Canoe Lake Cafe in Portsmouth - Phone Number, Reservations, Reviews

Nice little place, friendly staff, very quick service and great choice of food, drink and ice cream/ milkshakes. good quality food.

I had ice cream and was very happy that the cafe has several vegan flavours including my favourites: salted caramel and vanilla. These flavours were delicious, they were not the sorbet type, rather 'milky' and not too sweet, just the right amount. Two scoops are around £4, I'd say that's reasonably priced, though that's how much I paid recently in some central London ice cream places. Nevertheless, I recommend visiting for the vegan ice cream. The location of the cafe is very good too - has a nice ambience being right at the lake overlooking the swans.

Good food but absolutely miserable staff, shrug in frustration at requests. Hot day so I didn't expect anyone to be jumping with joy but not glaring at you while taking your order.

Friendly staff nice food selection nice cakes teas and coffee ☕ Great stuff 👍

Nice friendly cafe reasonable prices.food good

Friendly staff, nice atmosphere and a lovely view of the lake

Had a surprisingly excellent experience today at this cafe. The home made roast vegetable soup was absolutely delicious and only 1.90. I added half of a baguette served with loads of butter which took the price up to £2. I highly recommend it. The cafe is basic but clean and the staff were pleasant. Beautiful view.

Such a great cafe, lovely food and staff. Looking over canoe lake, perfect. Toasted sandwich was first class. We visit often with our dog.

We came on a rainy morning looking for shelter and a hot drink. We are regular customers during the holidays. As usual, the staff were all lovely, friendly, polite and helpful. We order drinks and cheesy chips. The lady at the counter even added bacon to our chips, just for us. The food is always good quality and it arrived hot and totally delicious. The bacon was crispy and the grated cheese mature in flavour. The chips perfectly cooked. Thank you ladies for another lovely start to our outing. It has set us in good stead for tipping point on the pier and the bus ride home after a walk in the rain. A fabulous last day to the school holidays. See you again soon.

Lovely place, amazing experience!

Asked when they were closing, was told 8 o’clock, went in at seven twenty, was told to go outside to the hatch to order ice cream, then asked if my girls could at least wash their hands before handling their ice creams, was told no, the toilet was blocked. Obvious that they just didn’t want us to be there, they were busy stacking chairs on tables and shutting up early to get out on Saturday night. Good luck staying in business with that attitude.

We visited the cafe for an ice cream cone. The ice creams were lovely but overpriced. £3.10 for a single scoop cone is ridiculous.

I was quite surprised by this place . I visited it 2 days, running. Day one for a snack and the other for breakfast. I enjoyed the food on both occasions.. The breakfast was ample and good value . Basic furnishings but clean and tidy Overlooking the Canoe Lake in Southsea. Pleasent start to the day with swans waiting for morning fresh water drink provided by the cafe . It can get very busy

My wife and I visited on Monday 07 August with our two young grandchildren. The elder one is a coeliac and also has an egg allergy. We ordered some gluten free chips and some drinks which we ate outside. My wife then spoke to a member of staff to check whether the soft Mr Whippy type ice cream was egg and gluten free and if she could have it in a plastic tub, as the cones contain gluten. The member of staff checked the ingredients and confirmed the ice cream was egg and gluten free. My wife said we would return later after the girls had played in the park. When we came back an hour later, we ordered two whippy ice creams in plastic tubs. A different member of staff told us that they were not allowed by the owner to give out whippy ice creams in the plastic tubs, only the carte d’or ice cream which of course has egg in it. Even when we offered to pay for the tubs, the member of staff still wouldn’t let us have a whippy ice cream in a tub. My granddaughter was naturally very upset as finding ice cream that she can safely eat isn’t always easy. Fortunately, we went along to the Model Village where they were only too happy to put some whippy ice cream in plastic cups for us.

Been visiting this cafe once or twice a week for a few years now, generally it is staffed by permanent staff assisted by temporary youngsters during holiday periods. My favourite order is beans on toast with cheese topping, title says it all. I have been on days when it’s so busy that management laid on extra tables outside and kitchen staff doing their best in very pressing conditions. Many times it was so busy that when we found a table recently vacated but not cleared or cleaned, due to pressure the staff were under, I’ve cleared plates to counter and have generally been acknowledged with a thank you. My personal experience is that I have found staff cheerful and helpful and will continue my regular walking visits.

