Primrose Cafe in Bristol, City of

Always head here for breakfast whenever we're in Clifton. Always good. Dog friendly as well.

Beautiful cafe, friendly staff and lovely food options of the menu that can be adapted.

My wife and I stopped off here a number of times during our stay in Clifton. Excellent food and cakes, great location and really nice staff.

This place was hopeless. Lazy response to our arrival. They were definitely not rushed off their feet No smile, eye contact or hello. Supposedly table service. No one came to our table after quite a few minutes. So we left.

Excellent spot inside out out with freshly made healthy food at very reasonable prices.

Croque Monsieur had a lovely bechamel topping but was incredibly dry on the inside. Croque Senor was better. Staff a bit curt and rushed - they must expect that customers will review the bill before payment, it is downright rude to rush them into paying. Located on a nice, vibrant street.

Lovely cafe with friendly, helpful staff and an interesting menu.

Food was ok but one member of staff (manager/owner?) was very rude when I asked for one of our drinks to be changed as it didn’t taste right. We’d ordered a fresh OJ which tasted watery and hardly had any orange taste to it at all. I went over to a hallway area & I discreetly spoke to a waitress and asked for a different drink. I particularly made sure that no other customers were in earshot but I wish I hadn’t bothered. A replacement drink shortly arrived and I was then bellowed at by a female member of staff (in front of about 20 other customers, as it was busy) saying that it was definitely fresh juice, that I could go downstairs and look at the OJ machine and that if there was a taste problem then it was down to their orange supplier! Just a simple ‘here’s the replacement drink, sorry about that’ would have been perfectly fine. My teenager was with me and said afterwards ‘wow, that woman was so rude’. So as long as you don’t complain about anything (even when it’s substandard) then you’ll be fine. A brush up on customer service skills is definitely needed as I’ve seen some other reviews mention this too…….

Staff was very friendly and helpful but service was very slow. Given the amount of people queuing, I would say it’s understandable but still leaning towards the slow side. We had a very long wait between drinks and food even though one was just a croissant. The real negative I have is that we asked for cakes to be told there wasn’t any. None was shown on the menu either and was told there was only croissant or toasted tea cake to choose from. Imagine our surprise when we got up to ask for the bill to see a lovely and wide display of cakes

I've been coming to the Primrose Cafe for several years now, and it feels like the quality of the service has been slowly declining over the last few years to the point that I don't feel it justifies the queues, at least not at the weekend. After waiting 10 minutes for a spot to open up and be seated, you may find yourself waiting another 20-30 minutes for your order to be taken, and another 30 minutes before your order arrives. Needless to say, don't put yourself through that if you're already hungry or have limited time. When I visited with my mum, we went through all the above, and when the order did arrive, my mum's English Breakfast was lukewarm and the toast had been burnt. I don't think the wait was worth a mouthful of cold charcoal. The staff are friendly (the owner/manager less so!), but you can only be so helpful and attentive when you're so busy and understaffed. It's a shame that the cafe can't cope with being as busy as they are on the weekend. You can help yourself and them out by going to one of the many other great cafes and restaurants in Clifton Village. Primrose can be good, but it's nothing unique.

Lovely cafe atmosphere and good service. Food was tasty but disappointed with just one small waffle, and rarebit also small for price. Maybe avoid these two dishes? Overall not worth the money, imo.

Great cafe in clifton. There are lots of options on the menu. Good service. Pleasant outside space if the weather is nice. Would eat here again.

Lovely cafe in Clifton village. Staff are nice and friendly, tye food is fresh and very tasty. I had the Chicken Pesto on Focaccia bread which was excellent. Good selection of cakes as well.

The espresso was delicious. Excellent attention.

Come here very often for a coffee and breakfast. Food is nice, and all the people works here are very friendly.

Fantastic food, service with a smile, and a lovely situation to relax.

Came here for breakfast which was really yummy. Very quick service friendly staff and great food. Definitely get your moneys worth

A great place for a coffee and/or some food. The food is well prepared and cooked. The place gets busy but the staff really make you feel welcome for short or long stay. It's a must visit when in Clifton.

Just an espresso but the atmosphere was so good. Clifton is so lively. Fell in love with the place

Stumbled on this fabulous characterful cafe with lightening quick service and great food. Highest recommendations!

