The Botanist York in York

Visited as part of a group for a cocktail making experience, was so much fun and learned some new skills - shout out to our mixologist Cody who was ace 👌🏾

We'd booked a table for a party and a little 'room' area cut off from the rest of the restaurant was used to seat us. Service was quick and staff were very accommodating to our needs as we had a number of different allergies and dietary requirements between us. Michael in particular stood out as very welcoming and attentive.

We had their famous hanging kebabs, they were very tasty and altogether fabulous 👌 Lovely waiter who was very pleasant and accommodating.

Fantastic restaurant and bar. We had lovely food and drinks . The service was wonderful

Came here for a birthday meal with a table booked for 20:30. Unfortunately a party was running late, so we were asked to grab a drink whilst we waited for the table to be cleared. We were seated 10mins later than our booking, but that wasn't a problem at all. Our waiter was extremely polite and apologetic regarding the delay which was nice! The food was great and so were the cocktails. Absolutely no complaints whatsoever and would highly recommend coming here if you're looking for something a little more upmarket and trendy.

This place is lovely with a relaxed atmosphere amazing waiter Mike as mentioned in many of the reviews went above and beyond and we really enjoyed the food the steak was cooked to perfection and the cheese pulled burger was delicious we also had the crunchie cookie dough which if you have room for was devine, the live music downstairs in the bar was also good for after the meal so we stayed and had some more drinks in there, all in all a great experience and will definately be back would highly recommend

Good service. Food was very nice. Was our 2nd time eating there and we will return

Early evening weekday meal during Easter break. As tourists to York we weren't sure whether a reservation was required, but we were able to get a 6pm table without any fuss. The kids menu was generous, certainly enough for our 10 and 12 year old boys. Cocktails were very nice and the food was tasty. We had the sharing kebab which was great and just about the right size. Only complaint was the speed. Given the place was probably three quarters full, the length of time between ordering and receiving the main courses was a little over an hour, which felt a long wait.

Good tasty food and friendly staff just surprised it needed two doorman for security but I guess it's part of the license requirements. Anyway enjoyed the evening

Great place for cocktails, good atmosphere, staff extremely helpful and friendly, great selection of drinks.

Staff were good, food quite average and cocktails just full of ice.

Food lovely atmosphere good staff very friendly will return

Stopped off for some light refreshments and sampled the bar menu. Food excellent and friendly service. Well done The Botanist York!

Very tidy place. Was busy during Sunday lunchtime but the staff were very efficient. Will be returning soon.

Lovely meal really nice waitress it was our 4th time here as just as good as our first visit

Very delicious noodle dish...but I wish I had more. I had the noodles with chicken and only got about four pieces of chicken, whereas my vegetarian friend got so much more for the same price. The drinks, however, were amazing. I had the strawberry and cucumber one...to die for!

Absolutely love this place! Go with the girls for cocktails and nibble and with the husband for the hanging kebabs! Delicious!

We recently celebrated my 50th birthday with my family at The Botanist, York. We were given a private room upstairs at the front of the building. My family were allowed access to decorate the room during the day. We received the best service from a couple of staff, one young man in particular, whos name I cannot remember however nothing was too much trouble for him. The meal was delicious and the drinks flowed and I cannot recommend enough. Thank you

Came in for York restaurant week, and had a blast. Our waiter Mike was the embodiment of loveliness, even though the restaurant was busy. Can't fault the food or the service.

Sat in a cosy corner, ordered through the app and service was speedy! Staff were friendly and chatty too! Had some bar snacks and cocktails and they were both delicious!

Food delicious, but more importantly had the best waiter ever.. thank you Mike for going above and beyond. We felt really well looked after!

Absolutely amazing food & drinks, especially the fried onion petals 😋 Fantastic service from Mike, extremely friendly, helpful & attentive!

Cocktail making is a must!! Loads of fun and very interactive. Great for a group of friends catching up. Ask for Cody!! She's brilliant and knows her stuff!!!!

An eatery in the heart of York with a difference. Prices are fair. it retains a pub atmosphere but with a modern menu.

Great evening here, lovely food and atmosphere, but our server Mike made the night. They were exceptional and made us feel very welcome. We really enjoyed our experience because of them.

We came here for my birthday and had some cocktails which were served in a normal long glass and tasted not very good.There was some kind of foliage on the top of the cocktail which smelt a bit unpleasant. The famous hanging kebabs were nice and tasty but could have been a bigger portion. Then there's a 10% service charge also.Molly our server was nice and pleasant. Service was quick also.

