Eat the Bird in Exeter

Eat The Bird – A Fantastic Feast Recently, I had the pleasure of experiencing a culinary adventure at Eat The Bird, and it was nothing short of delightful! Beefy Boy A robust burger featuring dry-aged beef, Swiss cheese, wood-smoked bacon, ranch dressing, barbecue sauce, and crispy onions. Packed with flavor, this burger truly impresses. While not quite surpassing Five Guys, it’s undoubtedly the second-best burger I’ve had from fast-food establishments. Next time, I’m excited to explore the bird burgers! Poutine Fresh-cut fries paired with Westcombe cheese curds and gravy—a first-time experience for me that I thoroughly enjoyed. The gravy’s flavor was outstanding, and sampling cheese curds was a pleasant surprise. Dirrrty Mac This indulgent dish combines mac and cheese, fried chicken, barbecue sauce, mini cheddars, and crispy onions. The added chicken takes this dish to another level, and the mini cheddars are a fantastic touch. A touch more barbecue sauce would have been perfect, though that’s just my inner foodie speaking! Christmas Cluck This fried chicken masterpiece features a camembert bomb, wood-smoked bacon, cranberry jam, rocket, garlic mayo, and a Hobbs bun, complemented by fresh-cut fries. Each bite was a testament to flavor perfection one of the finest chicken burgers I’ve ever tasted. Mac + Cheese The classic mac and cheese served with mini cheddars—a simpler option for those who prefer a straightforward dish. A little light-hearted banter aside, this dish remains a satisfying choice! Kyiv Fries Fresh-cut fries loaded with fried chicken, confit garlic butter, garlic mayo, and parmesan. Rich in flavor, these fries strike the perfect balance of crispiness on the outside and fluffiness on the inside. To round off the meal, I opted for a strawberry milkshake, while a Biscoff milkshake delighted my dining companion, @dishy_licious. Overall, the food was incredibly fresh, bursting with flavor, and generously portioned. The staff was also wonderfully friendly and helpful, enhancing the dining experience. If you haven’t visited Eat The Bird yet, I highly recommend doing so—it’s a treat not to be missed. Thanks again to @eatthebird for a remarkable meal! For visuals of this feast, check out @bellyneedsfeeding and @dishy_licious. We’ll definitely be back for more!

Double Dip burger was nice but not particularly hot. Fries and gravy served on cold metal/enamel dishes, so also cool/cold. All the dishes had chips in the enamel and rusty spots, which didn't make me feel like the place was particularly clean. Sitting at the back of the dining area, near an exterior door and the toilet, it was also quite windy and cold. On a positive, our waitress was very nice a attentive.

Amari, Lloyd and Chef Sam were an absolute pleasure as always, serving up banging wings with class. Wing Wednesday for life.

We went for my wife’s birthday as regular patrons in Exeter and it was absolutely amazing. A male staff member (didn’t catch his name) went above and beyond. Just great service, great menu and great food. This is why we will always come back.

Just popped in for a quick bite. Lunch menu only 7.99 burger and chips. One of the best burgers I've had in years

Good service from the team. Lovely food as always. Banging buffalo wings.

very warm friendly staff, The food was on time. everything was good again,

Extremely disappointing. We were expecting it to be above average, but it was average at best and therefore not worth the above average prices. I had the Chicktator burger which was an unpleasant experience; the sauce was very overpowering and acidic. A portion of fries is £4 extra so a burger and fries came to £16.50. There was no atmosphere at all and the place was cold. We will not be back again, there is a branch of Popeye’s barely 10 minutes walk away which serves very similar food at far more realistic prices.

Outstanding all round! Love the extreme Cluck Me Sideways.

Wing Wednesday at ETB: it's an institution. Fantastico!

Always banging food and drinks, spot on

Was recommended to visit and glad I did. Had a nice dinner. Really tasty food and friendly attentive staff. Double dip burger was excellent. I don't like the music which I find a bit loud and rubbish but I'm probably the odd one out. Not a fan of the industrial look either. What really counts was great staff and food.

I love this place - incredible burgers and chicken. My absolute go-to.

Excellent food very fast excellent service

Wow I must say we all thoroughly enjoyed our meals. This was the first time for us but what a great selection of food. Lovely staff who were qui k to seat us, take our order and get drinks. We will definitely go again and tell our friends as well. We live in kent so the sooner you expand our way the better, but London should be in your sights. Only criticism was decor which was at odds with the standard of food

The BEST burger I've ever had! Came in with my parents today and we have cleared our plates! Got to say... I wasn't looking forward to it because I'm not much of a burger person but OMG 😍 INCREDIBLE!!! Thank you Lex for seeing us with a lovely smile and lots of patience :)

Amazing food, killer cocktails and awesome service as always... Highly recommended!!