When to canoe lake cafe for a coffee and cake we orded a latte and a flat white sent the coffee back as there was no milk and even after the machine was filled the coffee was awful and expensive.Bought two muffins that tasted powdery and like somthing from the cash and carry. staff aren't the most enthusiastic .Wouldnt recommended save your money

I have been a customer visiting once or twice a month for quite a few years, and have always been delighted with the quality of their produce, staff service and friendliness - but, unfortunately, over the past few months I have been increasingly disappointed with everything. If I sat outside (my preference) cooked food was always brought out to me - but no longer, and no advise on ordering that I would need to collect my order from their counter (they could add a notice to their menu board). Today, the lady serving me told me that they "do not have enough staff" to do this - although while I was waiting outside a team member brought out a serving of chips and asked around the tables who this was for! No brown or granary bread or baguettes, and I don't like white bread but have no choice. I am very concerned that this once lovely cafe is loosing it and I hope they can restore their service / foods to what they once were.

Loads of staff but service was very slow and not very welcoming food was nice tho !

Carte d’Or ice cream was horrible. So sweet and sickly. We had a scoop of vanilla and one of raspberry sorbet. Wont return. Waste of money, two ice creams for £6.20. Wish I’d asked for a refund

Very rude person selling ice cream. She said she would only serve us from the window. We were shocked like never before and left. Terrible place.

The young girl working on Sunday 21st was so so rude. We ordered food for 3 people and only 2 came out, asking her twice where the 3rd was we got a sarcastic, rude, like I was beneath her reply "yeah". After 35 mins we asked the older lady (40s/50s) doing the food and she hadn't even been given the order... I won't return. Won't be having my money again sorry.

Poor customer service, unfriendly with a sour face as though everything I asked for was too much trouble. No manners and the lady that served me needs to have training in how to be pleasant to customers. No toilet roll early in the morning. Ice cream very overpriced...wouldn't rush back or recommend unfortunately for such a prime location.

The canoe lake in southsea has a couple of great parks for the kids to play in a a lake we often take a bag of porridge oats to feed the birds, this cafe sells everything you will need to go to the beach plus ice creams and cold drinks, we stopped by for lunch, I actually thought £5.20 for a child’s meal was a bit overpriced.(four chicken nuggets, twenty chips and a spoonful of baked beans) I understand that it’s a seasonal Business, but this is a family orientated place and I think families might be put off by the price’s. I ordered two kids chicken nugget meal, and when the order was shouted out it was one nugget and one fish finger, not sure how they could get that wrong, they did swap it, but the attitude was not good about doing it. This is not a cool or cozy cafe, it’s a eat and wipe down type of canteen, it just did the job, yes I would go in and buy a cold drink if I needed go on passing, but it is not a place I would need to eat in again!

Paid £4.80 for two thin slabs of bread and two bits of fatty bacon. Not impressed. Will not return.

Worst cafe in Portsmouth, everything is just so wrong about this horrible place!

Could not find fault, excellent value for money!

I never post negative reviews but the customer service here was just appalling. Popped in around 4 o clock on Sunday as my son had had a bump at the park so thought I'd cheer him up with an ice cream. No one was at the till or the serving counter and the place was empty apart from one lady who obviously worked there who was chatting with a man. We were not acknowledged in any way so after a little while I politely called over 'are you open' to which I had no reply. A few moments later I try again - 'excuse me, are you still open?' to which the lady lady justshreaks 'YES.' We immediately took our custom elsewhere and won't be coming back.

4 star Cup of tea, very good tea 1 star hot chocolate, too lumpy.

Had an amazing experience, friendly staff and really good food. Dog friendly too, highly recommend and will go back for sure!

Very poor, run by miserable person, sutch a shame 👾

We came for ice-creams & my daughter licked hers and didn’t like it. The kind lady let her choose a different flavour. It genuinely made her day. Thank you!

Abysmal service. Teach your staff manners! Young kids serving with bad attitude, rudeness and total lack of respect for customers. Prime location could have four times the amount of clientele. Will NEVER go again and advise you all not to.

