Breakwater Cafe in Southend-on-Sea

We popped in for a full English Breakfast and decided to go for the mega breakfast 🍳 WOW it was huge and very tasty, was a bit of a challenge to eat it all but we managed it, the staff were very friendly and all in all was a lovely experience

Ordered Rock Eel & Chips from the Kiosk costing £12.95. It was DISGUSTING 🤮 Fish Batter was HARD like Concrete. The fish inside looked Dodgy. The Chips were SOAKED IN OIL. This was NOT FRESH. It was BARELY EDIBLE. Seriously.. don't waste your money. I will NEVER go there again. You didn't do yourself any favours serving s**to like that 😡😡😡

Came here again and ordered the fish and chips. It came out cold, half eaten and the fish was raw. The milkshake was thick and chunky; I saw them preparing it in the bathroom. The cappuccino and coffee were also not to be admired. The waiter was friendly but terrible food and prices.

£4+ for a small bag of candy floss. How can a business with a 2* hygiene rating justify these prices?

Drove here Sunday specifically as we fancied eating at Cafe Breakwater and our old fav in Park Street has closed while ago. Arrived at 12.45 and was told it was fully booked, but we could come back again at 2.00 (how kind!) - so we did. Shown to a table and then ignored for 10 mins. Finally placed our order and waited. 15 mins later the waiter came back to say they had no Chablis. So we ordered an alternative white Burgundy (at extra cost) . Again 10 mins later was told they also did not have that, gave up and ordered water. Food arrived soon after and guess what, it was over cooked. Spent 5 mins trying to catch a waiter eye before eating the non burnt bits, no one asked if the meal was OK, so we left the money and left. Worst Cafe Breakwater we have visited ever, how it stays open i do not know - the manager should be ashamed - assuming there is one!

Had breakfast with my family, the staff took a while to take our order. We had to call someone to let them know we were ready to order as staff were just standing around doing nothing. We had to pay upfront and was surprised how expensive the food was for what we ordered. The tea was Luke warm so we asked them for another pot of tea, they replaced it with another lukewarm pot of tea. When the food actually came after quite a lengthy wait it was very average and small for the price we park. We won’t be going back.

We stopped here for a lunch 14 July 2022, Two adults and two children. The cafe has great kerb appeal, and looks great. All the tables have been poorly covered with what looks like lino, and very sticky. We ordered a bacon sandwich, hot dog, chips & cheesy chips, two teas and two cokes to say that I was taken aback when I was presented with a bill for £26 The food took over 30 minutes to arrive, was in my opinion of poor quality. The chips had to be sent back as luke warm and it looked like that they had been warmed up, and within 5 minutes replacement chips at the table. Red hot now, but still tasted strange. The toilets are very very clean. Would never visit here again,

We visited for breakfast, a small breakfast with a hot chocolate and a panini with a smoothie. The perfect way to start the day! Lovely welcome, quick service and lovely food! Would 100% visit again!!

Service was friendly and professional, milkshake was nice, fish and chips were nice and fresh, definitely recommend this place!

What can I say? I think my cappucino says it all really. I don't know how the girl handed me this, announcing it as a cappucino, with a straight face. Just call it coffee. Not that it even tasted like coffee. On ordering we were told that they take payment upfront, before serving anything, and I assumed this was because people had run off without paying. Now I realise it's because you'd challenge the bill if they handed it to you afterward. The sausages were gristly, the chips were aneamic. The eggs looked like they were overcooked 30 minutes ago and had been reheated in the microwave. My husband made a comment about the sausages and my son didn't catch it and said "what?"... my husband replied "I'll tell you later at the hospital." My gosh, it was bad. Bad food. Reluctant service. The worst £30 odd I think I've ever spent. Also, it was filthy, really grubby. I checked on the way out and they have a 5* Score on the Door. And we weren't sick. Those are the only two positives.

