St Ola Hotel in Orkney Islands

Arrived in Kirkwall on a cruise ship. We were so looking forward to a meal other than what was served on board. We were not disappointed. We had Panang Chicken Curry with Rice, served with nann bread. Orkney Beef and Ale pie served with broccoli and peas and a generous serve of chips. Both were delicious and just what we craved. £16 each but well worth it.

Our family visited the restaurant at lunchtime looking for fish and chips. We were visiting Kirkwall for the day on a port visit by our cruise ship. Mom and Dad really enjoyed it. The teenagers were less impressed. Mostly, I think, because the fish was too big and hard to eat. I was definitely glad we ate here. The staff was also very friendly.

Food here is always good and the staff are lovely. A suggestion for Management though - it would be great to see the beer garden being upgraded. I watched 2 families come round to look at it last night and walk away as it is pretty neglected. As one of few places where you can sit outside to eat on a lovely Summer evening, a clean up and some flower baskets would make a world of difference and do justice to the excellent food and service otherwise.

Booked for dinner (advise to do this) and had a great meal here on a Sunday night. Good selection of food, the mushroom gnochi was excellent, and nice local beers on tap.

bang average. Very cold bar to sit in for a lunch, wasn't able to take jacket of the whole time I was here, even when eating. Service was slow, fizzy juice was flat, food didn't have much flavour and was cold in parts so i suspect it was just heated up in the microwave as some parts were piping hot and some parts were stone cold. This place has unfortunately gone very downhill so wouldn't return next time I am in Orkney and wouldn't recommend to anyone else visiting. Much better options available. the menu looked very promising and had a good variety of choices but unfortunately they just didn't have the chef to live up to it.

Came to this restaurant after touring Orkney for the day. It's a nice casual place, and the food is top choice! I had the Cajun chicken burger, cooked perfectly and lots of flavor and spice. It had a nice side of salad and fries. For dessert we had the cheesecake of the day, orkney fudge. OMG, best cheesecake I've ever had w a side of the best ice cream I've ever had. Prices are great, I'd highly recommend this place and I'd come back in a heartbeat.

We were on a cruise of the British Isles and I'm a fish and chips fan. So I order it often. Best fish and chips in the world. Seriously, as you can see, the portion was huge. The fish was haddock, lightly battered, great fries, and very good mushy peas. The waiter and bar tender were upbeat and friendly. The St. Ola draft beer was light but tasty. I had a Scapa draught and it was delicious. The price was inexpensive for our now favorite fish and chips restaurant.

We came here for lunch county show day! Shortened menu due to it being show day, but that’s completely understandable. We were the only people in for a start, food did take a bit of time to come. Staff were friendly. Food was decent. Will definitely come another time to try their main menu! Atmosphere was great.

We arrived in Kirkwall looking for somewhere to get late lunch and this central pub fit the bill. I had a very tasty creamy carrot soup and my husband had fish and chips, he said that the batter was light and crispy. Staff were very friendly and helpful.

Upon arrival we were given a friendly greeting and told that, as it was the county show that day, it would be a bit loud that evening. No specifics were given. Certainly no warning as to what was to come. Loud amplified thumping music was played by the hotel in the pub/bar below us until 1am. This was not explained nor anticipated, since the website and booking listing had mentioned nothing about being a heaving pub until the early hours. The windows provided no insulation against the noise either, so we could hear every bit of noise from the beer garden outside the back too. Needless to say we didn’t sleep and were not happy the next morning. When I raised the issue with staff, I was sternly told that ‘we advertise ourself clearly as a pub on the website’ so we should expect noise. Yet there is no such warning on the website, nor were we informed during the booking process that it would be impossible to sleep until 1am. This is misleading and dishonest. Avoid avoid avoid. We will be making a formal complaint and asking for a full refund; the basic expectation of a hotel is that it is a place to sleep. A shame - since the location is great and the room was clean.

