The Lazy Otter in East Cambridgeshire

No longer a pub since 2021. The Lazy Otter Pub is however still famous in Cambridgeshire for its riverside location and for its bad meals and service. It was sold as it was making a loss due to serious mismanagement, awful quality food, staff that were not interested in delivering a decent service and who were totally untrained, its dirty and unhealthy facilities, and last but not least the lack of customers as a result of all the above and its unfortunate location. Access to the A10 was far too dangerous for pub goers and as a riverside pub the Lazy Otter failed as it only had two moorings, Restoring a bad reputation is one thing but increased traffic on the A10 cannot be controlled. The latter may be the reason why the pub is no longer a pub. On a beautiful summer's day, the Lazy Otter could, as a pub, have 150-200 people in the garden. Imagine these numbers trying to get onto the A10 T-junction. For safety reasons only, the Lazy Otter should never be a pub again.

Closed..not at public house at present ☹️😡

Currently closed and providing no services, due to Covid.

Good food choice, quality and price. Great service.

Business is closed, but they don’t say that anywhere.

After an hour and a half driving our boat , got here to find it closed . Very sad , no staff , I am a chef myself , so totally understand , and I hope they can reopen soon . But please update your website . Good luck

Great menu,, over looking the river and Marina

Not alot of variety on menu and then some not available, however as newly reopened accepted this. Some portions of good size others tiny eg fish pie and very fell out of the freezer into a microwave! Fish n chips very good, as was the slices of cake. Crumble defo a microwave pud!

Pre booked for Sunday dinner, when we arrived we were told there was not enough left to fulfil our order even though the place was not that busy. So instead of the roast dinner I was looking forward to I had to settle for fish and chips. This was also disappointing as the fish was mainly batter and hardly any fish. We had to wait an unacceptable amount of time for our food to arrive, at least 45 minutes. To top it off, I ordered ice cream and when that arrived it was quite runny because, as the waitress told us, someone had left it out of the freezer. All in all not a great experience, and I wonder how they would have coped with a full restaurant.

We went with our son,wife,and grandson's, brilliant food,excellent service also good play area for the kids. Definitely recommend it.

Lovely little pub to stop at on our first canal trip! Very well informed on gluten free options and coeliac xx

Very friendly beer and food very good. Friendly staff. Not lover of ducks though.

Beautiful day out in the garden with the ducks 😀 lovely lunch and a great pint of cider.

Lovely setting, lovely food and very friendly staff.

Great pub food, friendly and helpful staff, and interior tables well spaced out in these covidy times. On nice days there is a garden and kids playground to use. Thoroughly recommended.

What a fantastic place to eat and the staff were so friendly and helpful definitely will be good back for a Sunday roast.

Nice location. Not the cleanest of premises.

Rather limited menu. Lot of fried food. Not enough vegetables. Good location by the river Rather spoilt by all the fencing. Cakes look spectacular, especially the rainbow cake.

Food wasn't great , fish and onion rings were tasteless

Great food, amazing staff, everyone was so friendly and welcomed us and our puppy with open arms. This is our favourite place to go now. Update: so the couple that used to run it the last few years left a few months before covid because the owners were increasing the rent price astronomically. So very sad to see them go as our dog loved coming here and they new her from a puppy. The food was amazing and the staff were always friendly so our favourite place to come year round however now we won't go back just because someone was getting greedy and pushed them out.

Nice welcome, friendly staff, good food and enjoyed being able to sit in their lovely gardens by the river. Also a children's playground

Awful place .. controlled by the boating fraternity. Be warned they are not friendly. Staff in the pub are very bad. ... When we changed our mooring place as we were told to after being locked out of the mooring bank. Code needed.. We returned for a swift half whilst awaiting for taxi. Half an hour went by no drinks. Taxi arrived then argument ensued about refunding monies to our bank card . Pub staff separate themselves from any responsibility re mooring area etc ....... Avoid at all times ....

Lovely staff front of house Very happy with service good ham

Love this pub. Quiet, good food and beer. Friendly staff. Always worth a visit.

Quite a limited menu and then we were also given a list of items that were not available due to a missed delivery, which I understand was not their fault. So from a very limited selection 3 of us ordered burgers, they arrived with no salad, no coleslaw (both should of been with the burger) and a tiny portion of chips. When we asked for the coleslaw we were told they were out of this as well. When paying we raised that on the menu they charge £2.50 for a side of coleslaw and it was missing from 3 meals. We were told that nobody knew how to use the system to take it off the bill.

Staff friendly.nice food.distancing in force.

Clean and tidy. Not a huge menu but if you are a fan of bangers and mash or scampi you will enjoy. Dogs are welcome. Nice outdoor space over looking moorings.

Lovely little pub, even with reduced staff was still doing pub lunches. Staff were very friendly and the food was big tasty portions

We popped in for a quick lunch. We were the first here. What could be lovely surroundings were actually spoilt by the scruffiness of the pub. Garden/car park are full of weeds, the handrail leading down to the garden had lost most of the paint, decor inside is very dated. I ordered a cheese and chutney baguette. It arrived and was obviously what you can buy part baked from tesco. It was filled 90% with chutney and a minuscule amount of grated cheese! This was priced at £7.50 the exact same price as a pulled pork or ham and cheese. It doesn't make sense. Staff are all really young and not much personality between them, apart from one young blonde bigger girl. We will go back in a year to see if things have improved, but I shan't be visiting before then!!

Nice nearby walks food basic but adequate

Had a lovely lunch overlooking marina. Very nice

Good experience but unfortunately a lacking of food choice on the menu.

