Glasshouse Restaurant in Darlington

We were a family of four and visited for Christmas Lunch. We were amazed at how quick the service was. They let us enjoy our meal without rushing us, and the food was wonderful, hot, and beautifully plated, visually appealing to the guests. The staff were very efficient, attentive, and polite. I intend to go back again for more delicious meals and would recommend this Restaurant to anyone looking for good food and service.

Increíble menú degustador de Navidad. Disfrutamos con amigos - 8 de nosotros. Fabulosa comida y servicio - una noche maravillosa. Gracias.

Wow absolutamente encantadora comida hecha por los estudiantes del Colegio. El servicio del personal de espera increíble muy educado y amable. Definitivamente iré de nuevo

Fue a tomar el té de la tarde. Di mis detalles con respecto a NO mantequilla, margarina o queso. Llegaron sacando los niveles de comida. Pregunté si había algo de lo anterior al que yo también fuera alérgico, tuvieron que quitar tier de comida y re hacer bocadillos? ? También tenía que pedir tenedores y leche extra en jarra para el té. No puedo creer que haya tenido que revisar las solicitudes. Gracias a Dios que sí. ¿No iría otra vez por el té de la tarde? Decepcionado. El personal era encantador, pero tenía que pedir lo que fuera.

Fuimos por primera vez a un encantador restaurante de configuración para una universidad el servicio era de primera clase y bien presentado la comida era de primera clase muy disfrutado y tan razonable precio bien recomendado

What a fabulous experience, we will definitely be back. The service and staff were all first class, and the food was amazing. We had the beef cheek which was so tender and tasty

We hosted a private event for colleagues to enjoy an evening of desserts that were perfectly executed by the students at The Glasshouse. Each course was delicious, well executed and beautifully presented. The service was attentive and friendly and of course, the evening was excellent value for money. We can’t wait to come back already! PS - the choux based dessert was heavenly. Thankyou all so much.

The service and the food was amazing. We gathered for St George day lunch. Will attend again. Thank you so much. Roast beef and Yorkshire pudding.

Visited without a reservation but they found us a table. Outstanding value for money for quality of food will definitely be back. Attentive, polite service.

Visited here for the second time and the food is first class. Would highly recommend a visit here. Very reasonable prices and great service

Delicious food, amazing value, outstanding service, even took my coat and loads of parking. definitely coming again soon.

Just had a fantastic lunch at the Glasshouse. Thoroughly recommend visiting this restaurant. Food is always amazing and very good value and more importantly you are supporting the students in their development and future careers in the catering and hospitality sector.

Just been to this restaurant for lunch on arrival we were shown to our lovley set table by a member of staff. Firstly can i just say how brilliant the students are very polite and friendly took our orders brought our meal came back to make sure everything was ok all with a smile as well.The meal was lovely excellent value we will be going again very soon.Thank you and keep up the excellent work .

Dropped in today for lunch and what a surprise. Greeted at the door by the manageress and shown to our table. Menus presented..choice of four starters,four mains and four deserts.Bit limited for choice but still very acceptable given three courses priced at only £ 10 ! Young students took the orders and served the meals….got to say they were all proficient and very friendly although a few nerves could only be expected. Onto the food …Prawn cocktails ( tasty ) Haddock, beef dripping chips, mashed minted peas,and tartare sauce ( best we’ve had anywhere ! ) ..sticky toffee pudding ( ok ) Excellent large glass of blush rose wine £ 4.50. What amazing value. Restaurant was very quiet probably due to the stormy weather but I got the distinct impression that despite the excellent operational side the restaurant would ,without doubt, increase its business exponentially if only the college invested in a programme of marketing.Simple things like a large sign on the busy main road advertising the restaurant.Once visited word of mouth would fill the place. Going back on Thursday for the “Burns” Lunch. Well done to all the managerial staff and the friendly nervous students. Brill

Just wanted to pass on our thanks to the students. This afternoon, myself and some of the ALS team booked in for Christmas lunch. We were all blown always by the food! It was absolutely lovely and the service in the front of house was exceptional 😊 5 star rating from us! Keep up the good work!

