The Front Room Penzance in Cornwall, Isles of Scilly

Really enjoyed a full English and coffee there with some work alongside. An Even Better If could be a slightly more patient service

We visited here on what had been a horrible and stressful day. We received a warm welcome as soon as we walked through the door and were led to a table in the back, which was quiet and much needed. The lady gave us menus and said she'd be back in a few minutes to take our order. We both ordered full cornish breakfasts and tea. We were very quickly served with a beautiful breakfast with cute, individual teapots (mine was baby pink, and hubby's was baby blue. This was such a cute thing that it made us smile. As we ate all the stresses of earlier in the day slipped away, and it was just what we'd needed. The toilets here are intriguing too. One is full of framed photographs of inspirational women through the 20th century, and the other was quirky - as in upside down! Sometimes, you find somewhere at just the right time, which saves your day. The Front Room 100% does food and service right and we'll be back the next time we're down in Penzance.

The food was delicious. The served portion was enough,presention was good.satisfied with the excellent service.

Probably the best experience I have had in Cornwall. The service second to none. The food utterly delicious. Plentiful, tasty and outstanding.

We were seated and they took our orders promptly. Really nice service, good food.

Highly recommended for breakfast and brunch 😋❤️. Please do visit in Penzance 😍

We visited for breakfast. There was no room inside and were offered outside seating. Sat at one of two tables outside in a small courtyard only to realise that the smoking area is right next to it. Straight after our food was served a customer came outside, sat down and lit a cigarette. As non smokers it's unpleasant to eat with cigarette smoke wafting over you. He had his coffee with him and he promptly lit another when the first was finished. This spoiled our breakfast and we couldn't enjoy it, rushed our food and left promptly. The outside area is small and a smoking area should not be in such a small area where food is also served.

Been here a few times both with my family and solo, every time the food and drink is lovely and so are the staff. Looking forward to coming again!

I rarely give 1 star, whrn entering the lady asked me if I was eating or drinking. I said I was unsure if wanted food yet but a drink yes. She replied she needed to know as it impacted seating, there were two tables free and she seemed a little frustrated so I said I'd leave it. Not used to this lack of warmth, maybe it was just a one off.

Cosy little cafe. Had the full Cornish breakfast 😋 👍🏻, staff were brilliant.

Nice pub with easygoing outdoor space. lovely super salad on a hot day

We only had a mug of tea / herbal tea each, but they and the service were fine.

Quaint teashop Lovely staff Nothing too much trouble

Had a wonderful lunch, dog friendly. Would highly recommend.

None of your neighbours want to hear your crappy music, turn it down 😤

We visited today and I forgot you have a guest book sorry! I just wanted to say we found you by accident last year when we were here and just had to come back this year and once again you did not disappoint. The upside down toilet is a must see for our kids, the food is delicious as are the portion sizes and staff are always super friendly. This year we had our puppy with us and Mimi wanted to also say thank you for all her cuddles and love today she had the best time (she was the fluff ball puppy at lunch time)! Thank you again and hopefully we will be back very soon! That or we may have to pack you in our suitcase and take you home to Bath with us! Definitely visit you will not be disappointed

Absolutely lovely staff and service. Food was excellent value for money. Can’t fault the experience in any way. Sat out the back in the sunshine and come back again and again

Yummy food, amazingly short wait times, fun atmosphere and very dog friendly. Highly recommend

Been a few times. Loved it every time. Warm atmosphere and very reasonable pricing

A little hidden gem of a place. Great food and amazing service; worth a trip to Penzance just for a visit here. Couldn't recommend more.

Me and my boyfriend come here all of the time. We always enjoy breakfast here. But we decided to come for lunch. When we first walked through the doors. Everyone just stared at us. Not really knowing what to say to us. We asked for a table outside. And we got seated. We weren’t seen for 20 mins even after making direct eye contact with the workers and also ringing the bell. Once we were served I asked for the halloumi wrap with chips. I then asked whether they could put cheese on the chips as they have an option of cheesy chips on the menu. The response I got was we can’t do that as the chef will get angry. We then ordered smoothies. One mango and one banana berries. The berries smoothie tasted like nothing. It had this faint taste of milk that was it. Then we asked one of the employees if we could change tables as our table was in the middle and was very cramp. But also the table wasn’t stable. The employee said that’s was okay. So we changed then the other employee came out and was moaning how we changed tables. Then this employee was rude to us the rest of our time there. It was not an enjoyable visit.

