Lite Bites in Argyll & Bute

Went here on a Friday in June because everywhere else in town was fully booked. This place only had one customer and 12 tables. Ominous. We ordered some pakora two curries a rice and a nan. The pakora had thick batter round a sliver of chicken, like the worst Chinese sweet and sour. Never had anything like it. Five pounds for three pieces. The chicken makhani was sweet like jam but without much other flavour. The chicken sag was better but still really poor. Each delivery was preceded by a ping indicating the microwave had finished. Nothing was made on the premises. All either fried or microwaved. By the time we had finished the pakora the other customer had left in disgust saying it was the worst Indian he had ever had. Wish we had done the same. It was also quite dear at 12 quid for a curry and 3.5 for rice. Truly awful.

Myself & 3 colleagues went for a meal when we were here working for a few days. I can honestly say that this is one of the worst dining experiences any of us have ever had. It was so bad, I actually caught them taking my supposed Deluxe Tandoori Prawn meal out of the microwave, it was that deluxe there were 6 prawns & the sauce was inedible . One of our friends had to wait half an hour for his accompanying sauce for his main & when it eventually arrived he couldn't eat it as his main had went cold. The glasses, tables & cutlery were dirty. The staff were unhelpful & untidy. They ran out of beer so we're only serving Tennents Lager in cans. Nothing was homemade, from the nan to the curries. You could hear the microwave constantly pinging. I also unfortunately tried the fish & chips. Frozen cremated dry rubbish.

This is an Indian restaurant, at least in the evenings. Three of us (in our 70s and 80s) ate at the Bistro in the evenings on the way to Islay and again on return some days later. We chose 5 different Indian dishes and found them all excellent. There were few customers, it being 'out of season' and we had to wait. It was clear the food was being freshly cooked for us. We complimented the chef when he came to speak to us. It was obvious he was familiar in cooking his national type of food. I cannot vouch for other non-Indian dishes served at other times of day.

One of the strangest Indian food takeout experience I ever had. Mixed up my lamb tikka masala and gave me chicken instead. (unless contrary to my poor understanding of the world, lamb now comes in the form of white meat). Ordered butter chicken and chicken(suppose to be lamb!) tikka masala and both very strangely sweet, yet the meat in both dishes had the tandoori red and super salty. Unable to finish any dishes even though we are super hungry.

Very sadly I am writing this review to warn both customers and staff - a health hazard!! Attempted to have a breakfast roll - best decision we made - after one bite - was to abandon.

This place appears to be run as two separate restaurants breakfast/daytime and in the evening an "Indian Restaurant"! The Indian part of the restaurant is disgusting. The food is brought in either chilled or frozen and reheated even the nan's come from a shop/ cash & carry! I had the Rogan Lamb which had a layer or grease over the top and was completely tasteless. My wifes dish was a chicken tikka, the chicken pieces were presented cut in half, I presume to make it appear more! There was were little Tandoori colour to the Tikka and the first time we've seen a Tikka presented with no gravy, again cash & carry bought! No atmosphere in the place at all, background music etc. Keep your hard earned cash and dine elsewhere! There are a couple of other restaurants but these are so popular they tend to be fully booked. The chip shop looks very popular and if you dine earlier there is a super cafe on the main street which does some super specials.

This place should be stopped from taking peoples hard earnt money. We ordered chicken tikka starter, shiek kebab, and lamb bhuna all of which was shop bought or food warehouse and had been frozen cos it still was in the middle, usually you would hear the sound of the chef making the curry but all that we heard was a ding from the microwave now and then ..... i would sooner pt pins in my eyes than rather than eat here again. it was not fit for a dog and the nann was awful please if you value your gut then stay away.

Ordered a ‘Butter Chicken’ for takeaway, opened to find a thick layer of yellow grease which I put kitchen roll on to ‘suck up’ then put on plate with the bland pilau rice, one mouthful of possibly a Korma with a handful of coconut thrown in, texture was sick inducing I kid not. All scraped back into the bag it came in and deposited in the bin. Give it up guys, that’s our last visit, this is not ‘Indian food’ You’ve lost the locals!

