The Hole in the Wall Public House in Chichester

This place has great beer and should be a winner but the bar staff: OMG. You wait ages to be served, only to soak up a bunch of attitude and then they call last orders at 10 pm. Every Thursday when the pub is still half full. Really? At these prices? I don't know who is managing this bunch of jokers but if the Big Smoke Brewing Company still own it, they need to come down and sort this. So sad: great pub ruined by crappy staff.

We had a lovely time in this pub! Lovely staff, great choice of real ale and the food was delicious! It's a lovely pub off the shopping centre so a bit hard to find but well worth it! It's old as well!! The meal we had was Chicken Kebab with pitta bread and salad! It was delicious and we highly recommend it!!

Jeena is amazing. So friendly. Will definitely be back.

To be greeted by an open log fire on a damp autumn day was a welcome pleasure and individual staff were pleasant, although the overall atmosphere felt a little impersonal. Food was good home cooked style but nothing stood out on the menu as thrilling. A modern bar suited to younger customers.

Lovely food , lovely staff and great atmosphere! 10 out 10. Oh and it's possibly haunted 👻

Best pub in Chi! Great vibes and beer selection. Make sure you check the listings for events. Monday is 241 burgers and they are awesome. Music night on Tuesday is one of the best nights of the week! Love this place.

Very rude staff…. They don’t allow any menonites, or anyone not “English/british” in the pub

Many miles on recommendation not to get served... staff obviously had a long day.....at least the locals had beer.....thank goodness for Wetherspoons for once

We were turned down by the bartender with big ears lobes stretchers, glasses dark long hair, and with a half fringe blond and half dark. I first called because I wanted to book a table for 12, but she wasn't interested, she said 'sorry we are packed and we don't have any tables available. Why don't you try at the Nugs Head also because we don't book tables just for drinks.' At that point I said that some of us would have eaten as well, but again she said 'sorry I can't reserve a table for that number'. I followed her suggestion and called the Nugs Head. They instead were very polite and said to wait until 4.30 as on a Sunday usually it dies down at that time. We then thought to keep our appointment with friends at the Hole in the Wall as it would probably be the same if we waited a little longer there, so short after the call we went to find the place not packed at all! there were 5 free tables at the back and a couple at the front, none with the reserved sign. I approached the bar and a lovely blond girl came to serve us. I asked if we could sit at the back where i could see 5 free tables and if possible to join the big table with the one next to it as we were going to be 12 people. She said it wasn't a problem at all but double checked with the other bartender, the one with lobes stretchers and two colours fringe. She came and said that she had no place for 12 people to sit together for drinks, I then repeated what I told her earlier over the phone that some of us would have had a meal but she said no because most tables are reserved... I said well then we will sit at two different tables that are not reserved. We sat and noticed that all the free tables didn't have a reservation sign on. Clearly this particular bartender didn't fancy working today and did her best to convince us to go elsewhere. When my husband went to the bar to buy some drinks this bartender told him that she wouldn't be able to serve us any meals because the kitchen had run out of food...WOOOOW!! Dear owner this is our 4th time here since we moved to town and each time the service gets worse. Each time we bring 10 to 15 people with us and this is how we are treated?!? Maybe your staff needs to go to a Customer-cervice training before they can be left in charge of your business. We are usually a big group of well behaved mature professionals there is only to gain with us and nothing to lose as we are not trouble. Wherever we go we drink and eat while talking and discussing mainly work topics but clearly this establishment is not suitable for people like us and after giving it a chance for the 4th time we will not be coming back as for the 4th time we were not welcome.

Wide selection of ale and good vibes

We love coming to the Hole in the Wall every time we’re in Chichester. Popped in on Friday and as usual didn’t disappoint. Had a super lunch (fish and chips for husband and the chilli for me - which is always fabulous and they are always happy to put some grated cheese on for me!). This time Jeena looked after us and was lovely, helpful and so friendly. Have told friends about you and now you have extra devotees! See you again soon.

Friendly. Good value roast dinner. Nice beer and wine choices.. pet friendly

Fabulous meal out with my husband. I was served by Amber who was warm and welcoming the minute I stepped in the door. Showed us to our table with ease and talked us through the menu & all of the alternative options for my husband. Loved every second, and every mouthful of food. Will come back again, and have recommended it to a lot of my friends!

We went just for drinks. Lovely British environment

We only sat outside for a bottle of wine before going to the restaurant. Wine was overpriced at £26 a bottle for NZ Sauvignon Blanc.