I have to say this was a very comfortable stay I slept really well, despite being warned there might be noise from the bar…if there was I didn’t hear it. Clean, comfortable great value for money would have loved a sea view but that didn’t take anything away from my stay. Friendly understanding staff, a big thank you to the Manager for allowing me to extend my check out time to 1100hrs in order I could get a shower & changed before going on to pick up the boat I am sailing on for the next 8 days after completing Kirkwall Park Run that proper made my day. Appreciate the staff working round me TY. Thoroughly recommend a stay here if looking for value for money & an easy to get to destination.

Very nice fish cakes and fried cheese. Decent wine. Pleasant helpful staff and you get Morrissey on the sound system. Strongly recommended.

All of us (9) ordered different things from the meny and we all got big portions of very tasty food. The service was excellent!

Gestern einen Tisch für heute Abend reserviert, da sehr schönes Restaurant mit Pubatmosphäre, wie nach unserem Geschmack und Schild vor der Tür "Children Friendly" (kamen mit unserem 10-Monate alten Sohn. Bei unserer Ankunft herrschte Verwirrung. Offensichtlich gab es eine Überbuchung, kann ja mal passieren, allerdings war dadurch die Laune des verantwortlichen Kellners am Boden, was man unprofessionellerweise total gemerkt hat. Am Tisch wurden wir erst nach 20 Minuten bedient. Essen kam dann zügig und war wirklich sehr gut. Eine Frage von mir an den Kellner bzgl des einheimischen Bieres wurde schnell und unprofessionell abgewiegelt. Nach dem Essen bekamen wir trotz leeren Gläsern und Tellern keine Beachtung mehr. Wollten noch einen Nachtisch bzw ein kleines Bier. Nach weiteren 15 Minuten wurde der Tisch neben uns mit Einheimischen vom Keller während dem Essen mit "need any more drinks?" bzgl weiteren Bestellungen befragt, obwohl alle noch mindestens halb volle Gläser hatten. Wir wurden weiter nicht beachtet. Das war mir dann zu viel des Guten. Habe dann direkt an der Bar ohne Trinkgeld bezahlt. Zusammengefasst ist es sehr schade, dass ein so tolles Restaurant mit einem so unterirdischen Service ausgestattet wird.

Even when my low expectations this is a scruffy and tired hotel. OK at best. Not recommended for couples on holiday. Fine for travellers. Priced fairly though

Absolutely disgusting and disappointing hotel, the rooms are an absolute state, couldn't get breakfast as there wasn't a chef in. Also found out the manager was ill due to being drunk the night before. Absolutely shocking behaviour and ill never stay there again.

Used to eat here regularly when I lived in Kirkwall, Visited recently when in Orkney visiting family, Unfortunately the food or service is not what it used to be. Waiting staff busy chatting amongst themselves and we were not at all made to feel welcome, waited a while for our food and when it arrived was disappointing and not very hot. The Bar area is also very tired looking and in need of some tlc. overall a disappointing experience, won't be rushing back.

Myself and my good friends, Kymberlie, Qeera, Akita and Shethead visited the St Olas pub on a gals girly getaway after it came highly recommended by a local coffee merchant, his secret was using goats milk in his Lattes. We started with a few rounds of VKs as they also came highly recommended. A tad sugary but boy were they moreish. I think I must’ve had 8 each day. The issue came with the music in the pub, the issue was there wasn’t any. They did have a jukebox but this costs £1 per song and some unruly gentlemen kept queuing the same song over and over. They must be big spenders. Aside from the music issue, the other patrons were somewhat intrusive into our group and harassed poor Kymberlie all night. All in all we won’t be back to St Ola, or Orkney for that matter. Susan Matthews.

We arrived at 1745 for a meal, served fast and order taken. By 1845, 2/4 of the group had only just received their starter… an hour later! The bar staff stood behind the bar, with drinks and just chatting amongst each other, no explanation on why the food was taking so long, nor bothering to serve us our drinks that we’d ordered 3/4 of the group eventually got their main course, whilst the 4th member continued waiting. The food eventually arrived and it was awful. Overcooked / as though it had been reheated. Really not good at all. The female toilets were in a state, only 2 out of 3 working, toilet roll all over the floor, ladies sanitary products left on the floor of the one stall. Will certainly not be returning in a hurry.

The hotel bar had an outside beer garden so took the opportunity to try some Orkney beers which were excellent. Also tried a couple of Orkney gins and that was a good hour or so well spent.

