Spider and Fly in Carlisle - Phone Number, Reservations, Reviews

Didn’t even stay long enough to get any food or drinks, sat down for a birthday meal and as we came to look at the menu quickly asked a waitress if they could heat up our 9 month old daughters food pot so we could feed her before we ate, she took the pot and said no problem… 2 minutes later she was back saying they couldn’t heat the food as their microwave would melt the plastic, and when we asked for some boiling water in a bowl as an alternative method to heat it we were told they can’t supply that for health and safety reasons. We were told the only option was to order from the children’s menu which consisted of sausage, halloumi, burgers and chicken strips all served with fries. Our 9 month old daughter is just about managing to eat puréed food with some small chunks in so a burger just wasn’t an option. We have never encountered this anywhere, and for them to give us no SENSIBLE options was really appalling… we won’t be returning, and I wouldn’t recommend for anyone else to visit, especially with young children

Food was lovely, cocktails good and staff very pleasant,

I have visited here numerous times over the years either for drinks or food. It's usually a nice relaxed atmosphere & although it's not promoted as a family restaurant they do cater for children & have a kids menu. This visit was for a family Birthday meal & we were seated in the alcove table which was ideal as my mother is hard of hearing. It was a busy Saturday night yet the staff were very friendly & attentive checking on drinks & if we were happy with the food, there was no long waits for service. Everyone was happy with their food & my steak was perfectly cooked. There's a good choice of drinks, draught beers & local Ale.

We had brunch here and it was so nice. The staff were so attentive with lovely surroundings. A very pleasant morning spent with friends. Would highly recommend.

Not great food, avocado was clearly out of a tin and couldn’t make scrambled eggs for a child when there was poached and fried on the menu. Service quite slow for brining food.

We popped in here for an. impromptu drink as we were heading home after being in the pub up the road. To be honest we all wished we'd kept on walking!! Can't comment on food but we thought for a pint of lager, a diet coke and an orange and water coming in at nearly £14 it was pricey!! We actually sat outside which is a bit like sitting on the M6 (to be fair that's not the pub's fault) but we found in the actual pub there's a very foisty, damp smell about it. Had no issue with the staff who were welcoming and helpful. Wouldn't rush back....

great quality food, would recommend

Went with my family including my 3 year old daughter after my graduation. Service was really friendly and attentive. Food was delicious and portions were more than filling, especially for the price. Nice atmosphere, casual enough to not have to worry about bringing a child, really chilled out and nice setting. Would defo go back.

Excellent, I’ve eaten here in excess of 15 plus times now. I would highly recommend the Sunday lunch. Staff have always been really friendly and very attentive.

Been here a few times lately avoiding the football. Cocktails are always spot on, we love a margarita and these ones a top notch.

Me and my partner went hear for a meal my partner likes his staek medium rare and they asked how he would like it and he said he would like it medium rare and it was very well done as that's how I like my steak, i had ordered the steak and ale pie and was quite disappointed as am pretty sure it was a frozen pie I know this as we serve them where I work,we had also looked up the menu before hand just to have a look at price and review and it had said online ribi steak £24 but when we got there it was £30 whitch was not a problem but when why partner asked a member of staff why the price said £24 online he laughed and said u would never get a steak for that price I have worked hear for year and we have never sold steak at that price so I got the menu back up to show the staff members who had told me he has worked there for years said it must be an old menu, and that was fine, but as me and my partner waited on our food we just felt like the staff where speaking about us because we confronted them about the price, and just made us fell uncomfortable

There was so much mustard on the cheeseburger slider it didn’t taste of anything else. The salt and pepper chips were just about black coated with seasoning and were inedible because of the salt. The pork belly was incredibly dry an tasteless, it was only the halloumi bites that were worth eating. The quality has massively gone down in my estimation and I doubt I’d order from here again now.

Absolutely beautiful dining experience. King prawns and chip shop loaded fries for starter were exceptional couldn’t have asked for a better starter. The steak and ale pie was a bit tasteless and the steak was so chewy, not what was expected. Overall experience was great, just wish the main was better.

