Fort Restaurant & Cafe in East Devon

Set on Sea front. Good service and food/drink

We only had ice cream but oh my goodness it was absolutely delicious. I am an ice cream freak and can honestly say it was the nicest creamiest ice cream I have ever had. I had lemon curd and my partner had ginger. It's a shame we are staying so far away or I would have come back tomorrow for another one!

Busy cafe on Sidmouth seafront. I had a decent crab sandwich, which came with crisps and salad. Others I was eating with all had various paninis which were not good. They looked limp, not cooked well and poor quality. None were enjoyed or finished. The chips they came with were OK, so food variable. Don't have a panini!

The cafe was late opening but the breakfast was worth waiting for! Beautiful view, lovely guy next door manning the car park.we loved Sidmouth.

Very didappointed with the food. When ordering told 50min wait as they were very busy, fine no problems with that. My pot of tea came, my husbands wine a no show. When food arrived my cheese and onion toastie was so flat from being left in toaster I could not get my knife through it. Difficulty chewing it as well. Husband finally got his wine with the meal. Had cake and coffee here before no problems.

Literally the best hot Chocolate I have ever had in my entire lifetime (I’m 20)

Lunch was nice and good sized portions. The homemade ice cream was excellent.

Fantastic location, you can eat in or outside on the terrace right opposite the sea. Good menu, lots of choice, well presented and tasty food. Friendly service from young staff (although you may have to wait a little at very busy times!).

£30 for 2 sub-par sandwiches and 2 smoothies. This is overpriced. We had to ask 3 times for the dishes to be cleared from the table from the previous users. Lovely location on the seafront.

The salted pecan and caramel ice cream i had here was amazing. I think they make all their own. My son's mint choc chip was good as well. Decent sized scoop, friendly staff, brilliant ice cream

A welcome location for tea, coffee and cake after a walk along the Esplanade in Sidmouth. Beautiful sea views and ample seating inside and out.

The problem this café has is the seagulls, they're a pain. We found a table outside in the sunshine with a lovely parasol and sat down, then we noticed all the seagull excrement across the table. The waitress brought out our drinks and went to place the cups and sauces on the dirty table. We asked her if the table could be cleaned first, which she did. Every time customers left their table, seagulls would swoop down and walk across the tables, eating all the food left on the plates. I suppose it's not the cafe's fault, it's the seagulls, but a seagull / bird scarer like many other seaside cafés, pubs and restaurants have would be a good idea. Even Wetherspoons pubs have seagull / bird scarers in my seaside town! A nice enough café, staff ok, and lovely meals in a fab location opposite the beach. Would we return? Possibly, but it would definitely would be inside seating.

Called in mid morning, cafe fairly busy but not packed, ordered drinks and cake, after paying the man behind the counter then told us it might be a long wait as drinks were taking some time, we ended up waiting over 30 minutes for 2 coffees to appeared, we were not impressed and will not revisit.

To start with the positives - a great location and really friendly staff. However, really slow and inefficient service. There is a notice to say find a table and then order at the counter, but a lot of people miss this and confusion and very long waits ensue. Also, to get to a table inside is very difficult as you have to fight your way through tiny gaps between tables (too many and too heavy in my opinion and not enough staff to serve them all - it was a summer Sunday so acknowledge it was busy). When eventually the food did arrive it was good.

Standards have dropped. Slow service. Milk shakes are all froth, 25 minutes for a knickerbocker glory. We were advised the froth reduced into liquid. After complaining twice we had a 3/4 full glass of liquid. Nice profit at £4.00 a glass! Only 1 person doing drinks and desserts…Really? Money refunded for the £9.50 ice cream after a debate with the staff but gave up on the £4 milkshake as not worth the continued hassle. At one time you could not get a seat during the holidays as it was so busy but take your pick today. Times have changed unfortunately and so have the standards. Very sad!

