Esplanade Cafe in Great Yarmouth

We went to the Esplanade hotel for a birthday party. The hotel service was friendly and helpful. The room we had was near the bar and toilet facilities which were ideal for families with children and elderly people. We did not stay overnight so cannot review the guest rooms.

Used the function room for a party 🥳 great bar service friendly staff 👌 good prices 👍

Great place 👌. Lovely and friendly staff 😀. Always happy to help you 😀. Xx

Great place 👌. Lovely and friendly staff 😀. Always happy to help you 😀. Xx

There's a Soul Food Caribbean restaurant in the back. Not sure if it is operated by the hotel, but they forgot some items in my takeaway order. Food was alright, close to the beach

Thankyou to all the staff for my dad's 80th birthday party on 8th June, the venue, food, drinks and staff were brilliant. The main room was fantastic, so well decorated I didn't really have to do much. The birthday boy was very surprised and enjoyed the whole evening ☺️ Arranging it with you and paying was made so much easier, no stress or worry and I could relax and have a great night. Once again thanku so much, and we will be back

A nice place. Clean and comfortable. Breakfast was included in the price of the room. Good food. Nice helpful staff. We would go back. Right on the seafront with lovely views.

Had a nice Carribean meal there. Curried goat, rice and peas and coleslaw and fried dumpling.

Went there for the over 30s and caribbean food.was fantastic.lady who owns the place is a fantastic host.

Stayed here for 2 nights and was very impressed. Comfortable beds, lovely shower room. plenty of hot water.staff excellent. Helpful and friendly. Room Spotless. Will definitely be back. A big thank you to all at the hotel, see you again soon.x

Hotel was ok host not very friendly bedroom was ok bed far to small for 2 people tv in room was very poor and did not get many tv channels

Good value clean hotel, nice breakfast well served , our second visit

What a great place. Cheap prices, but first rate service and brilliant rooms. Clean, tidy and the sea view is a bonus. This place has a great outlook and is close to everything we need. Should be rated higher than it is. I could only give 5 stars but would have put 7 if I could.

We a lovely stay for a couple of day,s with are grandson, perfect location 👌 my one piont out ,the shower room needs an up date , and beds too.

Room is the worst room but only benefit is that it’s near the sea

Great night at the Ibiza night had room 1 which had best view and very big the book on the side of table was very interesting would definitely stay again

Great Fish&Chips good service and value for Money

I like the friendly staff. The location was very good for the beach, amusement and town. A good breakfast. The room was clean The maid did not make the bed. Good hot water The shower door fall off more then once.

Great hotel. No lift which is a shame. Staff was friendly. Only parking for 5 cars. Breakfast was really good too

This will be a great hotel when renovations are complete. There were a few tiny issues but nothing that stopped us enjoying our stay here as we will definitely be back. I would advise the hotel to provide a couple of bottles of water in the rooms where there is no drinking water available. We didn't realise this until it was too late to pop out and get some. The curtains are not very dark so rooms are light early in the summer months. If this is an issue to you then take a eye mask but trust this is a fab hotel and location is fantastic and the breakfast is even better ♥️😁 good luck and we will see you soon 👍🏼

Went for Easter event, was a great event.

Nice hotel pleasant staff. We had a superior room with sea views witch nice . Just needs a little tlc scuffs on walls and plug sockets cracked. Lovely breakfast . Plus chip shop in hotel lovely chips.

Waited a very long time for fish & chips, 40 mins, then the fish was very thin and the chips over cooked.

Easter bunny party excellent good value for money definately recommend

Went for eater bunny event staff were outstanding event was amazing will definitely be back thank you

Didn't stay here but did make a delivery. The owner was sitting in the bar drinking and saw me walk past to the reception desk but didn't feel the need to come and help or answer the phone when i called. When they eventually spoke to me they were very rude and arrogant. If this is similar to the service they provide then steer clear.

Really nice place to have a party We had our soft play there on hire Little seahorses soft play hire The only problem is not much parking

Staff were friendly and responsible breakfast but although it was clean it was basic but reflected in the price

Room spacious bathroom tiny but good breakfast staff friendly

Room was great, with plenty of room for the two of us. We had an en suite shower room, the shower cubicle was a bit small. We had a little issue at check in as we had already paid but they didn't have details of this when we arrived, luckily we were able to find our confirmation email.

