Tate Gallery in Cornwall, Isles of Scilly

Visited after the gallery, had been beforehand and they did lovely salads, quiches, coffee and cakes, hadn't realised menu had changed but thought would try it, big mistake. Overpriced, over £40 for soft drink and 1 course lunch, worst thing was service, unfriendly, miserable staff, won't bother going there again. Porthmeor cafe on the beach outside has far better views, lovely staff and great food so will stick to going there!

total ripoff what have you done Tate a lot better when it was a cafe and what is with the 12% service charge won't be visiting again

We have visited in previous years, enjoying coffee & cake & looked forward to returning this year. We were very disappointed . The new menu was odd and pricey. A service charge was automatically added to the bill. Annoying as the service was so awful.

We ate there just to enjoy the view considering a lot of bad reviews over food quality, but were pleasantly surprised with the taste of food. Particularly chips with crab are highly recommendable. New York strip steak was also very nice.

Beautiful cakes and scones. Wonderful table options. Come here to write and read! To be honest - I think this is the place for the best scone in St Ives and have revisited many times over the past few years. Crumbly and light. Generous with cream and jam. The best thing about the Tate restaurant is the airy places and how generously tables are given. No pressure to get moving. Pick a great-view spot (and there are plenty of these). I notice many negative reviews and have been twice this week - fantastic both times.

We enjoyed a lovely latte here and a lot of the tables look out onto the beach. The menu is pricey and a bit limited so we ate elsewhere

For many years this used to be an excellent cafe in a lovely setting, serving a fair range of reasonably-priced food with a distinctive local emphasis. Unfortunately, although its beautiful setting remains and service is friendly, it has now been transformed into a significantly over-priced restaurant offering a menu which manages to be both underwhelming and overblown, and much of which is, frankly, laughably pretentious to the point of self-parody. In its current incarnation it provides poor value for money for ordinary visitors on a normal budget and will do nothing to extend the breadth of the Gallery's reach or its footfall.

Over past few years I have visited on every trip to relatives in Carbis Bay and this has always been a favourite spot for coffee and cake. It's now a restaurant and I don't think they want this type of trade. Took family for afternoon tea and was really disappointed by the cost and service. Paid after choosing our cakes at the counter (as we couldn't get the table ordering code to work) and the optional gratuity was automatically added without explanation. Having finished we left to explore the gallery where I was accosted by the manager(?) suggesting I had not paid the bill (even though I had paid him less than half an hour before). Very embarrassing as family and other visitors present. Luckily I had the till receipt. Will not be visiting again.

Oh Dear oh dear! What has happened here! This used to be a FABULOUS Cafe at the top of the Tate st Ives - so today 22nd June my husband and I were looking forward to a wonderful lunch with amazing views. We were surprised to find it not as busy as usual- then realised that Sadly the cafe is now a very expensive ‘restaurant’. We had already sat down, and were hungry, so decided to give it a go-The food was really overpriced and underwhelming. The offering of a vegan plate of grilled lettuce bulgar wheat and asparagus was extremely meagre for £20, and didn’t taste very nice either. A tiny bowl of heritage tomatoes for £8, and two slices of bread cost £7! It came to the best part of £40 including service- we felt royally ripped off- and we were still hungry. What a shame- as the cafe had been a thriving and wonderful bustling experience with an exceptional salad that you couldn’t get anywhere else in st Ives. This is not good for the Tate. We won’t be coming back.

The place is mainly let down by the rude staff who argue with customers and generally have a lot of attitude. Clearly no idea about customer service. Discussing customers, standing around while tables are left dirty and lots of dirty crockery. Management doesn’t seem to care.

I went to see the building and visited the shop and cafe. The coffee and cake were very good, and there was a great view over St Ives. The building is a good design. Worth a visit. I wasn’t going to pay £12 to visit the galleries though.

Firstly the view is unparalleled. Lunch starts at 12 pm, but it opens earlier than that. Suggest arriving around 11:45 to find a table, they fill up fast!

Dropped in for coffee and cake. There were a lot of staff working but a couple of them seemed more intent on chatting around the corner. They had to be called to deliver food and clean tables. They were very scruffy and had long hair (not tied up) they kept flicking their hands through. Coffee was o.k but the scone had been heated in the microwave so not the best. On the plus side the views from the cafe are beautiful and the chef was very presentable and working hard despite looking frustrated at the lack of support from the waitresses.

