Bella Italia Norwich Red Lion Street in Norwich

This was our first time visiting this Bella Italia site, food was delicious, service was speedy and great, but the best part was our server, unfortunately I didn't catch his name but he was welcoming, friendly and happy! Such a breath of fresh air. We will definitely be back.

Really enjoyed our experience here. The food was lovely and the service was great. Our server, Libby, was super friendly and attentive :) thank you!

Good food, but on busy days it can take quite a while for the food to be served. We once waited here over an hour when they were particularly packed and someone had ordered one of their longer meals to cook (the ribs)

had a lovely time, food was delicious! Libby was polite and attentive!

Lovely food and friendly staff as always.

Excellent service by Libby Great pasta very enjoyable late lunch Great value

Great service all round, our server was very attentive and went the extra mile to look after us. Food was served incredibly quickly and was delicious - what more could you want! I would happily dine here again.

Severd by libby. Really enjoyed it

Great experience. Very nice food and Libby our waitress was fantastic

Food was great and Libby’s service was great!

Our server was Libby and she was so lovely! Hope you have a great twentieth ml x

Our meal was made all the better by our waitress Libby.

Great service. Food was nice presented and hot. Libby was fantastic. Polite friendly and helpful. Thank you

Really good meal Libby went out of her way to make our meal an enjoyable experience

Table booked for tonight and then on arrival, sign on the door to say they were closed! Didn’t even email or call to say they weren’t going to be open!

Me and my son had a loverly time yesterday, thankyou so much to all of the team for getting us in on a busy busy night. We were very grateful and enjoyed it all, the food service and atmosphere was really enjoyable. Thankyou Jess and Paolo for making it even better, amazing service .

Overall lovely experience. It was super busy, as such a few errors. However, the team did an excellent job. A little wait for food but hot and fresh. Would return.

Bella Italia holds a special place in our hearts as it was where we had our first date. Seventeen years later, we returned—this time with our children—to celebrate my husband’s birthday. One of our children has a milk allergy, which often makes dining out challenging, but Bella Italia went above and beyond to accommodate us. Nothing was too much trouble. From start to finish, the entire team provided exceptional service and made us feel so welcome. And the food? Absolutely incredible! Thank you for making our visit so memorable. Special shout out to Laura made the experience! She is a credit to Bella Italia

Fantastic service, hot tasty food. Been to this Bella Italia three times now and it doesn't disappoint.

The food was delicious, but I disagree with the 'One deal per table' rule. My son ordered the bottomless fizzy drink option, so my wife wasn't allowed to order from the set menu 😔.

Went for a family meal on Xmas eve before panto. Everyone loved the food and the kids were happy with the kids menu choices, Iove the larger size kids menu. Staff were attentive and lovely and would definitely go again ☺️

Had Christmas Carbonara and mozzarella sticks… really good service by Libby! Definitely going back.

What a great restaurant! Lovely ambience, great service from all staff. Really enjoyable experience