Very good food, lovely staff and dog friendly.

Arrived in the restaurant with high hopes. Last day if our holiday and had checked out the menu which looked lovely. We were shown to a table in the nearly empty restaurant. As we sat down we realised 2 out of 3 of us could not sit comfortably at the table due to the depth of the frame under the table top cutting across our thighs. We asked if we could move to a different table as it was so uncomfortable but were told no all the empty tables were booked. This seemed odd with it being so empty. In the end the staff made us feel the only option was to leave.

Bottomless brunch for 5. Excellent food and service as always. Excellent staff and service.

It amazes me that those of service/food and atmosphere excellent, all are home made I ordered and I can taste it's made by heart.

Eeek. Midweek lunchtime service was terrible. Unfortunately we had to leave after waiting over 55 minutes for our lunch order,not to appear. So no idea how the food might be?

Disappointed to be turned away as we didn't have a booking and were told they don't do walk ins. That's fair enough but looked online and there were lots of tables available to book and the website also states walk ins allowed so a bit strange. Was quite tempted to book and go back in to see what they would say!

Best steak for that price we've ever had and the peppercorn sauce was to die for

Lovely restaurant, food was excellent, the portions are very generous, and the staff lovely and attentive! I treated myself to way too much food but it was all super tasty not to try. Also loved to see Victoria beer in there!

We came for the bottomless brunch and it was so good lovely staff,food was great we had the fly by Breakfast it was lovely local produce and steak&egg the cocktails were amazing and made with love,definitely be back soon to try something diffrent,thanks again😁

Apart from the waiting staff who were brilliant, the meal ( starter and main coarse ) was average. Not be going back . 😫😫

Stopped for lunch, unfortunately no cocktails but the food was absolutely amazing, and quick and fabulous!

Wow, what an unexpected delight !!! Food Fabulous, staff excellent, ambiance perfect. To look at from the outside you would pass this place by but don’t it is so good and one not to be missed.

Nachos are freaking amazing, although instead of putting sugar around the rim of my glass, salt was accidentally put there 😭

Nice decor. Also clean with tidy toilets and an interesting menu. It fell at the first hurdle though as the young lad who served us didn’t make eye contact or smile once. This is basic customer care. We didn’t stay to eat.

Not some where id recommend. Food was not great. Very disappointed

Id say the best Sunday roast take away ive ever had. Top j

First visit to The Spider & Fly but definitely not the last! As a newby to Carlisle I’ve been meaning to give it a try but for one reason or another took a while getting around to it. Called in for lunch and had a delicious Philly Steak Wrap with fries - all cooked perfectly and lots of flavour. Good service and friendly staff - excellent!

Went with my sisters for an impromptu lunch dinner and had a great time! The lady that served us was very friendly and other staff popped in regularly to check on us And even had a small chat! We were the only ones in the back room but it was nice and quiet and away from the ladies who seemed to be having a whale of a time on their boozy brunch (we’ll have to try sometime when we’re not driving!! Just stick with my Vimto cooler for now!) The pork belly was incredible also! Much recommend!

Was completely underwhelmed when opening my takeaway Sunday lunch box (which cost £15) to find a tiny portion of food that wouldn't fill a child, which is a shame as it tasted nice. We are now putting a pizza in the oven 🙈

Visited here for a birthday meal with family. We had visited once before and had a great time so thought we would try again. We had a really good night, food was good, atmosphere was good and the staff couldn't have been more helpful. Will definitely be back.

Great staff very attentive nice atmosphere Thanks for a lovely night

Surprisingly hot and fresh. Well packed and delivered early. Only complaint is the sauce was very small

The environment, the food, the service, everything was fine. We had fish and chips and you could also choose something vegetarian. We left satisfied. Parking across the street is ok.

