Cafe Waterside in Cheshire East

Don't let the look or the small menu fool you. This place is a hidden gem. Great service, and the food was amazing

Fantastic cafe on the water. Had a cup of tea and a toasted tea cake which were brought incredibly quickly by the lovely staff. Gluten free options available. Thank you for a great experience!

Cafe Waterside is an absolute delight! From the cozy ambiance to the friendly, attentive staff, everything about this place makes you feel right at home. But the real star of the show? Their chocolate cake. Hands down, one of the best I’ve ever had. It’s incredibly light, perfectly moist, and has just the right balance of richness without being too heavy. It melts in your mouth and pairs beautifully with their fresh coffee. Whether you’re stopping by for a quick treat or a leisurely afternoon, don’t miss the chocolate cake—it’s worth the trip alone! Also dog friendly.

Cafe Waterside is an absolute delight! From the cozy ambiance to the friendly, attentive staff, everything about this place makes you feel right at home. But the real star of the show? Their chocolate cake. Hands down, one of the best I’ve ever had. It’s incredibly light, perfectly moist, and has just the right balance of richness without being too heavy. It melts in your mouth and pairs beautifully with their fresh coffee. Whether you’re stopping by for a quick treat or a leisurely afternoon, don’t miss the chocolate cake—it’s worth the trip alone! Dog friendly too.

it was a busy saturday so there was a long wait for service and a long queue at the till but the drink was great and very refreshing

Lovely location, friendly staff and gorgeous food - highly recommend

Service diabolical.. Was told there was 10 minute wait and given 2 menus. We sat and waited,then a big party of girls turned up. Waitress took their order straight away, totally ignored us. My husband went inside as we weren't sure if it was table service or not after being ignored,only to be told no sausage left. The women who ignored us, ignored my husband again as he was asking a young lady do we order inside or not. Darn right rude! Won't return. Was so disappointed as was looking forward to our visit here.

Nice place to visit after a walk down the canel.

We stopped off at Cafe Waterside whilst on a hike. I had a caramel latte, carrot cake and scone to go. The menu looked absolutely fantastic and the smell from the kitchen was amazing so I will be heading back for breakfast, brunch or lunch very soon! The cakes are absolutely delicious, very impressed with the size and price. Service was good even though we were only taking away. Really polite and friendly young man serving! We opted to sit on the tables outside, I imagine these must quite busy during better weather. The only downside I would say is that there didn’t seem to be much signage to say the cafe was there on the route we took. I think some directions on that you have to go up the stairs and left into the door for the cafe would help too!

We stopped off at Cafe Waterside whilst on a hike. Thad a caramel latte, carrot cake and scone to go. The menu looked absolutely fantastic and the smell from the kitchen was amazing so I will be heading back for breakfast, brunch or lunch very soon! The cakes are absolutely delicious, very impressed with the size and price. Service was good even though we were only taking away. Really polite and friendly young man serving! We opted to sit on the tables outside, l imagine these must quite busy during better weather. The only downside I would say is that there didn't seem to be much signage to say the cafe was there on the route we took. I think some directions on that you have to go up the stairs and left into the door for the cafe would help too :)

Good selection of treats and friendly staff

My sister & I went to this cafe yesterday, the waitress was so rude that we left without ordering. Such a pity as it seemed like a lovely cafe & the menu was good

A very nice flat white, and good service on the first visit — but it’s very noisy, and compact, so awful for a chilled breakfast — And to be honest, I’ve had better vegetarian breakfasts for less elsewhere

A lovely cafe, very busy at almost all times of day, with really good coffee and simple cafe food - cakes, sandwiches, toasties etc.

We often stop here for a mini breakfast. Food is good and freshly cooked. We keep coming back, that say's it all.

Lovely place, had coffee and cake, delicious 😋

Unfortunately the inexperienced staff do not know how to take and confirm orders. The new system of going to the counter rather than the waitress service clearly has issues. Its a shame that an apology was also lacking when an in correct order was pointed out to the staff member. Such a shame, normally a great place to come

Great place to meet friends and grab a bite and a drink.

The scone was very old and stale. They should have renewed the stock.