Amazing visit. The staff are so friendly and helpful and the speed of service was great. The parmala Hamderson special was brilliant and the parma crisps were a lovely addition. Will definitely be back again.

Food and service were both sublime, slightly distracted by two songs playing at once at some points though.

Eat the bird is always a must visit when I’m in Exeter, the quality of the chicken is insane and the staff are always so friendly. I had the tenders tray which is amazing value for money, £13.50 for 4 chicken tenders, chips, slaw, pickles and 2 dips! My partner had the furlough and chips for £16.50. We would definitely recommend 🤩

I've been eating here regularly. It used to be amazing but not so great anymore. The portions are considerably smaller now, and they increased the prices again as well. For example, the 'special' fries are now half the portion compared to last year for a similar price.

Good service and atmosphere, but the food is mid. Like alot of modern eateries with city locations (spitfire grill, the stables, hub box) they spent a lot of attention on the rustic aesthetic and hipster vibes in the hope that people don't realise the food is good, but nothing special. It's iworth a visit, but manage your expectations.

Staff were really lovely. Food was tasty, though I had the Korean burger and didn't enjoy it very much (too many flavours going on), but that's me. My partner and son enjoyed their burgers. The decor needed a bit of an uplift and it was quite cold inside.

Amazing burgers full of flavour very filling, definitely recommend

Food is insanely delicious. Personal preference, I think the loaded fries have too much cheese sauce, they’re SWIMMING in the sauce, I do however like the amount of bbq sauce and ranch! Burgers were DEVIIIIINE. It was very busy when we went in so they let us sit at the bar and order, and moved us to a table when it was free - very thoughtful. The staff are friendly & polite, the only reason for the 4 stars was that they were a little reserved and for me a 5* is going above and beyond, these guys were great don’t get me wrong but if the ratings had smaller increments it would have been a 4.9/5

Needed something to eat for my 4yr old twins so ordered - one beefburger and one chickenburger. Both came with delicious chips. Although the fussy twin ate very little of the chicken burger, I really enjoyed the tasty chicken in lovely bun. Even eating the last piece of the other twin's beefburger- it was excellent with cheese, lettuce and trimmings. So much more tasty than a certain Mc!! Very reasonably priced as well.

This was our first visit and we really enjoyed the atmosphere, the service and the fact that the gluten free burgers tasted lovely.

Really good, got a nice portion, food was well cooked, pleased all round.

The vegan food here is delicious. And I've heard nothing but good things about the rest of the menu. But it's a great dining option for folks with mixed diet considerations who want a tasty burger joint.

What's happened ! Always come here every visit to Exeter! 4/5 times a year , always used to get massive portions and lovely food in great atmosphere! Today we were sat at a table that was freezing, said seval times but staff just agreed , everyone around us sat with coats and scarfs on inside ! Side order of dirty chips used to be like a meal in itself , both portions today literally had 15 chips in ! Absolute con, no attention from staff, no water on the table and no one even give cared if we enjoyed it or not ! Gone right downhill ,won't be going back! No longer good value at all ! Felt ripped off !!!

I have seen the light! (and possibly God) after having the Xtreme Clucking Hell burger - amazing. The whole family enjoyed their burgers - especially this month’s special, the Vada Pav burger. Fries were also excellent - we’ll be coming again!

Ordered a “Dirty Ronald” and it was completely raw. Do not order here as it is a safety risk. Photo included.

Very nice :) go eat there, it's nice I promise :)

went in on Sunday evening as they had just re-opened the inside which we’ve been excited for all year. Food was 10/10 and love the laid-back interior of the place. If you’re thinking about it, just go.

My burger was very nice as the sauce was very nice and wasn’t slathered all over the burger

Cracking scran, great atmosphere, love that the kitchen is in a bastarding cargo container. Came with my mate and we both left in need of a nap and a cuppa. Will come again. Stein

Great food, excellent recommendations, very welcoming staff who were exceptional. One in particular who was from Taunton, 4 years with the business. I want staff like him working for us!

