Sora in York

A lovely environment but a pricey gaff. Went here with a group of 4 at the weekend. The place is immaculate, the rooftop view is second to none. The service was fast and efficient. Overall the service and atmosphere made it a good experience but I think that was more so the company. The food is quite pricey, and if you’re looking for something delicious for your money, for me this wasn’t it. Signature platter, tasty enough but nothing revolutionary. Very high priced for what it is Fries, some of the best fries I’ve had. So tasty and crispy. You don’t get loads but that’s fine. Some from the grill stuff was tasty but again, nothing special. Ultimately, a nice experience but the food wasn’t amazing. Staff were very attentive and helpful.

Lovely place, and the Food was amazing 👏 Always enjoy my experience here.

Cocktails fab, views great service fab. Didn't eat but the food looks great

We had a lovely experience once we were seated, food and drinks service was great. Particularly a shout out to Sadie. However the guy on reception did not provide a warm welcome, he was obnoxious and quite rude. A member of the restaurant team took over and everything improved from there.

We are 4 couples and really enjoyed tonight. Our server Rose was very friendly, warm and really charming and the food was great. Would definitely recommend!

Couldn’t recommend enough. Stayed here with our 1 year old & everyone was incredible with our son. Special mention to Ethan, couldn’t do more for us. Great with our son & our needs from the minute he met us. Made our trip & anniversary 10/10. We’ll be back!

Greeted by Ethan, very pleasant young man. Made a lot of effort to get to know me and my family. Constantly checked if we were ok. We requested a better seat at the bar and he delivered. Very nice young man made our experience at the hotel second to none!

Great food and atmosphere, thank you Cerys for your 5* service

Great place to sit for a cocktail and great views of the minster.

Rose was absolutely amazing. Very friendly, attentive and happy to help. Will definitely be coming back

Great service from our hostess Rose. Lovely atmosphere and amazing cocktails and food.

Great service and atmosphere, rose was really helpful and service was quick!

Served by Rose who was super knowledgeable and recommended some amazing dishes for us. Lovely atmosphere and drinks and again the food was outstanding.

Don't really get what all the fuss is about! We went for drinks on a Saturday night. We nearly didn't go as when we rung we were told it was fully booked but they kept a few free for walk ins. We walked in at around 10pm and the woman looked stressed that we hadn't booked but we did get a table. It was so so quiet ... Hardly anyone in. The overall atmosphere is ok and we were served drinks quickly by a friendly waitress. The drinks were undrinkable.. in my opinion. The one I wanted on the menu they didn't have all the ingredients so I ordered a lychee cocktail. My friend laughed when it came and said 'where is your drink?' it was a tiny tiny little glass and it tasted vile . Literally like perfume. My friends looked better but just tasted of nothing except tonic so we left them. They were the most expensive cocktails we had all night. We paid... Leaving the cocktails nearly full and looked outside. I don't get what the fuss is about ... I mean I'm sure the views on the daytime are nice? But it's just an outdoor sitting area that's higher up? Would never go again. *Had no food but judged food as cocktails

Menu changes so far less options that were gluten free than on a previous visit. Staff were not overly helpful, forgot to bring drinks before food. And was fairly flat atmosphere, with music so loud had to shout to have a conversation over the table.

Visited Sora for partners birthday. Overall wasn’t disappointing or a horrible visit but I would have fully expected more authentic dishes for the hype Sora has received. Ultimately it’s a trendy bar trying to serve trendy food but the food, unfortunately doesn’t live up to the ‘hype’ Ruby was our server and she was great! Thanks for a great night but we won’t be rushing back. Sorry.

Lovely rooftop restaurant bar, fantastic decor, beautiful views, great cocktails, didn't eat here.

We went to Sora for a drink to celebrate my husbands birthday. The yuzu 75 cocktail was amazing. We had a great view of the York skyline. The best thing was the service we fit from Dipendra. He noticed it was my husband’s birthday and brought out a cake and candle.

Food was great, great service from Josh!

Great views, impressive service, good food menu, high standard of cooking and presentation and decent drinks list.