Extremely well run restaurant. It's run by Darlington College, the public can book a table for lunch. The cost is highly competative. A three course meal for under £10. I would highly recommend it.

The Glasshouse is truly worthy of its 5* Tripadvisor rating Some of our most delicious food ever, with great hospitality from all - and especially fabulous, cheery service from Kai. Thank you!

Tasting menu to celebrate coronation. Started with canopies and cocktails all very yummy and accompanied by a lovely singer(should have been singing all night) all 6/7 courses were original and of great quality all young people serving gave 100%. All this for £25 remarkable

This is a super place to eat. We had Sunday lunch and it was wonderful. My son is getting married in the Castle next year and wanted to try the food out. The glasshouse is set in a beautiful setting. The staff made us welcome and the Sunday roast was delicious I would definitely recommend this restaurant.

Excellent meal with friendly, attentive service. The staff were aware that I was taking two Ukrainian guests and thoughtfully translated the menu into Ukrainian for them before our arrival. The food was excellent and the service faultless. We will be returning!

First visit to the Glasshouse, having been delayed by pandemic but it was fully worth the wait. Excellent varied evening menu, cooked perfectly and beautifully presented by front of house team. Can't applaud the whole team any higher, a credit to themselves and the College, we'll definitely be back and look forward to many more delightful meals.

Tried the Glasshouse for a take away lunch today - excellent food , quick service and amazing prices . I collect my grand daughter from the college twice a week , and I'll be using this place each time , as it saves me cooking a meal , I get superb value and it's helping the college . Win all round ! Perhaps a bit more advertising might be the order of the day , as I'm sure most people don't know the restaurant exists .

What a fabulous meal. Lovely staff. Very attentive. Food was hot and tasty. I had cod and chips and the mushy peas were the best I've ever had. I could quite happily eat just a bowl of them. The only criticism would be that there was far too much tartare sauce. Half the amount would have done. As a former caterer, I know about food waste and I wouldn't want them to learn a bad lesson. I also had Pecan Tart with cream. It was heavenly. I will certainly be going back. Well done x

Have dined here many times both lunchtime and special evening sessions, with my husband and with friends. The staff are very attentive the food is delicious and we are lookind forward to visiting again this week (27/1/20)

Excellent value for money Nothing is to much trouble Great choice in the menu & it changes daily, where else do you get that. The staff are on their path of hospitality and mentored all the time. It is one of those little gems know one knows about, Seek it out & you won’t be disappointed . And you could help make a few peoples futures

Went for lunch today at the Glass House had 3 courses to try very cheap all we can say is it was very good little tweaks needed but remember these are students learning a trade try it you won’t be disappointed

Excellent food, excellent service, and a good atmosphere Would highly recommend, I enjoyed the opportunity to sample a variety of dishes

A group of 23, we went to the Glasshouse for our Christmas lunch. We were welcomed by very charming and attentive staff. Our meal was of a very good quality and well presented and served

Had a fab time at The Glasshouse yesterday. We were a large party of approx 20 people and all had the 3 course festive dinner. We were all served together - some restaurants find this a difficult feat but not The Glasshouse. The students and manager were friendly, warm and made us feel very welcome and relaxed.The food and presentation were to a high standard. Talking to my colleagues afterward, I think everyone of us would agree. With high end quality and budget pricing what’s not to like?! A big Thankyou to all students and staff.

As a part of Darlington College the Glasshouse Restaurant service is largely provided by students learning cooking, presentation and front of house skills. We've just enjoyed their banquet Christmas dinner, eight courses of excellent food served efficiently and with a smile. If the future of restaurants around the country are going to be in their hands we have much to look forward to.

Full disclosure, I do work for the college but that in no way affected my review. Having eaten tasting menus in several Michelin starred restaurants, and paid a small fortune for it, I was really blown away by the quality and variety of food served as part of the nine-course Christmas tasting menu at the college. Richard, running front of house, managed the students well and the thirty or so diners were treated to some fantastic tastes and table theatre. At £26 each it cannot be beaten!