Take away . Closing time stated 10pm. Called at 9.20 was told only indian dishes curries and rice available ordered and told to hurry up and collect... if wanting to close earlier suggest make it clear on website and also state no nan bread, chips, pakoea served after 9pm ... terrible service wont be back

Avoid this place. I was in Tarbert for work and made the mistake of coming here before checking previous reviews. The menus outside suggest the establishment does standard pub grub as well as Indian, but it doesn’t - so the menus are presumably old and nobody has bothered to change them. Also worth noting that the restaurant is called the Marine Bistro - this is no bistro, it’s an Indian restaurant. The young waiter who greeted us as we arrived looked confused as to why we were there (to eat, obviously). We were seated and I asked for a jug of water for the table. We were instead given plastic bottled water and no glasses! Utterly bizarre, what decent self-respecting restaurant would do this? My curry was rubbish, I had a lamb curry and the sauce was tasteless. The only reason this is a two star review is because I was starving and finished my meal to fill a hole. The decor is fairly miserable. An American couple came in after us and looked equally bemused by the restaurant experience. This place is an embarrassment to Tarbert. Tourists come to Tarbert to enjoy what is a lovely little seaside village, not to have such a poor dining experience like this. Previous reviews suggest this is a recurring theme. Big changes required to fix this place.

Visited here for lunch in July. Husband was told his choice was unavailable so he went for 2nd choice of a chicken burger which arrived on a dry unbuttered roll with a mountain of barely cooked chips. I ordered scampi. Cut in to the scampi and it was mushy and very undercooked. Couldn't eat it but didn't send it back as I was too scared to eat anything from there. A table of 4 arrived before we left and we overheard them being told lots of the items were unavailable from the menu. The chiller wasn't on so their beer arrived warm. Tables were left uncleared and staff member disinterested. Please avoid, spend your money elsewhere!

Service slow and abrupt. Food very poor. Cans of pop warm from fridge. Staff looked massively disinterested. Avoid.

Scones served on a paper bag no plate or cutlery. Disgusting giving one star as it won’t let me submit with it

This has to be the worst Indian Cuisine I’ve ever tasted. The chicken Pakora starter was appalling. The batter engorged the slither of chicken in each piece. I had to actually use a plastic fork from the takeaway section for my main meal when it finally arrived. The French couple sat next to me gave up after waiting over one hour for their food. It was embarrassing. Don’t eat here !!! It’s appalling.

I went to this bistro twice and the meals were very good Indian both times. Comments about welcome might be because I think one of the assistants is not too fmiliar with English. The one I took to be the propritor was very welcoming and most import the food was excellent.

Such a cute little place . We went for take out ion a weekend and the place was empty . The front of house was so friendly abs engaging . The chef came out to say hello to us and took the time to explain what went into the food we had ordered . The veggie mix curry was served piping hot and super tasty perfect to eat with rice or nan. Service with a smile made our day

The worst curry place I have visited. No starters available and the main courses had a distinct lack of chicken. It's a cafe, not a bistro. Maybe they should visit the many excellent Indian restaurants in Glasgow to see how it should be done

The second we walked in we had a bad feeling about this place, tables sticky and just felt filthy all round, got the order wrong and didn't it was disgusting when. It arrived asked for a BLT baguette and it was a panini I recieved, why would anyone want a panini with hot lettuce, staff were awful too and disinterested in any form of customer service

We were a large family group staying in a house nearby, and wanted a takeaway. Cost over £200, and was nothing to write home about. Nothing bad, just nothing very good. Given the quality of food available locally you would think decent prawns would be available - nope, sawdusty, tiny frozen ones. The lamb was chewy. The poppadoms were a bit soggy, and there were no naans available…yep how inexcusable is that. Shame, because I think Tarbert deserves better and you would think a good Indian would be well supported. If you want Indian here you have no choice. It is not bad but could be so much better.

Tarbert really needs a good curry house but unfortunately this isn’t it . Cutlery and a napkin thrown down onto a bare table. Soggy poppadums with lurid red spicy onions from an Asian supermarket. “No garlic nan” should have been the clue that the nan bread is straight from the freezer- Store bought again . Chicken Jalfreezi was dry and the spices burned on the tongue - not cooked in . Can’t even give you a decent sized bottle of beer to drown your sorrows. Very poor.

The Marine Bistro occupies a prime location in Tarbert, offering panoramic views over an idyllic harbour through two large windows - it's never a problem to get a table and there's never a queue for entry. So why is it never packed out like all...

Serves a wide range of foods from Fish and Chips, to lovely curries. Chicken Sag was very nice. No bell on counter for service though.

This place is my weekend treat! I have tried almost everything on the menu at 'The Marine Bistro' since moving to the village, at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The food here is packed with flavour and the staff put in a lot of...

Recently popped in here for an Indian take away for 6 adults and 2 kids. Each dish was sublime.. As good as I've had anywhere in Scotland and that was the consensus from the whole group. Very surprising but delighted that this was the case....