Not many vegetarian options here for lunch. My Mum and I opted for a baguette and panini respectively - both tasted average and were expensive at over £5 each. Value for money wasn’t good. Took quite a long time for the food to come out and this process was haphazard as the staff didn’t give anyone an order number, just called out food items. This caused confusion with some customers who had ordered the same thing but obviously at different times. Our food was served in takeaway packaging which is bad for the environment - they knew we were eating in so should have served the food on/in something more eco-friendly. Chips here are also not vegetarian due to being cooked in the same fryer as fish products, which was a big disappointment. Cafe didn’t smell very nice either. Wouldn’t recommend.

Lovely ice cream, awful staff. The lady on the ice cream kiosk was stood chatting to her friend/colleague about how she cheated on her boyfriend and totally blanked me as I stood right in front of her. All I wanted was an ice cream for my son! Several customers behind me had the same unfortunate experience, for a cafe that sells kids toys and ice creams the language she was using really wasn't child friendly. Definitely will be avoiding in the future!

Food was fine and reasonably good value. Girls couldn’t be more disinterested in serving us. Leaning on the till and both very reluctant to clear tables. One table received their food before someone who had ordered before and when asked about it they replied ‘Well we don’t cook the food in order’. Err… what?! Won’t be going back in a hurry.

Absolutely terrible staff and management waited by table no one cleaned they have seen us no one come to ass but they are happy to sell on till especially in this covid time how can be even allowed to be open when they dont use hygiene in this time of year tables inside all dirtying they provide table service and none of them like to take plates and cleans….

Love the food and great ice-cream

Just don't bother. And if you do, remember I said dont bother. Positive reviews are obviously paid for. I've never had such rubbish food and service in my life. They it must be the prime location keeping them in business because it's certainly not the food or service. It's a bacon sarnie love not a creme brulee...

Average coffee shop, nothing special. My family was having a walk and I decided to pop over for a quick coffee :)

Staff are Lush Friendly here. Great selection of Food and Beverages. They even have feed for sale for the Swans 🦢 Admireable Respect and regards to Management and Staff. 🙌💖😎👍

Love their specials, always tasty. Good value for money and fast service. Ice cream is excellent too.

On a sunny day it was quite pleasant to sit outside the cafe and have lunch. The food was pretty basic, I had burger and chips which was served in a styrofoam box with plastic cutlery. I think ice cream and drinks are the main business of the cafe. I am sure there are much better places to eat once you get away from the seafront.

So Run Down This Place Should Be Demolish And Rebuild more Modern With 2/10 Floors With More Chairs And Tables And Wheelchairs Accessible

Cafe served up daily ice cream when I asked for vegan. Ice cream was delicious, but allergic daughter will suffer from it.

Ordered simple food, can’t fault it although Wasn’t too much of a wait to receive it Probably because my burger was half finished Biggest downside to eating here was some of the girls just had no customer service skills, proper limp smile.. only a few hours left :)

Very nice food and is a reasonable price! Growing up this place done the best chips, and the ice cream is amazing. You can buy buckets and crabbing equipment to use at the lake.

Visited Canoe lake today to get an ice cream with my family. 2 of us got an ice cream in a cone and another wanted a magnum. After asking if they had any I was rather rudely told by the young girl with braces that ice lollies were down the other end. No offer to get it for me and she didn't seem to care that they would loose my business. This is not the 1st time I have had dealings with this really rather rude young woman. Staff training is obviously non existent. Maybe a course in Customer Service and how to interact with Customers would not be a bad thing. Vile, rude service. Don't go there. I do not recommend this place at all. Bad bad service.

Entré solo para tomar un helado ya que estábamos listos para el día. Algida / Walls era bueno, pero el personal no era amable, no servicial y ciertamente no sentía que realmente quisieran servirnos. No lo recomiendo si quieres una sonrisa con tu helado (¡aunque estuvo bueno!)

Got in only for ice-cream as we were down for the day. Algida / Walls was good, but staff was not friendly, not helpful and certainly didnt feel they actually wanted to serve us! Not recommend it if you want a smile with your ice-cream (which was good though!)