Fabulous breakfast. Always tasty. We’ve been many a time in the past year and are never disappointed. The service is usually really efficient (the managers may not massage your ego but they def keep an eye on things). Thoroughly recommend.

Always a firm favourite. Lovely to sit outside and watch the world go by. Great service and chilled. The kochi bacon bagel is SO good!

The missus and I stayed at nearby hotel du vin, and breakfasted here as opposed to the hotel. So glad we did! Amazing food and service.

Food is ok but need improvement just give you a heads up they put 10% on top of your bill for service and they will not say anything to you about it . It would be good if they give you a option ...

Visited Clifton today and googled.local places for food the reviews here were great, so we thought we'd try it. Well we weren't disappointed the food was amazing! I had the cauliflower and bhaji tortilla 10/10 wow!!! Would definitely recommend

Visited Clifton Village today stopped here for lunch I highly recommend it, the food was amazing! I had the bhaji and cauliflower tortilla wow 10/10. There is a wide range on the menu for both of vegetarian vegan and meat eaters alike.

Great cafe recommended to us by a local we met at LHR.

Fantastic breakfast, great service, nice vibe. Full marks!

Great cafe with great coffee!! Absolutely lovely coffee the milk was steamed perfectly, I will definitely be returning. Also there was no extra charge for alternatives milks which is a bonus!

Very disappointed with the owner of the cafe. Very rude and unapologetic when part of the food was substandard.

loved the sandwiches and Belini

Lovely cafe and excellent food. Nice quiet corner of Clifton Village. I gve the service 3 stars as some of the staff were rather impersonal, which is a pity for such a lovely cafe. A service charge is automatically added, which unfortunately the manager/ owner was not prepared to justify to me.

Awsom food at a reasonable price and delivered by nice friendly staff

On my last day in the area I went to this restaurant for breakfast. I was going to be travelling so decided to get the "full monty" breakfast which is the traditional full English. And what can I say? It was amazing! The mushrooms and tomatoes were cooked to perfection, the sausages were high quality, and I appreciated the (slightly 😅) healthier poached eggs instead of fried. The bacon was slightly over cooked, but still tasty and everything else on the plate was what I'd expect in terms of quality and tastiness. Add to that the great street atmosphere (I ate outside), the friendly staff, and the reasonable price, and you've got yourself a great place to go! Definitely recommended.

In a small village it's so cute

As recommended, Primrose offers a quality breakfast and oodles of fine breakfast tea! The smaller version of full English was plenty enough for us. One thing I would prefer is back bacon rather than streaky. If streaky is the bacon supplied, could be a bit more crispy.

Very cozy café in Clifton arcade. They also have seating on the roof. The food was very freshly cooked and tasted really nice. Highly recommended café to visit ✨ P.S. Their soup of the day is really tasty 😋

Just popped in for a drink. Lovely place very friendly staff and owner Richard very generous.

Great atmosphere, great friendly staff and great food. Love the area and Primrose Cafe is the cherry on the top

Always a delight! Every time I visit Bristol I make sure to stop in at Primose Cafe.

Set in a historic town building, this cosy cafe provides an excellent range of refreshments and food. Sit inside or out the service is both friendly and efficient. A great place to recharge on a visit.

Ordered the savoury croissant which was very tasty, but comically small.

Great cafe with a comfy atmosphere

Such a lovely place!! It was a sunny day and although we couldn’t enjoy the terrace as it was full, we found the inside of the cafe so cosy and warm. We had brunch and the food was really good too! Definitely worth visiting!

Always worth a return visit but always busy!

Came here for a coffee. Ordered a flat white, wasn't too bad! Only negative is that it wasn't laptop friendly - "NOT ALLOWED"

Excellent food, service and atmosphere. Great selection of brunch food. 10 out of 10

Lovely place, good food, and pleasant service, can't fault it. The menu has some really interesting options, can't wait to go back and try more

Lovely catch up with friends. Delicious food, good service

The food is always amazing, like SO GOOD! It's a must if you're in Bristol!

£8.20 for a coffee and small slice of cake is crazy !!!!! Won't be going there again... used to go there regular !!!!!