0 service from staff the worse experience I had in restaurant

Great food at an acceptable price, small wait on the order but overall satisfied and looking forward to eating here again

Eat the Bird has been on my radar for a few years now. We're not local to Exeter but this is the second time we've visited for a few days, the last time being early 2022. My husband is coeliac (needs to eat gluten free - GF) so a lot of research always goes in to eating out. Eat the Bird has cropped up regularly on various Facebook groups recommending it for it's GF food. I tried booking during our stay back in 2022 but it was fully booked. Fast forward a couple of years and I made sure I booked us a table as soon as I'd booked our hotel. We duly arrived on a Friday evening and, I'll be honest, the place wasn't what I was expecting at all. On arrival it looked like there was just a handful of booth/ tables by the cooking/ serving area and there was a steady stream of delivery drivers coming and going. I guess I'd expected something a little bigger, a little more polished and generally less 'rustic'. I was worried I'd made a mistake and that we should have stuck with something 'safe' that we were familiar with. Anyway, we duly took our seats and looked at the menus........ It's fair to say, the staff clearly know their stuff and we soon settled in (in hindsight, I'm wondering if we were actually served by the company founder, if not it was someone who looked a lot like him......). The 'special' came highly recommended and we were given assurances about the various GF options (of which there were many). I opted for the special, my husband a chicken burger (?The Furlough), there were so many great choices. We both had a portion of fries and slaw. The fries were outstanding, light and super crispy, the slaw spot on and the burger, oh, the burger! If I'm completely honest, I can generally take or leave a burger, a burger is 'just' a burger no matter where you are, right? But, this was no ordinary burger, it was in all honesty, absolutely delicious, as were the dips we had for our fries. I think I must have practically rolled out of the place, definitely no room for any dessert! Would we go back? Absolutely! Would very happily recommend. Super excited to see there is now a branch in Bristol, we must hunt it out. It's great to find an independent place that does GF so well and, I have to say, for what we had to eat/ the quality/ quantity (and compared to some of the chain restaurants) I thought the bill was pretty reasonable.

Great service, lovely people, both food and drink were amazing. Best cream soda I’ve ever had and the chicken was INSANE

Absolutely amazing food! Went there twice during our trip to Exeter and both of us ordered different burgers each time - each one of them absolutely amazing! As one of the evenings was a little quieter, they even cooked us up some halloumi fries as they aren’t on the menu, which were phenomenal! 100% will be back!

Great staff, great food, great chicken but don't forget to try those burgers 💁🏻‍♂️

First time here ,Food was class definitely come here again. Staff were awsome super friendly

As usual great food and service!!!

Awesome food…friendly and helpful staff…this place is great!

The best honest food we have ever had. I had a beef burger, wife had a chicken tender tray, tasted amazing! Cannot recommend enough

Superb as always. Xmas special was banging! Thanks 👌

Went last night for a hungover dinner after hearing raving reviews from friends and family. It was great but nothing too exceptional - I had the Furlough with chips, gochujang wings and a coleslaw. Food took a little longer than expected to arrive but I guess to be expected when cooking chicken especially and a couple of nights after Christmas. The wings were laden with marinade, honestly too much in my opinion as the sweetness of the sauce was too overpowering. The coleslaw was decent but lacked any real ‘wow factor’ or proper bite. All in all perhaps am being a little picky and had too high expectations - and on the plus side our servers were very friendly and the ambiance was lovely. But no harm in being honest haha!

Having visited another Eat the bird I knew I was in for a good feed and boys did it not disappoint. We had a couple of cherry cocktails and they were delicious definitely worth visiting for those alone. The burgers were stunning burgers, the 'Korean' burger is a flavour sensation whilst the Furlough is a great chicken burger done well. We also went for a few sides of frikles, chips and slaw. These sides were ok but definitely not in the same league as the burgers and cocktails.

we were delighted to see the indoor seating had reopened and couldn’t resist visiting again. my partner ordered the chicktator, and while he usually communicates between mouthfuls what he thinks of the food, his burger was gone in a matter of minutes. i ordered the bbq one (completely forgotten the name as there were so many i liked the look of) and it was incredible. perfectly cooked chicken, delicious rich bbq sauce that you cannot get enough of, and paired with the louisiana cheese fries you have the perfect meal. thrilled to see their restaurant open for dining in and we’ll be sure to come back soon!