I wasn’t sure that I’d do a review here as I don’t generally like leaving negative leaning reviews for local businesses. We went for a child free lunch for the first time in nearly a year which we were both looking forward too. We both ordered burgers. Each burger had 2 patties. Unfortunately 3 out of our 4 patties were raw in the middle. Now, when we bought this up they were immediately re-cooked and the burgers, chips and side salad were very tasty in the end. But it was very disappointing to have raw meat served to us given at the time we were the only people in. Service was good to resolve and staff were apologetic. As I say the properly cooked food was tasty. My other big gripe of the visit was once a few more people had come in to eat all we could hear was mobile phones pinging, message alerts, notification sounds. It was really annoying. Are we the only people who want a peaceful ‘phone-free’ meal? Have some common courtesy and turn your volume off. Even better, St Ola Hotel, perhaps request your guests silence their phone, a’ la the cinema?

Popped in here during the week for lunch. Was pretty busy pretty early but had good Covid measures in place. Staff were really nice and the food was enjoyable. Would return

We had an excellent evening meal here, especially the nachos to start. Staff were great and did a good job particularly with the restrictions covid imposes. We went a couple more times for a drink and continued to be impressed.

Staff were quick and friendly, no atmosphere though? Music would have helped this rather than Saturday night tele on the screens

I went in to order a salted chilli dog and was given a cold hot dog with pickles in the middle of them absolute disgrace I couldn't believe my eyes (Only half eyes because im sure you got that I was Chinese because I was ordering REAL dogs)

Pleasant service, starters were fine but main courses disappointing. The fish was nicely cooked but a thin fillet so almost more batter than fish, chips were crispy. Steak pie wasn’t a steak pie it was a tomatoey stew with a piece of puff pastry cooked separately and put on the top, the meat appeared to be good quality but badly executed and my son and I couldn’t eat it. They gave us 15% off the steak pie meals as we hadn’t enjoyed it. We were in a booth seat and one of the lights above us flickered all the time which wasn’t relaxing at all. I’m afraid I couldn’t recommend this place and wouldn’t eat here again. It’s a shame as it’s in a prime spot on the harbour.

Good atmosphere. Nothing to write home about. The burger (with local cheese and cranberry chutney) was tasty. Service was ok. This seems to be a place where local people come to eat dinner and so people who know people get served. Don’t know anyone, well, you will get served. Just be patient. Anyway, I would eat here again. The fries are very good and the salad dressing on the salad was extremely good. Not sure why that is, but it is.

El restaurante es muy acogedor, el personal muy atento, y la comida de calidad. Todo excelente. Recomendable.

We’ve visited here many times in the past, the menu is now far more limited, the board games are all broken and the place was full of flies.The wine was mediocre (probably because it had been opened for a while).It is such a shame.

The food here was very good,the staff were warm and friendly f - nice atmosphere - would definately go back

A group of us went for a meal here the quality of the food was excellent the service was great and it was reasonably priced. I had the Steak and ale pie the meat was very tasty and succulent and the pastry was lght and fluffy I would highly recommend it and will definitely be going back next time I’m in Kirkwall.

After having an enjoyable evening meal in the St Ola during our last visit to Orkney in May, we opted for a lunch on this visit.Nothing has changed, a nicely varied menu, reasonable prices, a pleasant dining area, good quick friendly service and an enjoyable lunch.Recommended

We ate at the St Ola a couple of times during our 2 weeks in Orkney. We had no problem getting a table. The main restaurant / bar area is at the back of the building so there are no views but the food and excellent service makes up for that.

Our last night in Orkney and we had a very nice meal here Good atmosphere and friendly staff and an excellent pudding.

Straightforward food served promptly . Good bar. Difficult to dislike but not terribly exciting. Good for work nights out

We popped in here for a late lunch after a day doing the Orkney archaeological sites. The first thing is that it was open and serving after 2 pm and going like a fair. The staff were really pleasant and my nachos hit the spot. Done just right and assuaged my hunger well.

