Ambleside Tap Yard in South Lakeland

Food was amazing. The atmosphere was great. Really friendly. Would 100% go again

Nice place buy guy behind the bar today (sun 28th April 2024) wasn't treating his co-workers kindly at all. We nearly walked out.

Nice food & drink, reasonable prices, lots of friendly staff making a great experience

Mary's Mate (Double Lamb Burger) with honey and goats cheese sweet potato fries.

Tasty food and great service. Close to parking - great spot to stop at after a longer wander in the area

Great place, love the pizzas. Very good and attentive service.

Order not good, ignored request for sauce-free food, quality of food average

The best pizza I've ever had! Mario served us and was so polite and friendly - everyone should go here!

Food was amazing and Marius one off the best from there.We coming every month and we never been treated so well .Good job to this guy!!!👏

Good place to eat. Good service and food. Just be aware it could be very busy

Had the ‘Classic Burger’ and ‘Fries with Chip Spice’. It was the best burger I’ve ever had in a restaurant. Comfortable chairs with well spaced tables, log stove, wood fired pizza oven, friendly staff and fast service. Good selection of craft beers, but I was on the coke - unfortunately.

My food and drinks were lovely and for the area reasonably priced but the man on the till was EXTREMELY rude to us. We split the bill and he asked us to give him our specific prices added up. I was telling my partner how much mine cost and he proceeded to put the cost into the till then have a go at us for 'giving them seperate' I wasn't even talking to him I was telling my partner. Pricing up was difficult as we didn't know the prices off the top of our heads and that was very strange considering that it's usually done for you. He spoke to us like we were idiots and kept shaking his head at us and snapping at us. Absolutely WILL NEVER return.

I've eaten here a few time and has always been good...this time thoe...my burger was burnt..the was no check back on food,and when my friend asked for a drink,he waiter.. turned around and this is not my section and just waddled off and didn't tell anybody about it...not sure of his name but was balding quite badly.

The pizzas were nice but not as great as expected. Service was a little slow when we arrived as we were passed between different hosts, and there were a lot of dogs, which was a little off-putting.

Good service. The pizza was delicious, and desserts, dangerously nice 🤣

Pizza was excellent, chicken burger was epic, prices were decent, staff were lovely and friendly and fit us in despite being quite busy. Only because I appreciate honest feedback I'll mention that the cheeseburger pattie seemed a little over grilled, but that may be a taste thing rather than a fault. Weird that soft drinks weren't on the menu with the main drink selection. Will go again because I want to try the rest of the burger options

Slightly dissapointed when visiting here. The pizza tasted very good and i would definetely recommend it. However the truffle & parmesan fries were fairly plain and didnt justify £2/£3 extra above the price of normal fries just for a sprinkle of cheese and oil. Despite tasting good, the milkshake size was quite dissapointing and didnt reflect the high price tag aswell.

Really looked forward to this restaurant, and we waited two days for a table it was apparently that popular. A disappointing evening based purely on the service experience, felt we were almost putting the staff out. food was delicious, we had a pizza and a burger and both amazing - we couldn't finish it to be honest. Service is where they let themselves down. Left way too long after arrival, in fact the couple who arrived 5 minutes after us got served first and THEN the waiter even walked away before coming back to us another few minutes later. The mains then came out 5-7 minutes apart from each other, the first waitress placed the pizza and when we said we were waiting for a burger, she left but never returned. I was sat there without a pizza cutter to start my meal, but she was off serving other customers - where was the courtesy to return and update us on the delay, or to give me appropriate tools to watch my meal. When the second main came out almost 7 minutes later I finally was given what I needed. Then there was no follow up, no drop in to see how the meal was, offer us any further drinks or condiments. Just so disappointing as the food is great and the servers need to be proud and look after the customers. I would not be rushing back here, despite the lovely food.

