Casks Restaurant in North Ayrshire

We arrived around 2:00 PM and found the cafe filled to capacity. Had to wait about half an hour for a seat for two to open up for us. I was all excited to try the soup of the day, but the chalkboard featuring the daily features was erased prior to us ordering, as the specials of the day had been depleted. The menu is limited, and I have a paprika/pepper allergy, so my options are usually few to begin with nowadays. So, I decided to try the Arran Cheese sampler, and the special Golden Latte, that has a shot of the creme liquer that Lochranza makes. I certainly enjoyed both. My suggestion is that if you are planning on a meal at the cafe, be sure to arrive early!

Emailed a few weeks before to book a table for lunch whilst my partner went on the distillery tour. It was quite busy on the day, so glad I did as the kitchen closed early. A note said it was closed Monday and Tuesday, so probably best to call or email ahead if you are taking a trip to Arran especially. The staff were very friendly, cleared a table straight away for us (we were early). The service was quick and they kindly bought out an ice cream with drinks to keep my toddler quiet! The burger was a good and the haggis with the cheese was delicious, as was the chutney/pickle that accompanied the sandwich. Crisps were served with meals instead of chips. However, one of my children (bored and fractious waiting for partner to finish his distillery tour) suddenly decided they wanted an ice cream, but the kitchen had closed. The staff kindly went out of their way to get this for us. I recommend a hot chocolate with a sneaky shot of Arran Gold as it came with a delicious little chocolate truffle! Lots of customers ordered some drams and oatcakes to their table which was very popular

Leuke bar waar je een snelle hap kunt eten en iets kunt drinken. Lekkere koffie in een gezellige sfeer;

We went to The Cafe after a tour and tasting. Although there was a mix up with our order it was sorted by efficiently and we all enjoyed our lunch.

We visited this café twice. Both times the food was freshly cooked and very good. Their scones were big and full of flavour. All staff members were friendly and helpful. The shop provided a source for some unique Christmas presents and we bought several bottles of the Arran gold liquor

Had a lovely meal here with friends after the chocolate and whisky tasting (really good). Relaxed atmosphere.

Had lunch in the delightful cafe, and it was a treat. Food was very good, service was even better. Very pleasant upstairs room, with layout adapted to increase spacing between tables. Very clean and well-maintained.

We visited the cafe prior to our whiskey tasking experience. The food was lovely and very reasonably priced. The whole experience at the distillery was first class. The reception staff were very helpful and obliging. Well worth a visit.

The lay out is modern, efficient and attractive. This is a newly constructed setup with smartly attired and engaging staff. You must stop and partake of the fare even if you've just visited the shop!

Been visiting Arran for decades and never been here before. We were visiting Lochranza for a walk and fancied a drink and snack. I highly recommend Casks Cafe within the distillery. Staff very friendly and attentive. Drinks were great and the food was of a high quality. Beautiful views of the hills. A wide range of food and drink. It’s licensed so take your pick! The toilets have Arran Aromatics handwash so that’s a huge plus for me. I left satisfied having had a lovely glass of wine and a cheese toastie with the most wonderful salad but also left smelling great!

The cafe is situated upstairs within the visitors centre and offers a good selection of hot and cold food at a great price. We had courgette and blue cheese soup, with a haggis ciabatta which was £9. The soup was homemade and lovely and thick and very tasty, and the haggis ciabatta, well what’s not to love?! Staff were all lovely, really polite, friendly and helpful. They also have a good range of cakes, tray bakes for those who just want a coffee and a snack (we took some home) 😊

The staff, food, beverages and service were excellent. We visited it, as part of our superb distillery tour and would certainly come back.

This cafe is a wee gem. The food is lovely and the staff are great; know a lot about the whiskey and are able to advise on it.

The café has a very nice menu with a lot of choice. The soups are homemade and the food is fresh. The whisky is also rather tasty!