Fab ,staff were lovely. food great

Recently went here for my wedding anniversary..wow loved it ..beautiful food and view..we were served by rose she was so lovely and kind an asset to the place....

Excellent food and exceptional service from Rose. A really enjoyable experience

Dipendra was an incredible waiter. The service and drinks were brilliant.

Perfect city location for drinks. Served Rose who recommended cocktails and made the experience very relaxed.

Excellent experience! Very well looked after by Rose - our first time visiting, and will definitely be back.

Magic, Dipendra and all the staff went above and beyond to accommodate me and my girlfriend. Highly recommend

Dipendra treated us phenomenally, a great place to have a drink

Lovely place to sit and have a few drinks thank you Dipendra for serving us.

I came for 2 drinks and had a lovely chat with Dipendra who kindly brought out a celebrations dessert for my friend after our chat about why we were here!

Exceptional! All of the staff, Rose especially was really attentive and great.

Didn’t eat food but kerys/cerys barmaid who served us really lovely great customer service even took pictures for us on our engagement night close to closing night she was really lovely ! Harts off to her really nice woman thank you ❤️❤️❤️

Tried to reserve a table for a drink. Was told I couldn't, so just walk in later. Tried to go back and was told we couldn't as hadn't reserved. Not happy. Won't be trying again

Great venue - and Rosie our waitress was great - thanks

Good cocktails, niec staff, a bit windy lol amazing place for the date 🤗

We have had the most amazing few drinks at the Sora bar. Dipendra was amazing!

Booked in when turned up they had no seat for us They didn’t even try, 0 customer service

Great venue and location. Food was superb and drinks were gorgeous. Service was great until the end when we were told we had to leave after being there 1 hr 40 mins as we only had a 2 hour booking. We had to tell them we were 20 mins off this so surely we could finish our drinks? Then another ‘host’ came over to ask about our grievance… which we had not stated we had - just that we wanted to be allowed to be there for our 2 hours!?! slightly spoilt our experience .. particularly as a group who spent quite a significant amount AND there seemed to be no one waiting for a table and tables spare so a little OTT and not quite appreciating what a good customer experience should be ….

Beautiful restaurant and delicious cocktails Helpful staff

Gorgeous views over York, the lovely girl on the front desk was very accommodating to us as a big group (16) managing to get us outside! We had a little issue with our bill but Ethan dealt with it fantastically. & The restrooms had Arran aromatics which was a nice touch!

Rather unfriendly hostess would not let us outside (in case it rained). So we went somewhere else and sat in a beer garden in the blazing sun. Disappointing.

We had the afternoon tea and it was fantastic. The only let down was the staff. The lad who first saw to us when we walked in was great, however the girls on the floor clearly did not get on with each other. There was bickering in front of customers, and tension between the team. The menu had just changed, so one waitress didn’t know what was on the menu, and when she has asked another member of staff, she has had a snappy unfriendly response. Customers were coming to ask if they could sit outside, but staff were saying they had to stay under the canopy due to no staff being outside - yet there were 4/5 members of staff stood around inside.

You can't deny the view, the general ambience and the great staff...but this isn't a new restaurant and it was disappointing to say thr least that on a Sunday evening that 2 starters are unavailable, there are no cold plates, and there are also no pork or chicken options. Its not acceptable to say it was busy Friday and Saturday you should be able to see trends and what is popular and accommodate accordingly by having sufficient stock and not cast Sunday adrift. Now you may be lucky and York provides enough one off custom, but I wouldn't go back because I don't have any trust in the menu being fulfilled likewise I'd caution anyone to check before they commit. If I'm going to spend £100 it's not too much to ask that I get a full choice to choose from.

We came for our anniversary on Saturday 20th July. The staff were great very accommodating, friendly and attentive. Special mention for the team and David, what a nice guy. He dealt with a sudden rain shower on the outside terrace brilliantly. He also dealt really well with a particularly abusive woman shouting at him. A gem!