The small cafe is beautifully decorated with outdoor seating in a tranquil and secluded courtyard. The fare is basic but tasty with child friendly and some allergy friendly options. There was local historic information that was very interesting and hard to see where else it would be readily available. Would highly recommend when looking for somewhere shady and quiet for a light meal. Only note is that food took a long time - 45 minutes for four cold sandwiches (as in, nothing in them required cooking). Wasn't an obvious reason for this, day wasn't particularly busy

Jeena is always cheery and smiling and always happy to help. She is a star and a great asset to this lovely pub. We love to come here as there is always a lovely atmosphere

Great staff along with great service lots of thanks to Claire, Jeena, Amber and Charlie 🥂❤️🥂

Really friendly pub with a great selection of drinks, nice food, good atmosphere and staff who make you feel at home. Sometimes with live music too. One of the more congenial pubs in Chichester for sure

The roast dinner/drinks offer was really good value and the food was delicious. There was a good choice of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. The staff were really friendly.

Beer is good but I regretted staying for dinner. Perfectly nice pub to have a drink with a brilliant selection of beers. Cask lines could be a little cleaner so I switched to lager. We ordered and were waiting for a good 45/50 mins before I went to the bar to check in. The barman came back immediately with our food so...who knows. All a bit disorganised and the fish and chips were a bit dry and lifeless for the price point. If you want a pub meal, try somewhere else. They seem better geared for bar snacks. They do have live music on Fridays which was enjoyable.

FFS! Closed before 9:30pm on Sunday 25th Aug, before Bank Holiday Monday, yet still serving their mates. Obviously no challenges in the hospitality sector in Chichester.

I had a pint of Guinness here today... by far the worst pint I've had presented to me since the 90's. Very poor I had one pint and left asap. Pic flatwrs what was presented to me.

Best pint of Guinness I've ever had!! Anyone else who disagrees is a massive helmet!!

Great pub and quiet for a Sunday! Came here with my friend group and we all ordered Sunday roast it was lovely. Gammon with apple sauce was tasty and 2 roasts for 40£ great deal! Service could be better since it was pretty much empty.

Fish & chips were great. Very nice service and the atmosphere you would imagine a pub to be.

Proper back street pub with live music and plenty of choice of drinks, food was delicious too

Great pub to visit if you enjoy a good beer. They have many options on draft which get changed around so you are able to try a variety. Staff have all been very friendly when I have been here. It is a popular venue at the weekend so I would recommend arriving earlier to secure a table. You are able to make reservations if you are a big party.

This was a wonderful find during our first ever visit to Chichester. A great pub that caters both for locals and visitors and offers affordable and good quality food and great selection of beers. We visited twice within 2 days for lunch and a drink. The staff are very professional, knowledgeable and friendly. Our special thanks go to Jeena who has looked after us on both occasions. Apart from main menu, there is also lunch menu with smaller portions at affordable prices. They also have special offers depending on a day you visited including live music on Fridays. The only drawback is that you can't connect to internet as the signal is very poor. If we visit Chichester in the future, we will definitely come back.

A pub full of single old men, of which I am, indeed included. All served with enthusiasm by a single girl who had to serve drinks, collect food from kitchen and wait on tables, deal with deliveries and visiting tradespeople. Absolute exploitation.

Jam session was excellent, great selection of beers and friendly staff

Awesome Sunday street party on a lovely summers ☀️ evening in Aug. The staff working their butts off to keep us all well hydrated. Kudos 👏

So much better than it used to be.

Service was subpar as we had to wait 50 minutes for four mains, and only received one update in that time, but credit where it's due, the food was excellent when it finally arrived.

I Went with my two kids and dog the staff were very friendly and considerate

Went here for my birthday a couple of weeks ago and the service, food and atmosphere was amazing, got a complimentary pint and ice cream for my birthday, really nice and friendly staff

Impressed to say the least, great choice of ales and friendly staff.

kept answering and hanging up the phone straight away. With the reply I don’t understand how you know you can’t hear on the phone when the time it took to hang up is faster than your service, also I didn’t mention anything else other than a phone call so why would you comment on me not going into the place? I know you work in a pub but does that affect your ability to read?

I needed to kill a couple of hours on a Tuesday and am so pleased I chose this place. The WiFi was really good so I could get some work done, and it was their ‘music jam night’ which I had to drag myself away from! Some incredible talented musicians playing with enthusiasm and skill made for a brilliant atmosphere. Would highly recommend - I’ll be back!