Great food - great service - and just a cracking little place.. We couldn’t fault anything about this place.. Thank you.

First time in the Botanist in York and it didn’t disappoint. Had a wonderful time, the food was amazing (I had the chicken skewers and my wife had the halloumi skewers). Coming for a total carnivore, I have to say, the halloumi skewers were delicious (nicked a bit from my wife). The service was excellent too and Mike looked after us really well. A great time, we will definitely be back!

Not the best experience which was a shame as it was for my sisters Hen do! Won’t be returning. We had a table booked but were then held in a VERY crowded bar for quite a long time. No one came to get us, I had to go back a while later where we were then told- yes, the table was ready… why had no one come to tell us? Or why isn’t there a buzzer system to inform you? The seating area we had was beautiful, a private little annex room decorated lovely. I had prepaid for 2 bottles of prosecco on arrival – these were nowhere to be seen and I had to ask for them... not the wow factor I had planned for everyone to walk into … Why bother making us prepay & preorder? This goes for the food too- why make guest preorder and then wait a ridiculous amount of time for the food order- why did we preorder? It clearly didn’t help with organisation or output. I couldn’t fault our server, he was so busy but was friendly, engaged and made everyone feel welcome- he was the only saving grace of this experience! The food came out – the ones that were edible were okay at best and 4 dishes had to be complete voided off the bill as they were burnt/ overcooked (halloumi skewers) – this included the bride’s meal of which she was barely able to eat anything. Again, our server dealt with this well but the chefs should never have sent black charred halloumi out. I was then almost charged an extra £57 for the prosecco I’d already prepaid for … luckily, I’d caught it. We were all so over it by the end of this meal we ended up cutting our evening short and heading home. Would recommend for atmosphere and a drink at most but would never eat here again.

We had a number of cocktails and a sharing board. Staff helpful and drinks great. The hot platter was a good bit of substance for the alcohol.

I love the botanist at my home town of Lincoln so whilst staying in York decided to visit. Arrived as we hadn’t booked as web site states walk ins available no need to book turned up to be met by a young girl to busy talking to obviously a friend decided she would greet us after she had finished her gossip with a friend, directed to the table was told would have to be a bench which we accepted, food was ok not anywhere near as good as your Lincoln branch and neither are your staff ! Felt like we was a chore to then no smile no interaction will not return again when we are in York

Cocktail masterclass with Lewis was amazing! He is really attentive and very professional. He made us feel relaxed and we really enjoyed it. Thank you x

Lewis was great at the cocktail master class! We had a great Great time xxxx would definitely recommend and would come again

Lewis was really knowledgable and made the experience really fun! We had a great time and enjoyed it so much! Thank you for an amazing hen do 😊

I feel like a cocktail master, the class was epic, Lewis knew his stuff and explained everything throughly. The whole atmosphere was great and the level of professionalism carried throughout the entire class was excellent. Thanks again Lewis and team think we need to come back to eat here another time as food looked amazing.

It's good for a hanging kebab, burger or club sandwich

The drinks were very fun and really delicious but the food was soggy and quite spicy even though I ordered a burger. The atmosphere was lovely and the staff were welcoming. I would come here again for drinks but that’s it.

Loved the food, cannot fault it. Visited for a Graduation celebration and just felt super underwhelmed. Especially after calling to arrange this booking and being reassured something special would have been arranged for this, it was a shame. The waitresses unfortunately also seemed quite rude and hardly came to the table at all throughout, and seemed too lazy to serve anyone around the table but simply place food on one side to pass around which was a shame.

Staff were professional helpful and friendly, server was Mike. Food was delicious, great menu. Onion petals and shared hanging kebab were fab!