AVOID THIS PLACE In a near empty restaurant, we waited 40 minutes after ordering just for another server to come and check our previously explained dietary requirements. After another wait and asking where our food was twice more and being rudely snapped at by a blond haired server, the bento boxes finally turned up. During the unnecessary rambling explaination about the boxes by the same blond server, I misheard and thought she had said some component contained my allergy problem. She snapped at me in such an aggressive way and told me I should listen! This was so bad, it was funny and I got the giggles. This caused me to receive yet another aggressive tirade. This younlady needs a lot more training, or a career shift to a non customer-facing role. The food was tasty but overpriced and long waited for. The cocktails were good. Good views. But, apart from the very over-enthusiastic boy at the front desk who was polite, if a little too bouncy, the rest were horribly pretentious and ranged from sullen and uncommunicative to down right authoritarian. For 2 of us it was £163 (not inc the random amount of £22 extra service charges ) it was just about the worst service I have had in my whole 60 years. Terrible place.

Excellent location on top of the Malmaison Hotel with views over York and the York Minster. With a Japanese styled menu, there were many dishes to try. The food was all excellent. We had the Nigri sushi selection, the pork belly, and the Tempura Prawns. The chips were very tasty. The cocktails were changed slightly to give an Asian influence, and the Old fashioned used Japanese whisky and Chilli (one of the best I've had). The espresso martini had coconut milk again, excellent. Service was friendly and efficient, but sometimes it was hard to find somebody.

The sunset views are to die for whilst you sip on some amazing cocktails!

Great birthday experience with delicious food and fantastic views over the city in the evening

Private party, including children. Wow!!! Your staff are incredible, the food was outstanding too. Nothing was too much. All of the above made our evening special, the views and drinks on the rooftop was something extra. Highly recommend booking large gatherings here. Thank you Sora for making a rare occasion perfect for us - big shout out to the staff especially the blonde lady with the biggest smile and the DJ who made time to interact with the young children. Wonderful people. Thank you.

What a huge disappointment this was! We arrived early, asked if we could have drinks at the bar until our table was ready some 45 minutes away.... Yes, of course came the answer... We'll seat you at the bar inside and your table is outside later. We sat at the bar and had two cocktails (massive shout out to Ben on the bar who saved the evening. Great guy, great service and fab cocktails! Thank you Ben!)... As the time crept past 15 minutes after our booking time, we had to seek out a staff member to ask if our table was near being ready. "er, oh yea it's ready" was the nonchalant response! Guided to our table by another staff member (agency?) who threw the menu on a table on the balcony and walked away. No welcome, no explanation, nothing. Needless to say we paid our drinks bill with Ben and left. Special occasion ruined! Avoid. It's trying to be something good, but in the end, it's just trying your patience! Try harder Sora. But Ben, you were bob on! Cheers fella.

Really nice bar with an excellent view. We were disappointed to be told we couldnt sot outside despite there being lots of free tables out there as there was noway to reserve for drinks. My espresso martini was delicious but it was quite noisy with hen parties as we were seated next to a big table of 10. Toilets are lovely. The bar is really luxurious. I'd definately come back.

Wonderful food, drinks and service. Topped off with lovely views. Ciara was especially helpful, knowledgeable and took great care of us.

Nestled atop the Malmaison in York, Sora boasts panoramic views and promises an elevated cocktail experience—quite literally. With the sun gracing us with its presence on Saturday, we decided there was no better way to spend the afternoon than sipping cocktails on the roof terrace. Alas, what was meant to be a leisurely indulgence turned into a comical ballet of misinformation and mismanagement. Our adventure began with an optimistic greeting by Staff Member A, who regretfully informed us that no seats were available outside on the coveted roof terrace. Disappointed but undeterred, we accepted a table indoors with a one-hour time constraint. As we settled in, we noticed several vacant tables outside. Curious and slightly bemused, we approached Staff Member B, who, with a nod and a smile, told us we could indeed sit outside, but only in the covered area. With new-found hope, we moved to the covered section. Not long after, we spied even more vacant tables in the uncovered area. Another query, this time to Staff Member C, resulted in us being told we could sit there too, but without the luxury of table service. Determined to enjoy the sun, we moved yet again. Ready for another round, I ventured inside to order, only to be redirected back to my table by Staff Member D, who insisted that table service was, in fact, available outside. Trying to stifle my laughter (and frustration), I explained that we had been told otherwise. The lack of any waiting staff outside confirmed this. This back-and-forth could have been the premise for a sitcom episode aptly titled "Utter Shambles." Despite the chaos, the cocktails were delightful, and the view was spectacular. However, the service—or lack thereof—turned what should have been a relaxing afternoon into an exasperating exercise in patience and communication. Sora has the potential to be a top-tier destination, but the staff need to be on the same page to avoid turning a pleasant experience into a farce. In summary, visit Sora for the scenery and the cocktails, but bring a healthy dose of humour and a readiness for the unexpected. You might just need it.