I saw the negative reviews and was nervous to come but it was amazing. Food was great and warm with large portions and came in 15 minutes. Servers were nice. Had a great time :)

Popped in for lunch. Awful meals all four. Almost impossible to describe it as food to be honest. Piece of dry breaded fish after I had asked if it was fresh, teaspoon of peas and some frozen chips. Lasagna unrecognisable, bolognaise like a bowl of...

After a couple of negative experiences in this establishment, we decided to give another go. Once shown to a table the server was abrupt, uninterested and careless. He slammed down drinks cans and tutted when we asked for glasses to put drinks in. It appeared...

Had a lovely visit with my son the other night. I had read the many poor reviews about this place but we had a very good time. The restaurant was clean, the waiters were polite and attentive, the lavatories were spotless. The food was absolutely...

Went for lunch today. Indian menu looked good so booked a table for evening meal. Lunch menu seemed good, but wasn't unfortunately due to an Ant infestation, we sat at the back in the room to the left and there some ants on the table....

We were staying in Tarbert overnight before travelling to the next island . We liked the look of the menu so called in . There was only us to begin with but then was almost full . The food was yummy, exactly what we wanted...

Saturday evening only 3 people in ,service was dire , Waited nearly 40mins for 2 main courses ,(cold plates)food looked ok till started eating ,Tandoori chicken was stone COLD in middle !, Other meal was warm but not piping hot . Spoiled the weekend

Just had the Scottish breakfast and my wife had a toastie with bacon and cheese. Food was excellent, service was polite and courteous. Toilets spotless 5/5!!

Came here with respectable optimism based on the ratings across social media. It was a huge disappointment. Sat down and had a cafe vibe, OK I can go with that. The floor was disgustingold food had obviously been stuck on the floor and not been...

Ordered an Indian takeaway for four Wasnt cheap Started when I went into collect meal I was asked if I wanted to tip them on collection. Got back to accommodation That's when the fun began Ended up with a starter of chicken pakora X 2...

This is basically a cafe doubling as an Indian restaurant. We chose various pakoras to start, which weren’t great. The waiter was rude and unskilled, slamming down plates and ignoring requests from diners. I actually wanted to leave after the starters but my partner begged...

Lots of choice on the menu but they don’t do pizza, we went for curries and naans, they were nice and good value.

Food so bad I felt obliged to reset my Tripadvisor password to login and write this review. Two of us stopped in on the way home after working in Campbeltown. Both agreed we were staving and we’d “eat anything”. Neither of us are fussy but...

This was a bit like being on the set of Fawlty Towers. To be fair we had toasties and a baked potato followed by coffee and cake and the food was fair to good and the prices were reasonable. However the staff were so bad...

This had to be the worst bistro I've ever eaten in. 20mins just to take the order another 15 to receive it, only good thing about the food was that it was hot, then had to wait for cutlery to eat it Highly questionable as...

We prebooked our table for 7pm. The service was terrible: our order was taken and it was 30 minutes before our soft drinks arrived. After 50 minutes, plates were placed in front of us, which were cold. Then, the food arrived which was nothing that...

Been here three times now and always have a great meal. Can recommend the pakora and the Peshwari naan. Staff are lovely too. The special fried rice is delicious.

Me and the wife called in for a meal on Saturday evening. Service took a while but I think they got used to doing a lot of take aways during this virus. They could do with sliding back toward putting the restaurant first. As regards...

Me my mother and my sister sat down here for a cup of tea /coke. After about 40 mins the man came over to us and basically told us we needed to finish up because there were other people waiting to come in and we’d...

Myself and 3 friends stopped here for a meal after driving home from Campbeltown, and we were very disappointed in the place, One guy was extremely rude ,just throw our plates down and grunted, food was cold and not as expected . After a family...

It took 5 times, AND TWO GUYS, yes 5 TIMES to make 2 flat white coffees. Ye gods I could have been dying of thirst. Flat white with milk one with three sugars please....errrrr. So easy! One guy had the cheek to say I was...

Popped in for a donner kebab and wasn’t bothered by the poor service ( too interested in his phone, rudeness) or expecting silver service but to top it off the kebab tasted like an old boot sole, the garlic sauce was standard Mayo and no...

Very pleased with our Indian takeaways which are available evenings only. We phoned to order in advance and our order was ready in the given time. Wide selection to choose from-their ratings for level of spiciness/heat is pretty accurate. Enjoyed what we chose-we had a...

Doner kebab is a portion of kebab meat… no pitta, no salad. Think there needs to be better descriptions on the menu… glad I had wraps in the kitchen to make it semi edible. Also, if the staff didn’t smoke at the side of the...