Food really nice me and the wife had burgers 1 chicken and 1 beef good food but had to wait 45mins

The Tap Yard food was INCREDIBLE. We both had Pizzas (forgot to take photos) but they were beautiful with crust dips too!! Despite the restaurant looking VERY busy we got a table as soon as we walked in and service was super quick! Very good value for money and even better they were very doggy friendly too! Great atmosphere with great music taste too! Would highly recommend.

I visited this establishment on 28th March, and unfortunately, it was an incredibly disappointing experience. Despite waiting patiently to be seated, the staff seemed oblivious to our presence, with no acknowledgment or indication of when we would be attended to. Despite several available tables, we were left standing without any communication from the staff. Even when approached, the response was dismissive and rude, leaving us feeling unwelcome and disrespected. The lack of professionalism and basic courtesy from the staff was astonishing, and it was clear they were ill-prepared to handle even a moderate level of business. After the unacceptable treatment received, my husband and I decided to leave, unwilling to support such a disrespectful establishment. I would strongly advise against visiting this place unless significant improvements are made in their customer service and professionalism.

Absolutely dreadful waste of time and money. Visited on Easter BH Saturday so I expect it to be busy but a 17 minute wait at the bar for two beers is a joke. Staff all working hard but terrible system of priority between bar and tables. Food was a 40 minute wait and the quality of the burger beef was disgusting. I wouldn’t even feed it to a dog. Nice outdoor seating area, good selection of beers and other drinks, very dog friendly.

My pregnant wife and I were eagerly anticipating our visit to this restaurant, especially since it was Easter weekend. We understood it would be busy, but after waiting to be seated for a lengthy time, our excitement turned into disappointment. Additionally, we discovered that online reservations were only available for groups of six or more. Despite patiently waiting, it felt as though we were being overlooked. While we acknowledge the busyness of the restaurant, a simple ‘sorry guys we’ll be with you as soon as we can’ would have been appreciated. Instead, when my wife approached a staff member at the bar, she was met with a negative attitude, likely due to the staff being under pressure. Regrettably, our interactions with other staff members yielded similar rude attitudes. As we noticed other customers leaving upon realising the lengthy wait, we decided to try Dodd’s Restaurant nearby, where we were pleasantly surprised by the stark difference in service quality.

Really nice food in this place with nice vegetarian options. The beers are really nice aswell. Nice and busy environment. I advice you to book a table in advance.

Good selection of local and international drinks. Interesting layout and brewing equipment on display.

Amazing food, great prices and friendly and accommodating staff.

Eaten here twice now and the Neapolitan pizza is just about the best I’ve ever had. Sweet potato fries with goats cheese and honey are great too. The great service tops it off. Highly recommend. Would book ahead to avoid disappointment.

Mixed feelings about this venue. Initially, we only wanted drinks, and as a result we felt largely ignored. Once we grabbed some menus, we suddenly became visible & the service was markedly improved. The food was very tasty & the beer I had (Jute) was really good, if a bit pricey. My other half struggled to find something to drink, feeling that what was available was a bit limited.

Great Spot. Attentive staff, competitive prices. Fantastic Pizza. Florin, Staff member, on his 3rd day was on Pizza making. Really helpful, wanted some additional toppings, nothing too much trouble. Delightful food. Would recommend and go again.

Great selection of beers and food (had one of the best burgers). Staff really helpful and wonderful atmosphere.

Absolutely love this place. We have been a few times now, the food is always amazing. Staff are so nice, the place is always clean and the food is to die for. Really recommend anyone in the area trying here

Lovely food great staff dog friendly only thing young children throwing food on the floor the dogs behaving better than kids had Italian chicken burger and tris pizza

Plenty of choice to choose from, the food was delivered quickly and they even have an area to bring your dogs in too!

Mostly good service. Got our group of 9 seated straight away which we were happy with. We all ordered mains and sides. Some of the food arrived late or didn't arrive at all but was then on the bill even after we mentioned it. The food was nice but a few of the pizzas were burnt underneath. We know sometimes with wood fired pizzas there can be some parts that are naturally over done, but this was burnt to the point of leaving an unpleasant taste. I mentioned this to the waiter when asked if everything was okay and I was ignored. There was no garlic dip available but we were still charged for all dips. Overall was okay but could be so much better for the quite expensive price we paid. At least an acknowledgement of the errors would have helped.

