the High Street outlet ticked all the right boxes for me, with attentive staff, a relaxed ambience and decent food. I opted for a salad of very generous proportions rather than a pizza but my table neighbours chose pizzas and clearly enjoyed them judging by their empty plates afterwards.

Really nice restaurant, good service and food, friendly staff and atmosphere. Recommend this place!

We went in for an early meal at about 4.45pm - it was empty. there were no other customers in there. We asked if they were open and they were so we asked to sit in the back somewhere quiet, out of the way but the server put us on the 2nd table in which is effectively in the corridor and opposite the wc and within arms reach of the till - so pretty much the worst table in the place. I asked to move and was first told other tables are all booked. A 2nd person came in with child and they were seated further in the restaurant in an OK table. I complained that out table wasnt suitable when there restaurant was empty and we would be gone within the hour even of other tables were booked. The server then said her college looks after the tables at the back and wasnt in until 5pm and we coulnd sit at them. Her tables were right at the front. Anyway eating out is about the ambiance/ a nice experience and we wanted a out of the way table not one in the corridor, opposite the wc and next to the checkout till we left. How hard would it be to allocate a table in the corner or out of the main corridor? Too complicated clearly. Not going to earn our cash doing this.

I never ever leave reviews, but my online delivery from Pizza Express was so bad that I feel the need to warn anyone to please NEVER order from this restaurant. Not only did the delivery take almost two hours, but despite the online client service team assuring me that food is kept in a 'hot hold' for a 'very brief period of time,' it arrived stone cold. When I approached Pizza Express for a refund, they offered only excuses (no apology) and the offer of a meal in-restaurant. No thanks. I'm never frequenting Pizza Express again based on their terrible delivery and worse client service.

Lovely staff and good food. Only feedback was it was uncomfortably warm!

Seems to be a recurring theme at Pizza Express' having dirty floors. This one is no different, floors were filthy. The restaurant was relatively empty when we visited but it took 45 minutes for our pizzas to arrive, when they did, they were pretty good. Staff were nice enough but did get our drink order wrong even after we had to repeat our entire order to her. Music a bit loud in the conservatory too.

A birthday tradition slightly soured....firstly our pizzas were good. My adult kids wanted to recreate a tradition of there younger years when we were regulars at various Pizza Express restaurants. Our waiter was very polite but the service was slow and inconsistent on a relatively quiet evening. Our wine glasses were water marked and the tables and chairs felt a bit 'tacky'. The mens toilets were probably the worst I have ever seen in a restaurant...the 2 urinals were very close to overflowing and the bins were bursting at there seams.. the sinks and floor were very grubby. Also when the manageress was asked a general question...her response was ..' well it's Christmas love !!!'. On a positive note my grandson enjoyed his evening but he is only 5 weeks old....edit...3 weeks later no response, apology, or feeling like anyone at PE really care !!!! Sad.

Unbelievable, the coldest I’ve ever been in a restaurant. All the customers were wearing coats. People left complaining about how cold it was so it wasn’t just us . Staff seemed oblivious apart from the girl who we paid who said I thought it was chilly when I came in to work I’ll try and sort it out . Temperature outside was 2 degrees so not freezing. Come on pizza express sort this out. Turn the heating on when it’s cold outside

I went with my elderly parents at lunchtime. They enjoyed the lasagne - which was so delish and I had an American Hot classic pizza which was as always - exquisite! Service was excellent too! And good value for money with the Pizza Express App. Had a take home box to finish my pizza later! Very happy customers!

Went here over Christmas with my wife and it was shocking. The food, the presentation, the service. And to top it off, the bill came to £50. Daylight robbery, considering the overall quality. Even the tables either side of us were complaining. Would not recommend.