The cafe wasn't very clean, services was very slow ..food fish and Chips fish was okish but frozen chips ..would not recommend to anyone

Very, very dirty cafe!!.. and the toilets are even worse! We didn't have time to look for somewhere else as we had a flight to catch but actually I wish we had not bothered to eat at all!! We have both been feeling sick all afternoon...over-cooked then under-cooked egg, margarine on toast, all served next to overflowing bins and dirty floors! On the plus side, the staff is nice and friendly... I don't know how they can stay so cheerful in such a dismal environment!

Worst fish and chips ever had, and burger the bread it had to be a week old and the meat was burned,no cold drinks, not recommended I've shoulded suspect why was the restaurant empty in a busy saturday

Dirty Restaurant. I asked for Cod & chips which looked very good on other peoples tables but I wasn’t given cod. I must of ended up with sloppy greasy fish which wasn't cod. No cold drinks (coke) and the tea was in a dirty stained teapot. Even the burguer bun was old. Not recommended for sure. £38 in a bin.

This was one of the few promenade cafes open for morning breakfast, even though there were few customers around at the time. We ordered two full English breakfasts. It took a little while to arrive, but meanwhile we had a lovely view of the beach, sea, and pier. On arrival the food was superb, the bacon and sausage were particularly tasty, and there were loads of beans. The price was reasonable, the staff friendly. I would go there again.

I asked for Cod AND chips which looked very good on other peoples tables but i wasnt given cod and chips i must of ended up (after a 234 hour wait) with sloppy greasy fish which wasnt cod and re cooked FRIES NOT chips staff were very rude and rushing only a few were smiling, they charged me 1.99 for water WHAT A RIP OFF NEVER AGAIN !!!

The food is "edible", very slow, overpriced for the lack of quality, dirty floor and most of the staff look like they couldn't care less about anything. DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME OR MONEY HERE!

Just stopped of for a bite to eat. Nice and friendly with polite staff and tasty food .very clean definitely worth a visit

I basically paid 17 quid for 2 poorly cooked cod n chips and a can of drink (warm). The staff were rude, and the food was terrible. Gutted ! Don't go near the place

Bien por dónde empiezo, fuimos a la barra a pedir el desayuno para ser recibidos con una chica que creía que si ella sonrió ella mayo de agrietado su rostro.La comida llegaba con productos de calidad inferior, que era de todo caliente.El suelo estaba sucio, las paredes y las esquinas tenía telarañas en ellos.Los inodoros parecía que no habían limpiado en un par de años.Nos dimos cuenta de que deberíamos, ya que el lugar estaba vacío, una calurosa tarde de domingo!!!No regresaremos, pena porque nos gusta surport nuestro pequeño empresas locales para que no se hubiera tragado a la franquicias gigante.

Mi marido y yo decidimos entrar aquí rápidamente ya que nuestro hijo poner un hambre real en nuestro día. pega Nos llevó 10 minutos para una de las chicas en el kiosco de helados gritando al equipo en la cocina que yo estaba esperando para ser servido. Al final pedimos una salchicha, cebolla y queso panini oferta que venía con ensalada y una bebida de la botella. Pedí el panini sin cebolla porque mi hijo no como ellos por alguna razón que sólo terminó con salchichas - era absolutamente calidad asquerosa. Pedí mi copa y la chica se estrelló una en la mesa, cuando pedí la botella que había pagado por me dijeron 'no tenemos ninguna". Ella podría haber dicho algo antes o dado un reembolso, luego volvió a pararse detrás del mostrador y lean todo con su cabeza en sus manos. De malgastar tiempo y dinero - servicio asqueroso.

Day trip so tried this cafe, didn't like the seats! Had all day breakfast, not that nice but eatable. They forgot my tea, did not feel welcome. Staff were mainly young women, would not go back . The breakfast seemed cheap .

I ordered a lovely lunch of cod & chips. The fish was outstanding and the service was very fast & the staff was extremely friendly! Would definitely reccomend this restraraunt to anybody!!