Ein schön angelegtes kleines Café auf der Galerie im ersten Stock der Destillerie. Eine schöne Auswahl an Kaffee, Kuchen, Tee, sowie kalten und warmen Speisen zu einem moderaten Preis. Der Service ist nett und freundlich. Das WLAN ist das Bonbon auf den gut gemachten Kuchen und die Scones sind eine Versuchung. Die Aussicht rundet das Erlebnis noch ab. Apropos. Kinderspielzeug gibt es auch.

Three of us enjoyed a light lunch here last week. It was difficult deciding what to order as there were so many tempting dishes on offer. In the end I went for the Arran butcher haggis, which was absolutely delicious, nicely presented and good value for money. The café itself is light and airy with great views and the staff were very friendly. Top marks!

A lovely setting and a lovely building with a great visitor centre and of course the distillery. However they don't serve breakfasts, which is such a shame.There is a campsite in the village, a hostel and loads of motorhomes who park up for the night, not to mention the ferry terminal down the road. All of which I thought would be a huge market for breakfasts.We arrived as they opened and immediately after us another couple asked for breakfast and were similarly disappointed.The toastie and tea and coffee we did have was excellent though but we both felt there was a huge missed opportunity here.

What an enterprise! We enjoyed a fabulous cheese and salmon platter for two. The staff were very accommodating and friendly. The atmosphere was buzzing. Great spot for lunch.

Ich habe hier vor der Destillerieführung ein feines Mittagessen genossen. Dies ist von Vorteil, wenn man zum Abschluss die Degustatuion besuchen will :-)

After the whisky tour this was literally the icing on the cake 🙃 Friendly staff, delicious baking and a nice menu of tasty lunch time meals. The distillery platter was huge, delicious and great value for money.

During our visit to some of the Scottish Isles, we discovered that distilleries are excellent places for lunch. This one was no exception. We shared a platter of local produce which, along with the service, was excellent.

We were staying at Lochranza campsite which is literally a 5 min walk to the distillery. After our distillery and tasting tour we decided to have a drink/something to eat in their cafe located on the upper level.

Really nice cafe with very friendly staff. Great coffee especially with a nip of whiskey. We also had an Arran Platter - very good!

Some time between a walk and the distillery tour, let's have lunch. A local beer and the Arran platter were great. Nice place to sit with very welcoming staff. It can get crowded when there are groups.

Nice venue, and I hope we were just unlucky with our choice. My cake was very dry and my partners millionaire shortbread was poor.

Situated within Arran distillery this cafe is upstairs with great views out the window and it's laid out spaciously with an airy vibe..the ladies are lovely and so helpful and friendly..the food is scrummy and good portion sizes too..try the Arran gold cake, it is delectable and they also do a Arran gold latte which is delicious..make a day out of your visit & pop in after/before your whiskey tour..

We went to the cafe after the tour and tasting. It was clear that people were going to the cafe just to eat and not because of the distillery, and we found out why. Excellent service and food. Highly recommended.

Had lunch here whilst we visited the Distillery and it was lovely. It was great to see so much local produce being used and the staff were very friendly - nothing was a bother. This is definitely worth a visit whether or not you go on a tour of the Distillery!

Wonderful setting in the Lochranza bay. An organised and informative tour. If you like your whisky, then lots of options to buy.

Very informative and interesting distillery tour with a sample in a small bottle for those who are driving. Nice selection of food available

After all the drams, this is a good place for a meal. The food is amazing and the staff are very friendly.

We had a cheese and salmon board and some cake after trying a couple dozen whiskies. Quality was excellent and it definitely hit the spot.

Lovely bright, modern and welcoming building. Very efficient service and a relaxing place to have a wee break on our way to Lochranza.

Just a quick visit for coffee and a cake. Could easily have had more but we had a lot of walking to do.

Served a range of quality sit down meals. They serve awesome soups, simple foods such as toasties (using lovely local ingredients) and more substantial meals as well. We were in a hurry to eat because we had a whisky tasting booked downstairs - the service was great to ensure we got what we asked for with time to spare

Firstly, this café is so much more than a café! The choice and quality of the food, and the service with a smile, make this our nomination for "Best Restaurant on Arran"!

they offer a great variety of slamon dishes and we enjoyed our food there tremendeously. especially the salmon paté. did not have time to visit the distillery inside (but i was on a Glengoyne tour a year ago) but ample selection of whiskies and gifts.