Dropped in for coffee - very welcoming, friendly & efficient staff - right on seafront. Wud recommend.

An excellent place to while away an hour or two - even if you hadn’t planned on doing so. I’m sure that if the owner visited their local electrical store they could pick up a new kettle that was able to boil water in less than 30 minutes? Or maybe it was the fact the chap in the kitchen spent more time on his phone that dealing with customers orders - the kitchen, by the way, wasn’t doing hot food which was novel for a cafe! So, to sum up; not in a particular rush… then this is the place for you. On the other hand, if you only paid for five hours parking next door, you’re probably better off avoiding The Fort Cafe.

Homemade double cream vanilla ice cream . Brilliant

Lovely food. Service was a little slow. Great food and a lovely clean place

Lovely spot for a coffee and enjoy the seaside views.

It was the best burgers we ever had. Been really impressed by size as it was and the biggest one

Quite possibly the best ice cream I’ve ever eaten, indulgently rich and thick cream base. I’d love to know how the Maple and walnut ice cream is made, it’s awesome.

Had a scone as you do in devon, came with no cream, had to pay extra for rhe cream and the scone was stale it had been warmed up in the microwave. Waitress was miserable.

Amazingly good ice cream and such good value 😍

We stopped in for a latte and a wonderful sea view yesterday (April 24). Coffee was lovely and service great, but the seating feels a bit tightly packed, and although it wasn't full, it felt a little cramped. We have eaten here in the summer when the doors and windows are open, and it feels more spacious, so perhaps it's just winter seating.

Lovely breakfasts, beautifully cooked and presented, generous portions, fantastic sea views. The gluten free bread was the best I’ve ever had in a restaurant. I found the temperature a little cool in the room and had to keep my coat on as there was a cold draught blowing from somewhere, but otherwise it was perfect and compliments to the chef 👍

Review of the ice cream kiosk adjacent to and part of the cafe - a great selection of home made ice creams and sorbets served in cones and tubs with good sized portions

Ordered two coffees and a bowl of soup with bread. The coffee came in around 10 mins but the soup we waited for at least 30 mins and still did not get it. So we asked for our money back and walked out Got the impression they were concentrating on customers who had ordered meals and did not want to be bothered doing just a bowl of soup. Will not return.

Wow. Just wow. That's the nicest experience I've ever had. The waiters the owner and even the food. Can I fault it?

Ordered Breakfast tea & sausage bap on New Year's day. Cafe overlooks promenade & sea front. THERE was enough tea for 3 cups. extra ot water included

Dont know if they were unexpectedly busy. But i found it pretty poor all round. Tables needed clearing and remained uncleaned after clearing one staff member came across quite rude and coffee wasnt too good. Maybe i was just unlucky...? Nice location

We stopped here for some light lunch on Sunday 19 November 2023. Staff were polite and efficient. Food was okay, not as good as some other places in Sidmouth, in our personal opinion. Hot drinks were very good. Location is good and the views lovely. The furniture and space itself could perhaps do with a bit of modernisation, but I am sure some people would actually prefer it it as it is.

we were looking for a place offering a light lunch.This café offered a full range of fare with comfortable indoor dining.Service was friendly.Definitely hit the mark

I had an extremely disappointing experience at The Fort Cafe in Sidmouth. The tea cups were disgustingly dirty, and the food took an excruciatingly long half-hour, and never arrived, despite multiple reminders to the indifferent staff. No apologies were offered, and when we finally requested a refund, it was processed with zero acknowledgment of the terrible service. Save yourself the frustration and steer clear of this place.

Very good FEB. The cafe also super dog friendly.

Lovely cafe the food was delicious. Great atmosphere and the service was good.