The service was really slow, we had to leave before pudding

As always Pizza Express is a safe choice and you know what to expect (awesome pizza). This visit seemed to take quite a long time as we were there nearly 2 hours over lunch and while I appreciate we were a large party of 8, I'm still not sure why it took so long considering it wasn't very busy? Otherwise all good :)

We arrived at 12 noon to an empty restaurant for a family lunch. It took 30 mins to get drinks and an hour to receive 4 starters. The dough balls were sent back as they were burnt. When it came to main courses one of our party were told 30 mins after ordering his choice wasn’t available. After a further 45 minutes pizzas arrived but one order had been forgotten. So they cooked a further pizza that arrived with raw green peppers. The front of house and cooking staff were all clearly very young and inexperienced and way out of their depth. Just an appalling experience.

Dirty toilets slow service. Left before the main course

The best pizza I have ever had, it was so delicious. Chef was very kind,he asked me to change some ingredients as they run out, but didn't affect the quality of pizza. Very impressed!

Really friendly staff. Male manager was brilliant with a little nephew and his 4th birthday Spider-Man cake Really good food I would highly recommend

Thanks to the team, making a special item for my daughter, that is not on the current menu. Plz Pizza Express, put Carbonara back on the menu!! 🙂

I really looked forward to Sunday lunchtime pizza here. It was woefully understaffed, I just wanted a pizza and a beer. The waiting staff were overworked but I got seated and placed my order. The beer glass was filthy so I thought I’d use one of the water glasses instead but they were just as dirty. Service was non existent only because of understaffing. Massively underwhelmed

We have given this place so many chances. The service is always sooooo slow. Nice enough people generally, but not switched on. The food tonight was completely less than average. I have never had such a poor Mellanzane for £15, hard aubergine and the sauce well… not good.

If you had pizza express before then, they are all similar but still had nice experience.

Such a lovely atmosphere and friendly staff

Visited on bank holiday Monday. Fairly empty. Young fella served us and was super friendly and professional probably the highlight of the experience. It’s a shame the kitchen sent him out with no idea what they had or not. Waited 10 minutes to be told they had no eggs…waited another 10 mins to be told there was no potatoes and ended up leaving. Not much of a Niçoise salad…more leaves and Tuna… Needless to say we left…

Terrible service. Been waiting over 10 min to place an order - 2 tables in whole place so not busy. After waving my hands to grab attention from happy chatting youngsters I've been told 10 min ready to collect. After 10 min I was waiting 10 min to ANY ONE to turn up to counter ( still 2 tables - not busy) just to be told another 10 min. Waiting 40min in nearly empty restaurant for ONE pizza, It's a bit much.

We came to lewes over the weekend to the annual raft race. Went pizza express atmosphere was amazing staff really friendly and welcoming. Service was 5*

Always great food know what your getting!

Very nice food, Romana base, fresh as you like

Ordered online for a pizza collection. I arrived at the stated time snd only had to wait a few more minutes for my pizza. Staff were friendly. The pizza was well packaged. I had a vegan forza. Taste was ok, quite spicy, but not the best pizza I've every had. Very minimal topping, a sprinkling of quorn with spicy sauce. It would have been a bit boring without me adding salad of my own to eat along side.

Great place to eat service was ok had to ask for things more than once but overall good place to eat and Lewes is recommended by lots of people i work with.

Brilliant pizza express - came here for a meal quite a few years ago now but I think it had a nice little garden if I remember rightly and was good service.

Part of a popular 'Italian Theme Pizza' Chain. The brand was as was to be expected. Greeted upon entry by a young waitress who was pleasant and well presented. It was not busy and we were shown to our table. The selection was standard but passable. My partner and daughter chose pizza and I chose a pasta dish. The food was hot and of an acceptable standard and quality. The price was reasonable for the sector and I was happy as it reached my expectations. Worth a quick bite if you are looking for no frills and nothing fancy.

Excellent service here. The management was so helpful when I didn’t know what I wanted to order. The pollo pesto was top notch

Empty - we were the only guests, and ambience not up to the usual PE standard. We went there especially to order pizza fiorentino which should have an egg on it, but they had ran out.