Late lunch trip to Bella Italia. A place I have always loved going to and usually choose for a birthday destination out. Usually a very lovely meal. However this evening has made me feel like I don’t want to go back. The place was understaffed (In the kitchen) which Is fine, I let the waitress know I completely understood and had empathy for this as I work in hospitality myself. No problem waiting, more than patient. (30-45 minute wait they said) Admittedly we did not pick traditional Italian meals. We wanted ribs and a cheeseburger. However £20.49 for literally ribs and a few chips is extortionate. You assume it’s going to come with the things ribs normally come with. I really fancied a cheeseburger and could see it also only came with chips. So I asked for a side of coleslaw to come with my burger. When the waitress brought the meal out the burger came with coleslaw already. Then I received a very small pot of coleslaw on the side for the price of £4.29. I said as she put it down I didn’t know the burger already came with it as the menu didn’t state so and therefore didn’t need it. But it was left. From my personal work ethic I would’ve just taken it back to the kitchen and added it back to the huge tub it’s only just been decanted from and taken it off the bill. As it had not been touched. But it was left. My £15.49 burger consisted of a small burger , a pot of coleslaw and a poor amount of chips. I was actually still hungry. Certainly didn’t look like a £16/£20 meal. Normally burgers at this price have more chips than you can eat but not here. There were no sauces on the table and we were asked if we wanted anything, mum asked for vinegar and I asked for bbq sauce, to add insult to injury this resulted in a 75p charge! For sauce?! Who charges for sauce. I really wanted another drink but it was £4.50 for a coke, I noted on the menu you can get festive unlimited soft drinks for £5 however I didn’t notice this and wasn’t upsold this upon ordering so I just didn’t have another drink. At the end of the meal I did express I was upset with the price of the coleslaw and how the waitress I ordered from did not tell me the burger comes with it already when I ordered “a burger with some coleslaw too” . I know from my own experience if a customer orders a side of something their dish comes with, I inform them. However our menu states what comes with it anyway. The waitress said I should’ve said some thing to which I said , I did… She did apologise for not sorting it out and kindly said she would get me a drink next time I come, but realistically I know this isn’t going to be an achievable gesture of goodwill. I literally never complain but I felt quite strongly with the coleslaw situation so did but it didn’t exactly matter. I know I would’ve never handled my situation this way. I never mentioned the average meal and I wasn’t going to write a review but decided to after I noticed a charge for sauce upon looking at the receipt at home , it’s ridiculous to be charged for sauce which, was only a small amount too and arrived when I was half way through the chips. Had the waitress removed the coleslaw from the bill I would’ve left a tip. I wanted to leave a tip to show I understood how stressful the evening was, multiple walk ins and delivery drivers continuously opening the door. BUnfortunately we also sat right Infront of this so it was freezing. Which didn’t matter as such as we were grateful for a table. But I decided against leaving a tip because I didn’t feel heard or helped. Working in the industry and knowing the quality of meals sent out and how much they cost caused me to write this review. Also knowing how I would’ve treated a customer. I feel ripped off. Very average meal for a high price. Which is the chains doing, not the staff serving me. I’ve come away having a disappointing experience and added insult to injury with the charge for sauce. A homeless person was outside and I went to Tesco and bought them a meal deal, then also came to the realisation this cost less than the small pot of coleslaw. Ridiculous prices.

The staff were amazing!! Good served very quickly considering how busy it was. Laura, our waitress was brilliant- very attentive and friendly. Thank you!

Lovely food and great service. But very expensive.

Libby made the experience so much nicer so friendly helpful and cheerful calzone is amazing

Lovely restaurant. Lovely food and a fantastic service a lady called ilona served us . She was very friendly ..Lovely lady . We will be returning . Thankyou Bella Italian..

The food was sooo good! Recommend!!

Thank you to Libby for looking after us so well

Our waitress Libby was lovely the entire evening; highly attentive, friendly, informative, and helpful. 🤍🤍

Our server Libby was lovely and went above and beyond to look after us.

A lovely lunch. Made extra special by Ilona who gave us excellent service.

Libby was great we had a table with 6 kids causing chaos and Libby dealt with it remarkably well it didn't fase her at all!

First visit to Bella Italia for a few years, and I left wondering why that was the case. Food was excellent, service faultless and the whole place had a lovely vibe. Will definitely be back, albeit much sooner next time.

Libby was an excellent waitress, very kind and considerate

Great place to eat,exalant food.

Always very good, service excellent.

My partner had the buttermilk chicken burger and said it was the most driest burger his ever had he also had smothered chips which he liked, I had a mushroom pasta dish which was really tasty, Staff were very nice but unfortunately would not return due to prices and quality

Great tasty pizza. Speedy service. Chicken Milanese is superb.

Excellent service from Ilona at Norwich Branch and lovely food

Had a delicious lunch with my niece. Such lovely food, superb mocktail and I love the layout of the restaurant. The waitress, Laura was so lovely and friendly as well as knowledgeable about the menu. Would highly recommend!

Lovely food as always. Just wish there might have been some recognition for my sister's 15th birthday. After phoning and booking the table in advance and explaining that it was for a birthday celebration, and then when my dad arrived before us and was asked whether the booking was for his daughters 15th birthday, we were hoping for either a candle on her dessert or for a sing song. But as the 3 course meal came to an end there was no recognition of the occasion whatsoever which left us a little disappointed, especially knowing what other restaurants do for birthday celebrations.

Always come to our fave restaurant. Feels so warm & friendly. Food and staff are always amazing 👏

Marco gave us great service, food was good 👍

Food tasted OK, but small portions for the price. We had grumpy serving staff, who was then even ruder when I had to ask them to explain how to tell the payment machine NOT to leave a tip! We got a sarcastic "see you again" as we left. We won't be back.