Servicio realmente pobre. Es necesaria la formación del personal en intolerancia alimentaria y modales.Habiendo pedido helado en tarrina por intolerancia al gluten se presentó en cono. Cuando se señaló el servidor, de mala gana, trató de poner las mismas bolas en una tina. Cuando le dijeron que esto no funcionaría, volvió a poner el helado en los recipientes principales. En este punto me di por vencido. Espero que esto no le sirva a alguien que también es intolerante.

I visited the food kiosk last Sunday gave the assistant £10 for a £6 meal but didn’t get Given my Change I went back and was told that she would ring me if till was over my concern is did the £10 not go in the till 😡

Cafe está en un extremo del lago con botes. A fines de mayo se acercaba el final del cierre de Covid y la cafetería brindaba un servicio básico (¡pero bienvenido!) Con bebidas, helados y bocadillos limitados a pedido. Una ventana para hacer pedidos y otra para recoger, con asientos al aire libre desafortunadamente taponados por el momento. El personal brindó un servicio eficiente dentro de las limitaciones bajo las que operaban. Los pedidos de refrigerios / comidas tardaron un poco en prepararse, pero quizás sea una indicación de que los artículos están recién preparados, por lo que vale la pena esperar. Tenga cuidado al comer ya que las palomas y las gaviotas están esperando para saltar: - (

Absolutely awful food. Says panini on the board and this is what I received. I paid £7.80 for 2 sandwiches.

I Went There On 30/12/19, Great Experience, Given That It Was My First Visit To Canoe Lake.

The view onto the lake from here reminds me of a novel I read that had this place in it! Was it a story or was it true, though. A frozen lake you could walk on, and swans in the middle. This is a good place to sit, summer or winter, people are passing by, walking their dogs, living their normal lives. Completely unsuspecting. How could they guess that just to ask for the golden envelope, they will receive a prize? It is true. But for a short time only, so you must rush, yes? They will all be gone. One day I shall count all the swan depictions that this cafe has inside, but for now it just nice to enjoy a mug of nice coffee with a scone, watching the real birds gracefully making rounds around the lake. It is definitely a location for a for a fox to go to ground.

Llevé a mi madre de 85 años aquí el sábado 21 de septiembre en la calle, las mesas estaban sucias y vacilantes, le pedí una comida de bacalao y papas fritas que llegó 35 minutos después de haber sido ordenada, no nos llamaron para decir que la comida estaba lista. en un mostrador de servicio, cuando me di cuenta de que era de ella y fui a recogerlo, faltaban los guisantes blandos con los que se suponía que se servía, el personal de la cocina estaba escaso cuando lo señalé y luego llegaron, estaban tibios y crujientes claramente tenían El pescado era un bulto repugnante prosesado y estaba quemado, las patatas fritas grasosas e incomibles, el café estaba tan grasiento como las patatas fritas y ahora es martes y mi madre ha sufrido un malestar estomacal desde la visita, lo que no sorprende después de ver pasteles el mostrador cubierto de moscas ni siquiera estaba cubierto, el personal de la cocina estaba comiendo mientras cocinaba, no es un lugar que recomendaría a cualquiera que el personal pareciera que todavía debería estar en la escuela y podría usar un poco de capacitación en servicio al cliente, cómo obtuvieron una calificación de 5 por higiene No sé, la persona que evaluó el lugar debe haber sido ciega

¿No estoy seguro si el café ha cambiado su nombre cuando noté que el letrero (ver mi foto) actualmente dice "casa de té en el lago canoa"? Fue un agradable día de tarde de domingo cuando visitamos, así que estaba bastante ocupado. Nos sentamos afuera y, aunque tiene una hermosa vista sobre el lago, la hierba directamente enfrente está cubierta de pájaros y las aves también pueden ser un poco molestas tratando de alimentarse con restos de comida (podría ayudar si las mesas se limpiaran y limpiaran más rápido). La comida se sirvió más rápido de lo que esperaba y, en general, no pensé que fuera un mal valor.

