The City Hotel in County Durham

Great spot for a cheeky drink really yummy fries. Great atmosphere and minnie and hannah deserve a pay rise!! Iconic bar tenders

The City hotel offered a wide range of soft and alcoholic beverages for my friends and I to sample. I had a cup of tea, which was accompanied with a beautiful crunchy biscuit. I later sampled a pint of ‘badger’ - a lovely drop. This boasted a wide range of sweet and bitter notes on the palate. The customer service was slightly below what we expected, with little respect for our Māori culture when performing the haka. However the quality of beverages was spot on and we shall visit again! 🐻🐻

Stayed here for two nights in the penthouse. Beautiful very comfy everything you need and more would highly recommend this hotel.

Excellent location,price good aswel,we checked in and and staff were very polite and helpful,rooms above pub looked like they just been renovated to excellent standard,everything you need in room,kettle,sweets,tv on fire stick,noisey outside but yr aware of the road but yr made aware of this and you can’t blame staff for this,bedding etc all clean,would I stop here again,yes we definitely will again,entertainment on in pub aswel so that’s a result,overall exceptional value for money

Good points:- *Very central *Friendly and helpful staff *Really good powerful shower *Clean and tidy Things that aren’t as expected:- * Room 6 is pretty tiny and just a single bed with shower. No desk or chair. Hard to see television as a shelf in way. * Lots of noise at night - window is single glazing with about a centimetre gap to open air when closed * Very loud bangs through wall at 3am Be prepared for:- * Durham catherdal chiming and playing all night! Good location but don’t feel I got much sleep particularly on the last night due to the alarming banging.

I chose the hotel randomly, to be honest. As I was visiting my son at the uni and wanted something central. The staff are superb—nothing is too much trouble—both friendly and professional. The room was just what I needed—comfy,clean, tea and coffee, little treats. There’s a great selection of rooms too. Exceptional value for money. The busy bar downstairs is a lovely way to end the evening, and there’s no noise coming up to the room. I travel a lot, and will definitely make this my go-to in Durham.

Called for drinks with friends & tucked ourselves away in the corner, nice drinks, good service & enjoyed our visit, didn’t stay or eat though!

Stayed here for one night for my girlfriends 30th birthday. The price was amazing, and I can’t say enough good things about our stay. I had messaged the hotel to ask if potentially then could put some balloons in for her birthday, and the requested was granted above and beyond. Lovely friendly staff and to the room changing lady who showed us our room thank you so much! The internet does not do this place enough justice, will definitely be staying here again, sooner than later I hope ! You made our stay extra special. Daisy and Sammy

Friendly check in process. Great staff! Loved the 2 rooms booked between 4 of us. We stayed in Rooms 1 and 3. Quirky furnishings. Very clean. Good hot shower. Extras such as sweets in room, toiletries in bathroom and use of a small fridge were welcomed. We were given ear plugs as Room 3 is over the front road and noisy at night. Downside is booking.com as not much info and unclear about facilities. Communication difficult. Wished there was a website with more details and booking facility. No breakfast included. Could do with hairdryer…and black out blind on windows.

Pub and bar hopping around this part of Durham over the Elvet Bridge to the Elvet District my twin brother Stephen and I chanced upon The City Hotel Pub and what a great find. Walking in and I knew I would enjoy my visit here, pubby decor and furnishings, a solid wood serving bar dominates the main ,tv's and big screens to enjoy the sport and plenty of seating options spread throughout this pub, its just a fantastic pub. We were here on a Thursday evening, pub was just starting to get busy with a great atmosphere, we ordered Birra Moretti beer, served in pristine condition, we settled down and soaked up the great vibe in this busy and popular pub. My beer was really good, Birra Moretti beer is such a light, hoppy and unpretentious Italian lager style beer bursting with taste and on a hot evening a beer that certainly cut through the thirst. We both really enjoyed our beers in here and although our visit was only fleeting for a first time visit to The City Hotel Pub we had a great time. The City Hotel Pub is easy to locate along New Elvet. A wonderful pub,one I highly recommend you visit if you're in the area or planning to visit Durham.

Lovely, friendly staff. Room cosy and bed very comfy. Great live music on the weekend. Will 100% be back.