We were visiting the distillery, had two hours to wait so had a meal. The burger was out of this world - never had another like it. Excellent. Highly recommend it.

Just pure, plain and simple but with a great taste from fresh local produce. Either you stop by for a coffee and a cake or just a simple lunch, both are great to do so in the Casks Cafe.

We arrived at the distillery restaurant as we did last year. It was a beautiful summers day and we found a table outside. We were advised that they no longer serve food out side. The waitress muttered something about health and safety. We went upstairs and there was then a power cut. The waitress mentioned that we could only get something cold, so we ordered a seafood platter and cold beers. Salad just OK. No great choice on the menu. Other customers arriving 5 minutes later were told there was no service. So poor hospitality. The staff could not wait to get everybody out of the building and probably get the afternoon off. Any decent chef owner restaurant would been able to accommodate all customers. We were escorted outside and the doors were closed. We met 4 people from Norway who had come specially to taste the Arran whisky. The guy on the door said it was not possible - WHY! POOR hospitality. We had to apologise to the Norwegians for the poor reception.

Nach der Führung durch die kleine aber feine Distillierie bietet es sich an, einen guten Kaffee zu trinken.

Great platters, lunches and drinks and of course the WHISKIES. Superb location, friendly helpful staff. Relaxed and spacious.

We popped in for lunch during a recent trip to Arran. We got a table very quickly, were served promptly and the food was delicious. Although there are stairs to get to the restaurant, there is a coffee shop downstairs and a sign to say they will serve you there if you are unable to cope with the stairs. The views are lovely - if you can get a window seat.

First class cafe and visitor centre. We did not do the tour as we have done many and my hubby worked in the drinks industry! They do takeaway drinks downstairs, so if this is not what you are after, go upsatirs. Lovely cake and a great Scottish menu, salmon, cheese, soup etc. Nice shop too and great customer service, worth a visit.

We arrived for lunch midweek. The cafe wasn't very busy and we sat down at a table and waited for the table service, and waited, and waited. There were plenty of staff but no one taking orders. One woman was even slowly laminating menus while customers were waiting to be served. The couple opposite us who were also waiting gave up, got up and left. I went to the bar to ask if we could be served. Despite there being three staff members behind the bar It took a bit of effort to attract their attention as they chatted to each other. I had to shout excuse me to get any service and explained we had been waiting some time. At the same time another customer came up to ask for service. To be fair, after that a woman came promptly, took our order and apologised. The food when it came was very good otherwise this would have been a poor rating but the whole experience was let down by the service. Unfortunately I wouldn't return nor recommend.

This is a truly lovely establishment set above the welcome and waiting area for visitors.

We had to make the obligatory visit topic up a wee bottle and also visited the cafe for the first time for elevenses.

We went here to have breakfast. We had a platter with all sorts of Arran cheeses, Arran ham and Arran smoked salmon and another platter with Arran hot smoked salmon, Arran smoked salmon and a smoked salmon paté. The platters came with bread and oatmeal crackers. We drank cappuccino and it was as good as the food. We sat near at the window and looked over the countryside. The staff was extremely kind. We did not see the distillery but we had a look in the shop and it was really nice.

Really good homemade courgette and pea soup with a crusty roll followed by a glass of Arran Gold. Large café on 1st floor above shop. The platters looked lovely on the next table. We didn't go on a tasting tour as had been on a tour on my previous visit to Arran.

The disappointment was that the cafe was upstairs and not possible for anyone disabled to get to, and the view from downstairs was ok but not nearly as good as the upstairs cafe. However, the cakes we had and the coffee were both good and tasty.

A great platter of Arran local produce was a delight (salmon, ham, cheeses, oatcakes and local bread). The view over the hills is amazing. Friendly happy staff and great service. Oh and the distillery is also worth a visit!!!

Had a very enjoyable tour that I found very interesting and informative. Fascinating to see the process actually taking place. Tasting the malts was limited as I was driving but a tiny amount was enough to enjoy the quality.