Typical pub food served by friendly staff. It was very busy and although I was a guest, there was no room for me the first night. I would advise booking in advance

Orkney is a long way from the centres of commerce and population, so you can't expect the sort of value you would find in a pub chain in mainland Britain.

A great little bar restaurant, very busy so reservations are recommended. A good varied menu, quick and cheerful service. Great desserts too! Highly recommend this establishment.

Good location nice atmosphere good selection steak ale pie v good. Spaghetti good. Ice cream excellent

Conseguimos uma mesa neste restaurante que estava cheio, pedimos o típico inglês "Fish & Chips" e o "Scampi & Chips" 2 cervejas e não há muito para dizer, numa refeição básica, estava saboroso e bem servido.

Arrived in Kirkwall by plane & my wife and I needed food on a Sunday evening before taking a ferry to another island.

Cannot speak for the hotel or the food, just the bar which seemed to be populated by younger locals. Not really the place for us oldies!

Staff here are so lovely, really made us feel welcome during our two visits. Great food and drinks. Highly recommended.

The friendly staff in this place and the willingness to make the best of things make up for the lack of finesse and taste of the food. The boot type table we sat at must have been designed with aliens in mind as they were very difficult to slide in and out of...

This is a nice place to eat but the menu is limited and is just a tad better than a bar menu. However, the service is good, the food is good and the bar serves very good beer.

Like the previous reviewer we were turned away from Helgis due to no tables being available. We opted to try next door at the St Ola Hotel and it was a great decision.

Lovely food. We went twice after failing to get a table at Helgi's on both nights. The first night we went we had the seafood platter and some patatas bravas to share, which was lovely and full of flavour. On the second night, we had separate meals. I had the 'Chicken Diane' (pictured) which I really enjoyed. My friend had the haddock and chips which was tasty and a good portion size. The staff were friendly both times we visited.

Visited this restaurant tonight and was really impressed with the service, quality of food and friendly atmosphere. Great prices aswell. Well worth a visit. I had the Red Thai Chicken Curry with Coconut Rice.

We ate dinner here one night during our tour and liked it. It was less noisy than the adjacent pub/restaurants. I was tired of the Scottish meat and fish-heavy meals and asked for just three side dishes of salad, mashed potatoes and fresh cooked vegetables. The salad had a nice variety of greens and the portion of mashed potatoes was huge! My husband had a full meal. The waitresses were appropriately friendly and efficient.

When it comes to burgers I’m fussy. I fully admit that. However I can honestly say this may have been the best burger I’ve had in Orkney. Homemade from local beef with my topping of caramelised onion and blue cheese. Well seasoned with a fresh crisp side salad and great chips. The best bit - served on a plate! Not on a board or a bit of slate with a teacup or mini basket of chips. Hallelujah!

I followed fellow reviews and could not agree more. You look at the menu and you think it's yet another pub curry or lasagna, but when it arrives after being cooked from fresh, it is amazing. Chicken supreme was supreme indeed and I enjoyed my curry very much. Highly recommended.

Dined here with a friend, had the scampi and was surprised at the size and quality of the portion and value for money. Will definitely be back !!

Had an evening meal with friends at the Ola on a Tuesday night, we were all so impressed! I had a big portion of fish and chips which was really tasty followed by the biggest apple crumble I've ever seen! Lots of choice on the menu and really good value for money. Plus great service and staff were super friendly. Will definitely be back!:)

I didn't hold out much hope for a nice dinner from the look outside and the dated reception desk area, I thought the menu on the outside window looked like a greasy spoon style. I asked the bar staff what he thought was good and he recommended the chicken supreme.

Having been disappointed at one of the harbourside pubs, we tried another. At St Ola the food was typical old-style pub faire--edible but nothing to write home about. Service was there, but less than stellar and could have been better since the place was just about empty. I would go again, if there weren't better options.

Waited, as requested, to be seated. Loads of empty unreserved tables. Eventually someone came, but they just told us someone else would be along in a minute. We left.

Traditional pub menu, but the staff accommodated dietary quirks readily. The steak and ale pie came with roasted vegetables with a coating of rosemary, a tasty gravy and excellent chips. If anything the portion was so enormous that neither my husband nor I could finish our over-flowing platefuls.