Lovely food, lovely service by Lucy (my future wife) sorry got carried away and a bit creepy of me. Like this place very much

We had to wait by the very congested front door for 15 mins until we were shown to our table. We were five minutes early for our booking. The congestion was a queue of both people trying to pay, with one searching for vouchers on her phone and people waiting to be taken to their table. We were sat next to the preparation area and my wife heard the staff use the 'f' word three times but, fortunately our three children aged 10, 6 & 6 didn't hear it. We agreed we would raise it if we heard it again but, didn't. The wine took way to long to arrive and arrived only very shortly before the food. The food was ok but, not to a similar standard as other branches. The egg on one pizza was solid, burnt and rubbery even though specifically asked to be soft/runny. One pizza was wrong and our 10 year old had to wait until a new one was made. Even though that only took an additional 10 minutes, we had now been in the restaurant over an hour. Finally one staff member serving us had exceedingly strong body odour which was unpleasant to smell and unfortunately lingered while we were eating. From start to finish we were in the restaurant for 1h40m and only 30 minutes of that was spent eating. We had to rush as we were on a parking meter. We still tipped the staff as we felt the problems we encountered were more likely to be down to poor management and understaffing.

The restaurant was very clean. Despite being busy the staff were friendly and service was as quick as it could be. Started with the doughballs, which as usual were hot with very fragrant garlic butter. Main course was a BBQ Romana pizza with extra mushrooms - very piquant! Finished with a smooth coconut sorbet. What really made my day was that I "lost" my housekeys there. I live well over an hour's drive from Lewes so just popping over to check they were there was out. The team member who answered by phone call was right on the ball & confirmed they had found them. Details were emailed to the manager, who responded the next day refusing to accept any payment, and the keys arrived in the post the following day! Really excellent customer service.

This place always surprises me. We have been coming here as a midweek meal for over a year. At the moment they seem to be short staffed but the lady and chef have worked amazingly as a team. I simply cannot fault this place

The food is just ok. I wish the service would speed up a little more, I know that some people would not worry but with a young family it is hard to wait 20 minutes inbetween courses, or to have to ask to place your order. I never understand why wine has to be so expensive, £8.50 for a glass of mediocre red, that is really hard to justify.

What a fabulous place to eat or just warm up with a cup of tea. I’ve visited Pizza Express in London, Glasgow, Brighton but this one is far beyond the others. It feels more like a family run restaurant rather than a chain one. Cosy atmosphere, delicious food, excellent service. Especially want to express my gratitude to Sorelle for warm welcome every single time. Highly recommend. See you soon!

I don't understand the negative reviews. The main point of going to a pizza restaurant is to eat pizza. 10/10 for the choice and quality of the vegan pizzas. Perfect thin pizza crust loaded with good things and a lovely creamy imitation mozzarella. It was so very good. As for the staff, they are excellent. Our waiter was welcoming, friendly and looked genuinely happy to see us! He is a great asset to the restaurant. As is the manager who was charming and very active and attentive. Everything looked clean and not at all run down as someone else wrote in a comment. It was early Saturday evening but humming with families and regardless of this everything was cleared up quickly. Thanks by the way to the friendly young lady clearing the tables. All in all a very nice evening meal.

Just all a bit naff nowadays. It’s used to be a nice enough place for a casual dinner. Now it’s disinterested staff, slow service, pizza barely cooked enough to pick up and ludicrously expensive for what is, essentially, mass produced frozen fast food. Turning the air con on when it’s 4 degrees outside was the cue to leave as probably intended.

10/10 Seb served me and my friend. He was super friendly and gave us amazing service. It was a busy Saturday, however nothing was too much to ask and we felt really welcome the whole time. We also came into contact with a really friendly manager( Irish) not sure of his name. However he was also a pleasure to be served by. Thanks pizza express !!