Came to just have drinks and denied my partner alcohol because his id was old, still looks like him in the photo just said the manager had said no as that was policy as it was couple months out of date he’s still waiting for one to be sent out to him. Ruined the evening as the night was about going for a drink here. music was blasting to the point that you couldnt hear each other talk aswell.

Great drinks, great vibe, great view, even better staff. Alfie and Ruby made our evening brilliant, and they both deserve praise and a raise. Stunning venue, will be back in the summer season.

Great evening and lovely meal. Service from Dipendra was excellent. Thank you

went to sora today with two friends for a joint birthday celebration - although the food was good all i can say is I am EXTREMELY disappointed with the service and treatment received. where to start? well from booking it my friends and myself looked into the menus and was keen to have the set lunch menu on our visit with hopes of the scenic views of the minster and some cocktails to celebrate our 25th birthdays. when we arrived (all be it a bank holiday saturday) we were met with queues of walk in race day goers wanting tables for drinks and food, they were all sat to their tables promptly outside on the terrace. when we got to the front we were asked to sit in the waiting area for 10 minutes for our ‘table to be ready’. once we were escorted to the table, it was a large booth (definitely not what we expected for a party of three with an empty seating area opposite us) with no side plates, chopsticks or napkins, we carried the menus with us. when seated we looked at the menu to discover the set lunch menu deal was not applicable on saturdays ( it states this no where on the website) which was extremely disappointing. when raising this with the member of staff “seeing to us” she was so dismissive about the error that i felt like i wasn’t being listened to in regards the mis-communication between the website AND the restaurant menu. we were told simply ‘you cannot order off this menu as the till won’t allow me to put it through so you have to order off the normal one’ - if it wasnt so busy that day from bank holiday, i would have suggested we walked out then an there, but thought ‘we’ve booked this, what else could go wrong? let’s just order off the normal menu’. oh how wrong i was. when asked if there were any allergies, it was made known a member of the group was allergic to gluten, the options were read to us about what that individual could have then we ordered our drinks and looked over the menu. the drinks took around 15 minutes to arrive (no worries with the busy bar on bank holiday) our orders were taken when drinks arrived and i honestly think this was probably the smoothest thing about the whole visit, the gluten free order was taken first, then everyone else’s. HOWEVER when our orders arrived, two individuals had ordered the same thing with each dish having a gluten alternative ordered, the server did not explain which one was gluten free. nor did they seem to have an understanding of the severity of how this could affect the individual if this was wrong (not to mention we also received dirty chopsticks) to be honest we felt neglected, dumped in a corner and shrugged off as customers. i’m not usually one to complain at all, however i felt so strongly about how we were treated and how appalling i truly felt the visit went that i NEEDED to make a review.