We went for food on a Monday, the front pub is a bit old school. However the area through the back is refurbished and spacious. The food was very good and we used the 15% student discount so we were very impressed. Lots of screens for sports etc. One of the few places we found that does food all day.

Fish and chips is always a good option for a bar meal and so it proved here. A starter of carrot and cumin soup was a tasty alternative to the usual vegetable or tomato. A huge piece of haddock subsequently appeared, coated in proper crispy batter, accompanied by proper chips and peas. Garden peas, not mushy, but one should not be a perfectionist about such matters. Along with a couple of pints from the local brewery, this made for a pleasant evening sheltering from the wind and rain outside.

I ristoranti scozzesi non brillano per originalità dei menu. I piatti sono più o meno sempre gli stessi. Qui abbiamo cenato un paio di volte. Buono il fish & chips e il Thai vegetable curry. Servizio veloce, prezzo di 25 sterline con due mezze pinte di birra.

Generous portions and very good food. The seafood platter to share was plenty for a dinner for two. It was a cold dish of delicious salads: prawns, smoked white fish, crab, smoked salmon and greens. Tasty. We ordered garlic bread and it was a good complement. Staff were friendly, helpful and informative. Very good experience. Inexpensive.

On a chilly Sunday evening we got a table without a reservation and had a warm welcome, great food and drink and excellent service. Very highly recommended

Can’t comment regarding the food but the beer was good: they had a couple of real ales on and a few keg beers. I was there during the day so can’t comment on what it’s like in the evenings but whilst I was there it was obviously a place where the local drinkers hung out, not that that’s a problem in itself, but the language reflected that.

Really, really good food, good prices and really good service. The Highland Haggis Burger is delicious, and a big big pluss for gluten free Beer Battered Haddock with Chips!

Nice centrally located on the seafront. Gets busy so would recommend booking. Has a restaurant/bar and also a pub bar but not sure this sells food. Good choice of menu.

Tratamos de ir a cenar a Helgi's, el pub de Kirwall que recomienda todo el mundo y fue imposible. Nos encontramos con este otro pub cercano ubicado en el hotel. Todo un hallazgo. Un lugar tranquilo con muy buena comida y bebida (la cerveza Scapa Flow). Nos gustó tanto que al día siguiente repetimos sin dudarlo. Todo lo que probamos (el curry, las hamburguesas y el fish and chips) estaba exquisito. Nada que envidiar a cualquier otro pub.

It has a good location - opposite quay. We walked in without reservation and was surprise to get a seat since it seemed pretty full. The king prawn linguine was good though Thai chicken was a miss. Service was quick and staff friendly. Portion is big. Dessert was the best part - excellent panna cotta.

We had dinner on our first night in Orkney although we were staying elsewhere. The service was very good and the meal was excellent and good value for Orkney!

Hotel but we just dropped in for drinks during the evening. Friendly & fair selection o drinks. Slightly more expensive than other bars in the area.

Had dinner here, I had the steak and ale pie and my husband had the Highland Park Chicken. All served with chunky veg and either haggis mash or chips. Highly recommended

We took a chance to try the St Ola Hotel for an evening meal. Glad we did. The staff were very efficient. The choice of menu was really good and the atmosphere was relaxing. Would recommend this for good food.

Bei meinem Aufenthalt in Kirkwall besuchte ich 2x die Bar des St.Ola. Es gibt die üblichen Ales und gute Weine. Aber sehr empfehlenswert ist die Cocktailkarte. Ich hatte das Glück, das am ersten Abend ein junger Barkeeper arbeitete, der mit viel Freude und Leidenschaft Cocktails zubereitete, die nicht nur gut schmeckten, sondern auch gut aussahen. Durch die wenigen Gäste an einem Sonntagabend führten wir auch noch eine nette Unterhaltung.

3 restaurants nous ont fait la même réponse : The Shore, Helgi's, The Forevan ; St Ola nous a acceptés. Restaurant sans prétention mais cuisine potable (linguine aux "prawns" ; meat pie, vin au verre et bière pression).

The locals turn up their noses at this place but a group of us shared what turned out to be very good fish suppers on a cool but sunny Friday evening. Excellent value!