Superb festive burger! I visited to try the 'Boney M' festive special a couple of years ago but they didn't have it available so I finally got around to trying again. I'm extremely glad I did too because it was a top tier burger. The pulled brisket was so tasty with a little bit of crisp in places too. A perfectly cooked beef patty and a nice soft bun with garlic butter soaked into it. I was disappointed to hear something else was unavailable this time. They didn't have the brisket 'baubles'. I had some OG Tenders instead and fortunately they were phenomenal. Perfect crisp coating with excellent seasoning. I've had some superb food at this place and did so again but it would be great to go and not be told of things not being available! Previous visit: As was the case on my previous visits the service and food quality was excellent. I'll get the major negative out the way first. I was hugely disappointed that the festive special brisket burger and brisket balls were unavailable. I went specifically to try them having been teased by Instagram posts in the build up to Christmas. I've found myself in this predicament many times at multiple restaurants/eateries and it really does lower my opinion of places sadly. I've had one of the best meals of my life at eat the bird too. However the Dirty Ronald burger was an okay consolation. Very nice patties and bun with plenty of pickles. It did have too much sauce though. I like a messy burger but the mustard overpowered the other flavours. They did have the chicken tenders I had picked out beforehand and they were superb. Lovely crisp coating with tasty seasoning but yet the chicken was juicy and moist inside. I'll try to get over missing out on the burger I wanted because this place is great and has an impressive menu. I must also say that my last visit left me slightly disappointed too as they'd ditched tater tots from the menu. Hopefully I'll get some Christmas joy next year when brisket returns (and tater tots to create some real magic!).

I visited to try the 'Boney M' festive special a couple of years ago but they didn't have it available so I finally got around to trying again. I'm extremely glad I did too because it was a top tier burger. The pulled brisket was so tasty with a little bit of crisp in places too. A perfectly cooked beef patty and a nice soft bun with garlic butter soaked into it. I was disappointed to hear something else was unavailable this time. They didn't have the brisket 'baubles'. I had some OG Tenders instead and fortunately they were phenomenal. Perfect crisp coating with excellent seasoning. I've had some superb food at this place and did so again but it would be great to go and not be told of things not being available!

Stunning food. Amazing service and 90s hip hop. Loved it!

Love this place, awesome burgers with attentive staff. An original array of interesting ideas in a bun!

This is my favourite restaurant in Exeter. Visited here for a second time and our server, Ben L, was really helpful with some people I was with their dietary requirements. Great food and service, totally recommend.

Amazing crispy chicken and excellent fries!

Food was overly salted and greasier than a teenager that hasn’t showered in 10 days, however, I would go back again just for the service. All of the staff were lovely and very accommodating. Oh, and also their cocktails. Top tier.

Good portion sizes, lovely food highly recommend

Always perfect food and staff friendly and accommodating!

Tried to eat here again but we were told it's outside only even though they're empty inside. It's November and cold, it makes no sense. I would order Deliveroo but portions have been really small and items forgotten more than once. I really like the food here but I can't get in!

Absolutely love this place got to be the best Food in Exeter, especially if you’re not counting calories 🙌🏻🙌🏻❤️

Service and atmosphere was great! Very good and attentive staff. However, food was mid for us. Everything was very salty but this may be me and my partner's taste as we do find things salty in general. May pop back and try something different from the menu next time we visit!

Delicious food! Great vegan options, genuinely lovely staff!

So salty!! Probably knocked a few years off my life with the amount of sodium I just consumed. Careful if you have a heart condition, you may have a heart attack after a few bites. Extremely disappointed for the amount of money I spent, main flavour profile is salt followed by salt...

THE best burgers I’ve ever had! amazing service by Kerenza and Mollie who went above and beyond to make sure we had a lovely time last night, thank you both!

Food was amazing! The Kyiv fries are an absolute winner. Couldn't complain about the food at all. We came to Exeter from London to eat here.

Very good food. Would definitely recommend

They only had outside seating available when we went but regardless the service and food was incredible; so glad we came here for lunch!!

Great food as always, and Mollie was very nice

Great food and even better service, Molly was brilliant.

After this establishment was recommended to us We ordered three meals totaling almost £50. This was the first time we'd ordered from here. We were met with incorrect order, undercooked chicken, under cooked chips and almost raw HALLOUMI. Upon calling I was met with rudeness from the manager, A dismissive attitude to my complaint and told me that she couldn't help me and that I had to email in order to process my complaint. I have! and added pictures and told them I won't be returning once was certainly enough. Overpriced rudeness and less than impressive food.

Great burger, great service, highly recommend

Actual chilled casual eatery - breath of fresh air in exeter as so many chain spots now with servers hooked to ipads - thankfully not here. Chilled yet very attentive and friendly staff, double smash burger was awesome as were them tendies - wife was raving about the vegan chicken burger, lovely housemade cream soda, fries were excellent.

Mollie was awesome sauce poggers!

Vegan burger was solid. Staff were super nice. Place had a solid vibe, reminding me of working in a restaurant kitchen back in the 90’s.

