Bow Bells Restaurant in Ards

The ambiance was lovely. It is great to sit in a full and busy cafe on a weekday. We went for breakfast. Our main issues were that our coffee arrived 5 minutes after our food and that mine was inedible. I ordered falafel (in hindsight, risky for Donaghadee) and the recipe contained way too much baking soda so was bitter. Others in our party had french toast which was nice.

I contacted this woeful company to supply food for 100 people for my father’s FUNERAL!! For £1600 they supplied enough food for about 40 people. It was an absolute disgrace and I wouldn’t recommend them to anyone. Avoid this bunch of amateurs, they have no business being in the catering business!!

Really disappointing experience today. The cafe appears to be dog friendly, but kicked me out before I had my food because my dog was barking. One woman in particular was extremely rude and not welcoming at all. I’m annoyed that I paid for my food before they told me to leave. Will not be back to any of the restaurants after this experience.

Busy coffee shop, serving delicious food. Very pleasant staff. Disappointing that they allow dogs inside.

Visit quite often, always friendly service but today the food was terrible. Not sure what has happened but stodgy soda bread and undercooked eggs - poor quality produce (bacon/sausage) sadly, I will think twice before visiting again.

Lovely wee spot just off main street. I normally stick with my espresso and a massive dessert, fav has to be the lemon meringue 🍋💛😋

I adore this place. Great food, good value and friendly staff. The scones are amazing as is the granola. Love the art gallery and the atmosphere was so relaxed we broke out the cards

Friendly lovely food I can take my dog in.

Lovely, friendly team, even the young ones on at the weekends are polite and chatty. We love the unique menu and have something different every time and are never disappointed. We bring our senior dog who is always welcomed with ham.

Staff extremely welcoming with great service!

Went on a Saturday morning. Place was packed downstairs. There is additional seating upstairs in the art gallery but there isn't much effort to let customers know about this, so it was just by chance that we asked and got a table. Took our orders of Ulster fries and hot drinks. Hot drinks came within 5 minutes however it was the best part of a half an hour before the food arrived and nearly everyone had finished their drinks. No offer of a top up. The fries were nice, the soda bread in particularly was tasty but the service overall was pretty poor.

Great food, fantastic friendly staff,will be back

Food was ok but could have been better i am a local and invited family for a meal there stew was terrible and their frys was a bit dryed up disapointing

A great place for a bit to eat.

The lunch we got was fairly disappointing. Chose the mince pie, which came with roast potatoes and mash and some carrot & parsip mash. I am certain that the entire meal was microwaved, as the pastry on the pie was wet and soggy. The roast potatoes appeared to be of the frozen variety and were tough and tasteless. I didn't eat them. The mash in the centre of the plate was lukewarm, again suggesting the likelihood of a microwave reheat. This lunch was mediocre and below average. It also represented poor value for money. All in all, this was a poor experience and certainly not of the standard that this restaurant used to have a few years back. Such a pity.

Upstairs area roomy but on the cool side. We both ordered the chicken and ham pie. The food was not hot and you had to search for the chicken and ham.

Expansive area upstairs too, with an outdoor roof space as well.

Food very good and good service value for money

Our group of ten was accommodated upstairs with no bother at all. Good service and the brunch was lovely.

We’ve now given up on Bow Bells. It’s a pity as we’ve tried to support local businesses regularly over recent years and have enjoyed the food here, but even that is no longer reliable. Today’s mini fry was very tasty but came without the black pudding ordered at the same time. Disappointing but not a serious complaint. The cheese toastie however, was declared “inedible” and despite combined best efforts, neither of us could cut through the dried brown pan loaf crust. To be honest, it felt like a leftover sandwich put under the toaster. While most of the staff are pleasant and do their job well, it’s not across the board and on several occasions we’ve clearly been an inconvenience rather than a customer - probably not the owner’s intention. The policy of allowing dogs is fine- nice touch to leave a water dish for them- but please, maybe would be nice to have a wee note to owners asking them not to let their furry friends climb on the furniture and cushions as today’s two did?

Food is great but the stew is amazing!