Lovely little place, amazing pizza , so fresh

Just called in for drinks. Nice, modern place with decent beers. I would imagine it can get quite lively at night.

Really enjoyed our visit. Comfortable seating and welcoming staff even though it was busy. Great food and drinks menu. Pizzas are excellent, I had the Tris and the antipasti boards are well proportioned. Love the deco and theme. Very tap room feel!!

We'd already visited the sister Tap Rooms in Bowness, so were familiar with the concept. The drink selection was excellent and the beers were amazing. My son had a burger for lunch which he raved about and my wife and I both had pizzas which were honestly the best we've had outside Italy. They were so full of flavour and cooked to perfection. Definitely worth a visit and I doubt you'll find a tastier, more authentic pizza.

My favourite bar in Ambleside and visit every Time we come to the lakes!

Great place to drink real ale and eat pizza or burger. Menu is limited but the food was lovely. Staff were friendly and helpful. Would definitely go again.

Very nice spot to grab food and drinks. The burger was fresh and really tasty. Friendly staff and very attentive. Definitely recommend this place 👌🏽

Got in just before closing Sunday night. Glad we did! Food was great and very reasonable, staff very friendly and attentive. Nice atmosphere and very cool surroundings. Good choice of beers too. Having earlier experienced a couple of negative responses from other, overpriced, establishments in Ambleside, this was a great find. Looking forward to our next visit. Thanks guys.

We were found a table despite being extremely busy, the food arrived in good time and was absolutely delicious and reasonably priced too considering the quality. The burgers are unreal. Staff all really friendly also, we can't wait to go back for more of the same

DAMN GOOD BURGER AND KINDER WAFFLES.

Great pizzas. Food and atmosphere were good.

Really nice food here. You won't be disappointed at all. We'll worth trying for yourself.

Had an excellent meal here last night. The service was very friendly and efficient. The restaurant was busy and buzzy/ The classic burger was well cooked and full of flavour an the ice cream sundae just finished off the meal. There was a good selection of beers and we enjoyed a couple of pints of Loweswater Gold. Good value for money for midweek casual dining.

Great place with great lively atmosphere and friendly staff. I'd advise to book a table, luckily we did, there were some walk ins but a few were turned away as it was so busy. Service was super fast and food was super hot when it arrived. We had the gourmet burgers which were excellent and the kids cheeseburger was almost adult size, much to the delight of my son! I'd also highly recommend the waffles and the Amaretto Tiramisu, the hot chocolate also ticked all the boxes. There were lots of beers and lager to choose from including some local drinks from the Hawkshead Brewery. Four legged friends were also welcomed, and the ones we saw were all very well behaved. Next time we're in Ambleside, we'll definitely be back!

The burger ‘Tap Smokey’ is one of the best burgers I’ve ever eaten with beef brisket and honey and feta sweet potato fries. My girlfriend got a pizza which was delicious. The Tap offers a unique selections of beers and ales aswell. The service is good and the prices are reasonable especially considering the quality of the food. This was not our first visit to the Tap Yard and will definitely not be our last.

Really great place with excellent, reasonably priced food and local beer. Everyone who works here seems so switched on and really good at what they do. We’ll definitely be back next time we’re nearby. Thanks so much guys! Our new favourite place to eat in Ambleside

Shocking customer service. When I arrived the girl ( think she was east European, not that it matters, but just as a heads up to others) looked me up and down, and asked if it was a table for one? She took me to a table then said I would need to move about an hour later as it was reserved. Then took about another fifteen minutes to bring my drink over, then didn't bother coming back when I had finished so I could pay, so I had to go the bar and pay. Don't go here, there are plenty of other nice pubs and restaurants with friendly staff in Ambleside.