Food was tasty and hot, good selection. All served quickly, considering they were very busy 😀

The experience was wonderful! I took my younger sister (aged 7) to have lunch there for the first time and she said it was the best pizza and ice cream that she’d ever had. The service from Ilona was lovely and all of the staff were wonderful and welcoming. The food was incredible and the service was very quick. We will definitely be returning!

Lovely service this afternoon by Libby; she was highly attentive; friendly and informative. Made us feel very welcome. Will be returning again for amazing food and service 😋

I always have such a lovely time here. The staff are very friendly and the food is always perfect. I love that you can see into the kitchen too. While it is a little cramped inside, I never feel uncomfortable and am always keen to return. Thanks Jess and Libby for your incredible service

Good food and we had very good service.

We like this Restaurant very much and has now become our go too before going to the Theatre, which is only 3 minutes away. The 3 most important things, food quality, service/speed and price have always been excellent and we haven't had a bad experience after many visits. Toilets are upstairs, I'm ashamed to say I haven't noticed where the disabled ones are. Has always been busy when we go as it coincides with the Theatre so booking is advisable. Atmosphere is good. I'd like some music but I know this is not to everyones taste.

Superb food. I had the meatballs and spaghetti, delicious. The restaurant was very busy, but the staff were attentive and lovely. Excellent food and excellent prices.

order nearly tookl 2 hours to come, I order at a percific time so it doesn't interrupt my 1 year old bedtime routine. today that wasn't the case. why have a order time if you don't stick to it and deliver it when you feel like it?

Absolutely wonderful service from Lisa who was super friendly and ever so helpful for all our needs!! Amazing food and drinks, 100/10 - highly recommend. Brilliant atmosphere with calming music and ambient lights🥰🥰

The staff were helpful and friendly. Food was good and hot when delivered to the table.

Came in today lunch time celebrating our 25th Wedding Anniversary and given two glasses of processo. Food was excellent and very friendly staff especially the chap who served us.

Nice food.The place was so noisy.front door was constantly open with people waiting to come making it very cold sitting there.Waited for nearly 40 mins to get food.Service wasn't to bad apart kept pushing you to buy extras when you have had enough

ilona served us and she was fantastic the whole evening.

Food excellent staff go above and beyond highly recommended

Our evening was lovely and Ilona was a brilliant server! She was hilarious and remembered our GF needs and made recommendations for us!

Special thanks to Ilona for looking after us this evening 😊

Excellent service, tasty food. The restaurant was very busy but we were still served quickly and efficiently. We did not feel hurried at all.

On a day trip to Norwich we decided we wanted Italian food. We arrived at about 17:30 on the 18th/ 9th. , with no booking. Greeted by a very friendly chap, who led us to a nice table. The restaurant was fairly busy and had a nice vibe to it. One of the team came over fairly quickly and sorted our drinks out, then, shortly after, our food. Service was really good throughout. Friendly, helpful and with a smile. We shared some olives and a prawn starter, then I had the spicy pasta and my wife, the lasagne with salad. The food was plentiful and very tasty. Cooked to perfection. If we go back to Norwich we will definitely eat there again. A really pleasant find.

Lovely food waitress very friendly... pleasant dining experience...

Love this place, the food always tastes amazing and the service always delivers.

We had a late lunch at the Norwich branch and were served by Ilona. She was very friendly and attentive but didn't make us feel rushed. Ilona also went out of her way to ask the chef if he could cook a certain ( was difficult due to equipment failure). Would visit again and recommend to others

Always a joy to eat and experience the food.

Came in for an evening meal with friends, food was excellent and the service was so quick and attentive. Managed to catch the name of our waitress, libby, who was brilliant in catering for my nut allergy and made our experience a 10/10. Certainly will be returning.

Lovely food and very nice staff

Really impressive with friendly service! Laura was so helpful and she did listen what our preferred options are for our 2-year-old boy. The man who greeted us and the lady working at bar who came double check with us for our special meal were so lovely as well We really enjoyed our dinner tonight at Bella Italia! One of our best experiences in Norwich!! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Food was standard if slightly underwhelming, the options were reduced with several items unavailable. However i would recommend the seafood options and the cookie dough.

Excellent service and food as always.