Food was nice, no complaints, except a full cornish just resembled a full english, and it lacked in quantity for £11.50, bacon did not look great either. The manaager on this morning was very nice. However there was aa waitress with darker hair, had no manners no please or thank you when we paid her. An extra breakfast had been added to the bill, which she insisted we needed to pay as it was on her till, therefore we must have had it, and she was quite insistant it was our fault it had appeared on her till. Not even an apology. Not a great image for this place, maybe some customer service training needed. On the whole it was pretty mediocre, not bad not great. Quirky interior which was nice.

A great find! Good vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options in a generally decent and very reasonably priced menu in a small but friendly and character-full place including a very pleasant outdoor area. The closing time listed seems to be the latest time to arrive or order.

Great, only thing I think they should fix is the "quirky" sinks in the bathrooms. Maybe have the taps on the sink instead of ceiling so those with disabilities can actually reach them

Awesome place. Me and my dad visited. Loved it

Charming little find.☕️ They obviously take pride in their coffee making. Thank you.😋

We had lunch here yesterday and the food was lovely, the portions were generous and it was very reasonably priced. The service was good and the staff were nice and friendly. It was the highlight of our visit to Penzance!

Came in for coffee and cake. Excellent flapjack!

Absolutely wonderful cafe/restaurant. Easily one of the best eggs benedict I've ever had. Friendly, welcoming staff who were really interesting to talk to. Great decor with lots of interesting quirks. Was clear to see regulars and tourists all enjoying the place. Would definitely recommend.

Fantastic brunch. Staff very friendly and accomodating 😊

Delicious eggs benedict with choice of added hash browns ! Yum ! Good coffee too. Just what I needed :)

The place is just grubby the carpet going up the stairs is old and dirty I dread to think what the kitchen is like the whole place needs a good scrub

We had the chicken, bacon & avocado sandwiches which were yummy! 🤤

What a great little cafe this in the middle of Penzance. Breakfast (poached eggs and bacon on avocado toast in my case) was sublime and the hilarious waitress and brilliant 80s soundtrack gave it a great vibe. So good we came back for morning tea. And needless to say it was proper tea in a pot (no rubbish tea bags in this establishment! Highly recommended.

Came to the front room bar and kitchen at lunchtime for snacking lunch and although it was very busy and they were short staffed the lovely lady who was serving and taking orders said she had a couple of tables upstairs and showed us up the stairs to a nice and quirky room that had 2 x tables with chairs and 2 x coffee table with sofas. She advised a member of the team was sick who was never sick and one was ay off and it gy very busy so drinks would be straight away and food would be delayed as only 1 person in the kitchen. We ordered fish finger sandwiches and chips along with drinks so a fairly tasty meal that was a simple food t produce. Drinks did turn up straight away and food did take a little longer as she had previously advise. Very tasty indeed and decent quality so that's good and staff were fantastic. Before we left we needed to use the toilets and they are very quirky ( look up and that's all I will say ). Bill paid and a good price served by 1 person who was also taking orders as we as doing the till. Although tight on staff everyone did a fantastic job and worked very hard maintaining a smile... Very pleasant visit thank you everyone

Delicious food as always and our waitress Molly was lovely and friendly. We sat upstairs which was nice and cosy on a rainy Penzance afternoon xx Returning again and have enjoyed delicious food and lovely service as before! Many thanks ☺️

This was our first visit to this cafe. We each ordered scrambled eggs with a sausage. When the scrambled eggs arrived, it was mostly four pieces of toast, not much egg, and they charged an extra £2 each for the sausages. So the scrambled egg with sausage cost £8.50 each. For a little bit of egg, a lot of toast and a sausage, this is costly.

Retro and quirky outside seating area with plenty of seating for individuals or a couple of groups of people. Varied menu with plenty of breakfast / brunch choices. The meals, mainly poached eggs based, all came out hot and at the same time. Our waitress was excellent, very cheerful and helpful. Don't be put off by the exterior but do walk through and try the food.

It's a little unprofessionalin the service with the chef vaping in the prep area etc and the outside garden is not that clean and very cluttered but the food is good quality and inventive. Its not a massive range to choose from and like when we were there , a couple came in and sat down and asked for what cakes they did with 3 cake stands in the window , NO CAKE , we may have some flapjack they said !!