Fabulous afternoon tea Japanese style. Will be visiting again soon. Rooftop was an ideal place for lunch with views of York. We were well looked after too.

overpriced for what you get and i’ve definitely had better sushi for cheaper but all in all it’s nice food. rice quality is alright but fish is deliciously fresh. i can recommend the tuna. the waiters were lovely and friendly and managed to reseat us outside when we asked. however was a bit of a nightmare to call anyone over. we ordered tuna maki which never came so had to get it taken off the bill. defo recommend sitting outside - the view is stunning - however we got seated on a broken table which constantly moved when we tried to eat, resulting in spilling wine everywhere. we asked if we could move tables as there was a free table for 4 next to us but got told no, which was a bit annoying since no one sat there during our entire visit and there were other free tables so it’s not like they were oversubscribed. annoying thing is people constantly taking pictures outside, next to people who are eating. some sort of hen party was taking group photos for about 30 minutes right next to our table with no regard for anyone else. other people were literally leaning over a poor couple trying to eat to get a picture of york minster and the couple looked visibly annoyed which is completely understandable. i recommend going on a quieter day to avoid this as it can get quite annoying if you’re trying to have a nice experience.

Accommodated us without a booking. Drinks only. Nice views over York.

I booked a stay at Malmaison partly for the experience of Sora. I booked a table also for 5pm at Sora. Upon arrival at the top the one man band behind the counter was already struggling to deal with the few couples in the waiting area. When asked if I had booked I said yes and then was told to take a seat as he was dealing with some other first. Five minutes or so passed and more and more people were coming up from the lift. Some booked, most hadn’t. I saw at least two groups get dealt with until it came to a point where I stood up and asked the question about service. Apparently the table for reserved for me had just left which didn’t seem to be true to me based on the fact that I could see who had left via the lift. Anyhow at this point I was too frustrated with watching the calamity of service that was happening at Sora. So we left, and it’s safe to stay I won’t be staying in Malmaison again, nor will I attempt to go to Sora ever again.

Our first time, and it didn't disappoint, very tasty cocktails and a stunning afternoon tea bursting with flavour and very filling too, and being surrounded with a beautiful view, just perfect!

Served by Ethan drinks were great, service was very good, very attentive and chatty. Would definitely go back. Give the lad a raise!

Stunning setting, friendly staff. Ethan looked after us very well. Will return

Been here a couple of times now, always a fantastic experience, Dip was attentive and served us some amazing food! Brilliant night!

Lovely venue, fantastic drinks. Can’t thank Ethan enough for his excellent service and friendly manner.

I visited Sora yesterday for a birthday celebration with my family and it was perfect. I have been several times before for drinks but yesterday we had food as well and it was absolutely delicious. The sushi was beautifully presented and so fresh and flavoursome and very reasonably priced. We had several cocktails, mocktails, beer and wine, all lovely. We were fortunate enough to be looked after by Cerys who was so friendly and attentive, nothing was too much trouble for her. It was unfortunate that due to the dire weather we had to sit indoors but I've been lucky enough to spend some lovely evenings sitting outside admiring the fabulous views. Already looking forward to my next visit.

Ben was such a great bartender always smiling friendly and polite. Definitely a fantastic member.

Had a few drinks with friends. The host on arrival was excellent and very welcoming. The staff that looked after us were very good. Well worth a visit.

Lovely evening but the menu has been the same for quite a while, however, the food is good. The terrace tables need cleaning more often. Staff are very efficient and helpful and friendly.

brilliant selection of food and drink friendly staff and such a beautiful setting, we will definitely be back soon!

Rose was an absolute delight super friendly and helpful and definitely needs a rise and whoever is her boss get him sacked me and my wife back her 100%

Dip was amazing, thank you for your service it was great!

Lovely place. Great atmosphere, lovely food - blackened Cod is to die for - and in Ethan they have a star waiter!

We were served by Rose who was so friendly, helpful and informative.

Absolutely superb! Got sushi lovers and non-lovers alike. Highly recommended.

Visited during stay in hotel, was a nightmare trying to access the bar from the hotel lifts. When we eventually arrived we were advised dogs were not allowed so went back down the stairs.

