Inside Worthing's newest restaurant – where you'll find delicious Italian dishes and an authentic family vibe

​Fratelli supersedes Brio, situated in a prime location on the corner of Marine Parade and The Steyne on Worthing’s seafront.

Still owned and operated by the same family – the Manentis – it has been given a fresh design, while the menu has been updated to better reflect the family’s Italian heritage.

Brio was started by Walter Manenti in Shoreham in 2008. In 2011, they opened the Worthing restaurant of the same name. The Shoreham branch closed in 2022.

Now, eldest son Charlie is helping him to breathe new life into the business, which kicked off with the brand’s relaunch under the name Fratelli – Italian for brother – on March 16.

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Charlie said: “Dad had thought about selling the business, but I told him ‘no way, it’s too prime, you’ll never get a spot as good as this again’.

"It’s been in the family for 13 years and we want to keep it in the family for the foreseeable future. There’s me and my four brothers, my dad, my uncle and my cousin who work here, too.

"The business hadn’t been performing as well as we’d like, so we decided to turn over a new leaf and redesign it instead.”

With a pretty floral theme and plenty of nods to the Italian flag with pops of green throughout, the interior feels modern and inviting.

The rotary door at the front of the restaurant, once an entrance to the Chatsworth Hotel, has been carefully restored and a new pizza oven from Napoli, including stone from Mount Vesuvius, has been installed.

Charlie said: “We’ve also got two pagodas being installed on the deck outside, they can be used in winter with heating for about 16 people. There will be nice, ambient lighting, a new sound system and it’s a great cocktail space in the summer. It was always busy outside, but we’re really emphasising it as a space.”

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Live band Real Deal has been booked for select dates throughout the year, starting on May 5, and high-quality roast dinners will occasionally be served on Sundays, including this Sunday (March 31).

The menu features new dishes such as braised beef cheek and pizzoccheri pasta – a vegetarian dish featuring sage, butter, cheese, chard and potatoes, hailing from the Dolomites, where Walter is from.

And using an old connecting door to the Chatsworth, they will soon start offering room service for the hotel.

Charlie added: “We want to give people that good Italian vibe, that authenticity. We’re a proper, family-run business and we want to give people that taste of Italy when they walk through the door.

"We’ve made the kitchen a bit more private, but it’s still an open kitchen. It’s a very engaging experience if you want it to be as you can hear the chefs speaking, you can really be in the thick of it, but if you want something quieter there’s tables for that, too.

"We just hope people will come along and see what we’ve done and try Fratelli out.”

The restaurant can seat 85 people inside and around 85 outside, and is open from midday to 10pm, seven days a week. To book a table, visit https://www.fratelliworthing.co.uk/ or call 01903 211511.