Stayed for 3 nights I was so poorly after the wedding they managed to keep us in that room for another night even thou it was booked Staff attended to every need View was lovely room was lovely bed was lush Can’t fault the staff The food was amazing so mum said Would definitely stay again Thank you

Beautiful place can see how much hard work that you have put into it only problem was I found the bathroom a little to small excellent breakfast

Very basic no chairs in room, shower really poor lack of hot water, breakfast not that good.

Lovely venue for all sorts of occasions and lovely food and staff

OK place loverly fish&chips attached to the Hotel

Friendly staff, very clean toilets and facilities. We stopped for drinks during the Airshow.

The shower area is small and the bed could of done with being a bit bigger.everything else was fine

Lovely clean room & Lovely see veiw from our room

Didn't actually stay here, but looks alright

Nice hotel nice and clean, Room lovely with view of the sea! Good breakfast and friendly staff

Shower wasn't great, bathroom room window doesn't open. Sea front view very Good. Staff very helpful and kind , room very tidy and clean

Staff were lovely, I visited for a private event and found the hotel a bit small but I had a great time!

Location was great didn't have a room as attended an event. Service was average and I felt that staff were a bit racist due to comments heard from staff for example "haven't seen this many Black people in one place before" and Look at the them all eating their food" meaning our traditional food. Comments like this are offensive although it was not said directly to one of us it was over heard and not nice to hear in these times. I WOULD NOT RETURN THERE.

i cant wait to rebook for my birthday

Very welcome friendly staff Emma was great u need anything she be there polite nice smile and what can I say I recommend this place so tidy clean fresh nice chip shop next door

Lovely hotel clean staff friendly and helpful the beach is just across the road

Lovely sea view room, large room, only one chair in the room, needed an extra socket, shower wasn't very good, not enough hangers, could've done with coat hook on door, especially in bad weather , still had a great stay, staff were lovely.

Absolutely disgusting hotel . The entire building is poorly decorated and needs complete refurbishment from top to bottom , my room was like something from a 3rd world slum .no hot water ,shower didn’t work toilet didn’t flush and the bed looks like it was found in a skip and window would not close completely .I would rather sleep in my car than sleep in this place . As soon as I left I booked into another hotel had a shower and washed my clothes as I felt like filth after staying one night . My pictures don’t do the place justice it’s an absolute s**thole

Very kind staff, lovely room, spacious and clean . Would definitely come again

Very nice chips 😋 and very clean and under new management the staff are very nice and very good WiFi 😊👍

Room was very dusty this includes bedside cabinets T.V and dressing and tea tray tables. Luggage table was also dusty along with electric oil raidiator which was put into the room due the main one being full of air. Used tissue left in bedside draw. Clumps of rolling tobacco found on floor and tabacco dust on bedside cabinet. 1 window could be closed but had big gap at top which allowed traffic noise to be heard. Though bed was comfortable no mattress or pillow protectors were used on bed. 1 guest came down the stairs with a dog. Most of the hallway and stairs had carpets removed due to redecorating in progress which made it more noisy when other guest were in and out. Guests in the above room were stomping around til 4.45am

Good place to have fish n chips with sea view

lovely room with a sea view would happily stay there again

Great room, great staff, couldn't ask for more...

Ordered a room with a balcony and a bathroom with a bath. No balcony. Bathroom was a very tiny shower room. And the room absolutely smelt of stale cooking oil - obviously from Garys fish bar which was downstairs. Lovely receptionist but she couldn't make any changes for us. Would not go back there again, unfortunately.