We visited on a Monday evening while on a trip to York just before Christmas, arriving early (via the wrong door as the restaurant door is at the side of the building, this really isn't clear if it's dark outside!) we were guided to a nice quiet table by the stairs by some friendly and welcoming staff. They took note of my food allergy and left us some time to decide what we wanted. The starters arrived quickly and were great; the pork crackling and the onion petals were real highlights for us and we were impressed by the quality. I ordered a cocktail which was delicious and unlike anything I'd had elsewhere. Sadly things went downhill from here. From the time our starters arrived to the main courses we waited over an hour, with 2 visits from staff during this time assuring us the food would be arriving soon. They seemed very rushed and overworked, trying to attend to lots of tables at once. When it did eventually arrive it was slightly wrong, and while they did fix this quickly it wasn't worth the wait at all. The hanging kebab was a very expensive bit of overcooked and dry chicken with little flavour. It came with a garlic butter that you could pour over the whole thing which was novel but left the chicken tasting exactly the same apart from being oily. Also accompanying it was coconut rice which somehow tasted burned. The platter we had with it was a mixed bag with some things tasting fantastic and others being just OK, but even here the chicken bites were very dry. Because of the delay we had been told when the food arrived that our next drinks would be free, and so my wife ordered a Diet Coke. This never turned up, and nobody ever came to take my order. The drinks we did have were taken off the bill at the end which was a nice gesture but by this point we had been here for 2 hrs 30mins and just wanted to leave. Given how much the food cost (I'm used to Cambridge prices but it still felt too expensive for what you got) I'd have expected something better, and it's a real shame that the quality of the mains didn't match up to the starters. It's also disappointing to see that the staff seemed to be overworked and rushing around, doing their best to deal with the situation they ended up in.

So I can only speak for my behalf and experience and not on behalf of my work. This is solely my opinion. We didn't go as a work visit we went for Christmas as friends from work out of work if that makes sense. But...

Lovely cocktails, the artist was brilliant

A lovely and cosy restaurant which is a great spot for dinner. The service was really friendly and we also got served quite quickly, though we did have to wait for 10-15 minutes on arrival despite making a reservation. The food was very good as well - particularly the vegan pie of the day which was a sweet potato curried pie that was delicious.

We stopped here for a light bite to eat and the selection of smaller plates is pretty good if you're not looking for a huge meal. The food was great and the service prompt and friendly.

My husband and I recently visited The Botanist York and had a wonderful time. The food was delicious and the cocktails are great. I have to give the staff a massive compliment for working so hard. It was the lunchtime after their xmas party and...

January 2024 Finally got to go back to the wonderful city of York, and the amazing restaurant, the Botanist. This is a city famous for their fantastic food/restaurants, and the Botanists is right up there! It was so good that, again, this short trip we went twice, two nights in a row. The first night I had their piri piri prawns with sourdough to sop up the oil. They were perfectly cooked, and that's not always how they arrive as prawns tend to be overcooked. My husband had the chicken skewers, hanging over a bowl of perfectly cooked chips. The marinade on the chicken was delicious and completely new to me, slightly fruity. Chicken juicy, full flavoured and perfectly cooked. Our lovely dining companions had the katsu curry with rice and it too was delicious and plentiful, and the Bang Bang chicken, which was historical. It was so good we both had it the next night! The lovely people looking after us were, Michael and Richard. They both were utterly charming, funny and knew their business; masterclass in how to front a restaurant. The second night we repeated some dishes, all as wonderful the next time, but we also had the fried onion flower (?) Which was one of the best dishes I've ever enjoyed. This night we had the gorgeous Freya, and were delighted to see that Richard was working. Again, he took marvellous care of us and was just great fun. He introduced us to the Botanist's beetroot pina colada (OMG delicious), chili margarita (swoon!), kiwi whiskey sour (yum), all utterly delicious, and I would definitely order again if I could. I think this superb, small chain are located strictly up North - if only we could have one in London! Great food, lovely location (inside and out), outstanding staff and great prices, oh, and super star cocktails! What's not to love... March 2022 Lovely restaurant with a very interesting menu! We shared the melted cheese bread boule as it was so big, and glad we did as it was delicious and enough for 2. We've decided to go back, again, on our short visit to York as we liked it so much. Our server, Olivia, was a super star: fast, efficient, knowledgeable and a great laugh, a real breath of fresh air. Prices were great and all'in-all a wonderful experience.

Came here for an evening meal, the food amazing and would recommend it, we was seated quickly and ordered a starter and a main , the starter came fairly quick and was delicious, but the downside of our visit was we then had to wait...

Mike gave us lovely service, always went above and beyond, especially since it was my friend amelia’s birthday, can’t recommend the place enough, great food, great service, especially for mikes brill service.

I asked staff if and whare access entry for wheelchair was but sadly they did not know if they had one

Fab place, food was amazing service from Mike was great too he was so friendly and helpful and took my friends allergy very seriously. We had a lovely night.

Came in for a quick lunch and had a great time. We had the onion petals to start which were so good, followed by the chicken katsu and the chicken hanging kebab. These were great as well. However the service was what stood out the...

