Dolcella in Northumberland

i would not recomend this place unless you like getting ripped off priced out even for a cup of tea i would give this a miss if was you

I have been going to this cafe for the last year on a weekly basis for coffee, and occasional breakfast or lunch, the café overlooks Alnwick market and is a very pleasant place to sit and watch the world go by, there are plenty of tables and chairs to sit out, and they even supply blankets if its a little cool, the food is of a high standard and very reasonably priced, perfect for Breakfasts, and quality lunches, the staff are pleasant and capable, long may it last.

Now called Cafe Piazza this place has to be our worst ever experience eating out . Surly staff, stale bread , cold soup, hard baked potato and forgotten coffee order. Don’t know Alnwick well but I suggest eating anywhere else but here.

We ordered our food and when it arrived they missed one ! There were six of us and the table got full of used plates etc. whilst the staff stood around talking! When one of them did come across she took a few plates leaving the rest to make space for our coffee. Coffee was good.

It is now called Café Piazza. We ordered the small full English breakfast which came with all the usual trimmings but was of a size that did not leave one feeling bloated for the rest of the day. Also great value at £5.95. It was all freshly cooked to order and the coffee was excellent. Breezy service.

Staff a discrace, it was like having coffee in a youth club.....5 boys (staff) laughing and carrying on next to our table, scoffing toast. Tables dirty and coffee was left as it was so awful.

Didn’t see reviews before went- wouldn’t have gone if we had. Small cafe and it is very cramped in there. They need to organise the seating so people can actually manoeuvre without disrupting the other tables. We had coffee and scones. To be fair they were nice and tasted good, but the pot the jam came in was a cracked plastic pot so that could have actually been dangerous. ( Surely you would check this. ) The weird thing about this place is the staff. They all seem very disinterested and like they are doing you a favour when they move dirty things and clean the tables. No customer service skills at all. Wouldn’t recommend.

Lady with blue hair very nice. Rest of the staff were rude, disinterested, and had no idea what was going on. The food was awful, the falafel wrap was a bad joke. Exactly the sort of cafe you get that relies on zero repeat visits. Dont make our mistake.

I wish we’d seen other reviews before trying this place. Market day and the scone was awfully stale.

Stopped here for lunch on a day out in Alnwick. The female staff were horrible. The tables inside are cramped together with no room to move around. When we arrived we were given the menu on a clipboard the paper was dirty and full of people's food marks. When we ordered the lady who came was more bothered about talking to the people she knew on another table. One of the meals we ordered wasn't being served that day her reply was "oh we are not serving that today" no apology nothing it would have been nice to have been told this wasn't on the menu when we were given the menus as other places do. Another meal we ordered came with a spicy source we asked how spicy it was her reply was "I don't know, I haven't tried it" waitresses are always trained to know their menus in other places in case a customer asks anything. She then huffed and turned around to go and ask the chef but we said it didn't matter. As we were looking for another meal to replace the one not being served she was hovering over us which was very uncomfortable she did ask if we wanted more time so said yes. When we had decided she never came back to our table to had to go and tell her. The food was very slow to arrive (maybe cooked fresh to order??). The food was ok, the ciabatta was rock hard you could hardly cut or chew it and it has very little filling. The female staff were stood whispering on the middle of the cafe and in the area outside the cafe. Whether they are talking about customers or something else it looked very rude and unprofessional. They were constantly staring and smirking at myself who has a medical condition, so ignorant. The lady who took our order was stood behind the counter watching this family member eat. When I eyeballed them they turned away. We approached her and asked for mayonnaise and did get it but you got the impression that everything was a problem and she huffed all the time as if she couldn't be bothered. AVOID them only deal with male members of staff if you can. The women made the whole experience very uncomfortable if it had been up to me I would have walked out upon arriving and not given them any trade at all. I will never return to this cafe. I have heard a lot of good reports about Melvyn's cafe go there instead.

Very long wait for food, salad leaves gritty. Was the loud rap music for the benefit of the staff or the customers? Shan't be going back.