Stayed here for a wedding and it was fab! Comfy beds and perfect central location, really close to the city centre. Good price as well, most other hotels were very pricey so this was a great find. Staff were lovely and and the bar downstairs from the hotel was a lovely place to have a drink. Just so you are aware, there isn't a car park! but this was no an issue since we got the train and it is walking distance to the train station. But could be a problem for some, public car parks near by were pretty expensive for some of our friends also staying with us!

Whilst I did not stay in the hotel, I hired an area of the pub for a social. The staff were brilliantly accommodating, despite an initial mix up, allowing us to decorate the area and provide a buffet for our ~30 guests. We made use of their student discount at the advice of the bar staff, who were helpful and friendly. Even when our group got a bit loud towards the end of the evening there were no complaints which was hugely appreciated! I cannot recommend The City enough and will definitely be making it a regular hangout.

Stumbled across this place by accident to hide from the rain. Nice staff with a relaxed and comfortable atmosphere. Not the cheapest place for a drink in Durham, but we enjoyed our visit. Did not try the food but it did look nice from what we saw.

I visited here for a late lunch/early dinner. There was a warm welcome as I ordered from a professional and attentive staff member. The restaurant is stylish and tranquil. The food is absolutely delicious! The pie was perfect and I was pleased to see a hearty vegetarian option. The mashed potato was divine! I would definitely recommend.

This hotel is in a great location for exploring Durham on foot. The room was small and therefore not ideal for spending much time. We had breakfast included which was reasonably good but don’t have the pancakes. The staff excelled in looking after us particularly as we were leaving and I dropped my phone. (The searched and engined up running to the police station where it was handed in) Evening meals also available at a reasonable price and quite good. Love Durham.

I found this by searching for somewhere In Durham at a sensible price, the Staff especially Jonathan are just amazing, absolutely nothing is to much trouble. Spotlessly clean, really nice rooms and great food at great prices, I will be back

We were on a day trip to Durham, first time visitor and happened to find this place when looking for lunch. Passed quite a few places first and glad that we did. 2 of us had the steak and ale pie and 2 had the chicken. Excellent value for money and plenty of gravy (in individual gravy boats - nice touch).I had a delicious chocolate brownie and my friend had the coffee and walnut cafe. The barman/waiter was extremely helpful, pleasant and made us feel really welcome. Can imagine this would be a really cosy relaxing place on a cold evening. Pity it isn’t nearer to where we live as would definitely visit and recommend to others.Thank you for a lovely pleasant visit.

My first breakfast and not the last. A good breakfast in Durham is not easy to find these days. Served by the simply gorgeous Louisa my coffee came very fast and the breakfast brought by chef. Standard size but perfectly cooked. 12/10

Came here on a Groupon deal, so the menu choice was a bit limited - starter plus pie or chicken parmesan for main course. All the food was very nice and extremely good value. Service was good too.

I hadn`t been into this pub for a number of years as it used to be something of a dump. I noticed that it appeared to have had a makeover so popped in and what a spruce up the place has had. It is clean, well presented and has a decent range of food. I had the parmo which was described as "local", i`m not entirely sure what a local parmo is but it was fine, not the best i`ve had by a long shot but perfectly decent albeit it had a tomato tinge to it which was slightly odd. The chips were a tad dry but the portion size was fine.Overall I probably wouldn`t make a habit of coming here, there are better options close by both for pubs and to eat but in extremis I wouldn`t avoid it. They do rooms as well but can`t comment on this.

Had a remarkable pub lunch there. Even have good Vegan offerings rathet than after thoughts, which was great fro my sister. Staff and ambience were great, service and price was good.

We were staying at a nearby hotel and popped in for a drink before moving on for dinner and returned afterwards. Quirky decor, good service, nice pleasant barman. We returned for breakfast the next day - huge and great value.

Visited this bar /hotel on many occasions however on my last visit was shocked to find new managers had taken over.But what have they done they have painted the walls grey makes place seem small and cold, some of the seats have been replaced by sofas made of rough cow hid and not on keeping with the style of bar .I had a coffee that was served in an aluminium cup and was instant coffee still cost £2.00!and boy behind bar spent his time checking this Mobile phone. SORRY to see what this place has become.

My wife and i had the most amazing pie and next level long island ice tea here at weekend,staff looked after us so well and the rooms are like a 5* london hotel.Defo coming back.

Never really spent any time in here which after Saturday will be rectified not too busy, so plenty of vacant seats and swift friendly service at the bar, good atmosphere & met some really nice visitors who were staying at the accommodation above the pub. Whilst we didn’t eat here the food being served looked delicious.

