Gwalia Cafe in Gwynedd

This place doesn’t look like much. It’s a bit run down and not exactly welcoming but we always call in when on holiday for their sandwiches and sausage rolls. Fresh bread rolls. We always have ham, salad and coleslaw baps. Proper thick ham. Seems to be where the Welsh locals get their lunch! Definitely worth popping in for a sandwich and very well priced. £12 for 3 baps and a sausage roll! Can’t go wrong!

The place is very dated & a bit drab, in need of a bit of a spruce up I think. However, the full breakfast is great value at £7, including doorstep toast with jam, juice & a hot drink. Ingredients aren’t the very best, but are as good as you’re likely to get at this price & the portions are generous.

Drawn to this establishment by the appetising cakes in the window. We went in with the intention of having a coffee & taking a couple of cakes home but, decided to eat there. The staff are friendly, welcoming and efficient Couldn't fault the standard of the food and the coffee was excellent. The establishment was clean and tastefully decorated, including the toilets. The pizza was the best I've had in a very long time, tasted truly homemade...definitely not heated up from a box! The chicken & mushroom pie is also recommended. Latte was just as it should be & stayed hot whilst we ate. Yes, we did take cakes home for later.....almond tart and eccles cake....eaten & enjoyed the following day. Thank you all =)

I first came to the Gwalia in the early/mid 1970's and very little seemed to have changed. We had a nice cup of tea and coffee to wash down some Bara Brith and Welsh Cakes which were good. The prices were cheap. If you want to try somewhere very traditional and old school try here but if you are a 'Costa' person you may wish to try somewhere else. I enjoyed my return visit.

Obviously a little local gem. It reminded us of a similar place back home in Oxon... bakery with cafe at the back. We ordered a bacon roll and toasted cheese sandwich. I had the latter and it was delicious. Full of cheese and dripping with butter. Good honest food, and friendly staff and customers... I will go back!

My parrner and I popped in here for lunch today and I was extremely disappointed with the meal I was served. I ordered half a chicken and when it came it was almost black and clearly overcooked. The chicken was dry and complemented the burnt chips well. The only palatable thing on the plate was the peas. Not coming here again.

this place do lovely cakes and you can sit in for food which is ok service is ok and you can get cakes and hot and cold food totake home also fresh made bread

We found the Gwalia Cafe when on a day visit to Pwllheli, and what a delight it was. The front is a bakery selling very enticing cakes and savouries, at the back is a time warp cafe/restaurant. We decided on beef diners and so pleased we did. The cooking and taste reminded me of my grandmother's Sunday lunches which were always well anticipated. The ambience was taken straight out of the '50's and 60's, but delightful in its own way. The staff were cheery and bright. So pleased we found it.

This cafe make lovely sandwiches and rolls, can be slow at times but noticed when i had my roll made that none of the staff were wearing gloves and picking up salads with their bare hands, not even a tong in sight! Surely this shouldn't be? Also, the chopping boards were not being wiped down and i had remnants of tuna in my ham salad.not good as it put me off my roll.

We popped into Gwalia today. Really lovely array of treats and savouries in the bakery and the cafe at the back. The staff looked a bit serious, not very warm in their approach but very efficient. The prices were really cheap and the food was tasty. We ordered basic fare.... Belgium bun, egg sandwich, sausage and bacon. The large coffees and cappachinos were only £1.90 to £2.20 which is good. We paid £2.50 the day before for a small cappachinos and £2.20 for a tea cake so paying only £1.60 for a large bun was excellent. The meals being brought out to other tables looked tasty. On our way out we bought some things for teatime. Large portion of ham, cheese and Tom quiche a£1! Most cakes were 70p to 95p and large. Really good value. Please pay them a visit, even if they don't seem cheerful.

I'm not sure that anything's changed her in the thirty years that we've been visiting, especially not the decor. We sat down in the restaurant at the back of the bakery and it brought back so many memories. The menu is pretty simple but perfect if you want to drop in for a quick snack or to sit around chatting over a coffee. The real star attraction of this place will always be the cakes, there's nothing better than a custard slice from Gwalia, we'll always come back for them.

A lovely find whilst in Pwllheli, just needed some fresh bread..... it was really good, and the cakes were too. We resisted staying for lunch but it would have been reasonable, it's not a modern, but a traditional good home style establishment.