My partner booked Sora for their birthday and I was really looking forward to it especially as I enjoy sushi! However I worked myself up looking at reviews, all with a common theme saying food was great but service was snooty or looked down upon people which made me anxious. Despite this we still went, on a Thursday at 7PM and was served by Michael who was very welcoming and attentive. We both felt relaxed and left with a smile on our face. Food was served quickly and was mostly delicious. We also ordered some cocktails which were nice but quite average. We got the pork cutlet, sirloin, sushi tapas, sushi crab rolls and Korean fried cauliflower, we also ordered 3 cocktails and it all came out to 138£ which was surprisingly cheap for two and the quantity of food we ordered. I would definitely visit again, it has a very relaxed atmosphere and is not in my opinion somewhere ‘fancy’ or ‘snooty’.

Great place and good choice with friendly staff

Absolutely sublime, excellent food and customer service, we will be back as this was a birthday surprise for my Mrs.

The food was nice however a couple members of staff ruined our experience. Particularly the young lady with the dark hair who served us. She didn’t seem to know what she was doing and whilst taking our order she seemed to have an attitude, looking at us rather rudely and making the table uncomfortable. After receiving our food which was quite nice we were still missing one dish. We enquired about this and she proceeded to rudely brush us off and say that the food came out when it was ready. While I do understand this, we had received every meal other than this plate. After everyone was basically finished we enquired again and she proceeded to tell us the same thing. We then asked to cancel the plate and she said she would. The plate was not cancelled off our bill. Furthermore, we asked her for the box for our cake as we were celebrating a 21st and she didn’t bring it out. The service was extremely lacking and made us feel very uncomfortable. Would not return. On the bright side the gentlemen who appeared to be her manager was amazing and sorted out our bill when we told him about the error.

The drinks were great, recommend the raspberry yuzo cocktail!

Very dull and the food is bad at best. If you're hungry, go to one of the amazing restaurants. If you're thirsty, go to one of the amazing bars. The view is amazing but the rest is a waste of space. Don't waste your time.

Came here for dinner around 9pm on a Saturday night. The food is really nice but because music was a bit too loud for our taste as we had to raise our voices to be able to hear each other. The vibe of the music was also a bit too clubby for our taste, we expected it to be more lounge-esque. There was a lady who started playing a saxophone on top of the music which was a bit jarring, and she seemed to only play for about 10 minutes before stopping and leaving. The bill for a party of 5 with food and several rounds of cocktails came to just short of £400, so definitely a treat rather than a regular visit. Hopefully if we come again the music will be a bit quieter and less clubby.

The drinks were good but the service was terrible and slow. It wasn't busy only a few tables when we arrived. We ordered the drinks and it got taken to a different table, that was not the problem but then after we got the drinks the server didn't ask for ID. After some time they came to check for it, which I found really unprofessional. Whilst waiting to pay, not one member of staff was around so we went out to take photos and we got told to pay first before we are allowed to go outside. We didn't see any member of staff for about 10 minutes after we finished our drinks. It wasn't a good start to a birthday celebration night out.

Wildly understaffed and unprofessional - this is a huge place but it was empty when we arrived, but told there were no tables available. Such a shame as the views are beautiful!

Great food and great views, very good value

This location is lovely with gorgeous views over the city. The food here is nice although service was a bit slow as it was quite busy. There are nicer and cheaper places to go for food on York but this place is great for a drink with a view.

When I booked this evening (I clicked on “book a table” through the Sora sky bar link) it showed me availability. When I arrived the staff informed me my booking was for the brasserie downstairs and they had no availability upstairs so we got sent away. The portal was for the sky bar and yet it booked the brasserie downstairs…Unfortunately our whole night was centred around this so it’s ruined it. Very disappointing please fix this issue to avoid other people falling into this trap! Update: we returned later and a group of women got turned away (in front of us) because it was “too full”. We came upstairs and the ENTIRE PLACE is basically empty! Please see the photo! A waiter even walked past us complaining “one group (us) had JUST TURNED UP!”. Which was quite rude, but even so there is no one here as you can see from the photo! It’s clearly the best bar in york yet it’s absolutely dead. They’re losing so so so much money, turning people away and lying about being fully booked when the entire place is empty on a Saturday night. What a shame.

Loved it... beautiful drinks/food, excellent services and wonderful views

We had the fixed price lunch menu which was delicious. Absolutely loved the pork belly, crispy butter chicken and sushi. Cocktails were also delicious and would definitely visit again.