Following our walk around the Bristol Harbour we continued on foot and ventured up from the Hotwell Road via Jacob’s Wells Road, arriving at the Clifton Triangle after a steady-paced climb. Our walk then continued-on into Clifton Village via some backroads, side-streets, and across lovely park paths. We do like it here in ‘The East Village’ especially when it is, like on this day, bright and sunny. The good weather makes the narrow, and safe, streets even busier with an eclectic mix of people of many races, with some bohemian social groups in the mix. There is a good choice of eateries here and we do favour this one. We appreciate the relaxed, and slightly (if I may suggest) scruffy but clean décor, with it’s oddly-matched wooden furnishings. The lack of plastic and ultra-sterile surfaces here is almost a relief. After three visits to this café in the last 7 months I had identified one particular plate that is just superb, suiting me to a tee. I had been encouraging my Partner to try the “Posh Mushrooms” for some time and she had resolved to try them today. The café was, as usual, thronging with happy-looking diners. Patrons were waiting for inside seating, or tables on the street patio, but the two tables positioned outside the café entrance on Clifton Arcade were untaken. So, we sat at one of the tables and we were soon approached by a senior member of the waiting staff. My Partner and I had discovered that the “Posh Mushrooms” were no longer available on the menu! This was a shock-horror moment; thinking that we may be denied a much-favoured plate. We asked if we could still get the plate, and a quick check with the kitchen provided the news we wanted; because the Chef ‘knocked-up’ a couple of plates for us. We were so grateful and really enjoyed what is an absolutely lovely plate of food. Today here on this late winter day, the sun warmed us and led us to feel like we were on holiday. So, we decided to have a glass of wine to accompany our food: choosing a “Michel Servin Blanc” a dry full-bodied French blend of Sauvignon, Colombard and Ugni Blanc. The Ugni Blanc is better known as “Trebbiano”. It produces a popular Italian wine of the same name, which I am very familiar with and do enjoy. The wine here today was excellent, so much so that we had a second glass each. Having finished we walked back to the Clifton Triangle, down Park street and to the waiting M3 bus that took us to within a 10 minute stroll to our home.

We visited Bristol for the day with our dog, and stumbled upon Primrose Cafe, a very lovely looking cafe with a good menu. A staff member offered a table upstairs a little quieter for our dog(very much appreciated). A great selection on the menu and specials board. Staff all very pleasant, busy cafe, delicious food and hot coffee. We enjoyed our visit 👍.

Tasty food and quick service - the wait staff don't seem very happy though.

Lovely English breakfast spot. Everything we tried was delicious!

So disappointed. Kedgeree was cold, very dry and flavourless, with virtually zero fish. We made a request for the curry sauce mentioned on the menu, and received a minuscule pot of cold curry sauce from a disinterested member of staff. Such a disappointment as we’ve had many lovely experiences there over many years.

Lovely brunch. Food and service is always good. I had a toasted bagel with salmon, beetroot & cream cheese. My friend had the mini breakfast. Such a great place to stop during our long walk.

Very busy and had to wait for a table but overall it was lovely.

I was really disappointed. The special sandwich I had was awful, it was tiny with no taste and the salad was well below par. I appreciate that a loaf of bread is round but to serve a sandwich made from the tint end pieces I think is wrong. Id never go back

The Posh Mushroom and Open Scandi brunch options were the best food we’ve had for brunch in years. The mustard seeds really made the mushrooms next level. They were incredibly busy while we were there but the food still came out quickly and well presented.

Delicious food. The artichoke soup was amazing and good value with the sandwich and salad.

We came here for coffee after a visit to the adjacent galleria. The staff was friendly, and there was additional seating outside.

Food was delicious. Atmosphere was amazing. So busy with people coming in and out all day on a weekend. They must turn over a new table every hour so they are definitely doing something right.

I love the fact that they want you in with your laptops but not when it's busy - this cafe is always rammed so anyone who does hoard a seat whilst nursing one coffee for 3 hours whilst exploiting the WiFi deserves to be kicked out - the uni has libraries aplenty with a continuous data stream so go there and let us townies get our paninis and frappes 😊 I jest - lovely little joint, friendly staff, usual Clifton clientèle, great choice of modern cafe grub and drinks - nothing to not like here and the way they dealt with the child soiling their display cabinet glass proves they have a great SOH too - ace.

Visiting Bristol. Had a breakfast(typical for builders) which came restaurante style and quality. Delicious hot and extremely tasty. Simple food done very well

One of the best brunch spots in Bristol, always great service, a unique menu with some excellent dishes, in particular the Mexican baked eggs .