Pleasant enough little pub with friendly staff. Unfortunately, food fell short. Sunday roast was disappointing with dry powdery potatoes and uninspiring yorkshire puddings. Turkey, though was perfectly done with fresh vegetables. Wife had nut roast which was full of gritty bits which rendered it inedible.

The best cask ale venue I have found in Chichester. I call every time I am in the city. Food was not taken but looked good. Lots of events also take place here.

My wife and I visited and we will most definitely be returning the next time we are in the area! Being located on a side street is fantastic as it is away from the hustle and bustle yet being centrally located. Atmosphere is vibrant, yet cosy. Love the board games! The pub has a great array of beers and ciders. I went for the Hofmeister and my wife the Tropical Cider. Both excellent but the cider was something else! For lunch, I had the Classic Burger with added Bacon, the wife had the Buffalo Chicken Burger. Given I'm partial to my food, i can quite easily say this burger was possibly the best I've tried. Easily said, I know, but it was super. Could actually taste the seasoning (which I find to be quite rare) in the burger yet not over powering. Kudos to the chef! Can't recommend this place enough, an all round fantastic establishment!

Amazing singers on a Tuesday night for an Open mike event. Such talent

The food was out of this world. We had the small plates that consisted of Dirty fries with pulled pork, nachos with chilli, and chicken wings, the rest of group had similar but had coated breaded chicken breast, Mac and cheese and one had the chicken and asparagus pie. We all agreed the food was impeccable, sooo tasty and flavoursome and plenty of it. Would defo recommend it but best Google where it is as it's in the town of Chichester but down a side road, you do not want to miss it.

We just popped in for a couple of beers and were given a really friendly welcome. A lovely bolt hole, for beer lovers and we will certainly return when next in Chichester.

Lovely pub with great service and great ales, make sure you ask for your CAMRA discount!

Impressive range of draft beer, ale and cider and really friendly, hard-working, polite and laid back team behind the bar on my recent visit under the Aurora Borealis. Live music and range of food too!

A good pub but spoilt for my wife by screaming children and noisy atmosphere

Lovely pub food service went there after horse racing relaxing

Still the best/ friendliest pub in Chichester

Very good selection of real Ales and ciders, good staff, good food.

We were a party of 14 who arrived out of the blue and had not booked. We were served with excellent food and within a reasonable time. This was on Friday 5th April . Who was the chef? Give them a pay rise!!!

A splendid little pub within Chichester's alleys, delightful and cheerful staff, their Jam Nights are always enjoyable and, I can't stress this next part enough...try the Loaded Fries with pulled pork. GOOD LAWD THAT'S SOME GOOD FOOD RIGHT THERE 😋

Party of 25 was spoilt by food that was preordered as requested but when served it looked like and tasted like it was cooked hours before.For me I had fish and chips ,the fish was so overcooked i could have sanded my walls down with it the chips were old stock overcooked and dry.my pie sweet came out as a cake.My wife ordered fish pie which after ploughing through a mountain of potatoes she eventually found a small amount of fish.This was our second visit to this venue with quests travelling from Plymouth and Brighton and with this experience it will be our last.

Excellent pub, great range of beer.

Very good, friendly staff, pleasant interior. Burgers disappointing, dry bun, little sauce no extras, chips poor. ,maybe an off night.

A wonderfully cosy and inviting pub with very friendly staff and a great atmosphere. Would highly recommend 😊

Cool pub with lots of places to sit, nice old decor and great quick service!

Pleasant pub with plenty of seating just off East St. Good for real ales, ciders, craft keg beers and food.

Very nice bar, good selection of beer, nice atmosphere

Cosy traditional pub, great drinks selection.

Often call in for a drink while walking our dog, first time eating here for a long time. Gina and her colleagues were amazing and one of the main reasons we keep coming back. Food was much better than expected. I also decided to book the pub for a special 50th Birthday and have left a separate review for that ***** star review :)

Perfect place to go to try different types of Ale. They have so many choices. Will like to try all at some point.

Went for a beer did not eat. Large choice of beers available.

What a wonderful, wonderful pub! A wide variety of ales, ciders and spirits and a food menu that has something for everyone. Generous servings that are well presented and every single staff member had a genuine smile and friendly attitude from the off. Nothing was too much trouble. Definitely going to be visiting on a more regular basis now.

Great selection of beers and other drinks with live music! always a good time at the home in the wall !