Good position on sea front with outdoor and indoor seating good helpings of tasty food served by a cheerful owner

Excellent service full English amazing value and amazing taste

Had tea and scone with jam and butter. Scone had been warmed on microwave for too long as it was a little hard

I had the most delicious crab salad, my eyes nearly popped out of my head when I saw the generous portion size. The crab was fabulous, the salad ingredients all wonderfully chopped up, alongside coleslaw and potato salad. I didn’t think I would finish it, but I did. Served with a lovely warm granary roll. I wanted one of their delicious ice creams, but I had no room. I’ll have to go back again for the ice cream. (Malteser ice cream is my favourite). My sincere compliments to the chef.

Top marks. Would highly recommend this cafe in Sidmouth. Nice setting, lovely cake and friendly service! Thanks!

Lovely position right on the seafront with outdoor and indoor seating. Orders are placed and paid for before being prepared which occasionally means there can be a delay which some customers find exasperating, others appreciate for having time to appreciate their surroundings. The food is worth waiting for! It's all 'tasty good' and portions sizes are sensible. The ice cream is to die for. The clue is in the name ice cream!

Lovely cafe with a lovely view. Three of us went for lunch on a sunny October day. We sat out side to enjoy the sun . We all ordered something different and the food was good size and we all enjoyed the food . Our waitress was lovely and joking around with us which I love . They work very hard and I would highly recommend this seaside cafe.

Terrible food for the price. The only good thing going for this place is its location.

Really dissapointing, we have visited before and it was good. But the poor food combined with rude service today was worth reviewing. I had ordered poached egg on toast and added mushrooms, when my food arrived there was no mushrooms I mentioned to the girl who said they had run out, I was still talking to her to say we had paid for them but she continued to walk away from me. I think the eggs were probably microwaved, hard and rubbery, so complained. They were then redone and much better. My partner ordered a sausage sandwich which is what he had on our previous visit. This came in a dry bap rather than fresh bread, like it was previously in. He also said the sausages were not the same and left most of his food. Felt like the staff were staring at us after and no one came to check that we were happy with food etc (probably because they knew it was subpar). Great location, good for a take away icecream, but would not recommend.

Me n the Mrs went for a day out. Found this lovely cafe on a sunny day so sat outside. Service was great, staf were polite, lovely food and good value. Will definitely be going back next time we are down.

Lovely food, great choice. Very friendly.

We had a ploughman's salad one with Stilton and the other with Cheddar cheese. The food was lovely and massive. A great variety for the salad and we would recommend this 😋

Lovely venue, but little disappointed with food. I did ask for the salad to be left off my plate, which is why it looked bare, but I had expected my chicken roll with Chips for about £12 to be hot chicken, not cold, although the stuffing was sort of warm. My partners pulled pork bap, he said was warm. Chips were very hot and nice. Wish had gone for something else on menu. Sid mouth was really beautiful

Lovely old fashioned ice cream parlour serving sundaes, ice cream cones and also light lunches etc. Very pleasant staff and beautifully clean premises. Situated opposite the sea front with good views of the beach. Will definitely visit again

We ordered 2 burgers for £14.95 each and a roast chicken sandwich for about £8.00. I was prepared to pay that much because we were on holiday and sat overlooking the sea at Sidmouth seafront. From outside, the place looked nice. We were sat outside, but the table was covered by midgets, we cleaned the sticky table as we could, but the midgets kept coming and ending in our drinks, so we moved inside. The food took more than 1 hour to arrive and it wasn't busy! After about 1 hour, we asked about the food and we were told it would arrive in about 10 minutes, no apologies. I noticed that other customers where asking for their food. I was going to leave if it didn't arrive in 10 minutes, but it did. No apologies for the delay. I was hoping it was going to be really good, considering the price, but it was a disappointment. W My burger arrived in a huge, cold toasted bun with a disproportionately small burger inside, which it was hot, to be fair. There were a few chips and a bit of salad, nothing special or worth the price. The "roast" chicken in the sandwich, tasted and looked like cheap supermarket chicken pieces, anemic and wet, with a bit of mayo. Definitely not roast chicken. It came with a few crisps and salad, which was the tastier bit. Again, not worth the price. As we were leaving, we made the young waiter notice that it took more than 1 hour for our food to arrive. The waiter was surprised and said that he will take notice, but no apologies. What they looked like the owners, surrounded by young people, were not friendly at all and looked stressed. Some good customer service could have made a bit of difference to an overpriced and disappointing meal. I should have left and asked a refund. More than £50 for 3 meals and drinks, waisted. Not going back again!