This was a team Christmas lunch. The food was pre-ordered, arrived on time and very well presented. The staff (Student learners) were very professional and polite and tended to all our needs. The food was amazing. I had the parsnip and apple soup, followed by a Turkey dinner with all the trimmings, the Horseradish mash is lovely. All followed by a white chocolate cheesecake. Excellent value.

Staff welcoming and attentive from the moment of arrival. We enjoyed our 3 course lunch, beautifully presented and a super variety of flavours. Lovely to see a young workforce learning skills and developing confidence. Thank you and well done to all!

A lovely two course meal in the glasshouse restaurant today with my friends Jill and Diane - pre super busy Christmas time - enjoyed the service and the food Well done to all the students involved - thank you 😊

A perfect night with friends at this great venue. Service and menu was superb. A great recommendation.

I love coming here as you always get looked after, great service, friendly staff, great prices and gorgeous food. Would definitely recommend a visit!

This must be the best restaurant you have never heard of in Darlington. First time visit this week and we enjoyed our meal immensely.Service was good with the trainee waiting staff professionally managed by their college supervisor. The food was wonderful - i can recommend the black pudding and poached egg starter. We enjoyed a bottle of superb Spanish wine which would have been outside of our budget in other establishments. The restaurant itself is warm and well lit and very conclusive to a lunchtime meal.Can not fault the experience, great food, good staff and very reasonable prices. Hats off to the students and staff at the Glasshouse Restaurant. We will definitely return soon.

We had lunch there today. It was very good, excellent value with a wide range of choices on the menu. The staff and the trainees were polite and gave an excellent experience. We would recommend anybody to visit the restaurant.

I'd rate our meal as very good and value for money amazing! Arrived and it was explained it's a new term so bear with the students. But the service, cleanliness and quality if food was really superb.We had quiche, salad, coleslaw and chips for £3.50 each. Desserts were lush, lemon cheesecake and treacle tart. Oh man, they were tasty. I had a brandy, £1.50!Coming back soon!!!

This was our first visit to The Glasshouse Restaurant and it didn't disappoint, The front of house staff and the chefs are all trainees learning hospitality and honing their skills before launching into industry for real. All of the trainees we met are a credit to the college and every member of the serving staff made our group of four very welcome. Their course tutor and mentor Richard Partington, gently coached and encouraged them to apply the skills learned in the classroom. The meal was excellent and we are already planning our next visits. It will be nice to how the students make progress throughout the academic year.

Excellent oven roasted sea bass on a bed of pea and goats cheese risotto. Great and quick service. Top marks!

One of the best places to lunch in Darlington. Silver service food and service.

We have visited the Glasshouse Restaurant on a number of occasions and have never found reason to find fault. We visited last night (06/06/19) for a charity evening in aid of St TERESA'S HOSPICE and again everything was to perfection, the food and the very talented students going out of their way to make it a successful event for a excellent & worthwhile charity. Keep up the good work all involved. We will be back.

went for set meal New Zealand & Australia night appetisers ,3 items .next to share 4 items , main event choice of 4 items .puddings choice of 4 items + 4 glasses of wine 2 red 2 white all very good and all for £25 will be back in September for more treats when they reopen for specials .They are also open lunch times

Starters of cod, mackerel and salmon fishcake with tartare sauce. Good portions, tasty and all made from scratch. Followed this with a ham, mushroom and mozzerella omelette with chips and salad. The omelette was made next to the table so you could see the process. Fantastic job. Great service. I could hardly move to get out of the door!

Had lunch which was tasty and well presented.There was a decent choice for all courses and the value is excellent The students were very attentive and customer service was exemplary- better than I have experienced in some fine dining restaurants.It’s an excellent teaching resource and it needs to be supported. We will be back next term.