Now cafe piazza, terribly slow, food tiny in portions, 1 tablespoon of beans on the jacket potatoes and other meals mixing ingredients and undercooked jacket potatoes

Visited on a semi busy Saturday afternoon, however it was empty when we left, we were told it would be a half hour wait for food. This was fine, however an hour later the food arrived and what a disappointment it was. My daughters pizza was burnt and looked like a very cheap frozen effort. My wife's sandwich, which was average at best came with a side of brown slimy lettuce! My other daughter had the antipasti board which was missing a couple of items. My club sandwich was very bland and also contained a slice of brown lettuce. Expected a lot more as it's a great location and nice inside. The waitress did take a few quid off the bill and apologised a couple of times which softened the blow a little.

My food came after the person I was with had finished theirs. It was burnt, so decided to leave and go to Greggs. Staff seem really flustered/disorganised. Won't return.

Sun was shining, so myself and my daughter decided to sit for lunch, very soon we realised that there was a shortage of staff, and the three members that were there were stressed, not very convivial, but the sun was shinning, so we stayed, ordered at the counter, I had an antipasto board, when it eventually arrived it was dreadful, 3 ingredients were missing, olives, sun blushed tomatoes and basil, the Italian meats were on vet thin slice of salami, cooking pepperoni, and vet thin couple of slices of Parma ham, a quarter of pepper, some crumbled mozzarella and at least nice bread, not worth £6.95, my daughters panini was better but missing the marinara sauce, I did complain, and was no charged for my meal, coffee was nice. Will not be returning

We were ready for a coffee and saw Cafe Piazza with tables and chairs outside. We were served quite quickly and with excellent coffee. There was a notice on the door to say that they weren't able to serve food and were looking for a chef!

Decidimos parar aquí para el almuerzo durante nuestro viaje a Alnwick. Nos sentamos con nuestro perro. El menú estaba lleno con una fantástica selección. La camarera era amable y tomó nuestra orden. 2 sándwiches fríos y una chaqueta de patatas. Personas dentro venían después de nosotros y conseguir sus comidas, y luego un hombre pidió algo de comida caliente 20 minutos después de nosotros y se puso su! ! Después de una espera de 30 minutos tuvimos que preguntar si sabían cuánto nuestra comida iba a ser. Pensamos que probablemente olvidado. La chica nos fuimos y nos registramos y nos trajeron la comida. Se disculparon, sin embargo, nos decepcionó que hubiéramos tenido que sentarse en el frío y esperar mucho tiempo. Aparcamiento de mi papá fue corriendo y nos hubiera detenido para cafés pero pensamos por qué molestarte, fueron muy lentos. La comida era realmente muy bonito, muy bien presentado y servido caliente. Yo no sé por qué tardaron tanto tiempo. Teníamos cafés en otro lugar.

Paramos aquí en nuestro camino a Escocia. Llegamos a las 10:45 y me dijeron que no podía pedir del menú de desayunos como los últimos pedidos eran a las 10:30, así que nos fuimos para sándwiches que eran sosas y seco. Mientras estábamos comiendo una pareja llegó y servida por la misma camarera. . Me ordenados desde el menú del desayuno! Deberíamos haber ido a Melvyn's.

Found this place late in the afternoon for a late lunch. Great selection of food, reasonably priced, presented well with great service. Highly recommend for a light lunch or coffee.

Visitó a la familia para comer. La comida era fría - el queso en el paninis eran apenas tibia no importa derretida! La chica detrás del mostrador había un coldsore coldsore y decidió aplicar crema en vista completa de los clientes, decidió no lavarse las manos luego continuó para manejar la cubertería y lo envuelve en pañales! Odio ver la cocina como si esto es lo que pasa en la vista de los clientes.

went here for the first time last week, the staff were friendly and the service was fast. I heard it's good value but I wouldn't know because the lovely person I was with paid for me, so...!

Found in the Market Square near the Cross with tables outside to watch the world go by. I called in for a proper Italian double espresso. Served with a small amaretto biscuit. Biscotti's as well as other one-bite cakes/biscuits are available which I have not seen in other cafes. Definitely a place I recommend for coffee.

Have visited this lovely little café in Alnwick many times and our two visits last week did not disappoint. Lovely coffee and selection of sandwiches, paninis and pizza, or pasta. Lovely little sitting out area to watch the world go by in Alnwick Market Place. Recommend the pizza and also the toasties.

A frustrating experience. We waited at least 30 minutes, if not more, for a sandwich at lunchtime. Seeing as the cafe was very quiet and very few meals were coming out of the kitchen, we failed to see why the wait was so long. In the meantime we were served our drinks; 2 cans of pop, a flat white resembling what I can only describe as a flat cappuccino and tea for two with a leaky teapot and a milk jug that was impossible to pour without going all over the table. The sandwiches we eventually recieved were tasty and well made, however the overall experience left is feeling very frustrated indeed.