Von Außen sehr unscheinbar, wenn man jedoch erst einmal im „The Front Room“ ist, dann kann man sich an diesem gemütlichen Café erfreuen. Dazu gibt es eine tolle Auswahl an Gerichten, von vegetarisch bis zu Classic Full Breakfast. Und endlich einmal schwarzer Tee, der nicht aus dem Beutel kommt, sondern lose im Sieb in der Kanne ist. Der Service ist sehr aufmerksam und freundlich. Für mich eine absolute Empfehlung…

What a great place to meet other people and have a lovely meal ideal for excellent taste

Delicious food, great coffee and fantastic service from Molly! Plus, it's dog-friendly, which is perfect for us! Thank you for a lovely experience. 😍

This place was very good and the toilets were upside down The chair on the wall but I liked it

Lovely atmosphere. We had drinks (real tea leaves 😍 just right chai latte 🥰 and salted Caramel milkshake😋) and some amazing cheesy chips!

We visit PZ annually to visit family and always make a point of coming to the Front Room for breakfast! Always great value, high quality ingredients and a very broad menu to cater to all breakfast tastes. Staff are always very friendly and create a lovely welcoming atmosphere - would highly recommend!

Very nice place to come and eat in Penzance, get there quick though because it quickly fills up in tourist time. It's a shame like a growing number of cafes/restaurants in Penzance it closed for such a long time depriving locals of nice places to visit in the miserable winter months. Would recommend the chips and aioli, very generous portions.

We had lovely food here today and a warm welcome for both us people and our dog. Thank you. It's a great place.

Great welcome, great food, slightly quirky but well worth it … gorgeous sandwiches, chicken bacon and avocado and a Mediterranean roast veg and feta on granary … top food, with order of homemade chips and a bottle of rattler for P and a smoothie for me … coming again if we return to Penzance

Popped in for lunch in this quirky little cafe. I had the fish finger sandwich with fries and salad garnish which was delicious, My partner had cheesy chips but didn't really enjoy them said they were soggy and greasy. Apart from that the coffee was good and the girl who served us was lovely and efficient

Had breakfast here the other day. It's a good price for good food ! 👌 lovely staff, who are more than helpful. They also are a great location for a party 😉

Very disappointed. Came in with my girlfriend for breakfast. i had ordered an english breakfast tea but was given a peppermint tea. The waitress went to rectify the mistake. the owner came back with the correct tea but unnecessarily made a sly arrogant remark saying that nothing was wrong with the previous tea. Me and my girlfriend baffled by the rudeness, I went back to the bar to confront the owner about his terrible attitude and confirm his mistake. He apologised after checking the original tea he gave me was indeed wrong. Waited 45 minutes for the breakfast. i had been asked if i wanted ketchup or brown sauce. i had replied ketchup. the waitress returned to ask again what sauce i wanted, to i replied again ketchup. was then brought brown sauce. Felt very unwelcome. Lots of passive aggressive posters. Asking to be patient, not to split the bill. Not a good atmosphere. Do not recommend. My girlfriend was embarrassed for recommending we go to the front room.

Having walked from Long Rock with the pooches we were on the look out for somewhere to grab breakfast and came upon this great little cafe. Nice seating, cosy and warm, we both opted for the poached eggs on toast with extra bacon/sausage. Drinks arrived quickly...Good flatwhite. Tasty food and excellent service. Dog friendly as well, always a bonus.

The only cake available was a salted caramel flapjack which isn't my favourite, but that was ok because I could choose toast and butter. Except it wasn't butter. The toast arrived pre coated with margarine. Horrid and misdescribed.

The team are very friendly and accommodating! Would come back! Thank you ☺️

Fantastic little spot for breakfast, very homely and independent. Friendly and chatty staff. Portion sizes were very good for the price, quick and service and staff very attentive. I had the eggs Benedict, they were definitely home made. Please do visit this place for great and brekky

Always a lovely welcome and always feel like home in this cafe. The food is so good couldn't recommend this place more. Never felt embarrassed or awkward or anxious. 5 stars. One place I feel safe in when I'm struggling.