The food was ok, tomato sauce on the pizza tasted rather like tomato soup, perhaps it is? Service was good, staff friendly, but the restaurant is grubby and looks very neglected and in need of a good clean. Toilets really bad. Don’t know if they’re trying to save water or something as taps barely dripping. Food preparation area opposite where we sat really depressing. Would give it a miss in future if it doesn’t close first. The building and the business have clearly seen better days.

Great pizzas. Great service. Not good value unless you have a voucher which we did.

Went with family from the US, there were 4 adults 3 children and a baby. We were given the children's area which was lovely as we were a bit not-quite-joined up with all of our different requirements. Pouring down outside and cold inside. Service was patient and polite. Food suited all of us. Would go again

Food was OK unfortunately around our table was a total mess with paper lots of squashed food not very welcoming. The ladies toilet was a hygienic disgrace. Both doors broken one didn't even lock. Untidy one didn't flush and both toilet seats broken. I'm sure this didn't just happen but a lack of focus and bad management. Service was a little rushed as we pondered food choices. Didn't stay as long as we wanted ommiting desert and coffee. We're very regular customers but will consider alternatives for the future. Great shame. Especially as prices and portion sizes one rising other falling. Sad

Little rushed. Around our table was a mess of paper squashed food. Ladies toilet one door would not lock. Mess everywhere. Both toilet seats completely broken one toilet would not flush. Apart from this lack of basic hygiene was OK ish. Would not be our first choice of restaurant for the future. However it was in the past

Got a bespoke vegan pudding because we didn’t fancy the only vegan option on the dessert menu, and it was so good!! Service was incredible, really friendly, food was great. To be honest never expected a PizzaExpress to be this great!! Bren served us, great service ✨

Lunch , was busy but served and food arrived very quickly ,server was very helpful with suggestions

lovely pizza and lovely people, was unaware more garlic butter costs! but was really enjoyable thanks so much

Lovely waitress, very polite and kind

I shared an excellent leisurely lunch with a friend today, the pizzas were delicious, as was my chocolate brownie/icecream dessert. What lit up the meal as well was the smile of Seb, whose friendly manner really made us feel welcome. Thank you for a most enjoyable meal.

Family get together - 11 of us! Not easy to get it right but Lewes Pizza Express did it really well. All the food and drink came to the right person and all at the same time. Nothing was too much trouble - including a six year old swapping a lollipop for a brownie.

Don't order the gluten free pizzas. They are half the size and taste like cardboard

Before ordering any food I asked for 3 adults in the party to have their own bill. ie separate bill from main party of 18 as we would be leaving early. Waitress and manager refused. Said it was not their policy. Strangely 2 latecomers to the party arrived and they agreed to bill them separately. I asked again for a separate bill and was flatly told unpleasantly, it was not allowed. Clearly the manager did not know how to deal with this simple situation, nor even follow your own policy. One would think in these times where the hospitality industry is concerned about the impact of the economic climate, a simple customer request could so easily be granted. It cannot be that difficult. Instead bad feeling was created, upsetting the host and left several in the party dissatisfied with the handling of the matter and your waitress left to defend your ridiculous policy. Shame, because despite an unreasonable wait for the food, it was fine. Overall for me a bad experience. Could do a lot better.

Once again disappointed. The prawn starter and mozzarella garlic bread tasty. And so they should have been as they are not terribly skilful dishes. The calzone was burnt deeming it unedible. The linguine was basic. The lasagne was tasty but sloppy. The food and drinks were ridiculously over priced. The bill for 2 was £64. I rounded the bill to £70 to include a tip for our Server. So theoretically we paid £35 a head for a below par meal.

Billy, the man of the house, provided an amazing service to our table and did a beautiful job of cleaning the tables, his presence provided a pleasurable experience today. Many gratitude's xx

First visit to Lewes Pizza Branch and would certainly return when next in the area. Service by Kian could not have been better. Friendly, courteous without being over the top. thoroughly enjoyed my Margherita pizza although was a little stingy with the additional mushrooms on top. Thank you - you were amazing with all your tables around us.