It was fine. Not the best selection of beers for a so called taproom. The sort of thing you'd find in any self respecting pub. Expected a lot more local beers.

We mainly enjoyed our food - we had olives (which were a bit tasteless) the Grandioso (meat & cheese although not everything on the menu was included), then burgers and pizzas (which were great). The service was pretty poor and had to wait over an hour for food. We were also surprised at the beer offering, which seemed pretty limited given that’s supposedly the main attraction. If you’re lucky enough to get food in good time then you’d enjoy this, but given our experience we wouldn’t return.

Really enjoyed visiting here. Great range of food and beers. We enjoyed the pizza. The staff are great-really friendly and helpful. We’re early days taking our puppy out and they were so welcoming to us which was really appreciated.

When we arrived without a booking we were directed to a seat of our choice and we waited for someone to take our order, and we waited and waited, and still waiting. We exited after about 30 minutes. Several people arrived after us and had drinks and ordered food. We are still coming to terms with having no visibility or presence. At least we found s great place to eat afterwards. Dodds, just down the road. They made us feel welcome and the pizza's were excellent. We were in and out in 40 mins. We could still be waiting now in the Tap Yard.

We arrived here at opening time and there was already a queue,we had no problem getting seated though and saw this a a good sign. There is someone to welcome you as soon as you enter and the staff kept up there attentiveness for the whole of our visit. You could literally see every staff members focus was on customer satisfaction. We ordered burgers and dirty fries and a child's pizza. The pizza was huge and all the food tasted fresh and amazing. This is definitely somewhere I would recommend.

Fantastic range of local and international beer. Quality burger and pizza alongside chilled atmosphere. Highly recommend.

We had a meal with my husband here. I had Margherita and he had Tris,and some Cheeky fries to share between us. These were the best pizzas we ever eaten. Service was great.We were seated and served quick,and food didn't take long to arrive. Would highly recommend trying this place out,and next time we are in Ambleside most surely will be visiting again.Thank you,and you guys are doing a fantastic job.

What an absolutely amazing place this is. Lovely atmosphere, friendly staff and exceptional food. We were blown away with the service and the quality of the food. There’s so much choice on the menu and the portions are a good size. We will definitely be back.

Loved it! The menu was different to most places we've visited. The staff were lovely & very helpful. The whole place was decorated really well & very warm. Lots of veggie dished to chose from & it wasn't too expensive. We had a meat & veggie platter with a side of olives, would definitely recommend.

We gave this a miss last year as the reviews weren’t great. This year things looked to have improved so we gave it a go. Visited on a Wednesday evening and it wasn’t busy so we got a table straight away. We had drinks, pizza and a burger. The pizzas are cooked in a wood fired oven and are hand made. It was very good. The burger was good and a decent size. My only criticism was that the chips were too heavily seasoned for my liking. We had a couple of Loweswater Gold beers on draught. We were a little disappointed that there wasn’t any beer in the big tanks but I guess this might be due to it being a quieter time of the year. Will visit again.

Fabulous bar. Great food and selection of beers and bar snacks

My partner and I had such a lovely meal here. Genuinely the best pizza we'd ever had, the ingredients were so fresh, it tasted amazing! The staff were so friendly and welcoming, and great with our nervous dog too. Couldn't recommend enough! We'll definitely be back.

Lovely food and lovely staff ... Dog friendly aswell ... Did this review while we was still inside I liked it that much ... And they do baby Guinnesses

Dog friendly place, they really look after them! Lovely food and drink. Highly recommend!