I have visited this café on a number of occasions & always had great food / service. However, I visited last Saturday morning & left feeling extremely disappointed. During this visit the food was lovely, but the quality of a certain staff member left a lot to be desired. The member of staff struggled to follow instructions. On two occasions I asked for certain things regarding our food order & on two occasions she either ignored or forgot both things. We also purchased some of the Victoria sponge cake to takeaway. When we went to eat the cake once we got home, we found the cake to extremely dry & there was also baking paper in the middle of the sponge. It is a massive disappointment to be writing this review as this was one of my favourite little cafes.

Excellent full breaky! Nice halloween coffe specials an gorgeous cake too!

Great cafe with views of the canal. Lovely people and a cozy atmosphere.

Nice range of food ... very popular!

Very tasty but abit more pricey than other places

Lovely settings can't beat sitting there on a sunny afternoon. Food is good quality, staff are polite and helpful. Tried a couple of things from the waterside now and both times been very pleased with the food, service and seeting.

What a great cafe, ideal location and dog friendly. Only had hot chocolate, but this was delicious, fresh smoothie too was lovely. Friendly staff. Well worth a visit.

All very good except slow service and not very comfortable chairs outside

Just popped into the the upholsters in the mill, while we waited we visited this cafe, absolutely lovely food ALL home made cakes. Will call again. *********

We had been paddling in the canal and stopped for a coffee, hot chocolate and ice cream! It was awesome. Great service, great drinks and the ice cream was delicious! Would recommend!

Great food selection quality and service

Good canalside venue quiet and pleasant with good menu selection

Had a memorable visit here, very nice location, staff here are so nice and friendly, we we're made very welcome, lovely location.

First time visiting the Café Waterside. We got a table outside and it was unclear where to order. I ordered the soup which was lovely and my partner had a toastie. The lady who brought out our drinks had a very stern face and didn't speak our smile, just popped the drinks down (I spoke to her but she didn't respond) and walked off! We are regular visitors to Bollington and we were hoping that this might be another place to eat to add to our list but I don't think so. A smile costs nothing but means so much. Good customer service is key to customers returning but sadly it was lacking here. Such a shame.

Arrived via the Middlewood Way and it's in an excellent position alongside the canal. Lovely ambience with the sun out. Service was pleasant. Flapjack was a bit dry and unexciting and the flat white was in the smallest cup. Definitely revisit, it's been years since I was last here. Popped into the Clarence Mill gallery afterwards. Some interesting works. Had a chat with the owner.

Lovely canal side cafe. Dog friendly! Can eat inside or out. Its Bollington so get ready to pay a bit more for the usuals. That said. I often pop in for a coffee and a brekkie when in the area 👍

Parking can be a bit problematic. I was lucky and got the only free space at 10.30. Access to the cafe is by a number of steps. I’m disabled but luckily my dining partner is not and managed to climb the steps to place our order and pay. We had a delightful table outside overlooking the canal which is what we wanted. Food arrived promptly and my mini breakfast and English breakfast tea were both excellent. There was a nice atmosphere outside with dog walkers, cyclists and others all chatting away. There was usually a hushed silence when a canal boat passed by. Give this place a try. If you can get parked close by you will not be disappointed.

Visited here a few times now and love this little cafe. Really lovely spot and dog friendly too. Can recommend one of the ‘cooler’ drinks, really refreshing!

Very good food. Food felt fresh, the southern fried chicken and chips was nicely cooked. Good portion size. Friendly staff. Though some outside furniture is past its best; table rotting and chairs missing some cross pieces making them little uncomfy. Though nice ambience by the canal in old mill building. Will defs visit again!

Great full English breakfast and good coffee. Friendly , efficient staff too and a great canalside setting. Dog friendly as well. Top marks.

Excellent mini breakfast and full English for hubby. Lovely staff

Very good cake and tea after a walk up White Nancy!

Beautiful riverside cafe with a great breakfast and decent coffee

Always lovely. Beautiful spot; friendly staff; good food at sensible prices.

Great little cafe and such friendly service. All I wanted was a cuppa and my pot was a generous serving for £2.00. A really pleasant moment in the day as I read the paper and the mellow late afternoon sun came in.