I stayed here nearly a year ago and felt really compelled to write a review, especially from the side of having stayed here due to becoming suddenly homeless, as I don't think it's very fair all the awful reviews I've read. We all are entitled to my opinion but here's mine. If you're placed in this situation it is very stressful and as a young woman on my own with terrible anxiety issues even more so. Everyone I met was lovely. I felt welcomed and not judged at all. I generally keep myself to myself anyway but I felt I respected my space and I received respect back cos of it. I tried to make the best of a bad situation and make the space 'my own,' and everyone was very friendly and I always had a smile off everyone. I think back now at my stay pretty fondly to be honest and I felt very 'at home.' If you have found out you are being placed here for the same reasons, don't do what I did and read all the reviews and dread it! Thanks to all the staff :)

Rude owner, no bed sheets, had to fix the toilet myself, most windows don't open, Internet is shocking, TV does not have a good signal and don't ask for anything from owner because he will talk down or threaten you.

The bar wasn't open at 2.30pm of a Monday in July . . . One has to question: 1) Why? 2) The friendly young lady was actually serving other customers after I left. 3) Possible favouritism? 🤔 4) Aside from that well done Bobby & Co, you truly rock, yeah? 5) The Fish & Chips next door are luscious man! Merci beaucoup 😉

No fan, no fridge, no wardrobe, no WiFi but worse thing was rude behaviour from that sing guy, he doesn't have manners how to speak with his customer, please avoid them .

The room (12)was ok lovely sea view from windows, and was a good size needs a new shower head in the shower as water only trickled out, WiFi was a waste of time as didn’t work upstairs, needs a smaller kettle in the room as had a job filling it up in the sink. The window were not very clean so made view hard to see unless like us we opened the windows. That said the hotel was well placed being not far from the pier and all activities, near to the shops and bus stops too. The fried breakfast was well cooked and plentiful but would have been nice to have cereal and yogurt etc. on offer too

shower hardly working tv.keep looseing signal so you can't watching it need to update the hotel big time .location was verry good

I have never stay here but my other half and baby have and I have never know anyone to be so rude to my family shouting at my child how dare they

Great service from Staff, Lita was so good to us. The rooms are spacious and clean. I enjoyed my stay and will not hesitate to come back again

The room was spacious, clean and with a fantastic view. Very close to the pier and a few minutes walk to the main shopping and restaurant area. Fish and chips were amazing as was the breakfast. The staff were really friendly and helpful and we really enjoyed our stay. My only issue was that the bed was too soft for me, but that is a personal preference and in no way took away from the enjoyment of our stay.

Booked superior double room and can safely say there was nothing superior about it. View was amazing but that was all. Shower was broken and barely a drip coming out. The bathroom smelt of sewage after using the shower or taps. Staff were rude my partner tried to buy a can of coke overnight and was refused it. Tried to get a drink in the bar but walked out in the end after getting ignored by the owner who was to busy chatting to someone else. Wasn't very clean I'm presuming it's being used as emergency housing for people there was bags of rubbish left in the hallways outside doors and the smell wasn't very nice. Safe to say we skipped our breakfast and made a quick exit. Not worth the £80 at all. Avoid at all costs

Such a shame because the hotel is lovely (basic but lovely and clean) the lady who works behind the bar so friendly too but the owner spoilt the whole feel of the place...he is rude brash and doesnt care about his guests when we asked him for help with something he just could not be bothered my partner and I wont return simply because of him!

Ok hotel good price but I’m disappointed with the reception staff and restaurant employees during check in. Very unprofessional here had an unpleasant check in so I decided to go straight to sleep but I want to say a big thank you to Lolita who was amazing and served me breakfast with a smile and amazing hospitality you are a star Lolita. In terms of the rest of the hotel it’s nothing to shout about

Friendly staff, always ready to help. Excellent customer service.

Nie polecam. Obsługa jak by za kare tu była .ledwo dali nam klucz do pokoju 🤣🤣 internet bardzo słaby więc nie liczcie na wi-fi .jedzenie bardzo dobre i śniadania dość duże porcje , ale od pon do środy restauracja zamknięta jeśli chodzi o obiady i kolacje .