Disappointed - definitely won’t go back! My daughter ordered off the kids menu…she had popcorn chicken to start and then chicken guojons for main …they literally served her two portions of the exact same battered chicken chunks for both - as we waited for 50mins for our mains i didn’t say anything just knew i wouldn’t be back. I ordered chicken parmo burger supposed to come with bechamel sauce and i paid extra for bacon….no sauce and a slither of bacon for £2 it was dry fried chicken in a roll for £18 !!! gob smacked at the prices tbh . The mocktails we had were the only good thing about the experience !! such a shame as it was supposed to be a treat and we were left so deflated . My advice is there are much nicer places to go in and around carlisle for good food , don’t waste your time or money here.

Very disappointing, the place had a funny smell like dirty mop water, the lights were dusty with lots of cobwebs , we waited 40 mins for food which was barely warm and over priced.

Went with a friend friday lunch. We both had the thai curry off the new menu. It was absolutely delicious 😋 . The young man that served us was great. Definitely a place to visit x

Delicious food and friendly service, definitely recommend

My partner and I booked to come here as we were away for a few days in the area. The staff were nice, and managed to find us another table after there was a very rowdy drunk group near us. We weren’t told which items (a lot of them) were unavailable on the menu until we were about to order, so had to pick again. No turkey or steak left and quite a few of the Christmas menu items contained turkey. Food was average, we both ordered chicken burger and salt and pepper fries. Burger was okay, but quite bland. Salt and pepper fries were disappointing- no seasoning at all was basically just fries with a few peppers and onions. Drinks were nice, and the actual restaurant is very nice, but the experience was just average considering we wanted a nice meal on our holiday. Should have checked these trip advisor reviews as it seems we aren’t the only ones

Awesome food good service Although now I love a cookie pie …but why someone thought now this rich creamy cookie pie you know what it needs an orange sorbet ? Weirdest paring I’ve ever come across and the cookie pie needs to be served warm aswell ..cocktails nice ..atmosphere nice just stop putting orange sorbet on cookie pie ya loony’s

Met with friends for lunch, the lace was cold, I felt like wearing my coat the whole time. Service was prompt & staff were lovely but the food was disappointing. I ordered the Brie & bacon flat bread. Far too much cranberry sauce so I could eat it, I just picked at the bacon & cheese, the french fries were hard and cold. My friends left their burritos too as they were disappointed with the filling.

Extremely disappointing the coffee was Luke warm and the portion size was tiny, I’ve been a few times for brunch and I won’t be going again. 3 tiny pancakes some chopped bacon and extra for an egg!!! No comparison to The Old Bank don’t waste your time and money. We did complain and no one came back to us

Favourite local always served with a smile

Good place for food. Depending on when you go depends on service quality but overall a good night out

Headlines for those in a hurry - food total rubbish, drinks ok, atmosphere ok, staff ok, parking terrible, would I go again - never! More detail below! We visited the Spider and Fly recently with some friends. We were really looking forward to it after hearing good things. I wish however I had read the recent Tripadvisor posts as I don’t think we would have attended and therefore not been so disappointed. The S&F has so much going for visually really nice inside, staff generally ok but that’s kind of where the positives stop. The main reason for going out for drinks and a meal is to have a good meal. This is NOT what you get at S&F. Firstly the menu is really limited and a lot of the food is fried. The quality is poor, the food was lukewarm warm, small portions and not very well cooked. They also ran out of fillet steaks, (on a Saturday evening have you ever heard the like), ran out of chunky chips (frozen). I had salt and pepper chips which had so little seasoning as to have no flavour. My wife’s steak arrived it was cold, over cooked (well done when asked for medium rare). They forgot items from the order not once but twice. As my wife got the last fillet they massacred they didn’t have anymore, so not wanting to risk anything she asked for a feta salad. It came drenched in olive oil and dressing to the point it was inedible. She sent it back. One of our group ordered fish and chips (which was fish and fries as they ran out of chips), and the fish was clearly frozen. Suffice to say this is not a restaurant it’s not even doing good pub grub, the food is terrible. I highly recommend NOT EATING here. Dreadful! We will NEVER be back again. Final warning is the parking. There is a small car park opposite but it was rammed. Everywhere else is double yellow lines. Be warned. There are lots of places in Carlisle that are much much better don’t waste your money or time here.