Just been for lunch with my Husband and we had Mike as our server. He was so friendly, incredibly attentive and one of the best servers we have ever had. We both had a hanging kebab which was okay at best and the chips were...

Great service and lovely food! I had the lamb kofte and rice it was delicious. We did the bottomless brunch it was really good

Fantastic bottomless brunch with my friends for a 24th birthday!! Great service and the lamb kofta kebab was delicious!

BEWARE DREADFUL PLACE!!!! Food, drinks and service were terrible. Restaurant was freezing cold, menu is sparse with very little to choose from that you would class as “Classic pub food”. Ordered a burger at £16.95 and asked for the rather strange flavoured sauce to be...

Food amazing but slightly expensive

Staff are super friendly. I have an intolerance to peppers and they went out of their way to make sure the meal i ordered was cooked away from other meals that contained peppers....the cocktails and food where fantastic highly recommended the hanging kebabs... the only thing that let it diwn slightly today was it was very cold inside. But i popped my coat over my shoulders and we had a wonderful time.

Very friendly welcome excellent service and food and a cosy table on our own for our school reunion. Thanks. 😊

Booked in for a meal yesterday for 3 of us as you get a £10 discount for booking on line. The meal was excellent but the service was very poor. We were waiting for ages for our main course and no one came to offer us a sweet ir further drinks. We paid at the till but got our discount. We use the Newcastle botanist regularly and it is far more efficient.

Good cocktails, good beer,pleasent staff. Worth a visit

Nice food but very slow service and quite expensive for what it is. Better places to be found in York

Disappointed really. We had booked in advance and extended the dining table into the evening when we visited back in November but there was no record which was strange as we stood next to the gentleman when he did it. We were made aware of certain items not being available as they had had a busy lunch. This was NY,s day. Anyway we were asked to have a drink in the bar as the table wasn't ready which is fine. We couldn’t remember what the building was before it became the Botanist but it isn’t a patch on Leeds. Anyway the meals were poor, but the bill was adjusted to reflect this. Having looked around it appeared other diners were having the same issues. Maybe a review of the food process is due?

I can’t thank Libby and the team at the Botanist York for everything they did to make my dad’s surprise party so fantastic. From start to finish, the team were so lovely and easy to work with. The booking system for group meals and the offering of the private room for large bookings is just fantastic, and the team went out of their way to make sure it went as smoothly as possible. Of course, it’s often the service in the night that make or break the experience— and they didn’t let us down at all. They were all so attentive, welcoming, and a credit to the Botanist! 100% would recommend for group bookings, as well as popping in for food and drinks in general (everyone loved their meals).

Not much choice if you can't eat onions, service very slow

Our bartender Piper was amazing. She was so attentive and gave an incredible service, thank you for an incredible new years!

Absolutely amazing experience for New Years Eve. Amelia was an amazing server, super friendly and helpful throughout the whole night

Food was nice, 45 minutes wait for food to be served and even longer wait for bill.

The staff were really attentive and kind. The food was amazing and I would definitely come here again!!

Great service and food friendly staff good atmosphere.

Great food and the staff made the whole experience one of the best meals I have had in York. We will be visiting again for sure!

Went in for lunch yesterday, 28th Dec. We were told food would take 45 minutes in the restaurant or we could have light bites in the bar area faster. We went with light bites in the bar area, which arrived more than 45 minutes later,...

Very poor, not enough staff behind the bar, and the kid running the bar had no idea who was next to be served! Kept serving the last person to arrive! People kept leaving due to not being served! We left after 20mins and no drinks

Called in for food but it was very busy because of Christmas butter said it would be 20 minutes before a availability which was fine so we ordered some drinks and luckily got seated at the bar until the table became free. Once the table came available we got seated and given a menu.the food was delicious 😋 and the service was excellent. We will definitely be calling here again in the future.

Waited over an hour between courses. The festive hanging kebab was terrible, dried up and so overcooked most of it inedible. Really disappointing.

Popped in for a couple of drinks as we often do. It wasn’t particularly busy for a lunchtime and no atmosphere. Our bartender just looked at us and waited for us to order; she didn’t speak once before plonking the wine and beer down. Then...

Fab atmosphere with live music Love the hanging kebabs Issue either paying the wrong bill but the staff spotted it and gave us a refund

We had a great meal here just before Christmas! The food was excellent, we both a starter and the Turkey Pie, the Cocktails were lovely, especially the Old Fashioned, and Mike, our server, was a lovely bloke and a credit to the hospitality trade!

