Thyme & Chillies Birdham — Restaurant in Chichester

We stopped here on our way back from West Wittering. Now this is a complaint, but I want to say up front, the food is great, looks good, tastes good, no problem with the food. It's the service! We entered the pub around 3:45PM and it wasn't overly busy. We sat down and were told we only have 1.5hrs at that table as they have a reservation, we had two kids, planned on eating fast and moving so no problem! Whilst checking the menu the waitress was shouting at the kitchen staff "table X haven't had their pizzas" to which came the reply "they've already had them", followed by "I wouldn't be asking if they've already had them would I?".. not great image and the waitress had to ask for undelivered food three additional times whilst we were checking menu. We ordered some garlic bread starters, 2 adult pizzas and 2 child pizzas.

We got the garlic bread, ate it, and waited. A couple sat next to us, another behind us. Couple next to us placed order with the man who sat us down (I think he might of been in charge behind bar) he took our plates so we expected our mains (I mean that's how it works right?). We waited and waited. The couple next to us got their pizzas served, the couple behind us got pizzas. We waited (with two kids)... The couple behind us finished up and left the restaurant.

I went to the bar and said to the guy "sorry but we've been waiting a long time and the two people that came in 15 minutes after us have finished and left. He responded "that is not possible as all orders are done in numerical order", I replied that it was he who sat us down, gave us menus and sat the couple down behind us, and took our starter plates. "Oh you had starters, let me check" - he went out back and returned saying they will "start our main courses now".. ONLY START? He said "the problem is because we had starters" - EH? Am I missing something?

After a shorter period of time (and more noises of non-delivery from waitress) I decided to keep checking with every member of staff that passed me in case I was blamed for my order not turning up. Eventually an hour and fifteen minutes after ordering; we got our pizzas from a very apologetic young waiter, and they were really good!

If I hadn't of paid up front I would have likely walked out without paying at all. Disgusting service. I think I would have blown if he had asked us to vacate table as we had hit the 1.5hr limit he gave us considering we scoffed our food in 15 minutes flat because we were now so late!

My advice... keep it simple, don't order starters, because they are completely disorganized and won't last if this is how they work! They probably have a low turnover of repeat customers, and a high turnover of new visitors to West Wittering, who...

Very Disappointing Experience – Poor Service and Unprofessional Management

My experience at Thyme and Chilli was truly appalling. From the outset, the service was disorganised and chaotic, with staff clearly struggling to manage orders correctly. We were served the wrong dishes more than once, and basic communication with the waitstaff was difficult.

However, what made the evening particularly unpleasant was the behaviour of the manager. He was incredibly arrogant and dismissive when we tried to give constructive feedback, showing no interest in listening or making amends. Instead of addressing the issue, he told us we were free not to return and began gossiping about us to his staff within earshot — completely unprofessional and unacceptable.

To make matters worse, despite the shambolic service, the manager still attempted to charge us a service charge on the final bill. When we questioned it, there was no apology or explanation — just more defensiveness and attitude. This, on top of what already felt like discriminatory behaviour toward certain customers, left a very sour taste.

This restaurant seriously lacks professionalism, customer care, and respect.

More issues to report

Our phone interaction with the manager at the time of booking was unacceptable. In the middle of a conversation to resolve an issue, he abruptly disconnected the call — a complete lack of professionalism.

*We were also asked to pay for additional food without any clarity on how much was needed or why it was necessary even before we sat down and started our meal.

To make matters worse, basic service standards were not met. We requested cutlery, which never arrived. Shockingly, one of the servers told our guest to hold onto their starter cutlery and reuse it for the main course. This is not just poor service — it’s completely unhygienic and unacceptable.

We expected better from a place with a reputation like this, but unfortunately, our experience was far below standard.

We requested a high chair for our little one and were told they didn’t have any available. The restaurant wasn’t busy, and there were no other children using one — which raises the question: how can a family-friendly restaurant not have even a single high chair?

Update: After we left a review on TripAdvisor, the manager called my friend. His voice tone on voicemail was very arrogant. Clearly, no lessons have...

This place is VERY VERY EXPENSIVE !! Please watch out for some of the prices on the menu. We came out wondering why the cost of our meal was so extortionate. Look at the cost of what they charge you for popadoms....£1 each. Cucumber Tabitha is £3.50!! You then pay £1.95 for chutney...another price for lime pickles. The SIDE dishes are priced £5.50- £5.95 each. These are SIDE DISHES. It all adds up.

The portions are rather on the small side as well.

They then have the cheek to add a service charge on to the bill. Any tip really should be up to the customer.

Just search the cost of these extras on e.g. India Gate. Much better value for your money.

I'm not faulting the food, service or decor but frankly this charging system is taking the p**s to the extreme. We came here once and frankly thought "never again" because we were so annoyed with the cost of the prices. I can imagine that they have lost a LOT of custom this way.

I think this is why a lot of people are thinking twice before they are going out to eat. The key questions "is the food good" "Am I getting value for my money?" You really have to say "NO" to that second question here.

Vote with your feet. Thyme and Chillies you really need to think about what you are charging for the above mentioned dishes. We worked out we ended up spending nearly £10 EACH more than we should have...