Beautiful building - service slow and staff distracted (or uninterested?) Not busy so that was not the reason - expensive, very average lunch. We did not do the tour as only went to use the cafe.

We visited this cafe several times during our stay on Arran, as they offer a range of coffee/cake options and also lunch dishes. The whisky tour is very interesting, but we also just went for the cafe. Modern setting on the mezzanine of the distillery visitor centre, friendly service, nice soups with bread, many local specialities, whisky tasters, etc.

We were a party of 11 of differing ages from 11-83. Er had soup,sandwiches and drinks which were very tasty and fresh. The tours were free in winter and some of our party booked in and enjoyed it very much

Friendly staff and lovely food. I went here twice within one week. The savory food and cakes are both great - and so is the hot chocolate!

Both times my wife and I have been here it was for a quick lunch and it did not disappoint. They offer paninis, soup etc and it is really good quality food located in what is an amazing visitor attraction.

We enjoyed delicious coffees and cakes after our Arran Distillery tour. The staff were extremely friendly . I definitely recommend the Arran Gold cake and their scones are amazing. It was very reasonably priced. Definitely worth a visit .

Le café se situe dans la distillerie , l atmosphère est agréable et simple. Pas de grande cuisine mais le service est agréable et rapide. La vue est atypique.

Met by unhappy staff, that’s after being sat for a while and having to ask to order!

Food looked average, but cakes (etc) looked starchy, unrefined, and unappetising.

Excellent food, great value and fantastic service. There is a full range of Arran whisky on sale too at reasonable prices. Well worth a visit while you’re at the distillery or just passing by.

We arrived cold and wet after a long walk and our hearts sank when we saw a notice of a reduced service because of an unforeseen event. However what they offered was great. Delicious leek and potato soup. Then a double salmon platter loaded with cold smoked salmon, hot smoked, salmon pate, oatcakes, bread and salad. Cider and wine. All for,about £40.

Six of us, three couples, visited the Arran Distillery and did the tour and tasting. When we came out we were going to have coffee and cake, but the lunch menu looked so inviting, and it was so close to lunch time, that we decided to treat ourselves to lunch out instead of grabbing a sandwich later. We were so pleased we did. You never know quite what to expect from cafes that are part of another attraction, sometimes they are a bit of an afterthought - not this one. The food was every bit as delicious as it sounded. The men had stag burgers, two ladies had smoked salmon salad and the the other lady had a toastie. The staff were happy to accommodate slight changes requested, for example one of the group dislikes blue cheese, which is part of the stag burger meal, so they gave him cheddar on his instead. The food was every bit as good as any restaurant we have ever been in, and belive me the older we get, and the more expensive eating out becomes, the choosier we become. We all said if we were Arran residents we would be visiting Casks Cafe regularly.

What a great afternoon spent here , its only 5 mins from the ferry terminal at Lochranza .This is not an ancient distillery by Scottish standards ,opening in 1995 but its the only one on the Island and is turning out some excellent Malts ! we did the tour and after our free samples visited the Whisky/gift shop to indulge !! Thoroughly enjoyed by our family group.

We visited Casks Cafe on our trip around the island. I was very impressed by the distillery stage shop and the cafe. Lots of good options for light bites. The haggis with cheese topping was outstanding. It sounded like a bit of a strange combo but really tasty. The cafe offers a good example of great local produce. Will return next time I visit Arran

We had venison burger and seafood platter. Both were very nice as were the desserts. A pleasant interlude with nice views over the hills.

Had a late lunch here after the whisky tasting tour. We both had platters and shared. Local produce, simply done but very tasty. Staff friendly and the venue itself within the distillery was relaxed and comfortable. Great way to pass the afternoon and a leisurely walk back into Lochranza afterwards to take in the beautiful area.

While visiting lochranza we decided to pop in here for a drink and a bite to eat after taking a seat we watched as the torn faced waitress took the order from the table next to us. Every request was met with a tut and a sigh .She then proceeded to walk past us ignoring my partners attempts to attract her attention and attend to people who had arrived after us so after bring ignored for around 20 minutes we decided to leave. Terrible display of customer service, for a place which relies on tourists to survive think the management need to have a serious look at their staff attitude.