Whats not to like? Great food, great service, great booking system, great decor, honestly there's nothing bad or neutral to say about this place. Came for a few weeks now and it just seems to be getting better and better. The staff are great to helpful, fast and accommodating. Cheap too with all things considered. As a vegetarian this is the place in Carlisle for Sunday dinner, nothing beats it.

fantastic food would definately order again

Very poor quality food, overpriced for what it is, warmed up old food is the best way I can describe it. Our chips were clearly hours old, definitely not freshly cooked. The best thing about the place was the service, staff were friendly and helpful.

Amazing food, red hot on delivery. Beautiful burger and curry. Never disappoints!

Had an excellent dinner. Shared plates of creative appetizers with matched sauces. Fish and chips were amazing, beer was cold and tasty. Nice ambiance and good service.

Don't know if they had a problem getting a delivery driver but food was cold and looked like it had been sat for a long while,sure it would have been lovely if not cold

Appaling standard of service My friends and I received during a recent meal at this establishment 4th November 23. On arrival nobody to greets us and after 15 mins a little girl who looked about 10 years old had difficulties finding our booking eventually seated us to our table. Our experience went from bad to worse several of the choice that we made were not available. So we all settled for Fish and Chips something we really didn't want a bitter disappointment, why have an extensive menu if so many of the items are in fact unavailable additionally to add insult to injury after 30 minutes of waiting the waiter/manager/owner said they have ran out of Fish and Chips to make amends we could have a free starters while we waited for alternative mains...This meant we were then waiting even longer for our food. I decided to order a takeaway from the Indian next door. The food was awful to taste our friends had to catch the train back to Scotland we didn't want to waste any more time in this establishment. On receiving the bill The waiter/manager/owner offered no apology or explanation at the very least.He charged us for the starters and insisted that he didn't say they were free. After 20mins of face off with him my friend who was going miss his train settled the full amount and we left with dreadful experience from this place especially the attitude of one individual.

Delicious Sunday roast. Thank you to all at the Spider.

The best Sunday dinners and sticky toffee pudding! Can’t comment on the delivery as I always collect!

Food delivery time was pushed back twice, driver admitted to going to the wrong address, food was cold, nachos came without dip, burgers were hard, chips were cold

Felt completely ripped off. Six of us ordered main course and NONE available no steak and ale pie, fish and chips or Katsu curry. Eventually said could make more pies but would be quite a wait. We were under the impression we could have some free starters as we needed to wait. Had already been at our table for 45 minutes. We were then charged £35 for four starters and given no help when we challenged this. I am appalled

Just went in for a drink with my partner, it was very quiet we were the only customers but it was only about 3.30pm 🍷🍺

HORRIBLE FOOD BAD QUALITY COLD AND DISGUSTING AND NOT AS DESCRIBED

Had boozy brunch, absolutely pathetic. food and service was good but that's where the positives end we had round after round of "cocktails" each and every one was lacking in any sort of alcohol. After 6 rounds we were sick of drinking large glasses of lemonade with different names. Don't mind this place but it's a joke to call it boozy brunch, for your £29 you get 4 hash browns and 3 litres of lemonade.

Absolutely gutted- heard the food was amazing- ordered a delivery and waited over an hour to be sent a text it was cancelled despite regular updates it was in progress!! Friday night, date night- not the best

Only looks small from outside but large inside with rustic decor, the menu is good with nice range, the food was good and service was fine.

I've never had a bad meal from here whenever I've been in, and the delivery was just as good.

Excellent, had beef dinner, it was incredible. Rich gravy, delicious Yorkshire, the veg cooked to perfection. 10/10

Meal came very quick and came hot. Very impressed but didn’t like the Mac and cheese wrap.

Great meal out. Can't complain at all!