The Tate gallery itself is fine, if a little over-priced, but the cafe is terrible. Staff are very rude and unhelpful and several tables were taken by laptop users who seemed intent on staying for a long time despite the queue of customers waiting to be seated. I’d definitely. Void this and recommend that you go elsewhere. There are plenty of other places nearby that better deserve the custom

Very busy, staff seemed to struggle under pressure. Ordered frittata- it was stodgy and bland. There was very little choice of food. Coffee was good. Wished we’d gone elsewhere beforehand.

Had lunch at the Tate Gallery Restaurant. Everything was so bland, no seasoning, no herbs, nothing at all! Very expensive as well. Staff very rude and so lazy. Had to tell them three times to clean our table. They were too busy chatting with one another.

Very frustrating standing in a queue watching the most inefficient service. The menu was quite limited and over priced.

At 10-30 am there are only a few vegan cakes - which tasted disgusting- available and the prices are exorbitant.

The views from the cafe are very good but the prices are very high for what you get. For example a very small Americano coffee [more espresso size] cost £3.10. Cakes also at grossly inflated prices.

Nothing to eat for vegan foodies and coffee ok. The views and the ambience is what you come for here, nothing for food and drink if vegan.

We weren’t intending to have lunch here but when we went for a coffee the salads look so tempting we decide to stay. Salads with a difference including pea,samphire and roasted courgette and potatoes with spinach and sea sorrel. Delicious and all with fantastic views of the beach and St Ives.

We visited for a coffee and a cake while going around the gallery with two children, we all enjoyed the food which was tasty and fresh, but we loved the view, maybe the best in St Ives?!

We were delighted to learn that we could dine at the cafe without buying tickets to the gallery. The views were lovely and it was nice to get a break from the crowded streets. The plates are small, my husband went back for another salad as he was still hungry. But the food was fresh and lovely. However, we ordered a 'ham and cheese' sandwich for the children, and were shocked to find mayonnaise inside! It was not included in the description on the menu. My daughter has a raw egg allergy!!! They remade the sandwich for us, but I don't think staff realised how dangerous an allergic reaction can be.

We had a quick coffee and cream tea before hitting the gallery. It was better Han I thought it would be and an amazing view too! Equally that of Tate Modern in London.

Still microwaving scones to boiling point and serving on the heated plate. 😕 Tea is fine although I was given an unclean cup

When the streets of St Ives are very busy this is the place for a quiet coffee….and you can visit without having to pay to get into the gallery. Take the elevator to the top floor for fine views over the town and beach. Very...

Lovely location, friendly team and view and good value food. Very Covid secure and responsible. Recommend a lot when you visit.

Friendly staff doing a good Covid precaution pre lockdown. Coffee very good on a chilly November day.

On a cold and windy day we fight fancy going back into town for lunch after a Tate tour. We were lucky to get a table here, busy for lunch even on a Tuesday in February. The food is scrumptious and good value. And you...

Took my nine year old niece, Lydia, on her first ever visit to Tate St Ives at the weekend and upon arrival our first port of call was the restaurant. There were plenty of tables available despite it being midday and naturally we choose the...

On floor 4 is the cafe. Lovely staff and the cream tea was delicious. Best scones ever. The view is just amazing!

Visited to see the Naum Gabo exhibition (glorious), had lunch before setting off again to our temp accommodation in Fowey. Out of season, it is easy to navigate St. Ives and to park very close by. The restaurant is on the top floor with wonderful...

My cheese and broccoli tart was nice, served warm with some leaves with dressing on them. It was rather a huge portion and my friend found the veg wrap nice but twice as much as she wanted . They put half in a bag for...

I arrived in St. Ives on a wet windy day, looking forward to a morning viewing art, and hoping to get a meal from the cafe to save hunting around for a cafe, but found the cafe served only cakes, tea cakes and scones. My...

Good place to pause and watch the surfing on the beach after visiting the Tate St Ives. Pleasant, helpful service and small queue handled efficiently.

We ate here twice on our holiday as it was so good. Very reasonably priced food and delicious chips!

This visit was better than my last as the service was fine. The cafe has a lovely view of the sea and surfers. Our food was very nice, something veggy with aubergine , thin fries and a crab sandwich. The fries were very very salty...

Staff more interested in getting home than serving. Unwelcoming and surly. No snacks available at 4.40pm (although people around us eating scones). As soon as we got our tea, they presented us with bill and stacked chairs around us.

Like other reviewers we had to queue for ages to get a seat...,it really felt like a production line, one in one out! The cakes however were very good as were the drinks...a shame we felt so rushed? And the views and building are stunning!