Came im and staff was very rude as to how she explained the rule and as coming in to the hotel room there was no wifi connection and there was ahalf a moth on the floor the shower was dirty as so was under the sink the bathroom floor was dirty and what seems to be old toothpaste on the floor my view out the window was of a brick wall snd very uncomfortable sleep

If you've been put here via emergency shelter don't expect a warm welcome. Im writing this review during the lockdown. Wi-fi is poor upstairs. Upon arrival I reported the window not being able to open. This was reported and the maintenance guy showed up. But didn't have the right key to open window. I was told he would return as soon as the right key was obtained. 3 days later, I managed to open window. I can only assume it was jammed. So back to the WiFi signal being strong near the bar area. This was closed due to covid-19 which is understandable, but there was no option to sit in the bar area, nor given the chance to keep social distancing. However it would seem if your the owner of a huge successful hotel, you have every right to smoke in the bar area??? I consider myself polite and approachable, yet you don't get the same response from staff. I eventually noticed that If your a paying customer you might get treated differently, i.e the breakfast option. But if you were placed at the B&B due to unforseen circumstances then you got treated differently, well I'm speaking for myself but I confirmed this with other guest's if they felt the same....and they did. If you get the option to stay at the Grand Esplanade hotel via emergency housung please feel obliged to request somewhere else. And for the owner to still get business during these times, I can't get my head around the attitude guest's receive. Mind boggling.

Friendly welcome, very spacious clean room, sea view room 25, shower & toilet. Clean & modern, great breakfast, fish & chip restaurant adjacent very nice, hotel right on the front, few car parking spaces at rear, not good for disabled, great room prices, bar, highly recommended

Lovely room, sea view, excellent breakfast, great friendly service. Would definitely recommend

Gary's fish and chips the best fish shop / restaurant in Clacton, good surroundings and friendly staff

From the outside it looks presentable, from the inside it's a different story. Although disappointed with the place I must say that the waitress in Gary's fish restaurant attached was very nice as were the fish and chips. Also the receptionist on checking out was delightfully nice 😎👍

The owner and manger are the rudest people I've ever met

This Fish and chip restaurant has changed hands but the same standard of excellence has been kept going.. Still excellent fish and chips and staff very helpful and pleasant.. You can order over the phone and pick it up or eat in.. Very nice atmosphere and the restaurant faces the sea.. Brilliant never go any where else for our great British takeaway.. A++++++

Nice room with a sea view, comfy bed. Excellent service from all the staff. Definitely recommend.

Because it was really good. The food was gorgeous and the fish was so white. The service was very good and very friendly. Would definitely go there again.

Terrible place. Only 1 member of staff was nice. Food very low quality.

4 of us had large cod and chips with a drink, just over £50.. Fish was massive, and very tasty. Good chips , which these days is a rarity for some reason in Essex. ?? Mrs Forrest had rock, which was lovely as well, and also not available in so many places nowadays. Pleasant staff, and nice ambience. Right on the seafront... Thumbs up all round.

Just had a beautiful served budget haddock and chips (plenty for my appetite). Tea, and fab apple pie and custard. Friendly staff. Would definitely come here again ☺