Much much better than expected after reading some of the reviews. We had the garlic chicken and the vegetable biryani it was delicious!!!!! In addition,the staff were very friendly.

Name misleading, does not say its a Indian restaurant, even when I said, they gave me a menu that they must use for breakfast & lunches. This was not what I was looking for. Staff were pleasant & helpful.

Had a delicious meal here last night. We started with the chicken pakora which is very tasty - the sauce has a bit of a kick! I followed with the chicken tikka off the main menu and my partner had a lamb curry off the...

One of the best curries I've had, always impressed by the freshness and authenticity of the food. Would highly recommend.

Shocking iceland plaice and cheap frozen chips , can't believe the locals allow this establishment to tarnish Tarbert and its fishing history

We love Indian food and are rather fussy but the food was so good that we returned the following night. I have never tasted such fresh delicious fried rice. Would recommend the garlic chicken and the sweet and sour chicken dish 9cant remember the name)...

This business is totally out of place in Tarbert. We live a few miles away, first time in the place. unfriendly non welcome. bacon roll had mould on the underside. had to wait until waiter went across the road to the local COOP to get...

We had seen this place both as a cafe during the day and an Indian in the evening and stopped for a breakfast during our stay. The service was slow but there was a staff shortage due to someone calling in sick so the problem...

Popped in here for some fish and chips expecting something fresh from the harbour 20 feet away and ended up with something from a cheap supermarket that looked like it had been run over by a lorry. Just awful and extremely disappointing.

To be clear, this is not a bistro. There is some nebulous claim about locally sourced ingredients but the menu choices say otherwise, it’s a greasy spoon cafe. We were in for lunch and it was pretty dire. We ordered my young additional needs son...

Terrible. Worst steak pie I have ever had. According to menu it should have come with shortcrust base with puff pastry topping. Came in an ashet with no base and a puff pastry top which closely resembled a pita bread. Overpriced with no mention of...

Hubby fancied takeaway. Foolish of us to try this. Marine burger. Came a bun with no burger no cheese n a tiny amount of pulled pork. Chips were undercooked. Awfullll

Visited today, staff have no masks or PPE. Owner was unhelpful and told me after serving us our drinks that we couldnt pay by card as his machine was broken. Then after telling him repeatedly that i only had card the machine was magically available...

Horrible food and waiting times! We waited over an hour for the food with rice and curry arriving 30 minutes apart for half of our group! Absolute disgrace!

After a friendly reception into the cafe, I had high hopes for both the food and service. However, after having paid for numerous coffees and (very poor) lunch, another member of staff asked me to leave having "overdone my time", despite the remaining tables being...

Long day at work. Got to my hotel at 10pm feeling deflated. Thought I had absolutely no chance of getting a hot meal or even any food for that matter. Took a short walk along the front to see if I could find anything. The...

Dropped in for breakfast whilst in the marina. Excellent Scottish breakfast. Very polite service. Good experience.

The photo I’ve attached speaks for itself, ‘garlic ciabatta bread with mozzarella cheese’ . Do not know how it is allowed to sell food. If you have any sense do NOT go here. Dreadful at best.

Visited here with my husband for dinner on 15/03/20...recently changed and now serving Indian cuisine. Maybe not the best decor but the food is delicious! We started with Poppadoms, spiced onions and chutney tray, great nibbles to keep us going with a couple of beers....

Visited this place today. Despite saying they cater for allergies the cook didn't appear to have any awareness or knowledge of catering for allergies. I explained I had allergies and asked about gluten free bread he looked puzzled and said he couldn't say what was...

A smashing spot for a bite to eat if you're passing thru or staying in the gorgeous loch town of Tarbert on the way down to Kintyre. It boasts a very comprehensive menu of dishes to suit pretty much every taste in a lovely spot...

We visited here today whilst exploring and looking for lunch. We tried a place further down the road first but after sitting there for 10 mins without anyone taking our order we left. This place however was great. Smiling faces greeted us, our table was...

Visited twice this week. Good coffee and cake selection. Good choice on main menu for lunch. Staff very helpful and friendly.

We had two excellent flat white coffees here, served by a friendly Bulgarian barista. It is much nicer inside than you expect!

Dropped in for a refreshment and pick-me- up on a through trip, very relaxed atmosphere and good coffee.

We dropped by on our way back to Glasgow and enjoyed a simple lunch of baked potato with baked beans and cheese, and a falafel salad. Tea and coffee. Nothing to shout about but a friendly and bright cafè.

I liked this cafe. Service was interesting. Bacon and fried egg role was good value. Cafe latte was ok. It's a good location and ideal for walkers.