We had a lovely meal at lunchtime. Excellent food+service+ambiance. Felt very welcome, super service.definitely recommend it, we will be back.Shame people do not seem to support this venture of training college students in a path to be excellent hosts in the catering business.

Based in Darlington, this is a wonderful place to eat. There is 5 options for each course so plenty to choose from. £6 for 2 courses and £8 for 3. It was presented perfectly, and the two young waiters did a great job. (It was nice to see these young people with learning difficulties given the opportunity to learn, and they were great) It was such a shame there were very few customers, why I don't know, as it was fantastic value for fantastic food. My husband has said we are going to make it a fortnightly thing, and I will hold him to that. Well done to all the students.

The students did very well seeing that they were short staffed. We were welcomed at the door and we were made to feel that our requirements mattered. The service was good and so was the quality of the meal. The size of the helpings were just right and the quality of the food was very good. It was very tasty and well presented. We will return!

Four ladies met up for a meal and a chat. We were warmly welcomed and staff were very attentive throughout. We had the three courses for £8 which was very good value. The smoked salmon starter looked particularly good and we all envied our friend who had it although the vegetable spring rolls were very tasty. Fish and chips were delicious but the baked New York cheesecake was the best. Well done!

Visited first time today with a friend.Friendly and efficient service,the food was v.tasty and well presented. Would certainly recommend a visit,we will go again.

Delicious food presented by attentive students; first time visit but shall definitely return! Tutors and students should be proud of themselves @!!!

Delicious 3 course meal for £8 served by attentive students. Will definitely return! Wonderful battered fish and fresh fruit salad absolutely wonderful end to fantastic experience!!! Well done to you all!!!

My visit along with my wife and friends and what a fantastic surprise it was. The staff, 3rd year students, were very attentive, polite and more than happy to explain the food contents and cooking process. The food itself, was a fish evening, was excellent and can not be praised enough. The salmon and duck egg in the style of a scotch egg was really nice and the cod veloute was the meal of the night, thank you and well done to the chefs and staff.Final point is that the price with drinks for us as a group was around £30 a head, the food was £24.95 a head, and this as value for money was excellent as we believe in a “posh” restaurant you would easily pay the food price for just one of the courses!I thoroughly recommend this place and will be coming back, unfortunately can not make the Mardi Gras night but will attend the Tapas night.Congratulations to you all.

Went for lunch with a friend today and the restaurant did not disappoint. Fantastic front of house service from when we were greeted and sat at the table, right to the end of our meal. Food was perfect and there was no wait on anything at all.Got recommended a beer which tasted fantastic and didn’t let us down. Fantastic all round, keep up the good work!

Decided to go to the glass house after talking to friends in the industry, as a place I got taught how to cook I thaught I would go back to see the place, well done to all the young students it was lovely and great service, keep it up the industry needs some good young staff.

Enjoyed our first experience of the glasshouse last Friday for a three course lunch which was excellent.The sea bass and spatchcock chicken were well cooked and presented and the students were very attentive to each detail of service.A really well done on a tremendous job and we have booked in again already for February. This will be a regular event for us!!!

We had another excellent lunch here last week. It was our 4th or 5th visit and each time it gets better and better. The friendly service and excellent food have to be the best value in town. If you haven,t been then its time that you did as you will not be disappointed.

Lovely lunch, very attentive staff, great value. Everyone should support this place. The mackerel starter with pickles was first rate.

Myself & my friend attended the 9 course taster menu last night. We were not disappointed. The food was delicious, and very well presented. The chef came across and explained each course to us. The catering staff were very attentive. They regularly came over to offer water, or to ask if you needed anything. A thoroughly enjoyable evening. Well done to everyone involved.

The Glasshouse Restaurant is an excellent venue staffed by the Catering department of Darlington College. We have just attended a nine course tasting menu where Sean Wrest (Black Swan Oldstead) along with a fabulous team from the college provided an amazing taste experience. The food was delicious, every course providing a new taste sensation. The service was brilliant with all the staff working really hard to make sure everyone had a wonderful evening.