Wandering around Penzance in the rain and we got hungry. Popped in and had an amazing breakfast and quite possibly the best coffee I’d had in ages all served up by a cheerful member of staff in a relaxed and welcoming environment. Perfect.

Popped in for a breakfast sandwich requested no butter, reiterated no butter, ask if it had no butter when I was given it, got on the train and opened it....BUTTER! Perhaps I should have mentioned it four times instead? Certainly not worth £6 either.

Lovely menu, good quality food and great service, also dog friendly. Very welcoming staff, nice atmosphere, Definitely recommend this business

Nice welcoming place, friendly staff, egg in toast with bacon nice

Delicious cap in a lively quirky cafe

Came in to Penzance specifically to get some food at the Front Room after visiting St Michael's Mount nearby. The reviews looked good and we were gutted our experience was pretty poor. There were six of us and we ordered a mix of breakfasts, sandwiches, Buddha bowl and children's menu. It later transpired there was no falafel for the Buddha bowl, but we still were happy to order it. It came with no falafel and no mixed beans - it was essentially some leaves out of a bag, red onion, sweet potato and balsamic vinegar. I went to raise this with who appeared to be the owner, and he was dispondant and told me to speak with the waitress. I did, she then spoke with the owner, who then said to remove it from the bill. Really odd the manager/owner would not speak with a customer. Furthermore the eggs on toast were a disappointment - hard yolks and therefore very dry. The avacado was not seasoned and bland as hell. We went on a bank holiday Monday so not sure if the usual chef was off, but I can't see how any cafe would last long churning this quality of food. The nail in the coffin was the lack of attention by the waitress. We had finished our food and couldn't attract their attention to get the bill. More interested in rolling a cigarette and chatting amongst themselves. When the bill came, the Buddha bowl was still on there and we had to get it removed. Poor show. Raise your standards.

Wow, what a decline in service, food and drinks this cafe has suffered. We were shown to a table where the waitress just put down the menus and walked off, leaving us unsure on where to seat ourselves. We then sat on the table next to it and the one she put us on didn’t have proper seating. After moving, the older waitress came over and sternly told us that we shouldn’t have moved- felt like I was being told off by a school teacher. Very rude and unprofessional older waitress who liked to sit down whilst taking orders. The food was very below average especially for the price! Luckily this was brought over by a younger and much more pleasant and nicer waitress. So thank you to her.

Go regularly as live locally and pretty much always have great food, great service in a lovely setting for a reasonable enough price. Can't complain and some really lovely and quirky decor.

Excellent food and service - quirky decoration, highly recommended!!!

Nothing more to say than perfect. I've eaten here twice, both times for breakfast and each time I loved it. Great service and the food is delicious. I'll be visiting more often. Thank you!

So unsure how this place won a Tripadvisor prize! They ignored us for ages and hurried us out. They very cheekily charged extra for (cows) milk in my Americano and they didn’t let us split the bill more than 3 ways. We were sat upstairs and could hear the chef swearing at the poor lovely waitress. Only gave them 2 stars because the food was pretty good and my friends liked it when they came before. Not one to recommend

We used to go here reasonably often for coffee and occasionally food. Tried it again for the first time in a while last weekend but we were turned away because we only wanted coffees. That had never happened previously. We were told by the front of house (presumably the owner) “I’m a restaurant now”. It was unnecessarily curt. We fully appreciate that a business has to choose its own direction, particularly in the current cost of living crisis. But best of luck when the tourists go home and you’re left looking for local custom, we won’t be returning.

I was recommended this place when in penzance. Absolutely 💯 on service. The food was great and the portion size was decent as well.

We were here at the suggestion of our paddle board instructor and this place didn’t disappoint. Cute little breakfast/brunch spot.

Very sweet & so cozy. Friendly service:))

Lovely breakfast and friendly staff.

Really lovely lunch here. I had a chicken and bacon sandwich while my wife had the buddha bowl. All very tasty although my side salad could have been better (with say cucumber, tomatoes and dressing rather than just some green leaves). Would definitely visit again if in the area.

No prior knowledge, but arrived late morning. Asked for lunchtime sandwiches (bit early) and no problem. Excellent and fresh chicken, avocado and bacon on granary. Spinach smoothie and coffee. There’s little notebooks to record your experience, and everyone I saw and heard was happy, chatty and pleased to be there. Highly recommend!