Great place for brunch in Clifton. Friendly service with a wide range of brunch dishes to choose from.

Having caught the Metro Bus from Emerald Park we arrived, well-under 30 minutes later, in Bristol’s Broadmead with its very traditional shopping-centre. It was rather a dull day, with an unpleasant mizzle. It was very quiet, too quiet, with very few people about; sad because in years-gone-by this place, on the last Saturday before Christmas, would have been heaving with Christmas shoppers. We had fancied a brisk walk in Bristol, and ‘Plan A’, as we set-off from The Horsefair, was to walk down to the Watershed and around the old harbour area. There was quite a strong cold breeze; so we felt that the breeze would likely to be cooler and stronger as it came off the water onto the exposed waterside paths. So, it was ‘Plan B’; and we ascended College Green and Park Street up-onto the Triangle, then along Queens Road onto Victoria Square, taking the pleasant footpath across the green into Clifton East Village. A walk of about 1.5 miles. Incidentally we noticed, as we strode down through to Bristol’s Centre, how un-festive it looked; no Christmas Tree or strings of lights etc. So very sad. We like the East Village; as it is invariably busy with an eclectic mix of folk. A gathering of mostly good eateries abound in the narrow, and often pedestrianised, streets. Market-trader type stalls selling fruit and veg spill out into the streets, and in warmer seasons, cafés offer alfresco food and drinks service. It was pleasant to walk through; even though the weather was not at all ideal. Some of the cafés here are a bit ‘up themselves’, but Primrose Café is unpretentious: offering good coffee and snacks at reasonable prices. It was busy inside, and the ground-floor was full; but we were offered a table located on the upper-floor. In passing we would suggest that the general state of the décor and furnishings in this upper-floor should be given some attention; as it was generally tatty, but mostly clean. We were quickly approached by waiting staff, and placed our order for two Americano coffees with hot milk, a ‘Posh Mushrooms’ plate for myself and ‘Eggs Benedict’ plate for my Partner. A shared side of sweet-potato fries completed our order. The cost, at a tad under £34, was great value for what turned out to be an most enjoyable snack lunch. Service was also excellent: we didn’t have long to wait for our very good coffees, followed quickly by our plates. ‘Eggs Benedict’: The two eggs were beautifully poached with a lovely golden runny yolk, but they were warm rather than hot. The plentiful ham was dry-cured (not pressed or heavily processed) with the meat breaking-up slightly on the folds. The muffins were gently toasted and retained good texture. The Hollandaise Sauce was excellent, and the dressing of pea-shoots completed an attractive tasty plate of food. ‘Posh Mushrooms’: I have had this plate before on a previous visit. The sliced mushrooms were cooked in a sauce made from cream, whole grain mustard, sherry and tarragon; placed on a large piece of well toasted sourdough bread. The taste and texture was wonderful, and it is the sort of food that I really like; a bit edgy with strong tangy flavours, just “WOW!”. It’s the sort of food where I am sorely tempted to pick up the plate and lick it clean! The accompanying side of Sweet Potato Fries were really good with both main plates and the aioli dipping sauce was perfect. The whole experience, here at the café, was very good and the service was efficient and pleasant. We will return.

Lovely food when it finally arrived but a 40 minute wait is a bit much especially when others who came in after us got their food first. Also gratuity was added to the bill without asking and they allow dogs inside which I really don't like unless assistance dogs. Helpful lady who took our order but not sure I'll be returning. Shame, as the food was lovely.

Had the focaccia and it was soo good! A very cute cafe although a bit crowded. Would recommend!

The food was okay. I enjoyed the bagel but the coffee is mediocre, well below average when there are so many amazing coffee places in Bristol. The price is the thing that lets it down the most. The bill I walked away with was far more than I’d expect for a breakfast particularly when it was average. If it had felt special or the food was exceptional then yes but it felt like you were just putting a Clifton price tag on an okay cafe breakfast

Nice interior, interesting ceiling. Good food. Small Monty (englsih fry) was satisfying enough and they also served ginger beer which was nice. The portobello mushroom was lovely.

Food was good although sausages weren’t of great quality. I ordered the Kedgeree but it didn’t have very mush fish in it.