Just moved to the town and want to explore all the pubs here, and this is absolutely the good start. Very classic English bar with history since 1950. Good beer, good vibe and good snacks with friendly staffs.

I’ve found a this place with classic decoration and many beers choices, as well as they have wide range of food menu doesn’t like some other pub only few things, also the taste is more than expected.

Sunday roast was delicious, not a fault was found, had the 3 meats, gammon, beef and turkey all 3 of us left clean plates. Finished with the double chocolate brownies with ice cream.Staff were brilliant and made sure you were happy and needed anything was needed, went and chichester had a Internet problem was local so no card payments, left wife and mother in law as collateral whilst I went to cashpoint but did return and pay after a while 🤣🤣

Good city centre pub. Good choice of beer, including excellent alcohol free. Good food including vegan choices

Great old pub. Great atmosphere and good beers and ales. I've not eaten here but have heard the foods good. Prices are reasonable.

Never seem to have any premium lager

Cosy spots and knooks alongside great areas for groups. great drinks selection, regularly changing guest beers. Staff are great. Log fires. Great range of modern pub food.

Food was a great selection, but unfortunately only warm, and cold by the last mouthfuls! I will certainly ask for food to be hot next time, and did notify the one over worked waitress who kindly deducted our drinks off the bill. I know I could have sent the food back, but the waitress was not available until halfway thru our meals when she kindly checked in with us.

Great old pub Good pint and friendly staff

Quite a good atmosphere but food was very average at best. I have never had dry mushy peas before.

Many manufacturers years and a very special place..clean friendly..great pub

Rang to reserve a table and the manager could not have been more condescending or rude. Staff training required, really awful experience.

Lovely pub with a great atmosphere and good selection of drinks. I've never had food here so I can't rate that.

Wide range of beers and craft lagers on tap, what's not to like! Reasonable prices as well. It was very warm in the pub, however...

Came in for coffee and due to lovely place ended up eating best sausage and mash I’ve had in years!!!! They had a trio of sausages choice. I had large pig in blanket with lovely bacon covering meaty sausage; mash potato with caramelised onion and fresh sage; with sage and onion gravy. Little bits of Cranberry. And fabulous selection of fresh veg well worth every penny. In front of a real fire. Lovely staff

Got a good selection of beers with weird names.

Night we came food portion small/disapointing, and four of the real ales were poor condition or off/bad.. staff lovely.. pub nice... last time was great but not this time 😔

Fantastic pints, great vibes, can't ask for more!

Great pub, lots of beers on tap. Good atmosphere, tucked away off the High Street

Rats are everywhere and faeces.

A unique pub. Highly recommended 👌

Fantastic pub! Huge selection of craft beer and cider. Decent menu. Music night was fun. Nice staff.

What a find. Stopped in there last night for dinner ahead of picking up the south downs way where we left off. Great food, and some very nice ales. Then, to top off, it was their open mic night. It was a joy to watch as Sarah (I think that was her name), not only performed some great numbers with the house band, but was SO encouraging and created such a supportive atmosphere for some young talent. A great community pub that I wish was my local.

Didn't eat here, just beer and what a selection, I'm so glad it's gone back to a pub and not the sports bar it was.

Every bit as good as I was expecting having visited other pubs in this small group. We visited on Sunday lunchtime so took advantage of the great roast options. Big Smoke cask ales were excellent (altho there was not one single keg beer available which seemed strange in a beer-focused pub. There must have been a reason, but I am not sure what it was.) Service was friendly, attentive and cheery and the food was great. Would certainly recommend this pub and we do hope to return one day soon. It is an excellent choice for those going on to visit The Pallant Gallery just down the road.

Good city centre pub with a decent range of drinks and a nice atmosphere.

Excellent food, ambience, incredibly kind and friendly staff. But why do the staff feel it's acceptable to use foul language when they're chatting within earshot of customers? It's a real shame in such a fantastic pub/eaterie in Chichester. It's making me question whether I really want to return, despite all the upsides.

Thursday night. Only had drinks. It was very empty but with over-loud music. Probably just a typical dead, midweek evening out in Chichester but wouldn't rush to return. Sorry

Edit: Excellent food. Drinks good. ........

Lovely little pub, just off the High Street. Totally dog and kid friendly, lovely people and a chicken pie to die for!

Slightly pricey but great beers, which were kept well.

Fabulous range of ales. Super food.

Great place, great beer and cider selection, great food!

Lovely cozy pub with excellent drinks selection and good food.