Loved the tasty food and the relaxing view while taking a break from all the wonderful art! Great afternoon.

We wanted to have lunch. They made us stand at the door for 10 minutes, seated us then walked away. Another few minutes pass and “ can I take your order” the waitress says with indignation, making it obvious that we were not welcome in her/their presence. “Can we order lunch please?” She looks at her watch

After visiting the Tate Gallery we decided on coffee & cake in the cafe

Sat outside with my mother enjoying the sunshine and the view with a coffee and slice of cake which was delicious!

Get here early in the summer months. It’s not very big but the menu is fantastic. The food is delicious, the service fast and friendly and the view wonderful. I had seared sea bream on cauliflower couscous and it was light and tasty- a truly excellent dish. My husband had the fish burger and relished every bite. Good coffee and posset too. Highly recommend

Not a huge place, but cracking views. It was very busy but I didn't have to wait too long for my food. I had a burger for lunch which was nice. Staff were lovely, and the food was quite reasonably priced, unlike many large gallery cafes which are usually extortionate.

If one visits the Tate in St. Ives one must visit the cafe on the top floor with great views over the beach. They do teas/coffees/cakes etc. with light lunches at midday.

Someone told me to visit here for a drink and the view so I did.

There are so many good places to eat in St Ives. Unfortunately, this isn't one of them. The staff at the Porthmeor, Portminster and Porthgwidden restaurants may not be aspiring art students but they do know how to deliver a menu to the table, remember specials, take an order and bring it to the table. The hard pressed manager tries his best but the staff are clueless. If this wasn't attached to the Tate it would be closed in a week.

The day we visited it was extremely busy due to bad weather Long wait for a table Delicious cream tea Stunning views over St Ives & beach The staff were still friendly, despite the amount of people waiitng to eat

This is now more of a cafe. Cakes and drinks. In the past it has catered for lunch but not today infact half of it was blocked off for a private function - not good when there are lots of people due to the weather.

Siamo andati per vedere la collezione permanente del Museo, che ho recensito a parte. Ci è venuta l'idea di mangiare qualcosa nel ristorante interno, perchè la vista sull'oceano è magnifica. Abbiamo preso poco più di uno snack, quindi non posso giudicare come sarebbe un pranzo completo, ma quello che abbiamo mangiato era buono

I had to stand and wait to be seated,which was fair enough, but stood for several minutes being totally ignored by the many staff, although there was a table vacant. When I approached the table and sat down, having got tired of pointless waiting, someone immediately appeared and wiped the table for me. In fact after this unpromising start, everything was excellent. Staff were attentive and pleasant and soup of the day was delicious. Views over the town and Island are gorgeous.

Expensive, verging on pretentious, staff indifferent, weird combination of amazing views (if you are lucky enough to get one, otherwise you get a wall to look at) and horrible M&S-cafe-style; furniture. Maybe I am missing something, but two visits have convinced me not to bother with a third.

This used to be one of our favourite places for a light but delicious lunch in St Ives with magnificent views across Porthmeor and the town. Such a shame, but the quality of the food has taken a huge nosedive since we last visited the cafe last summer. Won’t be stopping by again for lunch unless they get a new chef.

This review is just for the Tate St.Ives Café.

I'm not a great fan of modern art but was pleasantly surprised by this museum. A wide range of exhibits and a wonderful entry made it a very worthwhile detour! If you have the time, try the fish finger sandwich!

When in Cornwall don't forget to eat crab but as we already did the previous days we had prawns. They were excellent. The main reason to go to the café however cannot be the food, it has to be the view.

Tate Britain Tate modern Both great places and free Tate Cornwall isn’t free and isn’t great It was ok 30 minutes in total so not value for money

Visited for lunch and found food was OK but nothing special. Wholesome soup and good paté. Cakes and coffee looked like a good option.

The restaurant is on the 4th floor of the Tate St Ives and you can go up in the lift or climb the stairs. There's no need to buy entrance tickets if you just want a meal or drink.

I agree with previous reviewer the Tate cafe was my favourite bit of the visit. It's on the top floor with amazing views out over St Ives. The food was really excellent - way beyond the usual standard for a gallery cafe. I had local fish with salsa verde and roasted new potatoes. My daughter had freshly made fish finger brioche bun with the best chips and tartare sauce. Great coffee too. We really enjoyed our visit to the Tate but it was very much because of the building with its lovely views and super helpful staff. The art collection and Heron exhibition itself was a bit underwhelming I am sorry to say.