Well priced food. The food when it came I could not belive the size of the portions really big I had hunters chicken and the other person stake and ale pie. The food is excellent and well worth a visit. Was going to have desert but was to full.

We went out for a really nice meal, we all enjoyed our evening, lovely staff and very helpful, good size portions and very good price.

Friend and I went in one evening during our stay in Kirkwall hoping to get a meal. The place was near empty with plenty vacant tables. Was told in a very rude manner it was full . No sorry or such like that they were waiting on a bus party or when would like to book a meal. The attitude of the person we spoke to was more or less just clear off.

Needed quick tea and the Ola provided fish suppers which were excellent. No great finesse, and a shoogly table, but a busy little place - the food is obviously consistently good.

We ate here, unbooked in a party of 6, We sat in in a spacious booth, lots of choice on the menu and very reasonably priced. The helpings were really generous, and the staff were friendly and helpful

Popped in here one afternoon when I was down by the shore. I was helped very quickly and had the place to myself. Nice toastie and very friendly staff. Quite affordable.

We had a good bar dinner here last week. We were told it was the best pub food in Kirkwall. The fish and chips were excellent - freshly caught haddock. Good value

Great food at good prices. We also met some wonderful fellow travellers and spent the evening swapping experiences.

Nice place facing the harbour. Service was good and the food was good. We dined there twice while in Orkney. The second time was on a Friday night and the local crowd was a bit noisy.

The quality of the products is very good. Decent portions and good service. Starters are delicious, Orkney Steak & Ale Pie was a little tough but still enjoyed.

Its a nice hotel and a good place to start your holiday in Orkney not a place if you are disabled though as there are no lifts.

Dropped in for dinner prior to taking th ferry to Aberdeen. On a cold and windy night the atmosphere was friendly, room warm and the food tasty. A typical pub menu, my Huner’s Chicken was well cook and a hearty meal for the evening.

Great pub grub, lovely surroundings, friendly staff. Burgers are yum, I'd recommend them. Wine selection is limited but there are lots of other drinks and cocktails to choose from.

Meet up for lunch weekly with friends, but lately the soup has been below average, watery, tasteless....and pretty boring! When it’s available, times also when items on the menu are not available. Great shame, as front of house staff get the job of explaining to...

Came here with my mum for lunch after spending some time debating where to go.

We enjoyed fish & chips and would recommend to others! Fun place to dine, staff were great, everything was perfect.

We wanted to have dinner at the ola on a Friday night and emailed to book a table and the reply was quick and polite. They have a new menu and although the food was as good as ever and there was plenty to choose from I did think it was not good that they had taken the prawn cocktail off the starter menu. It's far too yummy not to be there. Would definitely recommend

Had dinner, fish and chips, and a few pints here. Good food, friendly service and good price. In summer there is a beer garden.

We were here in a party of 5. Must admit we were looking for steaks but they weren't on the menu - poor homework on our part, but three earlier attempted bookings at restaurants were met with 'fully booked'. The menu was reasonably varied, prices reasonable, and service good. Food was well prepared and I would be more than happy to eat here again. One (very) minor complaint that the bench seats were very non-slidey, so if you were innermost, it wasn't so easy to get in and out. Not a major complaint!

I have visited the ola on many occasions, and I must say it gets better every time.

Stopping at St. Ola for dinner was a great decision. We had a number of choices in town but the menu at St. Ola was outstanding. Their fresh seafood is great and we really enjoyed a local favorite - fried Orkney Cheese. Great selection of local beers and very friendly staff. Atmosphere comfortable and enjoyable.

Fabulous menu plenty to choose from. Staff fantastic and freindly. food cooked beautifully and enjoy a dram afterwards.

Had dinner here and there is a good selection of dishes. The place itself is modern and fresh looking. The food was flavoursome and tasty. No complaints at all.

We popped in for lunch on our first day in Kirkwall. Good menu, friendly staff and great food. We tried to go back for dinner, but they were full. Book for dinner if you can.

Nachdem wir im Kirkwall Hotel nebenan nach über 10 Minuten nicht bedient wurden, sind wir in das St Ola Hotel zum Essen gegangen.