We enjoyed our stay but the room was poor value. The bedroom was nice but the bathroom was grim and there were live wires in the bedroom. Fantastic location and great, easy going, friendly staff. Good pub for drinking but we didn’t eat there.

We accidentally stumbled across this little gem a short while ago, and have gone back again and again.

Great place to go for a gin with a twist. I love their Cola Gin - other different gin infusions are on offer. Reasonable prices. Good choice of beer. Friendly staff too. We managed 3 visits on a 2 day visit to the city 😂

Had a great stop at the city durning Durham festival, room was amazing, great customer service and an epic breakfast, wanna make sure I get in here next year

Went for mid week evening meal. The place was empty except for the two of us and three people sitting at the bar. The menu of bar snacks (starters) and mains is limited but I don’t have a problem with that if the food is good and it is. Starters very good, especially the ugly dumplings. Stir fry mains a bit overcooked for my liking but still very good, plentiful and tasty.

Had a lovely day out on big meeting spoilt by this bar. I bought 2 drinks at the bar but was refused use of the toilets as they closed at 5pm, this was 5.01 pm, the bar was still busy, but because I’d chosen to drink outside I was rudely prevented from re-entry. A disgrace.

For us, eating our dinner here one evening was a treat as it was familiar for us. Eating in pubs is great, but the menu on offer does tend to be the same, whereas here we had a delicious stir fry and curry - not too dissimilar to how we would cook at home for ourselves. The staff were careful to ensure we understood what we were ordering and we really enjoyed eating the meals and had no complaints. They were eager to serve us and ensure we were happy (we were) and the pub was quiet, but we were early as we were quite tired. It had a very nice feel to it and I would happily go there again.

First of all this place looks very tired from the outside, but we were pleasantly surprised when we ventured inside, we were greeted by a very pleasant young man, we sat in the window seat as there was no one in, but then not so good we ordered 2 flat white coffees to which the reply was we don’t have any milk, we then asked for the menu oh dear Asian street food in a lovely old pub like this, we often visit Zen around the corner which is fantastic, we ordered our street food it was ok It not great we realised why there wasn’t anyone in

I used to visit this place quite often many years ago when I lived in Durham and returned to find it has been completely refurbished and is obviously under new management. The interior is now very tastefully decorated and has a very welcoming and pleasant atmosphere. It has a good selection of wines in the bar and also serves food to non residents. It is in a great location right in the heart of town - at the traffic lights at the end of Elvet Bridge. i would meet friends here again.

We stayed 1 night , we were in room 2 on main road and above bar but we both had a great sleep, no noise from either. Breakfast was lovely.. best poached eggs ever, the location is excellent , short walk over bridge and in heart of Durham , close to Cathedral, market and all the lovely pubs , shops , cafes, we will definitely stop here again

If it wasn't for 1 negative point on this hotel the rating would be Excellent unfortunately the 1 negative point far out ways all the good points...

Reasonably priced place to stay for a couple of nights . Just a short walk from the attractions if the city centre. Room warm, comfortable and we'll appointed and an excellent breakfast.

This is probably the smallest room I've ever stayed in for work! The room had a single bed and was so small that there was no room for any storage and had a clothes rail instead. The bed wasn't the most comfortable and as there was no desk or other space to sit, I had to work from the bed, which wasn't ideal. The bathroom was compact and clean but it made a huge noise whenever the flush was pulled or the shower was on and you could hear this from other people's rooms too. The location isn't bad and it's a 15 minute walk through the town from the station. The highlight here was the breakfast, which had a good selection and was tasty. Wouldn't stay here again as it's not possible to work from the room and is not the most comfortable, given the bed and the bathroom noise.

Visited for drinks while out in Durham, a lovely cosy atmosphere to the place. Nice pleasant bar staff as well. A nice edition to the city's pub scene.

Called in mid-week after work and before dinner. Was a lovely evening and there is a sunny 'garden' (yard) at the back overlooking the river, with plenty of seating.

Called in for a few drinks and ended up having some food as well when exploring Durham. 'Korean chicken' was very tasty. Nice friendly staff who recommend some sights to see in and around Durham.

I've heard this place is under new management and you can tell, the old place was nothing to write home about, but now it's great, the food is fab. My husband had the Korean chicken and I had the hot dog, both were delicious. Very friendly bar staff as well.