Good quality food, good service, food arrived promptly.

So as a family we visit this place a few times a month. Maybe since the end off lockdowns. Everytime we visit we are greeted by the staff. Always warm and friendly. Normally it’s the same lovely girl/lady that remembers us and is lovely to us. We have always had the best service and the best food that they produce Thanks again the the people that work there that always make our evening when we visit

Arrived and sat down and as looked around the floor was dirty the food preparation area was a mess and the front of the stainless steel drinks preparation area was just gross. The chef explained that if I didn’t like it I could eat else where. This I agreed with and we promptly left. It’s the dirtiest pizza express I’ve seen in 30 years of eating in them.

Was as advertised. Pizza. And was quick. I quite rated the pizza as well. Only mistake was ordering the hot american on a 40°c day because yes, once again it was advertised. Hot!

Avoid table opposite the air com unit unless you love the cold!

Awful wouldn't recommend such slow service took nearly hour to get out starter and just over the hour to get the pizza . Manager not bothered when we spoke to him about our food and when we complained he wasn't even helpful or sorry

Terrible service was with my elderly father on Father’s Day. We were bought over the bill despite not asking for it, then the waitress bought over the card machine Why? My father still had 3/4 of his drink left? Make you customers feel welcomed then they may return- You we’re not fully booked on Father’s Day this speaks volumes We will not return and not recommend to friends or family

Staff very helpful and pleasant as we tried to get the App to earn free dough balls. Starters were very nice, the pizzas for mains could perhaps have had another few minutes in the oven but certainly nothing to complain about. Very central location with free after 6 parking outside if you're lucky or several car parks very nearby but avoid NCP if you can, Council parking very reasonable and free after 5. Can't quite give 5 stars but no complaints.

Pizza was ok, described as very spicy, it wasnt. Also asked for plain pasta for my daughter but could only get pasta swimming in garlic butter, it was absolutely dripping. Some of the pasta was crispy as well as though it had been put under a hot plate, hence to say this wasn't eaten. Spaghetti bolognaise also had crispy pasta in it. On a positive the staff were very friendly however their conversation around the servery was louder than the music playing at the restaurant. Sorry Pizza express Lewes. We will avoid in future.

Service awful we booked a table for 7pm which gave us an hour to eat and get to the cinema for 8.15 pm. Waited 55 minutes for our starter and then pizza. Spoke to the manager about our food order and that we were booked...

We received great service - attentive without being overbearing. The food was lovely. I had a Diavolo pizza and the crispy base and generous topping were perfectly prepared. For dessert I had the berry cheesecake, which was lovely and came with fresh strawberries and delicious...

Was good, staff very helpful, manager gave us a £30 discount which we can only think was because it was daughter 4th birthday

Pizza express is pizza express. You kniw what you're going to get, and that's why we used the restaurant. A couple of new things we tried. Staff were pleasant and cheerful, despite it being very quiet. Will certainly visit again.

As is the case with a number of tables in this place we found ourselves in a busy thoroughfare. Add kitchen/staff noise & bright lighting you get a canteen like atmosphere, not a restaurant feel at all. Service was ok. Food not hot enough (would've...

Was very nice good service very clean.very enjoyable experiance

The range and quality of the pizzas has improved. A slightly odd American feel to the menu. A good place to use your Tesco rewards vouchers.

Called in for a late lunch on an occasional shopping trip to Lewes. Delicious pizza served to us promptly.

Very tasty pizzas and fabulous service

Ordered food on deliveroo. Only got half the order delivered, 2 items missing that almost came to 15 pounds!! Food also not great!! When making contact with pizza express the guy behind the counter was extremely rude and not atall interested (i was told he was the manager aswell) Awfull!! Will not order again!!!

