Bill's Produce Store
The Depot, 100 North Road, Brighton
BN1 1YE
01273 692894
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Review details for Bill's Produce Store
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| jeremy | 1/10 | 1/10 | 1/10 | 1/10 | 1/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 0000-00-00 00:00:00 dire only one way to describe ; dire, do not go there its totally s,,, ! and bad value |
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| popsy | 6/10 | 9/10 | 5/10 | 4/10 | 5/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 0000-00-00 00:00:00 Bill's in Lewes fantastic, like a busy market where you can eat everything they sell. The Brighton version feels artificial and is overpopulated with yummy mummies and trendy types, and the cutomer levels are badly managed. There is no waiting area so people wanting a table hover vulture-like around the eaters. Horrible. Heaters blast from above, if you are a direct hit you boil, otherwise you freeze. Kids' food VASTLY overpriced, which is a real shame. That said, the food is generally good if you choose well; massive healthy salads and interesting sandwiches, fab desserts and yummy smoothies. Plus good deli products and unusual fresh produce selection. But blackboard menus hard to read and make sense of. Expensive and uncomfortable, and looks more like a well-executed film set than a real cafe. If you get the chance, go to the original charmingly haphazard Bill's in Cliffe High Street, Lewes. |
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| danuk01 | 6/10 | 6/10 | 3/10 | 8/10 | 7/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 0000-00-00 00:00:00 If presentation is important then Bills is the place to go, for it is a real treat. Unfortunately it isn't the place to go when busy as you feel compelled to finish up and go quickly whilst swarms of hungry onlookers scour at your plate; this needs to be addressed, as do the prices which are generally unrealistic. |
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| kitty | 9/10 | 10/10 | 8/10 | 7/10 | 8/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 0000-00-00 00:00:00 Actually haven't been to the Brighton store but visited the one in Lewes and it was fantastic. Amazing variety of food (sandwiches, pizza, soups, pancakes, cakes, brownies...) and a variety of milkshakes and juices. Beautiful presentation (the cakes come with flowers all over them!). Well worth a visit. |
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| eagleyezit | 9/10 | 7/10 | 6/10 | 9/10 | 10/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 0000-00-00 00:00:00 Quite entertaining for the hour I spent munching away on my pizza, that looked amazing, the taste was'nt all there due to the clashing of ingrident flavours etc. Very pretty presentation though. Next time I'll go there for an espresso as I don't normally spend 20 quid for a snack and drink for two. |
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| 992264OP | 1/10 | 1/10 | 1/10 | 1/10 | 1/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 0000-00-00 00:00:00 Dreadful - really dire. Food is average, but very over priced. The staff are insolent and rude. This place really thinks it is something special, let me tell you...it ain't. |
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| Matt Wright | 2/10 | 2/10 | 1/10 | 1/10 | 1/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 0000-00-00 00:00:00 On the day I visited, a customer was taking a photo of 'the fantastic display of gateaux' as he put it - an insolent member of staff told him (loudly, so that all in the vicinity could hear) that he wasn't allowed to take pictures as the chef doesn't like it! The guy was visibly shocked by this and the party he was with looked highly embarrassed. This behaviour pretty much sums Bill's up 'Well up its own arse' - also the place was like a crèche 'Yummy Mummy's' with bawling brats in abundance....nice! PS: I e-mailed Bill personally about this and received a poor response, not from Bill, but from one of his underlings (Bill is clearly way too busy to be bothered with customers) MY ADVICE - STAY WELL CLEAR - and take your custom to a business that wants it and DESERVES it. |
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| velocity | 7/10 | 9/10 | 7/10 | 8/10 | 6/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 0000-00-00 00:00:00 The salad... often overlooked or poorly executed by so many establishments, not at Bill's. The produce was fresh, very tasty and well presented (as you would expect). The food is good, but as noted by others perhaps a tad too pricey. The place itself is interesting to sit in, but draughty and noisy. The Lewes shop was/is inspirational, but I'm not convinced that's been fully translated to the Brighton site. |