Had nipped in on my lunch. They were due to close at 3 but still made my lunch with 10 minutes until kitchen close. Had the chicken ceaser sandwich 🥪 was probably the beat buttie I've had so far! Deffo worth a visit

Great food and lovely staff. Highly recommended 👌

Really great breakfast spot. Had the Turkish eggs and smoothies which were delicious. Staff were really friendly and everything was served quickly!

It was OK just a little pricey.

Lovely setting right next to the Macclesfield canal. Peaceful, idyllic spot to enjoy an alfresco lunch. Food is excellent, great coffee and cake to die for. Staff are amazing. Highly recommended.

Great café, does get busy but you can book a table. Nice seating outside too. Quality of food is great and a very friendly team. Definitely worth a visit if you're walking or cycling on the canal or Middlewood Way 👍

Lovely small cafe in mill on Macclesfield Canal. Not tried any of the hot food, but the breakfast looks great. Coffees aplenty, teas, soft drinks etc, and a range of homemade cakes and pastries. Service friendly but slightly disorganised (we were told to sit down and someone would come to take our order, but then served a walk-in at the counter before us). Definitely worth a visit if walking the canal to/from Bollington. Outside seating for fairer weather, but cafe is up stairs so awkward for less able people.

We called here while we were out & about photographing a couple of places in Bollington. We managed to sit outside because the weather was perfect and even though it was busy we got our breakfast quite quickly. The food was hot and tasty so no complaints from me

After a pleasant stroll along part of Middlewood Way, and back along the canal to Bollington, five of us were delighted to enjoy a most satisfying meal at this cosy little place in part of a re-purposed former cotton mill. Speedy service, pleasant staff, good food. What more can one ask :)

Lovely place quality food pricy but worth it

Lovely place & location. Good value menu & great service.

An enterprising licensed cafe with outside seating by the canal. Good honest food pleasantly served. What more can one desire?

Called in today for a cappuccino and cake (victoria sponge).both were lovely. The staff are great and we will come again to try food off the menu. The toilets were very clean .

Amazing Turkish eggs for brunch. And my grandson couldn't finish his pancakes it was so big! 2 adults had Turkish eggs, 1 granola and pancakes with drinks £45. Worth every penny!!!

Visited with friends and have been a few times. Great brunch and very friendly service. The breakfast buns are amazing. It can get busy when it's good weather. 😃

What a fabulous cafe. Our food was delicious, the staff were so friendly and there was plenty of room for our group. The perfect spot and set up for a cafe. I would really recommend!

Lovely cafe and delicious food great stop while my car was having MOT 😄highly recommend 👍

Worst avocado on toast I’ve ever had - needs to be a paste without hard chunks, furthermore it could do with seasoning. Also took over 50 mins to get a full English, and avocado on toast - they may say they were busy but the waitress admitted they had given mine to the wrong table.

Visited with my cycling friends Nice food and lovely place

One my favourite spots for a breakfast great looking cosy cafe with friendly staff. Green reviver smoothie is particularly good.

Very busy, lucky to have an empty table for 5 of us

Two small breakfasts. Great quality produce. My daughters fried egg was a little undercooked which she made a point of telling one of your staff. No problem she promptly brought a freshly cooked replacement. Lovely Coffee, and good service. We have been Three times now and enjoyed every visit.

Nice little cafe just off the canal in Bollington, food was delicious and a nice coffee, gets busy on weekends early

Great place to go after a good walk along the canal. Food always excellent served by friendly staff. Had a 5 bean chilli and crusty bread, ideal on a cold day. My wife had eggs Benedict which she also enjoyed. I can definitely recommend the berry smoothie.

Really nice little cafe set up on the side of the canal. Food delicious. And good price

Cold coffee cold milk even asked again for hot milk no cold again . Totally deverstated how hard is it to make a hot cup of coffee ☕️ 😐 Never going again mybe should not of asked for it to be hot 😒. Just seen a photo when I was there 2 years ago . Excellent hot coffe and loverly T cake . How times have changed

Amazing food and service! Lovely decor inside and bustling atmosphere. Perhaps could do with some more seating as it is very popular! Very nice stop after a walk on the canal.

Lovely visit. Great toasties and soup. Just what I needed after a dog walk.