We have been several times to the glasshouse restaurant and have never been disappointed. The students try so hard to give a good service with a smile and always succeed. The food is always top quality and the prices are amazing. Well done everyone

What a lovely meal we all had the Glasshouse restaurant. A really great choice of food, beautifully cooked and presented and the students were polite and attentive — despite some of idiosyncratic ways. The portions were a little large for some of us (but some of us have smaller appetites). We will be back soon.

Couldnt fault today's meal at the Glasshouse. Service and food were outstanding. The price was a steal! Students were lovely and really trying to make the experience enjoyable - well done!

Fantastic first experience of lunch at the restaurant. Food was superb, service very attentive and professional from students and tutors. And an absolute bargain at £8 for 3 courses.

Went to The Glasshouse Restaurant for lunch for the first time today. I was not really sure what to expect from a local student-run restaurant so I went in a bit wary...but came out thoroughly impressed! A nice warm welcome, attentive service from the young students, superb food from a menu offering a good range of meals and all excellent value for £6 for two courses. Being September I think the students were possibly new to their roles but they did amazingly well and were clearly putting into practice what they were learning - it was lovely to see them being guided by the restaurant manager who supported them throughout; listening in to his support and advice was actually really interesting and makes you appreciate the work the students have to put in to succeed. All in all a great experience and we were made to feel very valued as customers...I have had lesser service in some very expensive high end city restaurants! We will most certainly be back.

It can be tempting to adopt a more accepting approach to food and service when it’s a College restaurant staffed by students but there is no need here. The food was good, I had a fish pie, generously comprised of salmon, and cod with a nice slightly crisp mashed and piped potato topping. Piping hot it came with a fresh salad of mixed leaves and pea shoots. Good Coffee was served with tasty shortbread rounds. The restaurant was busy, and hardly surprising at these bargain prices ( I think my fish pie was £5 or thereabouts).The Glasshouse deserves our patronage as it gives students real industry experience, but it deserves it as much for what’s on offer.

Lovely service from the students in the catering department and high quality food served I have never been disappointed, I use this restaurant regularly!

4 of us went for lunch about 2 weeks ago following an article in the local press, and were not disappointed. We were welcomed at the door, and shown to our table. The menu was varied and the prices were very reasonable. Between us, we had four different main courses, risotto, fish pie, fish and chips, and chicken pie - all were good portions, tasty and well cooked. The student waiters were attentive, without being intrusive, efficient and polite. We also had a starter but only 2 of us could manage a dessert, all of which were, again, very good quality and value.The students in the kitchen, and front of house are to be commended for their efforts in providing an enjoyable, and very good value for money dining experience - I hope they do well in the industry. Recommended.

Attentive service and tasty food but I like it hot! Soup and main course both tepid.Asked for soup to be heated up - done OK but could hardly then send back main course as well.Also noisy piped pop music not appreciated - they said nothing they could do.Previous two visits very good except for tepid coffee first time (Dec 2016).

We received a genuine welcome from Richard immediately we entered the restaurant. The service from all staff is friendly and very pleasant. The menu offered a good range of options. The Fish Pie was tasty and a good sized portion of fish options was well cooked. The pavlova was excellent and the custard was very well received. We could not fault any aspect of the service and quality of the food. The staff and students should be proud of their service.Our party of three people had two courses plus drinks for a total cost of £24. Incredible.We will return very soon.

Ham hock terrine and fish and chips for lunch with a nice glass of wine. Fantastic value we will deffo be back.

This was my second visit and again I wasn't disappointed. The service wasn't quick but we were in no hurry and attention to detail was obviously important to the staff Nd students. I enjoyed a twice baked cheese shuffle followed by lamb burger. My mum enjoyed ham hock terrine and Chicken & leek pie. The selection of desserts was great too. This is a lovely restaurant which gives valuable experience to the students and great value for money for customers.