Nos son asiduas en el Garden House Inn, que en nuestra opinión es mejor gastro-pub en el noreste, así que cuando oímos el director Adrian tenía tomada la ciudad nos inclinábamos para probarlo. Realmente no me decepcionó. El menú es pequeño pero perfectamente formado, con...

Was told breakfast was served 8-10. I turned up at 8.15, wanting to check out early: bar locked , nobody...

went in this pub day before i was going home only had a few pints food was not on sundays but they do food in the week place was really nice nice barman behind the bar didnt have racing channel but did have other sports on,very warm welcoming place will defo go there again next time i am there

cracking choice of food, lovely burgers and breakfast was very nice, good choice and very relaxed indeed

Lovely meal and very reasonable price with decent portions. I would recommend the boritos as very filling

First visit but not the last. Nice place in a good location. Fair choice of drinks. Friendly and happy staff. Samples available of real ales.

There's no parking on site. The room was shabby at best. The bedding was ripped, no light in the bathroom, every floorboard creaked and so did the bed. The pub singer kept us awake and the breakfast finally convinced us, this is the last time we ever judge accommodation by price alone.

£70 for the double room Easter Sunday including breakfast bargainYeah rightCleaner hadn't been in the room and if had needs questioningRoom and furniture looks very tired and needs workAnd then the breakfast. Still waiting to get into the bar/breakfast area door was locked and loud music played in the bar from 6amHad to go to Valerie patisserie to buy our own breakfastUtter shambles

We stayed at the Marriot Royal County hotel across the street. Were somewhat expecting an English pub. They serve a Mexican menu. The food was OK to good, service was good. We ate here mostly because of the location.

Great food and atmosphere in this pub/restaurant/hotel. I had the chicken burrito and it was delicious, my only criticism is that it was a bit dry and could have done with some hot sauce within the wrap. Very nice though, will be returning. Great pricing though that you can not complain about!

We went in to The City for a drink, but the food looked so good we decided to have dinner too. We were not disappointed. The burger was one of the best we'd ever had, and the chilli chips were amazing. The staff were friendly and the place was inviting with a lovely atmosphere. Well worth a visit and we'll definitely be back for more.

Excellent stay, very friendly staff, wonderfull breakfast, ideal location, the hotal had problems with the TV ariel due to high winds but that should be OK now,would recomend, take some coin for parking.

I was brought here by my mother for a spot of food yesterday afternoon, I don't think I've ever been in this pub. If i have it was a long time ago. I really, really like it in here, I#m already looking forward to my next visit to the motherland so I can take my partner. The atmosphere and décor are really lovely and cosy, and the food... Mexican tailored for English people, it's absolutely fantastic!!!

I stayed here for 5 days and it was wonderful! The staff were pleasant and helpful! The room was very comfortable and despite being located in a pub which was lively, very comfortable and quiet! Close to the Cathedral and shopping - couldn't 't have asked for any better! Heartily recommend'

Excellent breakfast. Evening was Mexican food so did not try it as husband does not like it, but there were plenty of people there eating , some returner locals

We stopped in this pub for dinner with our son and girlfriend for drinks and dinner. When we got the menu, we found out that the restaurant was now serving a new menu with Mexican food. Being Americans and being used to eating really good Mexican food at home in Atlanta, we were skeptical of ordering Mexican food in Durham, England! We were pleasantly surprised when our food came. The food was delicious! My son and his girlfriend even went as far as saying that the food was some of the best Mexican food they have ever eaten and they are Mexican foodies! Don't miss this pub for good beer and Mexican food. We also loved the friendly staff, even the Australian waiter who was serving Mexican food in Durham England!!!!!!

Had lunch and a few drinks here today. The staff were very friendly and helpful. The food was very tasty and plentiful. Would strongly reccomend a visit.

Came in from the cold....excellent facilities was like a little hidden gem. Definitely will be back, great drinks. Cosy seats. Nice staff.