Posto con un ambiente curato e cibo davvero buono. Preso Fish 'n Chips dei migliori provati e poi la carne con due contorni rapporto qualità-prezzo ottimo.

Great meal, had the Sunday roast board very tasty. Service prompt and good atmosphere

If you’re vegetarian don’t bother

Been here quite a few times as the food is normally outstanding. On this occasion I was disappointed with my selection. I ordered the squash burger with fries, and it was just that, a piece of squash, not a burger but a piece of cooked squash which I found a bit odd, I’ve had vegetarian burgers in the past but never like this. It tasted ok but wasn’t outstanding. All that was on my plate was the ‘burger’ and fries, no garnish so it looked a little flat & boring. Aside from the food the waiting on staff were fab, kept our drinks coming. Lovely atmosphere, will be back but not for food I’m afraid.

Delicious 😋 food and a great atmosphere

Went here for a date night!, The steaks were cooked to perfection! Just one minor thing, It would have been nice for that to include at least a little side salad or a slice of tomato on the side.

Visited on a Wednesday evening , nice decor and was fairly steady , food was good . I had the flat iron steak rare with fries and garlic mushrooms. Two of the party had the burgers and another had steak and ale pie. If we were in Carlisle would visit again.

Eclectic restaurant and bar. Good Sunday dinner.

I visited this place for coffee having had it recommended by a friend. It was Wednesday lunch time and they already had a reasonable number of customers...I was greeted by Karl and seated in the very pleasant bar area....the service was great as was the chat and the coffee....Next time I visit it will definitely include food, as some of the dishes looked and smelled excellent. I would describe the decor as trendy and stylish....overall 10/10 and I can highly recommend.

Beautiful food. The menu had a good variety to offer and it was struggle to decide what to have. The cocktails were great and again a great selection. Lovely staff Can’t wait to visit again

Food is trying to be good, but the burger I had was dry and over cooked. Wasn't that impressed, but the staff were efficient and friendly.

Sunday dinner. Not easy with pram and baby.

Everything was wonderful. Food delicious, service great. The only reason the lost a star for atmosphere is it was incredibly hot in the room we were in and there was a window but it wasn't open.

Visited on Saturday Night, cocktails were very good with alot of different kinds (we tried alot). The food was good too although waited a while for starters, which wasn’t a problem as we weren’t in any rush and it did look busy where we were sitting. Definitely recommend the chicken flat bread and we will be be back again soon !!

Don’t go if you are pregnant!! Booked a table and in the request said 3 bottomless brunch and one standard brunch due to pregnancy. Upon arrival had awful service and negative service saying if someone on the table is having bottomless brunch then the full table needed to - regardless of one of us being pregnant and clearly not drinking. They said she would get unlimited soft drinks or tea and coffee - who would pay £29 for some avocado on toast and a cup of tea - you can’t have unlimited tea and coffee being pregnant. I understand if someone in the party just said they weren’t drinking as they could potentially share cocktails however if a member of the party is clearly pregnant surely an exception should be made. We left the table and went elsewhere due to the terrible service.

Visited today with some friends. We had pre booked online around 2 weeks in advance and made it clear when booking that it was for 3 people to have the bottomless brunch, and one (for myself) the standard brunch menu as I am almost 6 months pregnant. When we arrived, we were told that despite being unable to drink alcohol, I would still have to pay the same price for the brunch as those drinking, but I could have ‘unlimited soft drink and cups of tea’. When I questioned this, as who is going to spend £20 on soft drinks and tea in 1.5 hours?! We were met with the ‘well that’s the rules’ and no flexibility at all. We actually decided to leave and go somewhere more understanding and better value. Won’t be returning and won’t be recommending to others.

We went this evening and would go as far as say the food was awful. Nachos that came in what tasted like powered cheese with a very bitter tasting salsa. Then followed mains, which was again below average. All in all was £97 for tea for the 2 of us in our local. This included 3 drinks each yes but still eye watering for the standard of food that came out. Also put off by staff scraping people’s plates into the bin across from us before sending plates back up. It’s certainly lacking in atmosphere here in recent months and it’s not hard to see why when you see what comes out.