This restaurant has deteriorated since it was taken over. Too many dirty tables. Dirty floor. Inexperienced staff. Was offered a table upstairs (where dogs are allowed) but with mobility problems and poor eyesight this was not an option. If I hadn't already paid for my food when ordering I would have gone elsewhere.

Lovely place to eat, great food, reasonably priced, staff are lovely.

£6.40 for a coffee and a scone, except the scone turned out to be a dried up iced cinnamon whirl served with butter for some inexplicable reason. My stay was accompanied by the noise of the floor being vacuumed as I munched my was through my "scone". Did I feel welcome? No. Would I return? Definitely not.

Friendly, lovely cafe. Great selection of sweet baking treats and an extensive breakfast menu. Dog friendly and a place to buy fresh sourdough

Really lovely visit to the Conlig restaurant. Dropped in on a Saturday for coffee and a scone. Coffee was lovely and scones were very tasty. They were heated for us and a good size. Had been meaning to visit for a while, won’t leave it so long next time. 10/10 for the staff and the food.

Visited the Conlig cafe for brunch. Service very fast and polite. I had avocado and poached eggs. This was as expected and I enjoyed however this was £10.50. I thought this was steep for what it was and one of the most expensive breakfast dishes. I did order an additional piece of bacon and of-course was happy to then pay additional for that . All in £14.20 with coffee. Considering a full fry is less expensive, perhaps my choice not the best value. I recently went to the Joxer in Bangor, it’s more of a restaurant .The same dish was priced at £10, and was better. Venues not comparable in terms of overall experience, interior, menu etc.

We dropped into Bow Bells for breakfast one morning. The service was excellent. Great menu and the food was delicious. My husband ordered a custom made sandwich which they made for him with no trouble. The staff are eager to please. The tray bakes and goodies we took home was also delicious. Quaint place - great food and great service

Really nice spot for brunch. Very friendly staff. Food was first class too! Smiles from all of us!

We were sent for breakfast to Bow Bells at short notice by Pier 36/Commodore (whatever it is?). Great staff, very friendly and the food was exceptional. Do try their French toast with bacon. Highly recommended.

What's happened to this place? Called in at the weekend for a sandwich to take away. Ordered a chicken tikka sandwich from the menu and asked for no butter, just mayo on the bread. The manager proceeded to inform me that there would be a 75p extra charge ontop of the 5.95 for this. He then proceeded to explain why he was justifying the extra charge. If I hadn't already paid, I would have told him to forget about it. I've never heard anything so petty, so ridiculous and daft in all my years of working in the catering world. The place has gone to the dogs, il never be back when they think it's justified to charge for a bit of mayo on plain bread like come on guys!!!! ps, somebody needs to scrub the place down and sort the floor out as it was disgusting, lack of experience and common sense at the min, it's a pity as it was great when it opened and had somebody running the ship!

Food was tasty, but the portion size unfortunately have shrunk. I was served by two young girls and both very pleasant.

Went to Bow Bells in Newtownards today as usually go to one in Conlig .There was no comparision it took over 30 mins to get our food,Conlig is better by miles ,staff in Newtownards seemed overwhelmed and I witnessed people walking out and returning food.

You select a table, make a menu choice and inform/pay the lady at the till. Chips with the chicken gougons had skins on - not everyone's taste. Gougons were tasty but salty. The £7.95 fry was minute - I hadn't seen a smaller one. Sausage tasteless. Bacon smokey.

Great home made food and friendly staff lovely little place. A wee hidden gem

Brilliant menu and lovely food, staff are always very helpful

Had lunch in here with my partner and his mum. When the food eventually came, it was lovely. We had to ask for sugar, when the food came, we had to ask for cutlery. Such a shame that the service let this place down.

Had lunch with the wife today i ordered the large roast beef well if this was the large I'd hate to see the small one it had 1 slice of roast beef sum mash and 2 small roast potatoes a few roasted carrots and a very small roasted parsnip and 2 small florets of broccoli the wife ordered the small pie well the slice of pie was about 3 inches by 2 inches the total price for the 2 meals and 2 cans of coke was £25.10 total rip off won't be back

Great food Best place in the dee for a fry up

Excellent service and excellent value for money the food is great

Went to this restaurant and if anything go wrong it did ordered lemon meringue with cream a fry and a cheese ham tomato toasties 2 large cappuccino and tea 1 small cappucino was served no cream on meringue fry was right but no salt or sauce on table ask at counter was told should be in the bucket with knife and fork which where not the toasties only had only ham and cheese no tomato had to wait another 10 mins been to donaghdee one loads of time and was always great service and food but wouldn't go back to the Newtownards one give it 1 out of 10 Food lover

Food wasn't great. Waited quite a while fir the food.Chicken goujons, lasagne and bread with a fry were all slightly burnt. Forgot about one order also.