Called in for a cup of tea and toasted tea cake, wife had a cream tea. Both things were lovely, tea cake and scones were served warm, generous cream and strawberry jam, very friendly staff. Nothing to much trouble. Highly recommend calling in.

Lovely cafe on sea front, beware of seagulls if sitting outside

ordered tea with oat milk, an Americano with hot milk, 2 hot chocolates and a tuna panini with chips. It wasn't particularly busy but waited 25 mins for the drinks and food to be delivered to our table and then they forgot the oat milk for the tea and the hot milk for the Americano. Overall service pretty poor.

The ice creams served in the side kiosk next to the café are amazing. They make it themselves. Its beautifully smooth and so full of flavour. Staff are really nice and friendly. We have tried all the ice cream shops in Sidmouth and by far their ice creams win every time as the best flavour, texture ice creams. Highly recommend you try them.

Having called in for coffee previously, this time we wanted breakfast, we were not disappointed. The cafe was very busy, we arrived at 11am and had the last table, we were advised there was a 15 minute wait, however our cooked breakfast came on time, it was well worth waiting for. One of the best English Breakfast I have had. I didn’t need lunch. We will definitely go again. There were tables both inside and on the terrace overlooking the promenade and sea front.

Great food and views, staff were very friendly.

Love the place took friends there for lunch

We visited Sidmouth today and stopped here for lunch because they are dog friendly, which is very important to us. Lunch was really nice and with good-sized portions. We had roasted chicken sandwiches on granary bread with a side salad and a portion of chips to share. It's a little more expensive than some places at nearly £9 for a sandwich, but we really enjoyed it. We would definitely revisit. Great service. I asked if it was possible to have a sausage for the dog, which they did even though not on the menu. Happy doggy happy owners. Beautiful views in a relaxed atmosphere.

Today we visited Sidmouth and had lunch at The Fort. Nice to sit outside and watch the world go by with a sea view. Good selection of food to please most tastes. The dishes we chose (Prawn jacket potato and pulled pork roll), we're really nice, fairly quick service too. Clotted cream ice creams to follow were delicious. It's a dog friendly restaurant and they even brought dog treats round.

Nice location, far too expensive for average coffee served in mugs that don't fit on the saucer provided.

This is my most favourite ice cream anywhere. We regularly visit family in Sidmouth and I always visit for an ice cream whatever the weather. The ice cream tastes like cream and my absolute favourites are lemon curd and crunchy ginger. I alternate my order! I would love to recommend more but why branch out when you have found something so good!

A lovely place, We would like to have eaten, had a coffee etc but we arrived at the wrong time, was extremely busy and we were short of time. other customers looked like they were enjoying food.... Will definitely get back for another go, hoipefully sometime soon.

Enjoyed a coffee and hot chocolate with sea views outside, quite busy when we visited.

We were waiting for out drinks for 30 minutes. Impressive.

Good food. Good prices. Brilliant staff. Friendly and helpful.

Only ordered drinks 1 milk shake which was thin and quite tasteless worse milk shake I've ever had, Iced coffee weak.and dissapointing waited ages for them to come won't be going back used to be much better

We both enjoyed our reasonably priced whitebait , salad with first class salad dressing, brown bread and butter and Americanos. Live in Seaton so are nearby. But was spoiled by the amount of dogs on outside eating area so unlikely to return. It was like being in Battersea Dogs Home. I understand since Covid that many families decided to have a dog. However, one couple had 6 dogs, another 5 dogs and we were surrounded. Three people on next table had two dogs - one was on a lap - licking the table whilst the other one snarled and yapped at each dog that passed by, We are dog lovers, but our dogs have been working dogs not fur babies to be treated as human babies. Not the dogs fault but their owners who are not in control - so unlikely to repeat our visit. Please limit the number of dogs allowed in a food area or warn that dogs are likely to out number customers. Thank you.