We had a lovely lunch sitting outside on the patio. There was a line but it moved quickly so worth the wait. 10 minutes tops. Th3 food was really good too! And they have a play area for kids which was brilliant.

Retuning after many years the gallery still feels very spacious and relaxed. We were not overly enamoured by the featured artist, Patrick Heron’s, work but that’s personal taste.

I loved the building and the views but was disappointed by the art. Left feeling empty by it really. Staff were friendly and helpful and this made the visit more enjoyable but for me I enjoy the art displayed at school more.

Greeted by only coffee menus on the tables in the middle of lunchtime (and following a fairly thorough scan of the neighbouring tables), the (extremely offhand) waitress, who seemed very surprised to see us, what with it being the middle of lunchtime on an August Friday in St Ives, produced some that were well hidden near her till. Presumably, they hope they won't have to go to the extent of actually serving lunch if the suggestion is that only coffee is being served. Both of the young women serving us managed to do so without ever cracking a greeting, a smile or any other welcoming sign - it was evident that they were there only to get the job done with the minimum effort. This was by no means reserved only for our table - we heard both of the neighbouring tables muttering about it.

Visited in the afternoon. No greeting from the bored staff who were not helpful or welcoming. Asked if there were any savoury items. Told no, the kitchen was closed and they only had the few cakes on display. Expensive and nowhere as good or enjoyable as it used to be. The waitress who brought the food was polite but the rest of the staff were poor. Then I waited at counter to pay, whilst they tried hard to ignore me and carried on with washing up or faffing about.

I decided to treat myself to a light lunch after enjoying the Patrick Heron exhibition. I’m not used to dining alone so was a little hesitant but I needn’t have worried. I had a fabulous seat by the window looking out over the rooftops to the sea. I had the crab burger and a cold glass of wine followed by a cup of tea to revive me! All delicious. The crab was really moist and juicy. Despite it being really busy I wasn’t made to feel rushed. If I’d had more time I’d have tried a cake. It’s not cheap but to be honest I thought the view was worth it!

What’s not to love about the Tate in St Ives ? What a setting, views over a beach from the venue, lots of inspiring art ( liked the focus on local ) and a cafe on the roof to chill out after the wander around the Tate.

No greeting of any kind. Stood waiting to be seated for ages before anyone acknowledged our presence. Food lukewarm had to be returned. Looks and sounds better on the website than it actually is

Delicious coffee and wonderful place to sit and wait for spouse! Views are incredible - one of the best in St Ives - worth going up to the 4th floor for this alone

Miserable slow service by teenagers who just do not want to be there. Typical, unfortunately, of many 'take the tourist for granted' places in St Ives.

Wonderful exhibit, great lunch. Liked it so much I went back the day before I left to eat there again......

Poor service, solo people not made to feel welcome. I was ignored untuil other people came to wait, then i was offered a table.

We stopped by in the morning for coffee and pastries before going into the galleries. Lovely view from the outdoor terraces. Good coffee and tasty, freshly made pastries.

Sat on the terrace waiting to be served. Not one member of staff came to us. So I walked in and asked about whether I ordered at the till and was told “it’s table service”. The lady behind the counter then said to the gentleman “are you fed up of being asked that yet? It’s so annoying”. Usually I’d bite the young ladies head off but a review is more tasteful. We continued to wait and two ladies sat next to us after we had been there for 20 minutes. My partner said “if they get served before us we will leave”... guess what... of course they did.

Lovely setting - lovely day. Unfortunately my salad arrived with unpeeled butternut squash instead of sweet potato. When I pointed it out I was offered the option of having the salad with no sweet potato. The staff didn’t care and merely shrugged - they really let the place down.

We came to the Restaurant for a cup of tea - excellent leaf tea and a generous pot size too!! The coffee is also very good!! Although we didn't eat here, the food that passed by certainly looked good and the aroma was very enticing!!! The viewing pod facing Portmeor is an excellent place to sit and watch the antics happening on the beach!!! Recommended and good value!!!

sat overlooking the beach drinking coffee and eating bakewell slice. This is a perfect place to stop whilst enjoying great art space. Service was speedy and friendly but the best thing about this café is the beautiful view.

The cafe is found on the top floor, with stair or lift access. It’s a large airy space with lots of natural light . It comprises two rooms with tables and a roof top terrace. As well as a separate small open air viewing area.