Evita este establecimiento como de la peste. Mientras yo estaba allí, un hombre con una discapacidad de aprendizaje se volvió muy afligido por un repentino ruido.. Él rompió una taza. Su apoyo de forma rápida y profesional de los trabajadores le quitaron de la situación sólo para ser detenido por el medio de salir de botella de mediana edad harridan rubia que supongo que dirige el lugar pidiendo el pago de una taza. En un lugar que cobra 6 libras por una papa al horno!!! Cuando dejo ella a gritos daba a todos el beneficio de su visión..." no importa aquellos tipo entrando (apuesta que no siempre pueden ser controladas (con un ganado prod quizás). Junto con sus colegas hija bebé desatendidas durante al menos una hora en una de las mesas fue un horrible entorno/ambiente con comida a precios elevados y un olor pesado pobre de grasas chip sin cambios en el aire. Hay muchos otros cafés de la zona, os exhorto ir a uno de ellos.

I took my sons there yesterday before sea life centre, we ordered our food, waiting staff were nice, there was a table in the corner with people with learning difficulties and some carers, one lad clearly became very overwhelmed and smashed a glass, he was...

Simply put, WHAT A RIP OFF!!! £2.00 for a small cone! Sort it out Southend, it's not like you hardly get any customers!! "Rip Off Britain" should take a visit there. None of the staffs was wearing gloves whist serving the ice cones or even put a paper around the bottom so that their hands do not touch the Ice Cream cones. Discussing!

My wife and I decided to take our son to Southend last Saturday, fearing that we may miss the only day of summer if we did not. By the time we got there we were starving (thanks, A13), so we thought we would get some fish and chips. I am from a seaside town so was born knowing the eternal truth, that it's impossible to get a bad fish and chips by the sea (with the caveat that the closer you are to the sea the more it'll cost). How wrong I was. We went in to the Breakwater Cafe, which is perfectly located. Looking back, I should have twigged when it was not as full as you would expect for a sunny day in Southend. I didn't. When the food came though, it was pretty dire. My wife and I went for "cod" and chips, and it was, well, interesting. It looked fine, and the batter was nice (albeit a little bland), but the fish... well, it seemed to have melted. I'm not sure how one would achieve such a thing, but it was almost mush - quite an achievement really. As others have noted, there are so many other places to choose from I would give this one a wide berth - the only thing more disappointing than bad fish and chips is knowing that had you walked another 50 yards you could have had good fish and chips! I gave this 2 stars as a) I am generous by nature, and b) the chips were alright.

Having taken the grandchildren to eastern esplanade this afternoon we sat on beach a few feet from the BREAKWATER KIOSK . The Grand Children ask for an ice cream okay so off we went £3.60 for 2 push up Smartie things 1 Magnum £2 oh and can I have a nestle MIVVI £2 please, given a split of some kind " excuse me that's not a Mivvi " "yes it is " " Err No a Nestle Mivvi like the one in picture here" "Its the same do you want it or not?" Had the Grandchildren not already started there Smartie push up I would have told the silly girl where to put the ice cream in the space between her ears!

We came to the take away section to buy some fish and chips. The food was expensive and looked like a kid's portion. Both the fish and chips were soggy and nothing like you'd expect from a traditional fish and chip shop. The only positive was the location as it is right on the beach. They obviously only rely on first time customers as there were many other great looking fish and chip shops we wish we'd tried. I thought competition was supposed to raise quality or drive down price, I don't know how this place survives. Came away quite disappointed given the other options.

My family had a surprise visit to Southend and stopped here for breakfast.Food was quick and tasty plus the location is perfect as you are close to the seafront. Will be trying fish and chips later.

We took our two grandchildren to Southend on a hot day in early October. We had a great time on the beach and decided to have some chips for lunch. We bought three portions of chips which were very expensive.When they were produced they were the worst chips I have seen or eaten in over thirty years. They were soggy with oil and completely inedible. Even the seagulls would not touch them!Take my advice - do not buy anything from here