What a wonderful find. Went in today with my babies ( pugs) and they could not have done anymore for us. The food was wonderful all made fresh and the customer service was excellent. Highly recommended.

Front room? More like back passage!

A gem of a cafe serving delicious wholesome food. I had the Buddha Bowl and Spinach Smoothie. A fulsome large portion and very tasty. Lovely friendly and efficient service. I will be back to try out their vegan breakfast.

Great cosy place for a coffee and a light lunch. Friendly staff who were able to suggest options for food allergies. Fish goujon sandwich was a personal favourite, tasty chips too.

Fantastic food. Good value and all food felt home made and tasted delicious! Thoroughly recommended. The Buddha bowl was particularly good 👍. Open seven days a week too!

Lovely restaurant at the heart of Penzance. Really nice varied food menu - from tapas to sandwiches. Gave me a bistro feeling. We ordered fried halloumi, garlic mushrooms, falafel, savoury pancakes with bacon and feta toppings, and sweet potato chips. Everything was delicious and the service was absolutely lovely! So love the fact that they're open for the season again.

We have walked past this place so many times, used so many local pubs and cafe's. Had a drink and some great cheesy chips in here. Will certainly go back next time we are in the area.

Very good breakfast, pleasant staff and a fair price. Would recommend (especially as it’s a 5 minute walk from our house! )

Popped in to here for lunch on a busy Saturday afternoon and they managed to get us in on a table upstairs which was lovely! We were the only ones up there! The lady serving was the only one on so she asked if we could order at the bar which was no problem for us at all! The service was brilliant, very attentive despite being so busy and the food arrived quickly. I had the Buddha bowl and chips and my husband had the full Cornish all day breakfast. Both were really tasty and really well cooked. We also had smoothies which were really good too! All in all a fab experience, not too pricey and the food was excellent! Would return if in the area again! Also loved the quirky toilets and the décor!

Nice place with inner courtyard, ideal stop for a quick lunch. Many vegetarian choices and quick service by the blue hair lady!

Has to be the best breakfast I have ever had! Staff are amazing, lovely atmosphere, can't wait to come back!

We visited after reading good reviews and were turned away as we just wanted coffees!! We have a 5 month old baby too! Let's hope you filled the table with someone wanting more than coffee!! Rude and no apology.

Great food with a really cosy ambiance. Very friendly staff and overall a great place to eat.

We were visiting Penzance and stumbled upon The Front Room. Dog friendly which worked well for us. Good value lunch with no skimping on quality ingredients which we appreciated. The kitchen went the extra mile with the salad, decent fries and generous sandwich fillings. Thank you!

Stopped by for a coffee and ended up with a smoothie as well (spinach and a bunch of fruit - lovely!) Very good coffee and a cosy place with friendly staff

Wonderful lunch sat out in the garden. Super friendly service and the food is first class, highly recommend.

Excellent service and very friendly staff, even let our dog sit by the table! Very dog friendly, beautiful presented food and very tasty! Highly recommended!

Had an excellent experience today , the staff so friendly and welcoming especially to Bella the dog , the food was great and really good value

Very good service, nice seating outside on the back terrace, which is very quiet and has a lot shadow. The inside looks retro and cute as well. Excellent ploughman's lunch and chips with aioli. Large portions and very tasty. Good prices too.

Delightful place with a peaceful garden and exceptional service. My daughter said the Nutella pancakes were the best she'd tasted.

Great food(egg benedict) and smoothies. Cool atmosphere and something to do when waiting for food😉

Excellent food and restaurant. Very good service

Another delicious breakfast courtesy of the front room! Staff were very friendly and attentive and the food arrived super quick! Pancakes were amazing as was the cornish breakfast but we were too hungry to get a snap of that! Will defo be back, looking forward to trying the lunch menu next time 😋

Great food, lovely friendly staff

Went to the front room for breakfast. The produce was of good quality. But Sadly it was awful The sausage and bean were hot but the rest was cold even the egg yuk.I would get breakfast there again I think.

This café exudes a very special flair. We were lucky enough to get one of the last tables for lunch. The waiters are charming and good-humoured and had their hands full serving all the guests as quickly as possible. The halumi sandwiches were first class and reasonably priced. The children's menu has dishes for £5.50. A thumbs up for that! A little insider tip: go to the toilet on the right hand side....