Love eating here. Service is always great. Our server Mollie was fab. Really friendly and helpful when I couldn't decide what to get! Definitely recommend eating here.

Mollie was really lovely and helped us decided on what to get for lunch as my friend and I were very indecisive. Lunch was fab as always, love coming here!

i love this food and i do eat here often but the burgers are sometimes very pink and i don’t mind a bit of pink but this time it was way too much i had to take it out. other than that all the food is amazing.

Perfect, customer service brilliant. If your looking for fried chicken, chicken burgers, beef burgers or even milkshakes then this is the place in Exeter.

Great food, outside seating but it’s really nice. Well worth a trip for some fantastic food. I had the special special called alan I mean what can I say it was immense. Looking forward to coming back real soon!!

Genuinely one of the best meals we've had in a long time. Great atmosphere, lovely friendly staff & the most delicious chicken tenders tray with all the extras. Highly recommend the Exeter rum too! Will definitely be back....probably for lunch.... tomorrow!

Had a banging meal, props to the chef Brad! Best chicken in Exe!

Amazing chicken burger and the best cream soda I’ve ever had. Staff are awesome

Friendly staff, with the best burger I’ve ever eaten… no wonder it’s an award winner!!!

Arrived here and realised we could eat outside only, regardless of this the food was excellent and the staff were very good.

Fantastic service and the most awesome food. Great attention to gluten free issues. A massive shout out to Adam who was funny, attentive and helpful. Well recommended!

Ordered a large amount of food from Uber Eats. Missing a portion of chips. The OG Tenders were pathetic. £7.50 for about 100g of super skinny super short overcooked chicken pieces that looked nothing like what is advertised. Burger was nice and chips were good. Won't be returning.

Firstly would like to say, me and partner have eaten here several times and always really enjoyed the food and atmosphere,however we went on Sunday and that will be the last time I will ever eat there ,was told outside dinning only,,although no one was inside, which we took on chin,wasn’t really not to happy about sitting outside with the seagulls and pigeons hovering,and being watched by all the crackheads and fruit loops. Placed our order 2 burgers 2xdirty fries some wings a coke and 2 ciders,starving hungry and excited for the food to arrive, 20mins later our excited soon crashed and burned when the food turned up in cardboard sweat boxes and wooden cutlery and a paper cup for my cider,now had I been at a festival or street fair this wouldn’t have been to much of an issue,if I wanted sweat box food could have saved £45 and gone kfc,so £63 later which might I add I do not have a problem spending,but spending restaurant prices for festival service boils my piss,which leads me onto the next issue,after we had eaten our food my partner needed to use the toilet as it was that time of the month,she was told she couldn’t use the toilet UNBELIEVABLE Proper felt that that we had our pants pulled down,shame really loved all our visits to this to this place and never had a problem,but will never see us again will be going slims chicken from now on

The team at eat the bird are absolute heroes and the food is nothing short of spectacular! Easily one of the best restaurants in Exeter!

Yummy food and friendly staff (atmosphere isn't 5 stars just because we ate outside as the main restaurant was closed at that time)

Chicken tenders were slightly dry. Chips very nice and crispy. Shoutout to the new chef that gave me double the portion. Waiter was friendly

Great customer service, Theo presented himself well, as soon as we got the food it was very tasty,inside would have been a better sitting area, will be coming back again.

I’ll start by saying the vegan burger was very tasty! And so were the fries and ranch. I was accidentally given a regular chicken burger rather than the vegan one, but the waitress was very apologetic and offered me a free cocktail as an apology. The things I didn’t like so much were the outdoor seating (which attracted a lot of seagulls and pigeons), lack of toilet access, and lack of veggie options on the lunch menu. I was told that I could sub a vegan burger in the lunch deal, but when I got to the till I was told this wasn’t true and charged £5 more. So overall I probably wouldn’t come again but I did like the burger

Unreal Food and the staff were so good! Would Recommend the Chicanator and the Gochucang wings! Plus don't forget the Gravy & Garlic Mayo!

Staff were very nice and brought us blankets when sitting outside. Good service.

Food was amazing!! Hit the sweet spot indeed!! Service was great too!! Definitely coming back to this place!

The menu was easy to use and updating the cart was simple too. Delivery was exactly on time and the driver was courteous and very friendly. The food was truly amazing as well. Next time we want to eat in the restaurant and soak up the atmosphere.

Outstanding fried chicken in a nice chilled restaurant. Can't go wrong!

Came with a work group, all enjoyed various meals! Chicken was amazing and the chips fresh!