Avoid this Hotel. Not worth it! Parking - for 6 cars only at the rear. Stink from the Fish & Chip Kitchen in the parking. No entrance into the hotel from the car park. Have to walk with your suitcase all the way from the rear to the front entrance via the road. No lift to upper floors. Too many stairs. I had paid for Superior Double facing the Sea for 5 Nights. I was given triangular Room number 7. Room very small approx 6 feet wall on one side and opposite wall 13ft. Expensive for the size of the room. The room is triangle. The tip of the triangle is converted into Toilet/shower and wash basin. For shower 4 gel packets are provided in between the two people which difficult to open. Shower cubicle very small. Shower doors open by pushing into the shower. After closing the shower door, no handle to pull it inwards to open which makes the shower even more smaller. No dish to place the soap or gel in the shower. Broken Hook behind the door, No place to hang your towel when taking shower. Stopper on the door rusted. Toilet tiny, no window and air freshener.. No place to keep tooth paste and tooth brushes around the tiny wash basin. No cupboard in the room, just a rail to hang your clothes. Drawers to put your other clothes. No extra sockets to charge phones. Only two sockets which were for tv and fan in the room. One socket opposite the door but very low. The Bed was very near the window. Inconvenient for the person sleeping on that side to get in and out. The mattress had uneven springs which made it soft and uncomfortable. Very old Mattress. My back pain increased so much that I could not get out of the bed. Bedroom windows very stiff to open. No Telephones in the Room to contact Reception. WIFI connection not available in the Rooms. Even the Mobile signals were very weak. So how do you contact the reception? I Complained to the Owner about the room being small. He insisted that it was what I booked a Superior Double facing the Sea and that was the only room left. This room is neither advertised on the Hotel's nor Expedia’s website Site. I felt cheated here. This room is for a single person. Returning to the Hotel in the evening, the owner, Mr Bobby stopped me. He was reeking with alcohol. He wanted to chat to me about the Triangular room to justify that it was the superior double room facing the sea. He also pointed out, what did I expect for the moneys I paid & was I expecting a room like the Ritz? Very rude behaviour from the management. I have posted the photos of the triangular room no 7. Paying the high price for Sunday, I have been duped by the hotel via the expedia site. The photos on the expedia site do not show this room. WHY? Be aware of this con. We requested a new room but were told will get it the next day . Why were we not allocated the proper room per advertised on Website as we had booked for 5 nights? We were shown Rooms 25 and 27. Mattresses were as bad as Room 7. These mattresses should be replaced asap. We shifted to room 25 which was far bigger than room 7. Rooms 25/27 are called superior double and are shown on the website. Pros Facing the sea, Fan in the room, Kettle and Good Breakfast. Cons 1. Tiny bedroom and washroom. 2. Door lock does not lock from inside. 3. No lift 4. Car park very small (6 cars only) at the rear 5. No phone in the room to connect to reception. 6. Many rooms no mobile network. 7. Had to go down looking for the staff who were absent from the reception desk. 8. Cob webs on the emergency door in the Restaurant. 9. Cleaning not done properly of the toilets. 10. Springs in mattress are worn out and uneven which is bad for health. 11. Bath extractor not working properly. 12. Kettle in the room not working. The outside of the Hotel is Grey and not Beige as shown on the websites. We left a day early because of the extreme pain in my back due to old mattresses with bad springs. Finally this hotel is not 3 star but 1 star.

We came here for the fish and chips. Very nice, clean place with friendly staff. It's kind if hidden away from the main stop in Clacton, which is a shame, but it means the service is quicker. I'd definitely recommend this place

Lovely little café situated right on the seafront. Friendly staff, great cuppa and a marvellous cream tea. Highly recommend.

Johnny Macs Is NO Longer Johnny Macs It’s Gary’s Fish and chips . Not as good as JMc The Service and I presume Gary! Was Very poor JMc was never stressing and never bawled out staff in front of customers . Come back JMc

Rude service, and food was horrible

Best Fish and chips in Clacton-on-Sea but its is now Gary's not Johnny mac.

Lovely food and great staff Terry fisher

Staff where very pleasant but owner was rude my daughter over heard him I don’t care about costumers all I care about is the money 😡

Absolutely amazing fish and chips. Really tasty. Fab service too.

Only came here for the fish and chips which was very good. The best part of the food is the gluten-free menu! Chippy's can be challenging to find gluten-free options but this place has it covered.

Johnny mac is now Gary's and we went to this fish and chip restaurant. Excellent food, great service and friendly staff.

I didn't stay at the Hotel I only had Fish N Chips here at Johnny Mac's which I think were the best I have ever had. I had a large portion and it was huge. Just wish I didn't live 200 miles away

Fabulous, always a great meal and you are made very welcome, nice to get the personal touch. Would recommend it to anyone, but must tell you it has changed hands and is under the name of Gary's. *****.

The hotel is well located,fantastic staff and breakfast,excellent. The bed was good.Was on short holiday,3 nights and slept very well. Improvements needed:The shower water pressure a bit low. Only ONE power point (sockets) and Wifi very weak.Please work especially on these TWO and all will be worth every penny.

Lovely friendly clean hotel fish and chips amazing !!

Always top quality food, service and staff xXx

Visited the fish and chip restaurant last evening. It's now called Gary's. Excellent service and the fish was cooked to order so arrived at the table fresh and piping hot. Lovely meal, would recommend a visit to anyone. Five stars

Superb! I've been here twice now and will visit again when in the area. Portions are great - not too big, not too small. Fish is fresh and delicious. Chips are proper potato chips fresh from the fryer. Staff are attentive and offer choice.