This is a great wee cafe with plenty of food choices including all day breakfast at reasonable prices. It's bigger than it looks from outside as it has seating upstairs where there are paintings on show. Staff friendly and helpful

Fantastic cafe, Zak is an excellent manager and his staff are all very efficient and attentive. There's a nice atmosphere and the food is delicious. This dog friendly cafe is a very welcome place.

Great food. A bit slow to get served when busy.

First visit at the Conlig restaurant. Service was friendly and efficient. The food was extremely impressive, large portions and the riastvturkey dinner was fantastic! My partner ordered the small portion and it was just perfect, the gravy was to die for!! Comfortable surroundings and easily...

Eggs Benedict on Bagels with green tea. Good food, well cooked, and well presented by friendly, cheerful waiting staff. The bagels by the way were splendid. What's not to like?

Loved it. Amazing rhubarb and custard scone. Coffee top ups always very welcome. Lovely staff and warm welcome. Definitely be back!

Excellent value for money,I had sausages and Mash,my Da had the Roast Beef Dinner,decent portions and very tasty,the Gravy was exquisite,all washed down with a lovely cup of tea,Teapot had tealeaves instead of a bag,would highly recommend 👍

Met up with a old friend. Caught up for chat.Morning coffee + lovely scones.👍

Always good. Great staff. Been going here weekly for almost a decade. We often have a fry here. Builders breakfast fry is good value. Also porridge with almonds & honey is a big bowl and lovely. Now owned by Pier36 family its continued to be well managed.

Horrid watery vegetable soup! Get some barley etc into it!!

Very well thought of locally, not the cheapest.

Bows bells hosted an Afternoon Tea for 25 guests for a special birthday. We celebrated upstairs in the art gallery. Rachel and the Bow Bells team put the most amazing spread on for us all, from delicious wraps, sandwich selections, cakes and cream scones and...

Great lunch and service excellent

Loved the wheaten bread bought some to takeaway. Pleasant staff. Enjoyable lunch.

Nice staff and the vegan stuffed peppers with vegan cheese are gorgeous!

Consistently amazing as always.

Really great cafe to visit either for food or to pick up some of the lovely cook at home items on offer. Great coffee and always friendly chatty staff to greet you.

I have previously reviewed this place very favourably. I can't believe some of the adverse reviews others have posted. I took my 89 Yr old Dad out for the day after he had a short illness. It was a beautiful day in Donaghadee and we...

A bit expensive but the food is well cooked

Tasty quick food, brownies to die for!

Great spot and the art gallery has a lovely range of art by local artists! Highly recommend a visit!

Ordered soup and waited 40 mins; recurved a bowl of hot water an veg, absolutely tasteless. Asked for a glass of water, I was given a jug and no glasses. A real shames because the restaurant itself was nice with selling artists work.

Great place to eat with lots of menu options and very friendly staff. The roast of the day is excellent and the small option is a really good helping. It's great value as well.

We called in here for an afternoon snack on the 4th July at about 3pm. We were served by a lovely gentleman who was very helpful with my food allergies (severe allergies to dairy and egg) nothing was a problem for him or the kitchen, there was plenty of options for me to have and plenty of vegan options as well, and was also willing to check out other ingredients too. The chef checked out the ingredients in the sausages so I had a bacon and sausage sandwich on sour dough which was delicious and cooked to perfection, very tasty bacon and sausages. My husband had the Eggs Benedict and my friends had Sausage rolls, one was the steak and black pepper sausage roll the other was a pork sausage roll. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed their meals. There is a fantastic selection of cakes and drinks too. All the staff that we met were great and service was with a smile, nothing was too much trouble, we will definitely go back and are happy to recommend. There is plenty of seating upstairs both inside and on an outside balcony so do not be put off if it looks full downstairs and dogs are also welcome upstairs. Wish I could give more stars

Lovely wee coffee shop in Conlig/Ardvanagh. Tray bakes are excellent, good portion sizes and well priced. Been here now a few times to bring stuff home as well as eating in. Lovely staff, keep up the good work.