What a greasy spoon! Grease on the tables, grease on the cheap ketchup bottles, grease on the fan, greasy food! The tables were filthy! The kids meals were not worth the money and didn't even come with a drink! The actual food was mediocre. The panini was tasty but expensive. There are much better cafés a short walk away. Such a shame - it could be so much better

Enjoyed a rest and snack here after a long walk. It’s a cafe that offers good food at reasonable prices to suit all. The staff are friendly and there are chairs both inside and outside to enjoy the views and watch families and children enjoying themselves on canoe lake.

Garbage food & lousy tea, staff mistreated too

Fast pace, busy cafe on a sunny day. You pay for what you get.

Came here for an ice cream. There was cross contamination of flavours for one and both were half melted straight out of the tub! Little care was taken to have a good solid scoop and by the time I got it to OH both were dripping over the sides and in danger of falling out of the cone. Little time to enjoy it as was eager to finish before it went everywhere!

As local to this cafe we gave it a try for breakfast. The breakfast was ok and a good price but the service was awful. Girl on till did not offer a drink when we asked if breakfast came with tea/coffee. We were the only customers ordering then the next ones that came in were told it would be 30 minutes wait. The cook was stressed out and there was not even 6 customers. I hate to think what it would be like if busy. A group of four ordered 4 breakfasts and they got 2 then the other 2 ten minutes later.Its a lovely little cafe but the staff just don't give a toss. Send in Mr Ramsey !!!

Staff forgot our order and then got it wrong. There was barely an apology for the inconvenience when I was offered my money back. Infact I would say the attitude was surly. Customer service was incredibly poor and inexperienced staff appeared to be working with no adequate supervision. Very disappointing.

Hemos estado varias veces en este café, ya que está cerca del parque y el mar. El servicio es mixto, intentan llevarte la comida rápidamente, pero el personal no es muy amable. Esto podría deberse a que no hay muchos para el número de clientes. En este sábado en particular no pudieron mantenerse al día con la rotación de cenas, así que terminamos limpiando nuestras propias mesas. La comida está bien y obtienes la selección habitual de café: sándwiches, panini, papas, desayuno todo el día, etc. Lo que realmente decepciona es el estado de los inodoros y el hecho de que se abre directamente en el área para comer.

Given the other reviews, I must have gone on a particularly bad day: it was hellish. The food was inedible: tinned soup and cheap, white sliced bread; nuked lasagne. The staff were irritable and had no qualms shouting over each other in front of, and interrupting, customers. My food wasn’t called, it just lay on a cold surface waiting to be collected. Lovely location, such a shame that the food or service wasn’t able to justify it.

Food was shocking. If you have a sign saying gourmet burgers at least serve burgers made from actual meat and not what ever that pattie was made of. I opted for a topping of chilli, which to my disappointment was a cheap nasty sauce rather than actual chilli, hope they dont slop that sauce on rice for the chilli and rice meal. As fo the chips, the portion that accompanied my nasty burger were from at least 3 batches judging but the varying shades from golden brown to barely blanched. You'd be better eating a crab from the stagnant pond than what they serve up.

Such a treat to be able to buy a gluten free ice cream and a cone (that is individually wrapped). Lots of flavours to choose from and clearly labelled for anyone needing gluten free. Lots of seating inside and out overlooking the lake.

Really friendly staff Great ice cream flavours

Perfect spot, overlooking the lake, with seating outside too. Tasty food. Most important of all, to me .... the proprietor allows well - behaved dogs inside the café itself !

Lovely cafe, serves hot and cold food. Also has ice cream. Good price

I brought my grandchildren to the beach, my grandson always being hungry, I went to the Canoe Lake cafe to get some lunch. Children’s lunch box £5, a pre-made sandwich, carton of juice and crisps.

Had lunch at this cafe last week, very friendly staff, good prices, very clean, we were very impressed. Decent size mugs for our tea, we all had the big cheese mac dish, lovely !!

Lovely staff. Beautiful views. Good selection of food and drink.

Lovely cafe, great to have a bite and warm drink while watching the kiddies play!