Nice spacious modern café situated on the first floor of the distillery. Went here twice for coffees. Nice friendly staff. Lovely coffee and cakes. Ample parking and cycle racks. On our second visit we had cycled there in the pouring rain to find the café was full with a waiting list but the lovely lady on reception got us coffees to drink in the reception area.

A small cafe located inside the visitor centre for the Arran distillery. Called in for an 11 o'clock coffee.Ordered Americano, cold milk, cheese scone and jam. Coffee was large, hot, but bitter.Cheese scone was ok, did not seem to be fresh and had been reheated, cold in the middle.Jam - I had to ask for it a second time and it was a plastic hotel breakfast container.For the price I'd have expected fresh scones and the jam to be homemade or from a jar.

The food and drink is beautiful and the staff are lovely. Not a lot more to say really. Its always a pleasure to come back to this place. Long may it flourish.

Good table Service and lovely food. The platters are excellent value for money. We tried the Distillers platter and the salmon platter on two separate occasions and both were delicious and so fresh. Cappuccino is one of the best too.

had a really nice burger here after visiting the centre, staff helpfull and friendly and a nice location,

a very pleasant café in the distillery visitor centre. Staff were very pleasant and helpful. We had coffee and scones delicious !!! clean well presented toilets too. Would recommend a visit if you are in the area.

Located inside the visitor centre for the Arran distillery this is a small cafe which provides mostly a lunch service.The quality of the food is very good if perhaps the range of options not very diverse. The prices are about the top end of what you would hope to pay but in keeping with being part of the distillery rather than a standalone business.

The location upstairs at the distillery visitor centre is nice and airy and leads to expectations of excellence. Unfortunately, the scones were a disappointment being dry and in the case of the fruit scone only contained a single raisin. This put a temporary damper on our visit which was remedied by a visit to the distillery shop.

Stopped here on route to ferry. Lovely building and restaurant but found the choice on menu limited. This was further limited when our waitress informed us there was only 1 portion of soup left and no haggis left. After ordering, she then returned to say 'theres no bacon left either'. It was mid afternoon so I can understand that there were no specials available but running out of basic dish ingredients is poor.The baked potato was small with a rubbery skin (thankfully the tuna mayonnaise filling - served separately - was the only good thing about the dish). The pate dish can be recommended but lacks enough oatcakes to use up all the pate served! Thankfully our initial waitress (who definately lacked people skills) disappeared after the food was served and another member of staff, who was friendly and chatty, served our drinks - improving our visit experience. 10 year old malt can also be recommended

We were staying at the Lochranza camp site. We called in for lunch and ordered: quiet expensive and then advised the potato skins were not available (this was early in the lunch service). It was a hot day and I asked for water for the dog - it never materialised. I had to get a refund as I had already paid for the potato skins and this took longer than I would have expected because the member of staff 'had never done it before'? This caused another customer to be late for a tour of the distillery.

stopped here for some lunch whilst driving round island coffee and a toastie delish lovely atmosphere and gorgeous surroundings would defo return!!!

Lovely space and good food, but the service was terrible. I was there at lunch and it took almost 2 hours to be served and eat 2 courses. We had to ask 3 times for dessert and ended up clearing our main course plates ourselves. The restaurant wasn't full and the 5 or so staff seemed to spend most of their time chatting at the counter. Stronger management and more staff training required!

Went here when we got off the ferry at Lochranza. Four of us had the soup and sandwich for £9 each. Very nice indeed. We all enjoyed the food. Let me say it is not just any old sanwich oh and you can get a baked potato instead of a sandwich.

An informative visit round the Arran Whisky Distillery, followed by lunch in Casks Cafe. Good food and good service. Not expensive.

Dropped in twice. 1st time for coffee and cake which were top draw. Returned for Lunch the following day Haggis and Cheese open sandwich was great and the distillers plater was "the best plater" my girlfriend had ever had!