I pass through pwllheli few times a year and stop in this cafe,the bakery is so nice,lovely cakes,all fresh,fresh bread,and the cafe is so nice,i usually have the roast dinner,you can have a small plate or a large one,its a home from home sunday dinner,it has everything that you would like to see on a plate,nice hot food,lovely people to talk to,very homely, i travel a bit further,thats why i always go back there,i love it.it is a bit old fashioned but these places are a gem,you can never find a place like this anywhere else,brilliant,diolch yn fawr iawn.

This does the best ham I’ve ever had. I recommend going to the counter in the front and ordering a ham and coleslaw or ham salad bap on brown or white baps. They are simply divine. I haven’t eaten in the back for a few years but it was always a decent cafe and I’ve tried the dinners and also the Welsh rarebit which used to be the best in the area. This place is a bakery at the front and a cafe / restaurant at the back.

This place is a real gem. The negative reviews are from people who just don't get it who expect the boring modern day bland café. The owners have worked this for 60 years and we really appreciated the unique atmosphere and genuinely friendly cafi staff. The scone was not available but the Welsh cake was. They arrived well before the coffees which is all part of the experience. There is a fantastic framed menu in old £ and old pence. There is also some museum piece cash machines. Your given a paper receipt to settle at the front of the shop for your food/drink.. All part of the open honesty policy. To be enjoyed for what it is!! Thank you for making this visit memorable. Car parking in ASDA for 1.5 hours free otherwise a £70 fine if you overstay. Usual 60 mins in town street otherwise.

We had a fabulous breakfast here , however if I let my eyes wonder , I just wanted to paint the place and get some cif on.the skirting boards and doors , bit of bleach goes a long way .

This cafe, behind a traditional bakers shop, seems straight out of the 1970s - hard to decide if it was nostalgic or depressing! We ordered tea and Welsh cakes, only to discover that what they were selling - cacen grip on the menu - were not the same animals as the Welsh cakes at home in South Wales - picen ar y maen. That said, the fruited buttered triangular splits we were brought were fresh and delicious. The biggest downside to our visit was that the finger marks on the outer door to the ladies' loo clearly hadn't been wiped for a very long time, grubby and off-putting.

Called to this cafe as many years ago this was my mother in law's favourite place. Upon entering the cafe nod the rear of the shop the waitress was sitting at a table on her phone. She immediate got up and walked through a door into the kitchen. My husband and I waited for her to return but to no avail. Another customer..obviously a regular noticed our concern and knocked on the kitchen door and the waitress came into the cafe. The customer told her there were customers waiting and her response was..." yes I know"

On Tuesday, Hubby and I popped in here for some bread. I bought a small white loaf which cost £1.10 (a bit over-priced). I asked for it to be thickly sliced but the lady explained that the bread machine could only cut it into medium slices. The slices turned out to be very thin indeed and I was charged an extra 2 pence for the service!

Bobbed in after advice for the best local Welsh cakes and wasn't disappointed excellent and very much to what seems a homemade recipe lovely

Té Helado estaba bien en el comedor que está en la parte trasera de la tienda. Los servidores están un poco relajado sentado trabajando sus teléfonos móviles y lento caminar hacia el cliente que tiene claramente llegamos y esperando sin saber si ir y pedir en la tienda! Podría hacer mejor a este respecto y no volveré.

We have visited a few times for breakfast and for sheer value you can't beat it! The breakfast is spot on and the toast is made with the bakery's bread. You get orange juice as well .The service is quick and friendly.

Lovely café at the back of the bakers shop, nice coffee and fresh bakery products which are yummy, very quiet when we visited, friendly staff, could do with a bit more upgraded surroundings

bought cakes from here whilst staying in a cottage round the corner on a weeks holiday.we decided to have lunch there today as we noticed the cafe at the rear of the bakery. now on first impression..walking into a bakery i expect to be hit...

Lovely bakers shop with a café at the back

Overall we visit Gwalia maybe a couple of times a week and are always pleased with the food. However the customer service provided is appalling. Never before have I felt so belittled by certain grumpy members of staff. Staff that avoid to make eye contact and act like every additional item added on to the order is a struggle along with huffing and puffing. The staff make the sandwiches well, however when asking questions in regards to the fillings they have their backs turned to the customers, so none of the customers know if they are speaking to them or in fact another person they are attending to, and then the staff become infuriated when the customer hasn't answered the question. I do return to Gwalia but staff training on how to smile would be very beneficial, it goes a long way!