Conlig Bangor Resturant - We visited today for lunch and ordered a Cowboy Supper (small) and Stew. cost £12.00 The stew consisted mostly of gravy and carrots with almost no meat. The cowboy supper was basically a child portin with tiny sausages and a few...

Very pleasant staff and helpful

After discovering that the Stormy Cup no longer do breakfast we arrived at this lovely place. Sara and I had what was the best breakfast in many years. Everything cooked perfectly with the best quality ingredients. Superb! And great value for money. As it turned...

Beautiful traybakes especially the currant squares, lovely coffee , highly recommend

Perfect. We love all the vegan option choices and their coffee is lush!

Fab love bow bells. Catered well for my mum waiting on table who can't stand for long. 😊 Desserts are not to be missed 👍

Had a lovely lunch here. Hubby and I are not big eaters and therefore we ordered two small dinners. They were still substantial portions. We enjoyed our lunch.

Excellent, had coffee and cakes delicious. Pleasant helpful staff .

A beautiful day today. How to spoil it?..go to Bow Bells. Half hour wait for cup of tea. Forgot to bring the other items ordered. Awful. Looking at the staff going around the tables asking if they had ordered what they were holding in their...

Very nice restaurant... staff friendly & helpful .... food gd ... reasonably priced ..

My meal was very underwhelming. It was cold and the scrambled eggs looked like chopped up fried eggs.. I sent it back, the already overcooked eggs were just put in a frying pan and cooked even more, same with the bacon. It was hot when...

I got the full soda which was quite big I couldn't even finish it! Very busy café which is great to see. The staff work very hard and friendly too.

Excellent food & service, also sells gifts for food lovers. A little gem.

Our group of Nordic walkers went for lunch and we all agreed that the food was lovely, staff and service were great too

Lovely coffee and best sausage rolls in the universe!

Very slow service on Saturday 1.00. However food was good, improvement needed from ordering to table service. Appreciate a lot of stairs to climb for upstairs seating, think our order was forgotten

Tray bakes and the coffee we're fantastic. Lovely place, we'll definitely be back

Extremely friendly staff and great food

A great choice of menu at a cost suitable for pensioners like myself and husband. A great wee place with very friendly staff

I ate in bow bells Conlig for breakfast, the food was delicious and the staff are very friendly and helpful, loved all the take away products.

They close the kitchen before they supposed to do it

First time back since change of ownership and revamp, food, service and atmosphere were exceptionally good - we'll be back

Sadly gone down in food portions and up ,steeply in price. Worst of all oversalted pies and over cooked roasties. Not as tasty as previous ownership, sadly. Decor improved and atmosphere retained.

Well looked after and good food

Lovely charming cafe, only just moved into the area and found a gem, now our regular place to visit

We went to Bow Bells in Donaghadee last Sunday for lunch. Everybody had a great meal. Some of the family ordered from the Christmas Menu and others from the lunch menu. The food was amazing. The service was great And it was all fantastic value...

Portions small not a MASK on any staff what soever and tables very close together

THIS RESTAURANT AND EVERYTHING ABOUT IT IS EXCEPTIONAL . WE WHERE JUST PASSING THROUGH AND DECIDED TO HAVE AN EARLY LUNCH. THE MENU, STAFF , FOOD 5 STARS SEEM TRULY INADEQUATE. WELL DONE PLEASE KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK. THANKS FOR HAVING US. MB

Lovely chocolate brownies and mocha. Some cracking pieces of art and friendly staff

I went yesterday to have a quick lunch with my daughter. We stood at the counter waiting to place our order while one member of staff faced about with the coffee machine. She said on 3 occasions “ be with you shortly” Another girl came...

Highly recommended, great food and service

Excellent steak and ale pie. Can't recommend it enough. Also Ian is amazing.

Lovely place for a spot of breakfast/brunch. Really nice atmosphere, take some time to look at all the art from the local artists