We booked this last minute for an overnight stay whilst on business in Durham. Parking is on the street so you do need to bear in mind paying extra for parking. the hotel/pub is on the main street so there was a lot of traffic noise plus there is a pelican crossing outside which bleeps every few minutes as people cross. The room was comfortable but as it's a very old building there was no double glazing to lessen the noise of the traffic. We had hoped to eat an evening meal in the pub as the sign outside advertised food all day however when we went down to eat about 7pm we were told food service finished at 6pm. We did find a good Thai restaurant about 10 min walk away. Breakfast was included in our booking and served in the pub downstairs. We were offered cereal but I didn't fancy a variety pack of cereal. There was no choice of fresh juice, a glass of orange was already on the table. My husband and I both ordered cooked breakfast but the server got the order wrong and judging by the speed and quality of the food it seemed as if the food had been pre-cooked and sitting for a while. All in all it was OK for an overnight stay if you arrive late, eat elsewhere, leave early and possibly have breakfast elsewhere too.

Recently refurbished pub with great atmosphere and very friendly and efficient staff. We thought the food selection of burgers and other bar meals was very good and our meal was brought to us quickly. Good value for money.

This pub has had a fantastic make over - not just the décor but a fab menu - some really quirky dishes, especially the hot salt beef door stop sandwich with beef dripping chips - worth ditching the diet. If you are visiting Durham would recommend you eat here.

I used to avoid this place when under the control of S & N now that Cammerons have this establishment under their umbrella, I will visit on a regular basis.It was so busy that food orders had been stopped, so we had a couple of drinks, then a very helpfull barmaid (impressed by her memory) came across to see if we still wished to order food as they felt the kitchen could cope now - so we did order a couple of sandwiches with sides and before i finished my pint the food was their, the hot sandwiches were great and plugged the gap.

Seven of us had a meal here on Friday for lunch.it was well presented restaurant quality food,we were expecting normal pub fare but were pleasantly surprised with the quality and value for money, the staff were pleasant and very friendly, the real ale was great, I would recommend the city to all.

Dined here and the bar is really nice, but the food was salty with a capital 'S'. To be fair it was well presented but the steak pie tasted of so much salt it was sickly, the chips had also been salted, I prefer my own judgement on whether or not I salt my chips. The Hotel manager was in the kitchen the whole time and although we informed the waitress of our problem the manager never came out to the bar to speak us about our complaint. He did through the waitress suggest we were possibly getting over a cold, (which we were not) and our taste buds could be playing up. My advice is less on the salt and a couple of days on a customer relations/PR course for the manager.

Our favourite place for a night out is Durham, and the place to go now for an excellent pint and a varied menu at reasonable prices is The City Hotel. The City which has just had an excellent revamp in the Bar, and they were saying on our recent visit they are refurbishing all the rooms upstairs. You get a really warm welcome from the Manager and his team when you come into the Bar, which is very rare these days. We will definitely be calling in again on our next visit to Durham.

We had lunch in the city on Sunday very tasty (very large) American style sandwiches, proper chips, would recommend to all !!!the pub also has a new revamped look to it, having been in here a year ago it looked very tired, the beer was also excellent and the staff very friendly and helpful!!

We went to The City at least three times between November and the start of December. The food was always excellent and we were enthusiastic about the place and the atmosphere. We had a fantastic brisket sandwich, a fish basket and soups; all fantastic. We went there two nights ago. The food was dreadful. The same soup we had two weeks ago was so bad we had to leave it there. It was extremely salty (I like salty a lot, but that was just impossible). Basket of fish was just average and the once-awesome hand-cut chips were just bland. The management also seemed new. I asked if something (chef or management) had changed, and I was told they have two chefs. Well, if that's the case, one can cook, the other can not. I'm not sure if I'll give it another try. If I do, I'll check which chef is in.

I was visiting durham last week with some friends, we called into the city for some lunch, what a treat it was, the food was fantastic, unique , I had the slow roasted salt brisket of beef sandwich, delicious, my wife had the pulled pork on ciabatta, she loved it, the rest of our guests had steak pies and city burgers all enjoyed with equal enthusiasm,the cask ale was first class and the staff were friendly and attentitive, over all a great experience .

We found this place on a recent visit to Durham and enjoyed the beer so much I went back for a second visit.The photos lining the wall down the corridor to the toilets wer very thought evoking and displayed a way of life long gone perhaps for the better some would say but we liked them.On our second visit we had a bar snack that was as big as a meal kept us going through the rest of the day and the beer was as good as I have had for ages.The bar staff were very polite and pleasant to talk to this isa gem of a pub and we will certainly visit again when we go next year to visit Durham

nice old fashioned pub beer /lager spot on,pool table cracking jukebox disco on a saturday night all kinds of music great,really friendly just a shame more people dont go in come on people give it a try.