I like this bakery, lovely sandwiches made to order and I like the soup as well. Good sausage rolls. I like the window display of cakes but I've never tried any. Some of the staff are a bit miserable cheer up!

Very dated, lacks atmosphere. Food took a long time to arrive and when it did it tasted of stale cooking oil, having ordered all day breakfast. Mushrooms soaked in fat. Also the worst cappucino I have ever had. NOT recommended especially for fried food.

They have all sorts for cakes and cookies they also have the best chocolate brownies in North Wales they are to die for. We always go when we come to Wales. Can't wait to go back!!!

Customer service here is absolutely disgusting putting it politely! Ignore the boards quoting the sandwiches in English, if the English dialect is heard here by the extremely grumpy women behind the counter you'll be scowled at and ignored while they mumble to each other in a fed up manner. We only know the basics to get us by in Welsh. If anyone knows the Welsh for chicken tikka sandwich please let me know just in case every other food outlet in the world is shut we may consider calling again or maybe not!

Incredibly rude and ignorant staff who knew we were waiting to place our orders but totally ignored us. Two other groups of Welsh speaking customers came in after us got served straightaway.After trying to attract the staff's attention we gave up after 30 minutes as we came to the conclusion that they would never serve us anyway.

Been here before....but the quality of the food changes....no love put in it all....long wait and staff talking amongst the self instead of serving.....bland drink....greasy food....won't go again....

Went here with my girlfriend for dinner as we decided to start trying all the little local places. The cafe is quite old fashioned, but clean and tidy. The staff are friendly (Even though I'm English - Not sure what the references to racism on here are about). The food came quickly and was very nice. On the way out you have to pay in the bakery area. There is a queue for the cafe, a queue for the sandwiches and then the queue for the bakery. I think this is where people have got confused and think locals are being served before them.

Have been here a few times now with my partnerThe cafe is at the back of shop it's like going back in time but still lovely and traditionalFood is very nice and you can from a snack to a full meal and the cost is very good also

The cafe is situated at the rear of the bread shop.First appearance is that it's a bit dark and dated looking.The staff were very pleasant and helpful and took our order which arrived in about 10 minutes. The food was very nice and not overpriced.The cafe has free wifi and was fairly busy when we were thereso it must be doing something right. There was no issue with the language. Will pop in again for a lite lunch or coffee and cake.

Called in for a quick lunch, very good service,wife and I had jacket potatoes ,they were very good indeed, hot and Tasty with good cheese and nice hot beans with a good side salad. A good pot of tea very welcoming on a horrid wet and windy day. Well done for providing good food and a warm welcome.

Although they do tasty take away filled bread rolls, the attitude of the staff leaves a lot to be desired! Miserable as sin springs to mind and about as helpful as a chocolate teapot. If you're English they're even worse, although the general consensus of the locals is that they're only marginally less rude if you speak Welsh. Besides all that, who puts tinned pineapple in a filled roll?!?!

Lovely friendly staff. Excellent quality bread and cakes. Eat in or take away. Best bakery in town. Reasonable prices

My girlfriend also my daughter and I decided to pop in for lunch on 4th of August around 13:00 and was shown to a table next to a bin in the restaurant area. I noticed that there was thick dust everywhere on old cobwebs. On looking at the menu my daughter only wanted egg and chips and was looking forward to it, we had some sort of a school dinner type of a roast. Then the waitress came over and placed cutlery on our table which I noticed had food debris on them which she changed. On arrival of our meals my daughter had to wait 20 minutes for her egg and chips when it came to the table the egg was burnt around the edges and the chips where cooked in old dirty oil. I complained and the waitress deducted the kids meal from the final bill and left very quickly. Will never go there again! get your act together and clean the place you shouldn't be allowed a food rating!

My mum is Welsh and asked me to buy some welsh cakes while i was in Pwllheli. I popped in to this bakers and asked for some Welsh cakes, she put them in a bag and i paid for them. Back at the caravan I opened the bag and took one out. It was definitely not a Welsh cake, it was triangular and far too thick. It was more of a drop scone. I was very disappointed, as was my mum.

I was appalled by this act of racísm, if it wasn't for the tourist industry they wouldn't have a business. Avoid at all costs!

When it goes to Baps Gwalia do the best ones ever, always full and always fresh, the bread in here is just the "best" in town, The café is old fashioned just as it has been for years and that what makes this café special. Its like stepping back in time when you walk in. The staff are always friendly especially Zoe who is lovely. The cakes here are also great.