Had lunch here today table of 4 ...4 jacket potatoes and 4 waters..was over 50 pounds bit priceybut food was ok ..service forget it and the attitude of the woman when questioned was disgusting if she was the owner or manager she should think again about working in hospitality ...we waited over half hour for drinks when we could see others being served well after we ordered then again food was a hour wait and even the lady next to us who ordered way after us had her food before us said she felt guilty for eating as we were still waiting ...sorry to say won't return much better friendlier places to go ..and cheaper ...

Had food and coffee friendly staff and prompt service. Nice place however to many tables inside felt a bit crowded.

Nice fish and chips member of staff who served the food told us off for sitting at the wrong table didn't understand why as it was just a table

We were back at the Fort cafe for lunch after visiting many times before,(we only live 5 miles away), it was about half full. We sat down and looked at the menu, prices have risen considerably this year, I was looking forward to fish and chips, however the large portion was just shy of £18! and the small just shy of £14, this was too much for our liking so chose something priced more reasonably. The order was placed at the till, we were told the wait would be about 10 mins. We had a pot of tea delivered to the table which we drank while waiting for our food. The place is dog friendly so I was not surprised to see a large dog walking past me on a lead, however I was not pleased when it shook its coat resulting in my left side being showered in water, I think it had been in the sea, it’s owner apologised with a wide grin on his face. A little later we realised that our 10 min wait for our food had turned into half an hour, and when all other diners that were there when we walked in had left my wife spoke to the lady that took our order, she called to the kitchen staff enquiring about the order for table 9 but they knew nothing about it. No explanation was given, no apology was given. After speaking with the other members of staff we were told the food was being prepared and we were given a free pot of tea. Our food arrived about an hour after ordering and was just as we had expected, nicely prepared and well presented. We both agreed that the way we felt about our experience and the price hike means we will be eating at another restaurant in future.

My hubby & I are on holiday & fancied an ice cream. We saw Fort Cafe along Sidmouth seafront & thought we would have a nice although expensive double ice cream tub. Neither of us saw a notice that we shouldn’t eat inside the cafe which was totally empty although tables outside were busy. So we sat eating our almost £6 each ice creams & were confronted by a waitress or possibly manageress who asked us if we had bought our ice creams from there. Yes we replied. Then she asked if we had got them from outside & when we said yes she said we shouldn’t be eating inside as they were dearer. “Do you know what takeaway means”? She asked us twice. The second time I told her we weren’t stupid & of course we knew what takeaway means. Her manner was insulting & patronising & although we were allowed to finish our ice creams inside I really think that staff be they managerial or not should be trained to treat customers in the right manner. All we are talking about money wise is another 55p each so she could have offered to out our ice creams in a sundae glass with a proper teaspoon instead of the wooden one we were given for the extra. Her attitude with us left a lot to be desired. We truly hadn’t seen the notice & as I said the cafe was empty inside. I think she just wanted to exercise her authority.

Rather expensive, but then again it is on the seafront

Lovely sitting outside in the sunshine but coffee mediocre!!

Its a nicely situated cafe on the Seafront. There is plenty of seating both inside and outside but there wasn't enough staff to cope with the custom they had. You queue at the counter to place your order and the food is delivered to your table. I felt that the prices were high. There were both gluten free and vegan cakes available. My coffee was good.