My family and I waited for over 10 minutes and despite serving staff coming and going, nobody acknowledged us. My wife proceeded inside where she was promptly ignored. A simple acknowledgement of new and waiting customers is an essential for any establishment that offers table service. We took our custom elsewhere and I recommend you do the same.

Lovely coffee that refreshes and sit outside when the sun comes out. Would recommend and visit again, thanks to the staff...

Came a bit late on a Sunday afternoon, hungry after a walk. We weren't expecting too much at what looked like a cafe about to shut for the day. Seemed quiet, and menu down to Paninis only. 4 mozzarella and tomato paninis and a couple of nice coffees were well made fresh and tasty.

We eat here for lunch as it was quite. The food was good value and fresh. The staff were friendly and the service was quick. You were also left in peace to eat your food. The place was spotless. It was also quite so you didn't feel squashed. Would definitely go back.

We popped in for a light lunch before travelling home and had a very pleasant meal in this friendly little cafe. A pannini and soup for £5.95 is not to be sniffed at and certainly not when you consider the quality of the fare served. There can be no qualms regarding the service or the food and this is a little delight in the heart of Alnwick, indeed it is situated in the market square. Do yourself a favour and pop in if your passing. Iain & Judith Scott

We called here today for a coffee during an afternoon shopping trip to Alnwick. The cappuccino was amongst the best we've had, served with a smile (and a biscuit too!). Lovely to sit and watch the world go by, somewhere we will definitely return to - the ice cream looked amazing but it wasn't the sort of day to tempt us away from a hot drink.

This cafe is a joy to visit. Situated in the market place in the middle of Alnwick. The weather was perfect so sat outside. The staff brought the coffee out to us together with a mini Italian cake which we had ordered. Thoroughly enjoyed our visit and recommend this little cafe and will definitely visit again when next in the area.

Popped-in for a coffee and a bacon sandwich on a Saturday morning. As the weather was nice for this time of year, there were several people sitting outside so we decided to take a seat next to the market cross. We ordered two bacon sandwiches with a Americano coffee (good value at £3.95 each) and two slices of toast. The coffee came straight out, but the food took half-an-hour, by which time the coffee was long gone. The sandwiches (on fresh bloomer bread) were delicious. I did ask for some brown sauce after not being offered any accompanying condiments, but the young waitress forgot, I then went inside to ask again and was hurriedly handed some in a small pot. Would go back at a quieter time without hesitation.

This Italian-style cafe is perfectly located to enjoy views over the market place in Alnwick if the weather permits sitting outside. One can truly soak in the ambience of the lovely town from here. Indoor seating is also available. As an Italian-style cafe one expects good coffee and is not disappointed. It alsp specialises in good quality ice cream. The cafe serves breakfasts and a range of light lunches including paninis and sandwiches which are good. Service is friendly and efficient and the place is clean and welcoming, especially in good weather. We will definitely plan to return here and recommend it for a pleasant casual meal at very competitive prices.

Alnwick is a regular destination for us, but this is the first time we have been to Dolcella - not surprisingly, as it has only recently opened. Our experience was enhanced by a beautiful sunny day. The Market Square in Alnwick is picturesque and well away from traffic, so it is an ideal venue for al fresco eating. We had a bacon sandwich, served on fresh seeded bread, accompanied by an excellent Americano. These items comprised their special breakfast, which was very good value at £3.95 each. We will return if the weather is good - there are only a few tables inside, and a rainy day in the North East can be rather chilly! Very nice, friendly place which I recommend

Called in on a saturday and it wasnt overly busy but there was staff rushing around who didnt seem to know what was going on. Dissapointed when the cream scone came with squirty cream on it and jam on only one half, the panini was average and drinks were fine. Not in a rush to return

Been open for just a week ! Absolutely fabulous! Came across Dolcella by sheer chance and delighted to do so. The food is excellent. The Spurreli ice cream is to die for! We were offered tasters, which allowed us to try a couple of varieties. Although Dolcella specialises in al fresco eating experience in the continental style - they do have some indoor seating. What's more dogs are made very welcome both indoors and out!