This restaurant is part of Darlington College, the students cook and serve the food. It is absolutely AMAZING value for money. Service is great and the quality of the food is equal to a high end restaurant. I am lucky to have eaten lunch and dinner here over the past few months.Tonights dinner was in conjunction with a local restaurant. Wonderful to say the least, £22 for four couses. Huge portions. Excellent varied menu, great service. I forgot to take photos of Amuse Bouch, Starter and Main. Photos are of Dessert and Cheeseboard delightful. Please keep doing what you are doing.......fantastic. many thanks.

Had a wonderful visit ..students and staff were friendly and polite and my vegan meal was tasty and looked great ..would recommend to everyone

a great place for an excellent meal and value for money . it needs to be supported by the community , these students are the future of the catering and hospitality industry and if people want to eat out and go to hotels etc , then support the college. Without the communities support , you will have no where to eat in future or stay

My husband and I thoroughly enjoyed a remarkable meal, and discussed with the students on their good social skills and cooking skills at a young age. Brilliant price. We will definitely be going back for another superb meal! 😊Couldn't fault it!

Lovely lunch and amazing value for money. Alice our waitress was a star.

I visited the restaurant with Colleagues for our Christmas lunch. The restaurant was busy with a full lunch service and the atmosphere was good. It was a three course menu with our choices made in advance. The food was excellent and very good value for money. The students were attentive and worked well together to ensure smooth service. Attention to detail such as removing opened Christmas crackers and other rubbish to keep the table clear was very commendable. I would certainly return in the New Year to try the usual menu.

After reading about this place in the Northern Echo we popped in today for lunch.From start to finish the service and food could not be faulted.Had three courses for £8 that would not be out of place in a top restaurant in the city.We will definitely be revisiting in our shopping trips to darlo and will try to get to one of the themed evenings.A credit to the college and all the staff who work in the restaurant.

Have just had lunch here with our friends Nigel and Wendy Browne and I must say the whole experience was brilliant. The food is excellent and the students give a first class service, very friendly and extremely helpful. Well done to each and every one of you. We have visited before and we will undoubtably be back. Thank you all very much.

What a fantastic lunch we had here today! Very attentive waiting staff who are just starting out in the world of hospitality desperate to improve their skill set and an outstanding standard of food for an unbelievable price!! The manager /mentor was so supportive of the students and desperate for them to get as much real life service experience as possible! We will definately be visiting again. Best meal I've had in ages!

We have been going to the Glasshouse Restaurant and prior to here the old college in Cleveland Avenue for many a year. You will never find value for money anywhere better. The food quality is second to none. The service from both the tutors & students is a credit to them all. The youngsters really do put their heart and enthusiasm into everything they do. We were there for the MacMillan Coffee Morning on Friday 29th September and was more than impressed with the laid-on buffet spread and service. It really justified a good donation to a valid charity. We highly recommend that the people of Darlington and surrounding areas go out of their way to support the students and help The Glasshouse to survive. Good luck to Richard & his team.

Food always good. Service from students excellent, they work extremely hard to please the clients as do the tutors. Unfortunately the theme dinners are not on very often, but we do try to attend them all. We always go to both the Christmas lunch and dinner every year they are always excellent.

Visited here yesterday with a friend, not knowing what to expect as it is cooked,prepared and served by the students was nothing short of fantastic, excellent food served by really lovely people, that good I wanted to bring some more friends next week!! But they are now on holiday till September...shame! Will most definitely be back for more!!Just to add, last week I visited a very well renowned restaurant and have got to say I enjoyed today's lunch equally as much, well done Darlington college.

My son and I visited for lunch ..the staff were very friendly and helpful and they adapted their menu for my vegan requirements..will definitely visit again

Brilliant service thank you very much I had poke and chips all homemade definitely worth the money 💰 b

I have visited this restaurant at our local college, I must say the food, and the service is excellent, and to a very high standard, I would recommend this restaurant, the students are very friendly and professional in the restaurant, nothing is too much. The prices are very reasonable and the meals are of very high standard. I would highly recommend a visit.

This is a lovely place to eat the food is excellent. The staff are very helpful and polite. Would recommend this restaurant to anybody you will not be disappointed .