Delicious macaroni cheese. Yummy

We visited here in the start of April and the sun was out after months of cold weather and people were pouring into southsea and the little canoe lake. The queue for the ice cream was crazy it just went on for hours. The food looked OK, and the tea was nice in a mug, and the selection of cakes were on offer was minimal but looked very nice. The staff were really under pressurse with amount of customers and I think the management should pay them more wages as thier have to put up with some of the miserable customers. They were rushing all over the place trying to keep up with the streams of customers. I like the prices as it was reasonably. It's got toilets and it's was reasonably clean on the table and chairs. It's even got a food hygine rating of 5. So that is reassuring. The staff looked happy enough but to its very busy and they all should by compensated. I like this place its regular and cozy and very British traditional cafe.

Friendly service and value for money drinks and snacks; lovely location too!

Friendly staff went to do a photo shoot for a newspaper article with Lord Mayor of Portsmouth and Deputy Lord Mayor they couldn’t of been more helpful. Lovely variety of foods and drinks on offer. Reasonable priced and very clean.

On the 6th April 2018 I went on a visit to Southsea and Portsmouth to first visit the newly refurbished D day museum. Southsea is a seaside resort located in Portsmouth at the southern end of Portsea Island, in the county of Hampshire. It developed as a fashionable Victorian seaside resort in the 19th. century, originally it was named named Croxton Town. The name Southsea originates from Southsea Castle; a fort, located on the seafront and constructed in 1544 to help defend the Solent and approaches to Portsmouth Harbour. Palmerston road is the main High Street of Southsea and contains two national department stores, as well as a local library. Albert Road is a distinct street containing shopping and cultural venues, which includes the Kings Theatre, a regional theatre built in 1907. The Pier here is great for a stroll on a hot summers day. It looks magnificent from any angle you view it. The D-Day Museum is located in Southsea, was the place I wanted to visit having seen it on the Internet. It was opened in 1984 by Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother, it tells the story of Operation Overlord during the Normandy D - Day landings. The D - Day Museum is home to the Overlord Embroidery and was specially built to hold it. The Overlord Embroidery took five years to complete and measures 272 feet ( 83 metres ) long. It is the largest work of its kind in the world. Visitors are handed a Sound device upon entering the museum, which allows them to hear an audio commentary. As well as the film and embroidery there are also vehicles and displays of other material associated with D-Day and the war. The museum has its own shop and restaurant. The museum is run by Portsmouth Museum Services, a branch of Portsmouth City Council, and is supported by Portsmouth D-Day Museum Trust, a registered charity. I have to say building work and renovation was still being carried out when I visited the Museum so I was a little unhappy with the £8.00 entrance ticket fee. Inside the Tapestry work they call it Embroidery work was unique. But the rest of the museum was clean laid out well but lacked something in presentation. Following a £5 million transformation project - with thanks to the Heritage Lottery Fund - the museum has now been transformed, to provide an engaging insight into the lives of those who took part in D - Day, whether they were individuals on the shore based in Portsmouth, or those who went over to Normandy. To commemorate the millennium, a scenic walk was created extending to Gunwharf Quays from Southsea seafront. Being the beginning of April this walk which I completed was very cold and windy. The route is marked on the pavement, and is lined by distinctive blue street lanterns. The Portsmouth Naval Memorial, sometimes known as the Southsea Naval Memorial, is a war memorial and can be seen on the Southsea Common beside Clarence Esplanade, between Clarence Pier and Southsea Castle. The memorial commemorates about 25,000 British and Commonwealth sailors who were lost in both World Wars. Around 10,000 sailors in the First World War and 15,000 in the Second World War lost their lives. The memorial features a central obelisk, with names of the dead on bronze plaques arranged around the memorial according to the year of their death. The model Village opposite the pier, the address is Southsea Model Village, Lumps Fort, Eastney Esplanade, Portsmouth, Hampshire, PO4 9RU. Where you can marvel at the 1/12th scale buildings, which features forty miniature buildings, houses, forts and castles, as well as a `G' scale garden railway. The third-acre landscaped gardens are set inside the grounds of an old Victorian fort. Contained inside are a large scale electric garden railway, a 100ft-long rifleman's tunnel, a scale model of Portsmouth Guildhall, a 10,000-gallon waterfall and stream, and a small toy museum. The cost was £4.00 to get in. There is a small cafe with a few chairs outside for light refreshments.