Sadly underwhelming visit. We had been looking forward to our visit when booking but were let down on arrival. The front of house staff were rude and made you feel as though they were doing you a favour in checking you in. Told us there was no booking without asking us for any confirmation.. Once that obstacle was cleared we were taken to a dark corner at the far end of the restaurant and left. After speaking to someone else we were moved outside where there were several empty tables which we could have originally been taken to (having asked when booking to sit outside) . Views of York were great,particularly at sunset. Food was good, drinks took 2 courses to arrive but were decent (cocktails). Overall the experience felt poor with an emphasis on turning tables around quickly and getting you through. Would loved to have stayed for the evening and enjoyed more of the food and drinks but the cold greeting sadly set the tone .. left after an hour and won’t be rushing back.

Stayed at the Malmaison hotel over the weekend and wanted to have lunch and a drink at Sora before the 3pm check in. We were told there was no availability, so we went to a bar around the corner and checked the availability online, to find there was a table available. Booked and returned, but wish we hadn’t. Asked for a table outside, to be told there was none. We could see there were at least two, but sat inside nonetheless. It took 40 mins for glasses to be brought for our water, and when the wine came, the waiter could not open the bottle. It was embarrassing watching him struggle, so I opened the bottle for him. One of the wine glasses was dirty, and when the food came, the order was wrong. Our experience echoed that of the table next to us, who, prior to us ordering had issues with their order and one of the patrons urging the waiter to “write down the order in future.” Were it not for the view, and the attachment to the hotel, I doubt this place would be successful without some serious operational changes.

Good sushi, good music and drinks

Nice atmosphere but very rude staff. Security staff down at the lift would not allow me to join my friends as the bar was “full”. I explained that we had a table and there is a seat available for me but staff were still unwilling to allow me in. Eventually I was able to join my party to find out that the bar was almost empty. Staff is rude and behave as if though you’re an intruder and not a customer. They have been trained to upsell and push drinks but it does get irritating when waiters stop by every 5mins to ask you if you would like more drinks. This was not my first time at Sora and each visit was been disappointing because of the rude staff and slow service. There are better places in York to spend your money and have a positive experience.

Sora Sky Bar has almost panoramic views of York Minster and the River Ouse, dining outside at one of their tables is a treat, especially with a plate of their standout peanut butter chicken. However, our last visit didn’t quite hit the usual high note. Sipping cocktails al fresco, anticipating our next round of orders, out of nowhere, we’re informed we’ve overstayed our booking and need to vacate our table in 5 minutes. Not exactly the relaxing evening we’d envisaged. No heads-up. It was particularly disappointing considering the bar was starting to fill up and, despite having spent over £300, we were unceremoniously repositioned into a dimly lit corner. Our request to sit at the bar was denied as it’s apparently reserved for walk-ins, which seems to prioritise potential new patrons over existing, high-spending customers. Despite this, I’ll chalk it up to a one-off incident. The staff are usually wonderful, and the venue itself is great. We’ll certainly return, but here’s hoping for a smoother, more customer-friendly experience next time.

Great service. Great food. Great views!

Sora is a rooftop bar located at the Malmaison hotel. There is plenty of indoor and outdoor seating. When arriving we were warmly greeted and asked where we would prefer to sit. It was quite windy outside so we were given a blanket, nice touch. The menu offers a wide variety of cocktails, wines, spirits and small bites and sushi. Plenty of options for everyone. The music is very nice and the staff are all very friendly and helpful. Overall a very nice and relaxed experience, with amazing views of York and the Minster! Definitely recommend!

Extremely rude and pretentious staff, especially the girls behind the desk/stood by the lift who are supposed to ‘greet you’ when you arrive and be somewhat welcoming and polite. They were very cold towards us, even when we asked where the toilets were they came across with an attitude. We then heard them talking about us as we walked past. Great views and a lovely rooftop bar but I would rather sit in a cheap pub with friendly staff than be made to feel unwelcome while paying £10 for a drink.

Fantastic view. Average coffee