I thought I'd leave a review and a present too. It has been a long time since I've had proper cooked pasta made with amore, serves with smiles and eaten with decadence. I'll leave you a present of my younger years

Excellent service from Rebecca who went out of the way to make this a very welcoming experience. Food was excellent. Would recommend and will definitely return.

We visit Bella Italia frequently when visiting the city. The food is excellent as are the staff. Friendly and efficient and a good atmosphere.

Went in for a cheeky Sunday lunch date. The staff were very welcoming and friendly and the food was excellent. Would definitely recommend.

Had a lovely lunch date here, the mocktails were delicious and refreshing, and their food was great and arrived quickly. Sharon was our server, she was really friendly and helpful.

Lovely little restaurant within the city centre. Parking was relatively easy as there's plenty of car parks nearby. We had the sharing starter, dough balls, carbonara and the bolognese. Everything was delicious and cooked perfectly. Our server Libby was amazing, she was so attentive and friendly. We would definitely come back

We have been coming here for over 20 years and always had 5 star food and service.

We were served today by Libby (Norwich Red Lion Street). She was the perfect blend of professional and friendly She attended to us quickly and was knowledgeable about the items on the menu.

Went for dinner today with my family, served lovely food with lovely service. Our server Libby was attentive and very friendly. 👍

Service was brilliant by Jessica

Brilliant 🤩 Everything was lovely - food, service and restaurant itself

5* service from Bryony, can tell her loves her job!

Just had a lovely meal with my 3 yr old daughter and my cousin with his 4 year old. The service was brilliant and the waitress was extremely accommodating to our two girls. She was tentative, polite and quick to serve which is vital when you have two young children with a decreasing attention span and approaching their bed time.

Picked Bella Italia out of the few restaurants open on a Sunday in Norwich and we were very pleased. Service was good and the pasta very tasty, especially my duck dish.

Solo diner, was sat next to a family with young children even though restaurant was half full. As the family finished their meals they were all talking loudly and a child screeching. Another solo diner who had been sat behind them asked to be moved. My food had arrived and ended up rushing it just to get finished. Trying to eat when a child is loudly saying poo is not ideal. I also had to hear the mum making negative comments about the lady who asked to be moved. As soon as I'd finished I got up to pay. The waitress was giving me an odd look as I was clearly wanting to leave. I still left a tip and just commented that the food was lovely but the family you sat me beside were quite loud. Instead of accepting that was my experience, she got in a huff and with the emphasis on actually said 'well actually I thought they were really good' I replied well you weren't sitting next to them! I was annoyed before that, I was angry after due to her attitude to me. Wish I hadn't wasted £20 for that and won't be back. If you go, bear in mind between 4-6pm kids eat for £1. If you have kids then go for it. I travel a lot, sometimes on my own and that's the worst experience I've ever had.

We were two oap couples from Hull visiting Norwich on holiday. Stopped for a meal and had a great waitress in Ilona who joined in with our silliness and made the evening most enjoyable. My sister and husband are vegan and loved the spaghetti vegan meatballs 😋. Thanks to ILONA and the staff for a lovely experience. Alan

Came here for lunch whilst in the city shopping. We hadn’t booked, but despite being busy they were able to squeeze up in. Fantastic service, great atmosphere, despite being busy it didn’t feel too loud. Amazing variety on the menu, my friend with me is vegan and there was plenty of choice for her. Will definitely visit again

Food very good. Our waitress Ilona was brilliant, making us very welcome. Nothing was too much trouble. Looking forward to our next visit

I had a wonderful evening meal with my husband and daughter. Food, service and restaurant were brilliant. Ilona, our server was so friendly.

lovely service and lovely food! ILONA was a lovely server and was always making sure we were looked after and that everything was up to standard!! Will be back again

Laura was lovely, friendly and professional.

Great food and service. Sharon was great polite bubbly.

The food I had was not very hot the mushrooms were cold and pizza was cold not like the one I had at Riverside that was lovely and hot.

As usual, a nice meal and very good service

Great service from Ilona, very friendly and helpful staff.

Waiting staff very pleasant, food was tasty and hot, nice atmosphere in the restaurant.

Ilona & Vicky were extremely welcoming and gave brilliant customer service. They were brilliant with my young daughter who had multiple life threatening allergies and friendly despite her 101 questions!