Go when its quiet. They do good fish dishes. I had salted sea bass and samphire. Lovely. Not thd cheapest but a change from burgers again.

I’ve been here a lot, it’s my go to restaurant but tonight was awful. It wasn’t even just a bad meal out of a bunch, everyone’s meals had something wrong with it. What the hell happened? My burger had barley any chicken, horrid plastic out of the packet cheese on when normally it’s a nice slab of cheddar cheese, fries were stale, my starter prawns in a lovely garlic sauce that I always order were cold and came with the tiniest splash of garlic oil on, burnt sticky toffee pudding that was cold in the middle, the list goes on, I’ve never been so disappointed. Absolutely gutted. It’s like they just don’t care. Doubt ill be back if that’s the cheap nasty food they’re doing now. I can’t express how disappointed I am considering how much I come here. Such a shame.

Had steak and eggs 2 slices of really tough steak really vinegary and watery eggs 15 pound for that with a drink scandalous really poor quality food never again

Food not as good as in the past. Quite busy and seated next to the disabled toilets and it had a whiff about it.

October 2022: This place is on Scotland Road on the way north from Central Carlisle just over Eden Bridge, if you know your way around Stanwix then you can find your way into the car park directly opposite, then you cross the busy road, other than that I wouldn't know where to park, I called in here on the way home to avoid a late cooking session. The place has a certain style, contemporary?, Chic? I'm not sure what you would call it, I took some pictures so see for yourself. Anyway the cleanliness and the service was good, the food really good but I'm not sold on the atmosphere, it just didn't have a cosy feel. I believe after saying all that I would go there again, it was certainly much better than my experience in the pub a few doors down, don't go there whatever you do.

Visited for a birthday meal. The food was lovely. The staff and service were great. The atmosphere was warm and friendly. Definitely worth a visit.

Not the best visit at all. Had a voucher. Sat in the lower back room which is always cold and was again. Few staff and mentioned to several guests how busy they were. Opted for crispy duck as not a big fan of normal duck...

This place is on Scotland Road on the way north from Central Carlisle just over Eden Bridge, if you know your way around Stanwix then you can find your way into the car park directly opposite, then you cross the busy road, other than that...

Amazing service. Thanks to the wonderful bar man for an excellent mojito and improving my day 🤌🏼

Lovely bar, excellent range of drinks and friendly staff. I wouldn’t recommend it for food unless the menu improves. Not a great choice, particularly poor for veggies. We ended up with wedges, uninspiring tofu bites, etc.

Great menu and setting but main took a long time to come. Meat in steak pie really tough and the tiny amount of greens on the side were really salty. The flat iron steak came on its own with a portion of fries and although...

Lovely place, very good meal, great atmosphere

Heavenly Chicken Burger (+blue cheese n chorico)! Thank you very much. This was my first ever chicken burger and it was out of this planet! Very delicious! My partner had a flat iron steak, which I though it was going to be a flat cheap fillet steak but it was perfectly cooked (rare) and he thouroughly enjoyed it! The staff was pleasant. The only improvements I'd like to see is more exciting soft drink menu (I was only offered lemonade/coke - which was not even on the menu) I would hope to have a glass of nice independent lemonades, fresh juice cocktails or at least smth like saintpelegrino... Also, the fries... I think you could do better. Do your own skin on fries or smth like that. The smokey buffalo fries werew literally mc fries with tobasco drizzle... Overall, lovely experience. Definitely will be back to try out your nachos and chicken wings! Thanks!

We booked a table via there website online booking system for 7.30 on Saturday 21/1/23 the booking went through and we were not informed otherwise. My daughter had made a special trip back from university to have a nice family dinner, so we turned up...

Highly recommend the boozy brunch. Food was amazing

Top quality food and great service in a lovely cozy atmosphere