Great food , specialising in burgers and pizza, wonderful staff who work hard but always with a smile . Great vibe and some fantastic ales , especially Loweswater Gold

What a gem of a place to eat in Ambleside. The pizzas are absolutely divine. Highly recommended

Ordered some drinks at the bar, and the bar man put his finger IN my full pint, when confronted about it, he said "to pick a mosquito out". No replacement offered, just passed it me and shrugged, saying "it's fine now"

People just want to come in and eat. This simple theory seems wasted here. We played the game and went upstairs to have a drink to wait for a table. I think about 4 other families were the same false illusion as us!!! Dreadful service, you gradually start to lose more and more hope as you see all the empty tables beneath you. The place must be swimming in money & doesn’t care about customer satisfaction, happy to take our custom elsewhere, such a shame, looked like a nice restaurant. Just poor staff who have no idea how to deal with people

Disgraceful. Place only 2/3 full and had to wait ages while someone decided they were interested and wanted to seat us. Shown to our seats and given menus. We thought we would have a drink first then eat a bit later. Went to the bar, refused to serve and told had to go upstairs to get drinks. On clarifying with a waitress, told we could order a drink but have to drink it upstairs. Seems all they want to do is rinse as much money out of downstairs guests and push anyone they assume just wants a drink out of the way. Strange as part of their appeal is their drinks offering. I work in hospitality and it’s not difficult to order a drink in a bar or at least make an effort. It should be one of the easiest things to do in life. Decided the place wasn’t for us and left only to try the place directly opposite, only to discover it has the same menu and drinks selection. Quite happy to take my business elsewhere. Hospitality is struggling - would rather take my custom to somewhere that needs it. Looks like this place can just throw away custom and money.

The pizza was huge and really tasty! The staff were also super friendly. The IPA wasn’t quite to my taste but that’s a me problem 🤣

We love it here, it is a firm favourite. The only thing that lets it down is how dark it is inside.

Extraordinarily bad service. Waiting over 5min to be seated and being ignored by staff who were busy watching us from the bar. We approached a member staff we were told to wait as they were “busy”. The restaurant was half empty. On a Saturday they are closed before the time they claim to be open.

Dog friendly. Welcoming staff, great service. Great selection of food. Fab location

Nice enough place and the Capricciosa pizza I had was very nice 👍

visited over the weekend for my birthday with the family staff really good and friendly and the pizza’s were great i would recommend a visit if in the area

Lovely bar serving great selection of beers (mainly lagers). We also had a carafe of the house merlot which was lovely for a house wine. No other choice of wines other than house but that was fine as it was lovely wine. My wife and...

Nice burger and OK beer. Monosyllabic staff.

Ambleside Tap Yard was a bustling affair – not surprising with its lively atmosphere and prime location. Ordering felt smooth despite the crowd, thanks to the friendly staff. While the food satisfied in both size and taste, be warned: prices bite a bit on the heavier side.

We went one Monday afternoon. Considering it was a Monday afternoon there was club music playing like it was a Friday night at 3am. Convinced the barman was barnetted, female member of staff fell over seemingly nothing whilst the rest of the staff just laughed....

Been here before. The food is very good especially the pizza. They have a good choice of beers. I only rated 3 stars for atmosphere as it was a midweek lunchtime in winter so there weren't many others in and it felt a little on the cold side once you had been sat a while. Service has been great on both times I have been (it was very busy the last time).

My recent visit to this restaurant left much to be desired, primarily due to a disheartening level of poor customer service. From the moment I stepped in, the atmosphere was tainted by an unwelcoming aura, largely stemming from the rude behavior of the staff. The staff members, unfortunately, seemed disinterested and unmotivated to provide a pleasant dining experience. Any attempts to engage with them were met with curt responses and an overall lack of courtesy. It became evident that a sense of hospitality was sorely lacking, making the entire visit feel more like an inconvenience than a dining experience. Adding to the frustration was the non-existent table service. It was as if the concept of attentive servers had been completely disregarded. There were prolonged periods of waiting for even the most basic requests, creating an atmosphere of neglect that further detracted from the overall enjoyment of the venue. The lack of coordination among the staff members was palpable. It felt as though there was a communication breakdown, leading to a disjointed and chaotic service. This not only affected the efficiency of the restaurant but also left patrons feeling neglected and frustrated. After 30 minutes waiting for the illusive table service we walked out. While the food might have had its merits, the poor customer service overshadowed any positive aspects. It's disheartening when a potentially delightful dining experience is marred by such fundamental issues. I hope the management takes note of these shortcomings and endeavors to improve the overall quality of service for future clients.