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| willbooth | 8/10 | 9/10 | 8/10 | 8/10 | 6/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 0000-00-00 00:00:00 Can't understand some of the bad comments about this place: Bill's is great, the food is fantastic and the prices actually pretty average for Brighton, all told. OK, it's too busy at times (Saturday morning/lunchtime, especially) but I'm not going to knock success. Brighton could do with more places like this. |
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| kyliemo | 9/10 | 9/10 | 8/10 | 8/10 | 9/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 0000-00-00 00:00:00 I LOVE Bill's. Back when I was living and working in Lewes I'd go regularly and make it somewhere to meet friends for lunch as well as to buy fantastic fresh fruit and veg and treats such as their lovely cakes, quiches and bread. The Brighton venue is very different to the Lewes one, but equally friendly and buzzing with atmosphere and the same high-level of quality and quantity. The line up for waiting for a table is a bit haphazard and could possibly be more obvious - just a sign would do - but it's worth the confusion and wait. The food is lovely, original, quirky and filling. And you can always judge a place by it's coffee - and it's good. Whenever anyone wants to meet up it's still the place I think of first to eat and drink and chat for hours, then do a bit of shopping for produce. GO! |
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| Kate | 7/10 | 8/10 | 7/10 | 6/10 | 7/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 0000-00-00 00:00:00 The food is very fresh and better than the service which tends to be a mite aloof; but this is Brighton - a bit of a spectacular diva. The till staff are rather slow; on a busy day, queues frequently form which back into the queues waiting for a seat. Sort that out, Bill, and make everyone happy. |
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| pengam | 4/10 | 8/10 | 1/10 | 7/10 | 6/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 0000-00-00 00:00:00 Bill's is expensive. For a ceaser salad it's £10... It's good but not worth that much. Quality of food is good, not amazing. Value for money is POOR. Service is great. Nice people. Atmosphere - Loud, tinny, busy It's ok. dan |
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| thflyingbaron | 4/10 | 2/10 | 3/10 | 10/10 | 6/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 2006-09-11 19:59:12 Service faultless. Food an absolute shocker! nice looking place that has made an effort to look the part and has done well. The cakes and pastrys look great. I has a breakfast there and thought it was over fussy and in parts, tasteless. |
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| josh | 8/10 | 8/10 | 6/10 | 8/10 | 8/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 2006-10-24 14:34:02 Have to say I'm puzzled by negative reports - true, it gets horribly busy, and the greengrocer bit is best treated as decoration rather than a produce shop (stock seems to be chosen because it looks nice rather than because it tastes nice), but I've always found the food and the service to be excellent and reasonable value for money in comparison with other Brighton restaurants. Nice cakes and pastries, well cooked eggs, decent coffee, and the staff don't snarl at you if you turn up with kids in tow. |
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| Justin | 9/10 | 9/10 | 8/10 | 9/10 | 9/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 2006-12-04 17:15:07 Sensational food! Top quality, food heaven! |
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| paul dunton | 8/10 | 7/10 | 8/10 | 8/10 | 7/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 2006-12-31 14:52:15 unusual but good value, great for lunch |
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| predicaments | 7/10 | 7/10 | 6/10 | 7/10 | 7/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 2007-01-20 14:48:35 Bills offers an alternative to the generic slop served up in so many of Brighton's 'alternative' cafes in the lanes. The quality of food is generally excellent although the application of sauces on some meals way too much. However I think the standard needs to be upheld - the bacon for example used to be super crispy but on occasion recently has been undercooked in my opinion. Otherwise a lovely place that reminds me of Melbourne, Australia. |
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| fionacollier | 10/10 | 10/10 | 10/10 | 10/10 | 10/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 2007-03-10 20:28:42 Sampled on a Friday morning after the night before... Bill's Vegetarian Special headlining, washed down with a bottle of Veuve as a welcome HOTD. The yummy mummies and brats aforementioned by some only add to the welcoming family atmosphere. Engaging, smiley staff and, behold, such beauty in the artistically displayed veggies and grocery produce that surrounds. Indulgent. We all adored it and cannot wait to return. |