Food was tasty and big portions. Had hanging kebabs and a hot board. 10% service charge added to bill which I wasn’t aware if but we paid it as the food was good. My daughter is coeliac and they catered brilliantly for her, they had...

Lovely place to spend our anniversary meal. Warm and cosy with brilliant service. Food was spot on and delicious. Also, thank you for the glasses of prosseco to celebrate our wedding anniversary. A nice touch 👌

Food service was a little slow but the food and customer service was lovely

Atmosphere was good, food was ok, but not very hot, kebabs pre- cooked so not great. Sticky toffee pudding warm, not hot. We did complain, and we did have some money knocked off the bill.

Great place, food & service . Food was sooo good , & the bloody Mary's were so 👌 😋😋😋 Dropping to 4 stars for atmosphere seems a little mean, even to me. 4.75 more accurate lol. Nothing to spoil the night , we'd definitely go again but maybe not during Xmas market time. But it was just really loud, as it was so busy.

Very nice food, I had the vegan pie, it was excellent. Fairly quick service given that it was packed. Very friendly staff, and amazing atmosphere.

Great place for a team christmas meal - menu options and price fitted our allowance perfectly. Staff were all really pleasant, especially seeing how busy the place was.

Arrived ten minutes before booking and told no tables available and to wait in a crowded bar. Finished drinks went back and told no tables go back to the crowded bar and wait to be called. Waited again no came to find me so I asked about the possibility of being seated in the next 30 minutes and was told no tables available. I would have left but I had two gift cards. When we finally got seated the experience and service we poor. Nobody took a drinks order they just brought the preordered starter. After finishing the starter we were just sat waiting for the plates to be collected but nobody came. As I was left sitting at the table I had to go into the bar to order drinks for the table. This seemed to trigger a response from the staff and suddenly a waiter appeared apologising for the service. This was an experience I would not want to go through again

Perfect food cooked top perfection 🥰

Great food , great service, great atmosphere Good price

We enjoyed a lovely dinner at The Botanist one cold evening. People were happily enjoying the bar part of the facility, whilst we sat in the quieter restaurant area. The food was reasonably priced and of good quality. I enjoyed a burger and we also had good childrens meals. The establishment itself is a lovely space with great atmosphere.

Interesting unique cocktails, delicious, beautifully cooked food and a wonderful atmosphere.

Definitely 5 stars. The interior is incredibly atmospheric and perfect for a date or just a nice evening in general. The staff was lovely and the food delicious. Wasn't overly expensive either, especially considering its central York location. A must visit for those coming to York.

Really disappointed, several items on the menu were not available,including the Christmas hanging kebab , service quite slow , ordered the teriyaki chicken skewers and there was hardly no chicken on them , we sat up stairs and it was cold

We booked a table for my mum's birthday. Set booking times 1pm-3pm. Got told at 1pm our table would be another 20mins. My sister had a train booked to get home so they put us on a table of 4. There was 5 of us so a chair got stuck on the end. Bit of a squeeze. Service wasn't great. Had one drink in one hour as staff were stretched and didn't come over to see if we needed anything. Starters were by far better than the main. The poor service let it all down really.

Very nice, busy but prompt service and good food.

Service good food good little pricey but nice food

Booked in for a lunch during the Christmas markets. Delicious food, quick service and when my mum asked for vinegar, rather than saying they didn’t have any - they went to the shops to buy her some which was very kind. We both had the...

Be prepared to wait ages to get a drink when busy,, as bar space is limited and people stand drinking at the bar, blocking access. We had booked a table for dinner, but were let down by the lack of steak on the menu. The...

The food and drinks were great, as they always are. The waiter was also really nice and friendly. However, I'd pre-booked a table, and had to wait for quite some time to be seated, because it wasn't ready, and then had to wait ages to both order and receive my food (waited at least 50 minutes from sitting down to my order arriving at the table). I was on my own, there was no signal in the restaurant, and you had to provide your entire life story to gain access to the WiFi, so it was a long time to wait with nothing to entertain myself. Don't think I'd go there again, unless I was with some friends to keep me occupied during the long wait for food.

I came back here a few years later and both food and service improved! The server was very nice and patient and the food was original and tasty. We got a vegan burger and a vegan pie and they both exceeded our expectations.average prices

Great atmosphere, fantastic staff, delicious food! Will be visiting again soon

Always enjoy visiting the botanist whether in York or Leeds. Great atmosphere and fantastic service.