THE best pizza by far. We even diverted our trip to make a stop just for their pizza! The building feels like a ski lodge with great atmosphere, log fire and extremely dog friendly. Would visit every time we come to the Lakes for a...

What a gem of a place to eat and drink. The wood fired pizzas are some of the best I’ve had. Light, tasty, fresh and hardly any oil or grease The hotdogs are very tasty too, the choice of beers is brilliant. The Hawkshead lager...

Great food. Great prices but more important First Class Customer Service. a massive thank you. Could not have asked for more.

The restaurant is convenient right by the car park. There are pizza ovens providing atmosphere inside. The food was quick to arrive and tasty.

We were shocked at the rudeness of the ‘manager’ of this bar today. We walked into the bar delighted at how lovely it looked. We walked to an empty table and started to sit down. A member of staff approached us and asked us to move and wait at the entrance in case the table had been reserved. We apologised as we hadn’t seen the ‘wait to be seated’ sign. The manager then walked us to a table next to the one he had just removed us from. As we sat down he sat another couple in the table we had been moved from. Both my husband and I felt uncomfortable at the way we had been treated. We decided to leave. As we left I asked the couple if they had booked that table to which they said they hadn’t, they’d just walked in. We told the manager how upset we were as we left. He said “I am the manager and I decide where people sit”. I am completely shocked at his rudeness, never having being treated like this in any other establishment. Please could I speak further with someone regarding the way we have been treated? Regards.

Just had the Thursday pizza & beer deal. Pizza was lovely and staff amazing. So freindly to our two sausage dogs. Will definitely come back

Amazing pizza and lovely staff. Staff so good with dogs. Definitely will return

Visited here on a weekend visit to the Lakes. Ambleside has some places to eat and the Tap Yard is one of them. We were escorted to our table and given menus a little later, the waitress asked if we have chosen our drinks. The menu is lots of Pizza, burgers etc. We both chose burgers, a chicken and a beef. The burgers came served on a hot tray, well cooked and hot. Everything was great, though I prefer my bun not toasted so much, but it was still lovely. There was plenty on the plate, certainly enough for both of us, we had to leave a few chips and some bun. We would certainly go again.

We are Frequent visitor to the tap yard & have always had a very enjoyable experience however our last visit on the 17/11/23 left a lot to be desired. Food was as excellent as ever but a female ,senior staff member let the Tap yard down. Following a request to move tables, as we felt cold, she was rude, confrontational and completely unprofessional, advising other members of staff not to move us if we made a further request & berating us to several staff members. She did eventually & begrudgingly allow us to move but we will certainly be thinking twice before we visit again

So much choice of restaurants in Ambleside, but choosing the Tap Yard was easily the best option we could of chosen. Food was absolutely delightful, Beer was exceptional and customer service couldn't of been better. All round an amazing experience, we shall definitely be returning.

Very nice pint of IPA,excellent burger better than tweedies and cheaper

Great choice of beers, very dog friendly. Pizza and burgers looked good but we didn't eat.

Good selection of wines, beers and food at a reasonable price too

Absolutely amazing food and the atmosphere was great, lovely family meal and even the dogs were allowed 😊

Great, fuss free attentive service with friendly staff and a chilled menu that is good at any time of day.

We booked the Tap Yard for my dads birthday on a busy Saturday night - having seen some of the reviews about service we were slightly concerned but needn’t have been! We were met at the front door, taken up to our table which overlooked...

Visited whilst in Ambleside, lovely vibe and good selection of craft beer and cask ales and food looks good.

Food fine, service absolutely shocking. Amongst other things : Our order was wrong, We had to ask for cutlery and crockery. We eventually cleared our own table .I asked for water and was told I had to go downstairs and get it myself for the...