Lovely light rooms and and an outside space (if weather OK). Very friendly and helpful staff. Excellent light dishes, thoughtfully produced and well plated. The perfect place when at the Tate.

Nice restaurant above the gallery. Gallery will interest some people but confuse others as it's very different..... Drinks are very nice and supportive of the Cornwall area. Food menu is very limited and being larger would be much better but food was very nice.

The tea and cake were fine, wonderful view and the new tables are nice, chairs St.Ivesy Wallis palette. However, after waiting ten minutes to be served its a bit much to be asked if we are ready to order, the waitress saw us arrive and it wasn't busy. Two of the waitresses were sort of joking about instead of getting on with serving. We felt unwelcome. It's hard to be more specific, just no rush to speak to us, a bit casual. The outer room is a bit cold, not heated.

Called here for a light l7nch after seeing the Virginia Wool exhibition. The service was a little slow but that gave us more time to admire tremendous view. The staff were pleasant and helpful. My husband and I share a cheeseboard. Excellent range of Cornish Cheeses and accompaniments . Would have liked a few more crackers. My husband and son enjoyed the selection of cakes and wualit6 teas. I will go again.

Great views from the restaurant/cafe. The limited menu offers good food but it is a little on the pricey side.Can just have a coffee if you want

Food was very good. Everything was fresh and served hot. Our waitress was efficient. We had desserts and coffee and tea but had difficulty getting any waitresses attention to order this. Far too windy in January to sit on balcony but views are amazing from inside restaurant.

Had a tea and coffee here. Food and drink fine and nice view over the tops of the houses in town. They offer snacks and the service is friendly.

Quick service by friendly staff and it was clean and had a good selection if food. The outside area was closed due to it being a windy day

We had the mackerel which positively melted in our mouths. There is a lovely area to sit outside the cafe and look at the view. The food was served punctually but staff could smile a little more perhaps, but then it was near the end of a busy lunch time!

I enjoyed the Modern Art and St Ives Exhibition but was very disappointed with the work of Rebecca Warren, feeling it lacked the impact needed to launch the New Tate gallery.

We were in St Ives for our 10th wedding anniversary and decided to have lunch after looking around the galleries. The menu is small, but there is enough variety to suit most palates. We had some delicious salads and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

The new gallery at The Tate,St Ives had only just opened.(Excellent,by the way).Myself and my husband decided to spend the day there and try the cafe for lunch.We chose Mussles in a white wine creamy sauce with skinny chips.The cafe was quite busy,so our meal took quite a time to arrive.Unfortunately,the food was luke warm when it came.It was served in cold bowls,so soon became cold.Not great.This is such a simple error,it cant be beyond the kitchen staff to warm up the plates.I cant really recommend the cafe as St Ives has hundreds of restaurantsBest go out into the town and return after lunch.

We just had a quick stop but the coffee/hot chocolate was fine if not amazing. The view are spectacular though.

I would like to say we had actually eaten here, but we left without receiving the pots of tea we had ordered after 20 mins. The artists have completed exhibits quicker than the service. Awful.

After a tour of the galleries & examining the new exhibition space we had lunch in the cafe. Quite a wait for the order to be taken & for food to arrive. Squid was excellent, very crisp, but aioli could have had more garlic. Mackerel 'sandwich' was one piece of toasted sourdough, crust extremely tough so both teeth & knife had great difficulty getting through. But mackerel well cooked, seared & accompanied by beetroot puree, beetroot sliced & mixed leaves. Tasty but a real challenge to eat.

Small Gallery carefully and sensitively set out. Excellent vantage point to look over the Bay and take a delicious cake with your coffee.

Attentive service and well prepared food, I keep trying squid and still find it as chewy as can be, my other half went for a lovely crab sandwich which he would recommend.

Took the family to see the Gallery and then popped upstairs to the cafe. Very nice coffee and cakes, and we just had good luck in getting a seat outside overlooking the beach. The service was good and the quality excellent. But for a family, a little more pricey than most.

if the weather's not great this is a great alternative to lying on the beach. plus the rooftop cafe has an amazing view.

I spent time in the restaurant, firstly enjoying the lovely food and then glorying in the views from the terrace! The baristas are very pleasant and helpful.

If you are in St Ives then it is worth a visit to the Tate Cafe. It's on the 4th floor and has great views over the beach and town. Little tip if you have teenage children they can visit the exhibitions if under 18 for free whilst you can have a relaxing drink in the cafe. You don't have to pay to enter and use the cafe. A pot of tea is £2.30. Worth doing especially on a rainy day.