Disappointed £9.00 for frozen breaded wafer thin fillet of fish and frozen processed chips that had I of had a deep fat fryer I could have purchased frozen from the coop 200m away and cooked myself for less than a £1. not the place to...

This cafe does a very nice breakfast and good coffee but is also licensed for lunch or in the afternoon. They have free Wi-fi. Dogs are not allowed, which is a shame

Lovely attentive staff. I certainly wouldn't describe it as a bistro, but it amply served our purposes for a cooked breakfast and service was quick, efficient and friendly. Very good value, although in desperate need of a spruce up and some TLC.

By far, the best place we ate in Tarbert. The atmosphere was comfortable and peaceful. The table was amply sized. The service was good. She was a bit ditsy, but very nice. She was attentive without being intrusive The food was CHEAP. However, it was...

Worst food ive ever ate, egg was burnt sausage was so cheap tasted plastic. Bacon was like eating fat. Chicken nuggets were like rubber. Worst experience of dining out weve ever had do not go here and waste money. Over priced crap.

The Marine Bistro is full of people most of the time. There is a wide selection of food on the menu, all of which can be taken away upon request.

Having tried a nearby establishment where we were curtly informed "No food before 1 pm (!?) I was delighted to find the Marine Bistro. This bistro is located in a poorly- maintained building in a prominent position on the harbour front. I believe the building...

Very nice coffee (I only drink filter/espresso and despise Costa) and a great breakfast - I had the veggie breakfast but with real Haggis (no raised eyebrows!) though I pinched some bacon off my friends plate (he had 3 or 4 rashers) and it was...

Call in as one of the stops on our Scottish. Looking for a snack rather than going back to the ship. Wife choose apple pie. The apples were average but the pastry terrible. I choose a Lorne sausage bap, firstly the waitress did not know...

excellent coffee, a warm welcome, good food, heartily recommended, a broad and varied menu. lunch was generous and tasty.

Lovely staff with a solid menu that caters to everyone at very reasonable prices. Good coffee to boast too. Thumbs up!

I have visited this place for breakfast and lunch,the only thing that I can say is it was lovely and very generous portions and very friendly team. Thanks guys,be back again..

Great location right on the harbour front in this pretty harbour village. Super friendly staff and we'll cooked food with variety for all tastes at a good price. Nice pit stop

Used to be called Lite Bites. Good quality food with a great view of the harbour in this pretty harbour village. Good friendly service with food for all tastes.

Great coffee friendly service. Great view of the Harbour and love the Turkish themed decor. If you need to get free WiFi this is the perfect place to stop off eat/drink while connecting with the rest of the world.

Stopped here for breakfast , ordered a filled roll and tea . My friend ordered the ham n cheese toasties and her daughter the breakfast nothing to write home about .not the cheapest place to dine ....been there done that.

Stopped at the Marine Bistro for lunch, having come of the Portavadie ferry on our way to Stonefield Castle, the place has just been renovated, it seems the couple running it are Turkish. My Wife had a tuna & mayo sandwich , and I had...

Went here with a couple of members of family for tea. Firstly couldn't get some of the starters that was on the menu as they didn't have any left. Then the main meal was very basic. The woman that came out to clear our plates...

We visited the bistro for a bite to eat. A busy wee place Very pleasant helpful waitress We got fish and chips. The fish was fresh and they had taken time to cook it properly. Chips beautiful as well. We got salad as lemons had...

We popped in here for a coffee and ice cream on the basis of the sign outside. Unfortunately they apparently dont do ice cream. This is a shame as the coffee was actually decent and reasonably priced. But the kids were disappointed - an unforgivable...

I tried this cafe out a few days ago, has a different name....bistro......but it was delicious and so I went back again to have it again. For me if I find somewhere that serves good food and service I'll always go back. Coffee is delicious...

Choice of places for coffee seemed limited in Tarbert and we popped into the Marine Bistro which was a pleasant surprise. We had nice coffee and cake, service was good.

Paramos aquí para salir de la lluvia y descubrí una pequeña joya. Personal muy amable y hablador y un desayuno vegetariano muy sabroso, que no siempre es el caso en los cafés. Hermosa y recomendaría las lámparas - la vista sería fantástico si pudiéramos ver a través de la lluvia he.

Visited here a few times whilst working in Campbeltown. Waited almost an hour for a chicken kebab & then an other half hour the second visit. Very understaffed and not a great attitude towards customers.

Avoid. We witnessed the staff empty bins and carry out task with no regard for basic hand hygiene. Avoid if you do not wish to br affected by food poisoning. Report lodged with Local Authority environmental hygiene department. Avoid. Staff do not wash their hands.