The Gwalia is a spacious cafe situated behind a bakery shop and has changed little over the years, but in a good way which adds to Its charm. It has a very restful atmosphere , yet service is still quick and efficient. Great value sandwiches and snacks with good quality local meats and Welsh cakes. Definitely recommend for a lunch stop.

I really enjoyed their sausage rolls and for £1.05 it was a bargain! I can't help myself from looking at the cakes while passing the windows now!

It may not be the most modern of places and the service can be a bit dodgy but the products are amazing. Worth a visit purely for the ham and the cream doughnuts :-)

The back room to this bread and cake shop is a fairy large cafe, which has probably changed little in the last fifty years. Tables are dressed with sticky red and white checked table cloths, the lighting is dim, and the menu still has all your old favourites , like poached eggs on toast, cheesy chips a wide selection of pies and much more besides. My poached egg on toast came with a thick piece of toasted white bread, cut from a proper loaf, not the usual sliced bread, which when toasted loses all its texture. As for the poached eggs, they were slim and perfectly formed, such that i assumed the cook had developed a technique for cutting a poached egg in half and passing it off as two eggs, but hey, my partner told me I was being stupid. Her baked potato with cheese and coleslaw was substantial and tasty, all with a good pot of tea. The toilets have seen better days and the cafe floor could have done with a thorough clean, but these points are just distractions, as they add to the atmosphere. Whilst we were there a man walked in with a tray of take away food which we assumed he had bought elsewhere, sat down and asked for a knife and fork, which he was given. He ate his food and left the food tray and empty can on the table and walked out. Strange. Don't miss out on the Gwalia cafe if you find yourself in Pwhelli, just for the experience of stepping back in time.

Called in this week for a cooked lunch and decided on a full breakfast ,which comes with tea or coffee , oj and toast.The cafe is a bit like a timewarp with retro everything ,but the place is clean and the staff are friendly and the food is good.My breakfast was perfectly cooked and a satisfying lunch and I relaxed with my pot of tea.All for the price of a couple of sandwiches.

A quick lunch in Pwhelli turned out much better than expected. The menu at Gwalia is very varied but I wasn't very hungry so chose a Childrens Special - fish cake with peas and chips, and a drink of blackcurrent juice. The meal was quickly served, was tasty, and plenty for an adult. The cafe itself is a bit old fashioned but that is part of its charm, For £4 I was fed and watered and quickly on my way. Good choice!

Large clean cafe with friendly, welcoming pleasant staff. It was warm and comfortable; a little vintage.We arrived late afternoon so not many choices of cakes left but what we chose was fresh and tasty. We had a good pot of tea for two; quite rare these days. Good quality and value for money.

We have been using Gwalia for years and really like it. I highly recommend the Welsh rarebit, it's light, fluffy and delicious. We had it made fresh for us by Gwen in the kitchen and it was the best we'd had. They also serve roast dinners here which are super value if you fancy a proper meal. We always buy the multiseed bread and the excellent ham from here too. You won't find better ham on the peninsula. I wholeheartedly recommend this place.

If you like simple, traditional cafés full of locals you'll love this. You don't find many of these any more. Just hope they won't go and update it. A little shabby maybe to the modern eye but that's the charm. Proper tea in a pot, old fashioned sandwiches and cakes from the bakery (pick up a loaf on the way in, in case they sell out while you're there - great, proper bread!) Staff lovely.

A group of 6 six of us, including two children, an eighteen month old and a 9 year old in a wheelchair( broken foot), ducked into the cafe, for lunch, and to avoid a rain shower. The dining area was crowded, and slightly tired looking. However the staff were really friendly, and the food much better than I expected. Nothing fancy, just good honest home cooked food, which was very tasty, and excellent value for money. Well worth a visit!

Visiting Pwllheli yesterday we were caught in a sudden downpour so decided on an early lunch. The Gwalia was the nearest cafe and although from the outside it looked like a bakery/ patisseriebut at the rear was a pleasant cafe area serving all manner of traditional Welsh fare and quick bites for the passing tourists. Families with children prams etc were happily being served and the staff were so friendly and fast Our steakwich and coffee arrived in minutes and was delicious and very reasonably priced, I would certainly recommend this cafe for a quick bite to eat in beautiful North Wales.