Reviews in Cumbria and Lake District

Raining heavily on a winter night in Bowness and we asked a passing cab driver where was the best Indian restaurant in the area. He recommended Mela on Ash Street and we were not disappointed. I think it’s a fairly new place and has a handful of tables downstairs and a handful more upstairs. We got a table for 4 upstairs which has the better atmosphere for me. Thoroughly enjoyed the food and the service was efficient and friendly. Cosy an intimate and all the better for it.

Cafe and coffee area seem inefficiently managed and the too few staff overstretched. The new rule of having to buy cake to obtain a free coffee seems a) miserly and b) discriminatory. The latter because people who are diabetics, watching their weight or just not into cake are now excluded from obtaining a free drink. I anticipate the store losing trade as a result because we cannot be the only people who went in for a free coffee and then wandered upstairs and bought a few items that we would not otherwise have bought.

We stayed at the Old England Hotel in Bowness for New Year and on a hunt for a local pub found the Albert nearby. Popped in for a drink one evening and the atmosphere was great and the food arriving looked really appetising. Tried a couple of other pubs but they were not a patch on the Albert so we returned here for a late lunch the next day after a walk. Lots of choice on the menu and we thoroughly enjoyed and can highly recommend if you are in the area.

I had lunch there in 2013. The food was excellent.

I have been a great enthusiast when it comes to Booths Artisan cafe but was disappointed with the new set up caused by the problems arising from free hot drinks. Service was unnecessarily cumbersome . My drink did not arrive until after I had eaten my jacket potato (which was delicious!). I found the tone of the notice insisting one remains seated until one has paid somewhat discourteous. Surely having someone standing at the counter to take payment would mean tables were not occupied longer than necessary. As it is, once you have finished you have to attract the busy waitress's attention to get a bill and then wait for her to walk to the cash register and return with your change/receipt. It also took her a long time to put my order onto the till in the first place which delayed it reaching the kitchen as she had to return to the table to bring my Booths card back. This is not the sort of restaurant where one goes for a leisurely meal but rather a quick lunch. Your convoluted system is slowing things up too much. Also the new rules making drinks free only as takeaways can only add to the litter problem and is creating a kind of second class customer. Isn't the nation fat enough? Forcing us all to consume cakes, buns with our coffee will not help. Provide healthier savourly snack options if you insist on us eating something with our morning coffee....

A large – and filthy – party had spent the morning quad-biking at the nearby Rookin House Activity Centre so I don’t think it was ideal that we all rocked up unannounced for a drink and a late lunch. That said, the staff coped admirably sorting out drinks for us all and then large plates of mixed sandwiches and chips which were it the spot perfectly. The pub is just off the main A66 Penrith-Keswick road and ideal for a quick drink or meal.

Twenty two of us were staying for a fabulous long weekend at nearby Blencowe Hall and on the Friday night descended on the Boot and Shoe in Greystoke for an evening meal in their private dining room. It’s the kind of traditional country pub you would love to have near where you lived and on a chilly December evening was ever so warm and welcoming. It’s not a big place and the staff did really well to cope with us all; everything ran very smoothly and nothing was too much trouble. Bearing in mind we did not pre-order and that they have a large a la carte menu it was quite the achievement. The food was lovely and the atmosphere too. Highly recommended.

First class Italian restaurant - great food, great atmosphere highly recommend.

Love love love this restaurant, food is gorgeous, great staff, very welcoming, fab menu, just can't rate it enough. This is also where my fiance chose to propose, the lovely manager gave us free champagne, can't wait to visit again next monday or tuesday when we are back in Windermere x x

I posted the first review. Since then I have eaten here 3 more times. I will not eat here again. Both the service and the food have deteriorated (or the usual chef (travesty of the word) came back from holiday. If tepid, swimming in stale oil and unexciting is your thing then this is for you. One of my offerings was a broccoli and mushroom pasta bake. The bake had 3 slices of mushroom. The broccoli was like green dust sprinkled through a tasteless white sauce (it was meant to be cheesy I think) poured over cheap and nasty pasta shapes. It can't have cost more than 50 pence to make and they were charging £10.99 for this. Pig swill would have been tastier. Tepid fish cake was another faux pas and then more tepid fishcake (not even luke warm) with chips which needed arm bands to survive the north sea oil slick they were served in. None of this food is cheap and it just keeps getting nastier,

Ate here for lunch and had Lobster Thermidor. A lovely dish with delicate but complimentary flavours, thoroughly enjoyed it. A warm welcome by all the staff and the restaurant got back to us quickly with our enquiry. The decor of the upstairs restaurant is unusual and interesting and welcoming. Highly recommendable!

Visited this new restauarnt last week while on holiday in Windermere with my Wife. We had a magical eveing, very romantic great food and fantastic wine. The service was attentive but not intrusive. The decor is very tasteful, the only negative was we had to wait for a table but it was well worth it and will defiantly be going back when in the area.

Cartmel is a lovely village. Drive under the archway and then you'll find the Caendish Arms. A lovely Lakeland coaching inn. We were lucky to get a seat near the fireplace. My wife had the seafood platter and I had the fish pie. Excellent presentation of both dishes and they were as good to eat as they looked.

Staying in Ambleside for a short break with friends called in for a coffee, and were greeted by friendly staff could not have been more accommodating, also a laugh and a joke. Enjoyed my double espresso, hot chocolate with marshmallows looked good. Best of all you must try the chocolate cake mmmmm. Will be back when next in the Lakes from Scotland.

Lovely break here last weekend. Appleby is an old-fashioned market town in the best possible sense. The Tufton Arms overlooks the Main Street and we had two lovely meals here complemented by some great wines (loads of choice on a very good value list). The hotel is a popular destination for shooting parties but we were more interred in the walking which is very pleasant as the Eden Valley is so peaceful. Recommended.

What a great find. Had never been to Sedbergh before and this place just looked the most welcoming from outside. Correct decision as this place really ticks all the boxes. Moral of the tale - always judge a book by the cover!

Avoid! They don't seem to know what they are selling or that they have an obligation to describe things correctly. They offer various 'juices' which should be described as 'drinks' as they are laced with sugar and other additives. Also they kept cleaning surfaces near food with a very smelly and probably toxic cleaning agent! NOT for anyone with any care for health!

Enjoyed a couple of pints of Loweswater outside this beautiful venue in the the sun! I will return and eat, thats for sure. Think it used to be the Sawrey Hotel but now it's the Cuckoo Brow Inn.