I visited today with my children, partner and my parents. We ordered 7 drinks and 8 pieces of cake. The drinks in all honesty were very nice, however there was more of our drinks in the saucer than in the cup. The cakes were a variety of brownie, flapjack, caramel shortcake and tiffin and unfortunately they were all stale, overly stale. I did not take them back as I could see the staff were very busy and my son has additional needs so it just wasn't worth the faf. I have often visited this cafe and not had any issues so not really wanting to complain. However today's bill was 54 pounds. 54 pounds! Next time I'll probably take my own snacks if I'm honest. I will also say the amount of rude people in the cafe was unbelievable. The queue tends to obstruct the entrance of the cafe and after excuse me 3 times I found we had to just try and squeeze through. Not a nice experience at all, but I will end this with the staff as they were very polite and can't fault them except the cake.

Friendly quick service and nice breakfasts

Fabulous full breakfast in lovely atmospheric surroundings. The team looking after me were fabulous! Highly recommend a visit!

Great place for a snack and a cup of coffee

Lovely cafe, friendly staff good service, great coffee.

This is a great eating place to go with a lovely canal walk. Dog friendly, highly recommended

Friendly, helpful staff. Great food and atmosphere. Would definitely recommend

Really tasty breakfast, superior quality meats, honestly best breakfast I've had in a long time ! Your chef is a diamond.

Lovely cafe, great food, tasty, good price, great friendly staff, all well presented.

Great little cafe to visit when in the area,

Excellent food and service and great place to eat with friendly staff and reasonable prices with seating in and out, highly recommend.

Nice place, next to the canal :) Just had a coffee, so can’t comment too much.

Lovely place. Highly recommended... We'll be back soon for cake... We came back for a Full English. Superb. We'll come back for cake next time.Back again for Full English. Perfect.

Lovely food, fast service and dog friendly inside and out.

We were flagging at the end of a hot walk, and Cafe Riverside was like an Oasis in the desert....Had a refreshing smoothie, followed by probably the best prawn salad ever, and then more refreshment by means of a home made Lemonade....All perfect, as were the staff; The nice lady even offered to fill our water bottles for us! We intend to return to Bollington, and will most definitely visit again to try more of the great looking stuff on their menu!

Fabulous lunch here today, eggs benedict with smoked salmon on toasted soda bread, absolutely delicious, washed down with a bottle of chilled Jack Rabbit rose, lovely staff, could not recommend highly enough.

Friendly service, perfect stop after a walk along the canal. Good selection of food ( breakfast and sandwiches) with hot and cold drinks. The only drawback is that it is a small and popular place so it is often full.

I love this place next to the canal. Wish there was better parking but the food and location are excellent.

Lovely setting by the canal with great food and service. Only down side is lack of parking spaces. Highly recommend!

Enjoyed my brunch. The staff were pleasant as was the cafe. I'll be back.

Great place to eat, food very good, gets very busy.

Brilliant place excellent service wonderful staff.

Most amazing full English I've ever had

Great food and very friendly staff

I've stopped here several times for a treat, mid hike, for tea and cake. The Baker makes the most fantastic cakes and scones. Unfortunately the owner is the most rude and arrogant man you could meet. Today I had to return my eagerly anticipated scone because it was clearly several days old and stale and served with rancid cream. The owner came over and told me he had tasted the scone and it was not stale, there was absolutely nothing wrong with it and that he would taste the cream for himself. He effectively called me a liar. He did not come back again to give his verdict on the cream. (enough said!) I have previously been served rancid cream here before but with a beautiful moist fresh scone. When I asked for fresh cream the waitress replaced the entire order much to my embarrassment as I hadn't complained about the scone, I had only wanted the cream replaced. On my next visit my friend and I were served with stale scones and we ate them and decided to hide our dissapointment and not comment. The following week we asked if the scones were freshly baked and were told they were not so I had a lovely piece of toffee and salted caramel cake instead. I won't be going back there after today's  experience. If you visit I would recommend you don't have the scone either. The Baker is wonderful, it's such a shame that the owner is Basil Fawlty personified.

Visited on a cold wet day, the food and atmosphere made for a wholesome and warm experience. The staff were amazing and the owner was very hands on and customer attentive. The best burger and chips ever. Can't wait to try more of their menu.

Lovely place for breakfast by the canal

They have got it just right. Price and quality plus variety. Home made cakes and scones and lots of lovely savoury dishes. Eat inside or outside with a good view of the canal