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| Customer56 | 6/10 | 8/10 | 6/10 | 8/10 | 2/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 2007-05-06 11:13:47 I experienced Bill's for the first time this weekend. The food was well presented, very tasty and quite filling. We didn't have to wait long for a table or for the meal. The service was fast, efficient and very friendly. The only downside was the noise - it was extremely busy and the fact that there is nowhere set aside for people waiting for a table i.e. they have to stand beside those dining. Like many eating places of today, not a place to go for a private conversation, but great for a filling and tasty middle in the middle of a shopping day or similar. I will definitely go there again AND now try the Lewes one too!! |
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| vintagefan | 5/10 | 6/10 | 6/10 | 4/10 | 5/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 2007-06-08 10:28:50 A lot of my friends love this place but I'm not keen on its claustrophobic atmosphere and haphazard service. I've been here two or three times and the first time the waitress forgot or mislaid our order and we had drunk nearly a whole bottle of wine before it finally arrived after we complained and then one of the orders was wrong! No refund or apology. As previous reviewers have noted, full of yummy mummies with buggies and babies and Guardian reader types,all bonding middle-classly. I personally dont find it a relaxing place to eat. The tables are too close together, you may have to share a bigger table and then there are the shoppers walking round your backs.. Food is all right though rather limited- various breakfasty things or of the salad ( admittedly piled high) and quiche variety. My preference is to buy one of their fresh quiches or flans- they are excellent - from the shop area, rather than eat in. |
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| lisas100 | 5/10 | 1/10 | 2/10 | 6/10 | 7/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 2007-07-06 20:50:33 Everything looks great and there's a good atmosphere but don't think the food delivers. Style over substance and a bit of a rip off. Definitely over-hyped. |
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| alisanderina | 10/10 | 10/10 | 7/10 | 10/10 | 10/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 2007-09-09 22:44:14 I'm rating 'Bills' in Lewes - which is absolutely wonderful! It IS pricey but it is such a treat!!! The food, is a work of art and the staff are extremely accommodating, swift and affable. Am slightly put off by the reviews of the Brighton 'Bills' oh dear! ..... Will have to give it a try to see for myself. Praise from ME, is praise indeed! I'm a foody fuss pot! Watch out 'Bill's' in Brighton! :) |
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| markreilly | 10/10 | 10/10 | 10/10 | 9/10 | 10/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 2007-11-11 11:21:09 Brilliant affordable food, amazing atmosphere, the only drawback is the fact that its so popular you have to queue for ages to get a table, worth the wait though! |
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| weazey | 8/10 | 10/10 | 7/10 | 9/10 | 8/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 2007-12-04 17:23:53 ive never had a bad meal here, the food is always top notch and very fresh as you would expect as its a retail outlet aswell. the service has always been quick and friendly and the atmosphere is bubbly and you can have a conversation without shouting or being over heard. |
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| boo | 5/10 | 7/10 | 7/10 | 6/10 | 2/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 2008-01-07 17:13:31 I should just duplicate what someone else has said. Yummy Mummies, pretentous folk who think this style of food & service is new to Brighton. Kensington gardens & North Laines has loads of fresh food, health food cafes. This feels false. Lewes was the orginal & it works better. |
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| badjon | 5/10 | 7/10 | 4/10 | 6/10 | 4/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 2008-05-21 10:30:59 Pretentious and overpriced. Good to look at but lacks real substance. Youll come out of there feeling like youve been mugged. Read my review here: http://moblog.co.uk/view.php?id=151048 |
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| restaurant expert | 2/10 | 1/10 | 1/10 | 4/10 | 6/10 | ||||||||||||||
Date: 2008-08-30 09:58:56 The food really is awful. The vegetarian breakfast is the worst meal I have ever eaten - such a strange mix of elements, I might have thought it was remnants from my kitchen bin. The produce and dry goods are grossly over priced, but make great decorations. |
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Reviews
| quality | 6.74/10 |
| value | 5.44/10 |
| service | 6.74/10 |
| atmosphere | 6.22/10 |
| overall | 6.33/10 |
reviewed 27 times