This is not the first time this place has been rather rude to the customer. Staff are also impatient. Ordered a take away but they didn't seem to be interested in even taking your order. I understand it's a small place but there was no need for rudeness when people are giving you business. Cakes use to taste much better not anymore.

Lovely place for breakfast. Interesting menu - just what we were looking for. Friendly and helpful staff and an interesting range of cakes on offer. We really enjoyed it and would go back.

We came here for a birthday brunch and oh boy was I disappointed. The food was delicious and the young waiter was very nice but the manager got the entire queue to stand right next to our table - which was outside on a cold, rainy day. On top of that, despite my husband and the waiter trying to treat it as an occasion, there was no candle in the cake and no effort by the staff to make it more than an average brunch. Really disappointing way to start my birthday when we were both really looking forward to it. Come for the food, not the service.

The best New Yorker Sandwiches in the nation. Believe it

The waiter Natalia who works there is fantastic, such good service and so friendly. So attentive, she is a credit to your cafe, and to the city of Bristol.

They are horrible on the phone but when you go they are much better but we couldn’t book so a Otherwise exempt from contacting them it’s amazing

Just the perfect cafe, amazing food and bustling atmosphere in prime location to explore clifton. It is my favourite place for coffee and brunch.

Lively cafe with good outside seating and good staff and food.

Nice breakfast and was nice to eat outside

Absolutely incredible staff couldn't be anymore nicer food was fantastic definitely worth another visit 😀

After a four-hour walk around Leigh Woods we decided to drive into Clifton Village to see if we could get a late lunch at one of the many eateries there. We parked-up (this was easy because it was a Bank Holiday), and headed straight to the Clifton Down Road area where we knew there would be street cafés open. We turned into Boyce’s Avenue where we had dined before at one of the eateries, and decided to try this café. The entrance to the café is within the approach corridor into The Clifton Arcade. The street was busy with lots of dining parties on the patio area, and a few couples inside the café. It was sunny and we couldn’t spot a table outside that had sufficient shade for us. As we waited at the café entrance (as per the ‘Please wait to be seated’ sign) we were able to pinch a menu from the stack just inside the door. We quickly decided that there were menu items we would like to try, so when we were approached by the waiting staff, we were pretty sure we knew what we would order. It was now 14:50 and the kitchen closed at 15:00. We were quickly shown to a table and we sat down, and re-affirmed our choices, even though there were a couple of plates on the specials menu board that we were sorely tempted-by. For my Partner it was the ‘Primrose Brunch BLT’ on chargrilled sourdough, with dry cured bacon, tomato, lettuce and mayonnaise. For me it was the ‘Posh Mushrooms’: pan-fried portobello mushrooms on sourdough toast, finished with sherry, cream, grainy mustard and tarragon. To be honest I probably wanted the BLT, but I do like to have something different rather than something the same as my Partner. It was a short wait for food, whilst sipping on tap water (from a generous water bottle brought to our table as requested). The minute I smelt the aroma from my plate I knew I had not made a mistake. My first taste proved that my nose had not led me astray, the flavour was suburb. The mushrooms were cut into thick slices and they were hot, and covered with the most delicious sauce I have ever had with mushrooms. The combination of the sherry and the mustard with the smooth texture of the cream was just brilliant. The sourdough toast was partially soaked with the sauce but the toast was still crisp, and thus provided the texture contrast with the mushrooms. It was a wonderful plate and one that I will just have to revisit for … soon! This would make a great tapas plate with sauce made with Pedro Ximénez! My Partner was very pleased with her BLT, this was served with a side salad and it was a great eat. The bacon was well done, which I would not have likes as much as being lightly cooked, so I felt I had made a very wise choice.

Nice food but some very nasty staff - one of whom turned out to be the manager!Prices are high so a little customer service might be expected.

Exceptionally cozy, most friendly service and tasty food & coffee. Highly recommend the "full monty" for traditional English breakfast!​ Always looking​ ​forward ​​to this place whenever I'm around!

Perfect place for a late breakfast and people watching. Posh mushrooms were unreal.

Breakfast BLT was delicious. Toast was nice and crisp, not soggy from the tomato at all.