We have been to a lot of pizza express restaurants and we are real fans. This was the first time we had visited the Lewis branch. The food was great but the whole thing was somewhat ruined by the poor service. We were sat for...

Lovely friendly staff. Nice location, well layed out. Great new vegan menu available December 2021.

We came in for a quick meal and was welcomed by a lovely happy waitress Lottie, who served us throughout our stay and catered to all of our needs! The food was amazing and kitchen staff were also very lovely and happy. The restaurant is...

Great meal and service. Good value kids menu.

Very quiet and tidy restaurant. We booked in advance for 1.30pm on a Sunday afternoon, but there was only one other table of guests in there with us. Served by a very friendly and smiley female waitress. Service was prompt and the food was good. Would recommend this restaurant to anyone looking for a great place to eat in Lewes.

Really lovely staff, good service and all you would expect from pizza Express

We booked for 1pm with 6 people (2 children) we were seated at the back of the restaurant which was nice but we sat there for over 1 hour before we were served, I think we were forgotten, the kids understandably were really hungry.. then...

Very slow service and difficult internet connection.

Do check your invoice - we were charged for something that wasn't available on the menu but hadn't been taken off our bill and then subsequently charged for. No apology.

The food was excellent and the waitress was very nice. My only complaint is the service however that is due to the table of 16 she was also serving. i HIGHLY reccomend this place

Theres nothing special about this place it just has good food nice waiters and nice atmosphere but it is on the pricey side.

I have literally been eating at Pizza Express since the 1970's and I can hand on heart say that they are the best Pizzas in the UK that I have eaten I know I can't refer to other reviews so maybe I will just say...

The staff are lovely and the food very good, unfortunately we had to wait for an hour for our food on this occasion but to be fair they were very busy and our waitress very kindly offered us a round of drinks on the house.

Whilst pizza is intrinsically simple….. getting it absolutely right is NOT that easy - which is why we keep returning to Pizza Express in Lewes and Eastbourne - where we’ve yet to be disappointed. One might argue that - if, your customers eat meat and...

I appreciate it’s the first Saturday since everywhere can open inside again, but this was a really bad experience for us. We normally really enjoy Pizza Express but never been to this one before and thought we would give it a try… The food itself...

We decided to try Pizza Express in Lewes as a change from our Horsham branch. We were really looking forward to it, as my son had a rare afternoon off and we wanted to treat ourselves to lunch. Our waiter did not smile once. I...

First eating out experience since March. Very friendly and welcoming staff, well instructed. Very respectful. Delicious pizza, nice atmosphere. Shame we were not allowed to sing happy birthday or blow the candles (might be guidance but people still use “dangerously spitting”🙈 P and B when they talk).

I really hate to leave bad reviews but the pizza I got at Pizza Express in Lewes was not good. Do not go there. It is overpriced and small and lacking in quality. I was very disappointed. It was also cold when I picked it...

Delicious pizza, tiramisu and pinot grigio blush! Recommended! Pizza Express thank you!

Regular visitors to Pizza Express Brighton, Tunbridge Wells & Eastbourne. We avoid the Lewes branch as have had a few bad visits here... hadn't returned for a few year, thought we'd try again. Wish we never bothered. Service was slow, food was poor - rubbish...

Sorry to say the pizza toppings were mean one tomato and not much else.. Should have complained, but we were so hungry, saying that the service from our waitress was professional.

Pizza Express in Lewes was a very nice stop during a weekend walking trip. The venue is very clean and tidy with friendly staff. Waiting time can be a bit longer due to the busy location of the restaurant but it's well worth the time.

Normally a reliable chain with good standards, my meal tonight was poor with incredibly slow service. Especially bad we were there with young children on a Tuesday when it wasn't that busy. Really put me off going again.

Can't fault pizza express with a taste card! 2 for 1! Plus the majority of staff are very friendly.