The catering staff were super caring. Food was okay. Personally not the kind of cafe I'd want to go for sit down meal but great for passing to grab a quick ice cream, chips, coffee or/and snack with kids or/and friends.

Not he best cafe, everything is full of grease and the cheapest meat products I have ever encountered gross absolutely disgusting.

We visited Portsmouth and spent time at Canoe Lake And the cafe. The Blonde Lady at the ice cream was lovely as my Daughters ice cream fell off the cone and she replaced it immediately and boy are these ice creams good they are Marshfields which we prefer and she even offered a gluten free cone to me. The Cafe is on an beautiful spot and we visited 3 times and found the Staff friendly and dog friendly. Highly recommended.

Myself and some mum's were meeting for a coffee and a chat approximately 8 of us (understanding we all had prams so did our best to move these out the way). It's daunting being a first time mum going out with newborns-6 months. As we all had babies in our hand it was hard to go order etc. However when one of us did we were told we were cluttering the space.. and we shouldn't be there if we aren't going to by something!!

Canoe Lake cafe was fabulous. Great service, very helpful and delicious food. Bacon baguette so tasty. Sat out side with my westie, in the sun and watching the swans.

Well I can't believe the change what a let down.when ew paid the cafe a visit last week what a surprise lots of new seating outside fancy tables and chairs but there it ends. When ordering food the staff were very rude they didn't have time to converse with me the customer because they where to busy talking to each other and the guy behind me walked out in disgust at the way he was spoken to and to make it worse the tables needed cleaning.So please can we have the cafe back to how it used to be nice staff and a little bit cleaner.

We went in for a drink after visiting the model village.

This cafe has been there forever and we've popped in occasionally for a cup of tea or a snack and thought it was so-so. Well we've been twice this week and I was really impressed. We ordered fish and chips expecting hem to taste like deep fried frozen food but actually they were delicious. We went back today for ice-cream, there are about 20 to choose from and they're very very good.

Called in on Saturday 11th August. Ordered cakes and teas. The tea had lumps of cream floating on top so we asked if it could be changed. It was changed but with a big tut and sigh. The replacement cup looked like a cup of water with milk in. We asked for stronger and the lady serving moaned and said “NEXT TIME ASK FOR IT STRONGER”. There won’t be a next time I’m afraid.

The worst quality fish and chips I have ever had. The first one I sent back as the fish was non existent in the batter. The second one wasn't much better. My children had scampi and chips and the first one shot off the plate and onto the floor as it was so overcooked and all as hard as bullets. My friend had a prawn sandwich which looked and tasted nice. I will not be ordering a cooked meal there again.

Had a pot of ice cream which should have been GF except It had cookie ice cream mixed in. Once discovered I quietly told a very uninterested member of staff who had served me, she said ‘I always wash my scoops, but sometimes ice cream drops into other tubs when serving’ and was walking away from me when saying it! Obviously no idea! ...no offer of refund, or apology.

Good service and quick . Even when swamped with dithering tourists.

Cheesy chips for me please. Good prices and a nice family spot just back from the sea front. Free parking nearby too.

Decided to stop here for my favourite ice-cream - Marshfields. Waited in a queue while people placed food and drink orders as the ice cream counter wasn't manned. Was served by a girl on her first shift who was being instructed by an indifferent member of staff. £8.90 for a single scoop and 2 double scoop tubs. When I questioned the portion size I was told " that's it" !!! Won't be going back there again which is a real shame as location is brilliant

Very good all round cafe, they accommodate all ages, sell hot and cold food, ice cream. Buckets and fishing nets for grabbing on the lake. Food for the swans.

Great food but a but pricey, needs air con too on hot days

Conveniently located with view of the lake. Standard range of drinks, snacks and ice-creams.

Great place to stop for a tea/coffee or lunch with views of the lake very relaxing

Great range of ice cream flavours

£15 for a kids meal, and two chilli con carne's with jacket potatoes. Whilst I can't fault the frendliness of the staff it has to be said that the quality of the food was shocking. Maybe I have unrealistic expectations but when I saw that my chilli came from a can I was very disappointed and should have demanded a refund but my son was hungry and so going somewhere else and waiting a furthere length of time was out of the question. We won't be going there again and urge others to give this placentury a wide berth.