Despite being a local on Arran, had never eaten here before. Took two lady visitors because one of them wanted to visit the distillery to try and buy Arran whisky. Great for a light lunch. Between four of us we had one of each of the cold platters - very enjoyable and good for sharing.Could not fault the staff who were very friendly and attentive.

Reasonably priced with friendly staff. Recommend popping in for lunch or a cuppa and cake. Had the Arran gold latte, absolutely divine!

Called in after reading reviews and wasn't disappointed. Cafe was busy but we found a table, staff were reasonably attentive. Food was good, enjoyed it.

It is a real shame that the cafe at the distillery wasnt a great end to a brill distillery tour and asuper place, gift shop great n local gent at till was brill,great customer service and very smart in his kilt. After tour we thought we wouldhave lunch there as nice weather we asked to sit outside. Firstly lady who took ourorder got it wrong twice whileordering,when food came two things were wrong even when she corrected it when order was placed, we didntget areceipt ofwhat we ordered just a visacard receipt so couldnt check it, she then came out n told us she had charged us wrong as should of been acombo n she charged us indivdually but as we had alrready paid it wasnt that much difference in price n didnt offer a refund ! Thought that strange ! Also dissapointed as we got takeawaycups for our tea n it would of beennice to have had proper cups n saucers as we were still eating at establishemnt n not taking it away..soup was a littlke dissapointing to,no taste, . shame as we spent over £50 in cafe for six of usfor adrink n light snack. But the distillery tour wasbrilliant !

not a good experience unprofessional staff ,waited over 25 minutes for hot choc and cake for 4 ,banging noise from downstairs .

Can't praise this cafe enough amazing - great variety and simply stunning food at a fair price - outstanding quality of produce used and made freshly - staff amazing so helpful and polite - would definitely return

Stopped in after a wet day in the hills, we were lucky to get seats. The Haggis starter hit the spot perfectly and a wee taster of Arran gold went down a treat along with the cups of tea to warm up!

We stopped for coffee & home baking ( no whisky ). The coffee & baking were excellent & the rest of the menu looked good too.The location is good so try to get a table at the windows. But the standout was really the friendly staff which made this visit a wonderful start to our visit to Arran.

Stopped here for a tour and then had lunch before my boyfriend went on a tutor tour. The staff were so helpful - it was very busy but they were extremely efficient and very polite. We had the platter - the top one on the menu which consisted of ham, smoked salmon, pate, oatcakes, grapes, some cheese - thoroughly enjoyable. Also had a latte here - the coffee was steaming hot which is just how I like it.Very enjoyable lunch.

Stopped here for a coffee and a snack. Staff friendly and efficient and food very good with home cooking a plenty. Very good views from the café.

This si a great lunch place . It`s upstairs from the distillery shop . The quality of food is brilliant , and the staff are helpful and friendly . We really enjoyed our visit , and definitely wouldn`t miss this out when we`re back in Arran

Visited the other day for lunch and it was the only cafe/restaurant that was a tualy open in Lochranza. Food is on the expensive side but is of very good quality and there are no other eating options in this area.Well worth a stop and as its inside the distillery you may as well visit Aran's number one attraction at the same time.

Having tasted the local whisky, there awaits a further great selection of locally sourced products on the menu. Great experience! Helpful staff.

Sunday lunch at the distillery. What's not to like? Very impressive use of local ingredients to create first class food. The venison burger was one of the finest we have ever had the pleasure of eating, and the salmon platter was just as good. Including drinks, this all came to less than £20 - an absolute bargain! Do stop by if you can.

Stopped here to have a look, what an amazing place, had a very nice cold meat platter, duck,beef,ham really nice local chutney rustic bread. then a cheese platter all local cheeses plus chutney a blonde beer to wash it down bliss then tour around the distillery. Bought the Arron Gold cream lovely.Thanks to one of the staff (young lad) told us about the Baker at Blackfootwater, open only 9am-12am went there friday and fresh out of the oven fraccia with olives almond croissants plus normal ones right out of the oven died and gone to heaven.

whenever we visit the Isle of Arran we have lunch in this cafe and it never has changed the good Food. The service is perfect, everything is cosy and clean