Understood from webpage that the roof top terrace was open all year round. When we asked to be seated there we were met with a flat "no.". Shame as we came quite far. Of course could have been closed for lots of reasons, but abruptly being told "no." without a reason seemed a little unwelcoming. And gave the impression they simply couldn't be bothered. All four of us were then directed to some tables for 2, which were more than a little squashed. We then took a look at the fairly uninspiring and over priced menu and decided to leave and look around. In fairness the waiter who came to take our order seemed very pleasant and understanding. The rest of the experience was poor.

Lovely breakfast! Both veggie and normal full English breakfasts were delicious and good portions.

This place is overhyped. Our food was mediocre at best: the very interesting-sounding Korean bagel tasted of nothing but barbecue sauce and was very low on filling, and the accompanying 'slaw' was just a small salad. Meanwhile, the shoestring fries were clearly not homemade, and of all the toppings they were supposed to come with, all we could see was salt. I would also say that the upstairs area we were seated in had no atmosphere at all. On the plus side, the coffee was nice.

Lovley place. Waiter got my order wrong but was quickly resolved. Breakfast was great, bit on the expensive side but your sitting bang in Clifton village

Lovely food and helpful staff. Be aware that it can get crowded, but also with the upstairs bit there is a lot more room than seems from the outside. A place I'm happy to go back to!

Food was average, service was pretty poor. I was seated upstairs when I arrived, small sign saying 'table service' on the table. Each floor of the restaurant had 2 waiting staff taking orders as well as different staff bringing the orders to the table so although it was a Saturday morning it would be a stretch to say the staff were overwhelmed or rushed off their feet. It took a full 10 mins for someone to take my order, once ordered it came quickly however I had to specifically ask for sugar / Sweetener for my coffee as the waiter brought it out with none and there is none on the tables and ahe didn't offer me any when she brought it. My breakfast arrived and it was well presented, although I always find it strange when Eggs are dumped on unbuttered toast (!)... anyway. I had their version of a big breakfast whatever its called, with an extra paid-for egg and an extra paid-for pork sausage. One of my three pork sausages was sadly off and completely inedible, happens sometimes not a big deal to me really. My issue really lies with the service from this point - no condiments were brought or offered with my food, no staff member checked back with me at any point to ask how everything was or if I needed anything more throughout my entire meal. Had anyone checked I woukd have asked for salt for my Eggs and told them I'd like the inedible sausage changed for another one - no one came though. I finished my meal (inedible sausage sitting on the plate still lol) and sat with knife and fork together waiting for a member of staff for a full 25 minutes, again no-one came. Eventually an exasperated owner/manager type came to take a chair from my table and I managed to ask him for the bill and told him I had an issue. His defences immediately came up, no apology or acknowledgement of my problem was forthcoming - he didn't really say anything which I found astounding! H disappeared off to the till and printed a bill, thrusted the card machine at me while huffing and puffing and I paid. Felt a bit mugged off by the whole thing really due to his attitude. I had high hopes for this breakfast and this place, but it the food certainly wasn't any better than its competitors such as the Bristolian or Jozi etc, and the various issues with inept + huffy staff mean I definitely won't go back. My advice to the Primrose - get your staff to check back with customers, have condiments and sugar easily available, and most importantly match the tone of your customer when things don't go right - I wasn't kicking off when I said something wasn't right, I had a problem with your product that needed acknowledging and fixing. You left it too late to actually fix it so the only solution by the time you remembered I existed was to take it off the bill - shame for you but not my fault. Isolated problems with food are easy to fix for a cafe, bad staff attitudes and poor staff attention maybe not so easy though, certainly for the owners.

Staff are not welcoming or happy. Food is always good

A good selection of breakfast foods. Very generous portions to start a day (the mini portion is very appreciated). Service was great too.

huge portion with the Caesar salad, too much dressing on it

Beautiful food, breakfast was gorgeous and probably one of the nicest i have had!!

Such a nice place! Very British atmosphere and tasty food

Nicest salad I’ve ever eaten, it was goats cheese with walnuts and caramelised pears. It was truly yummy. The rest of my party had croque monsieur and soup which was very tasty and good sized portions. The prices reflect the good quality. Only downside was the older guy who seated us and took our order was pretty unfriendly and unwelcoming but a younger waiter brought our food and took payment and he was lovely and friendly. That’s the only reason I gave 4 and not 5 stars. Lovely location when the sun is shining to sit outside too!