Lovely position good tea and cappuccino

We stopped here for lunch during our holiday to Devon. The food is expensive although fairly substantial portions and the scones were very good. However, the service was terrible - the staff were quite rude and aggressive and one staff member practically threw my friends child’s food at her. They also charge for ice in your drinks, so beware of that. I don’t normally leave reveries but when I feel I have been ripped off purely for being a family on holiday then I feel compelled.

THE BEST HOMEMADE ICE CREAM! So good we had to visit again! We visited at Easter and had lunch and ice cream. The food was great but oh my gosh the ice cream was the best we've ever eaten! Since then, we couldn't stop thinking...

This is our ‘go to’ cafe whenever we visit Sidmouth. Arrived about 10mins before the end of lunch service today with our two young Grandchildren. No huffing and puffing..although they’d obviously been busy as it’s BH week..they cooked our meals.. all were delicious..especially the fish...

Called in whilst on a coach tour, nice place for lunch staff very friendly and whilst we only enjoyed cream teas would certainly call in again should we be in the area

Just sitting having coffee with many empty tables to listen to staff being really aggressive with a couple. She had ordered tea and carrot cake but he purchased an ice cream from their kiosk. He got told in no uncertain terms he couldn’t sit down to eat his ice cream. I understand not wanting tables taken at busy times but really this takes some understanding when you re more than half empty. Won’t visit again when they have this attitude.

A lovely seafront cafe, friendly with good food.

Friendly and professional. Well organised with a good varied menu. Plenty of seating inside and outside. Though busy, tables were cleared and cleaned. Food prepared to order, so fresh not prepared. Worth the wait.

Fabulous quality and quantity though considerably over priced

We came across this venue on on a lovely sunny morning and sat outside worth 2 stars ⭐️ We both had poached eggs on toast with a side of beans pot of tea for two . The toast is very thinly cut poached eggs comes...

Lovely staff. Food was good but we only had a light lunch. Sat alfresco in the spring sunshine. We will return on our next visit to Sidmouth.

Excellent cod and chips, great pot of tea.

We visited the Fort again this year, having discovered it last year. We only need a sandwich, but their crab sandwich is to die for. Lovely bread stuffed with the white crab meat . With a nice salad and some crisps on the plate. It...

Arriving in Sidmouth on a sunny but chilly day, this sea front cafe looked inviting. We chose to decline the outside seating, of which there was ample, but chose to sit inside We were quite early so there were plenty of tables, but during the...

Back again as promised from our visit last year Very good coffees & large teacakes weather outside was bad, what a difference from same time last year

Ordered a cappuccino which came out as a cup of hot milk with chocolate on top, returned it as I couldn't drink it, nice young man said he would get it made again and brought it out to me, but it was exactly the same,...

Lively spot, dog friendly. Only had coffee as no vegan options

We have visited The Fort previously over the years fir either drinks or food. The staff and management we have found helpful, We found the prices unfortunately have risen quite dramatically, example Beans on two of toast £6.00 as well as others have risen, not that we wanted beans on two of toast.. we found generally the prices have risen at most of these popular restaurants which I'm not sure will do any of them any good over coming season. As once bitten, will not return, we come here at least 3-4 times a year over last 4-5 years, the "blue ball" the same, good service but main meal & two deserts drinks for 3 people £130..

Had a meal here yesterday. It was so cold my feet went numb. I know there is a cost of living crisis, but this is ridiculous. No heating at all. It was warmer outside. Because of this, the food cooled down quickly too. Need to...

Lovely little cafe we went in there for something warm to drink and eat food was beautiful

Very friendly welcome to this sea front cafe. Very generously portioned ham, egg and chips, the sandwich was also good.

This is the second visit to The Fort. The food is very good and the staff very pleasant and helpful. Quiet when we arrived but soon filled up. Didn't have to wait long for our meal. Obviously in very good situation on the seafront so...

Best ice cream ever. They make it by hand using clotted cream. You can purchase buy the tub if you want.

Proper English seaside café/restaurant with the best ice cream ever!