No chef so no food. Don't depend on this pub if you want to stay the night and eat!!

Only went for drinks, which was lucky as the kitchen was closed on 08-Jul

Sunday lunch was very well made only issue was that it was quite small. 1 roast potato doesn't suffice as a Sunday roast

The Lazy Otter is the riverside underdog to the No Hurry in Upware and the Cutter in Ely but I prefer this pub because the staff actually give a sh*$t, which is what makes or breaks a pub for me.

Very poor food. We had burger and chips. Every single thing on the plate was burnt. Complained about the burnt chips and were told that is how it it supposed to be. The mistake we made was that we ate whatever was served to us. They didn't charge for drinks when we gave feedback when paying the bill. Would not go there again, ever.

A lovely lunch on way to the meerkats good prices!!

It was comfortable but food wasn't great. All the steaks were well done despite ordering blue and rare. Quite disappointing.

Family meal. Had Sea bass - excellent.

Was a bit upset as they messed up my reservation for Sunday lunch had us down for the day before as a no show they managed to move tables about and make room for us, also no Sunday roasts left at 14.00hrs. However the steak I had instead was fantastic and all the food the rest of our party had was also very good. Desserts also impressed. Staff friendly Would have given 4* if they hadn't messed up.

Lovely peaceful Riverside pub .

Lovely meal. And beautiful scenery.

Been to lazy otter pub / restaurant many times with my husband Great service , Friendly staff, great food We highly recommend The Lazy Otter

Very nice food at lunch, can recommend the scampi. Staff were friendly and service was prompt. Lovely family lunch atmosphere.

My friends had a boat mored at the lazy otter over night they had a lovely time good meal and very pleasant staff i poped up to see them but unfortunatly the otter was closed by the time i got there.

Sunday menu is very poor with a choice of only roast dinners or a 3 choices of main courses all of which are served with frozen fried chips. A wider choice of freshly cooked meals of salads, sandwiches and good ole pub classics would give The Lazt Otter more credibility.

Service was friendly however incredibly slow and all three of our steaks were medium to well done when we asked for two rare and one blue.

Lovely quiet area, nice inside out and good prices. Massive dog and children friendly garden with playground and access to marina. 6 out of 5! Will come more often.

Not sure they've ever seen a piece of halloumi before let alone cooked it and pretty rubbish service

Very pleasant garden, marvelous meal and extremely friendly staff. Thoroughly recommended

Good food. Nothing too fancy, what they do they do well

What a lovely place to finish our walk. We had 2 dogs and our young Granddaughter with us. We all felt welcome. Sunshine, cold beer and table service.....Fantastic!

Had a very nice roast dinner would definitely recommend.

Lovely staff with a very warm welcome. Food service is very good and meals are delivered to your table hot and quick

EDIT: The manager has since been in touch with a genuine apology. We will give the restaurant another try next time we are passing. 5 stars for owning the issue and trying to rectify it. We arrived by river to enjoy a meal in the garden. At 7.43pm, we wanted to order only to be told that the kitchen shut 5 minutes ago. This is despite their Facebook post of May 18th saying they served food until 8pm. The bartender checked with the chef, and came back and said they had closed the kitchen. Hats off to you Lazy Otter, that after a year of being unable to trade, you are in a position to turn away paying customers on a glorious summer evening. The food might be great... I shall never know... its beans on toast for us tonight!

We had an issue with being turned away 20 mins before the advertised serving time ended so can't comment on the food at this point. Since then the owner (who evidently was having a night off) has been in contact and given a very obviously sincere apology, so I am happy to believe that this was just an unfortunate incident and look forward to trying again next time we're passing.

First visit in many months of lockdown😊. Great welcome and amazing service. Recommend

Not the staff at fault however even ordering a drink took over half an hour. Perhaps the management should ensure that they have enough staff to deal with clientele.

Recommend to avoid. Poor service and grossly understaffed. The food litterly took 1 hour to be served and wasn't that great plus over priced. They also ran out of certain foods. The outdoor area seems to be neglegted as well. Won't go there again.

Food was great and dog friendly. But felt the service was a bit slow and it was quite expensive for what it was.

Dog friendly and nice outdoors seating area. Waiting staff were generally good but a bit more smiley be great. food was however truly disappointing. medium steak came well done. fries for all dishes tasted as reheated and nit fresh and generally quite bland. a real shame even for a reduced menu.

Lovely place, food was delicious but we found the service abit slow, and really quite pricey. Dog friendly in the bar and garden. The garden was lovely over the marina. We did have to ask for a dog bowl a few times unfortunately.

We have had many happy meals out at the lazy otter as a large family group of 8-10 individuals. However after today's meal we will not be returning for a long time Positives: * Covid signage / hand sanitizers placed strategically around restaurant, staff all wore masks, one way system in place * Large car park * Scenic views of the river Negatives: * Covid one way system, exit poorly signed to the extent we left via the entrance in error - staff also thanked us for our custom as we walked past the bar, but did not direct us to the correct exit as per their own one way system!! * We pre-booked our table, and the restaurant was quiet in terms of dinners, yet it still took ages for anyone to ask for our drinks order * It then felt like we waited 45 mins - 1 hour for our food order to be taken!! * Menu choice was limited / not clearly designed (for example i thought I ordered a plain chicken breast + chips, only to discover it was a chicken burger + chips!) * For the price we paid per meal we expected good quality & a good portion size. While the quality was ok in general (I personally felt my chicken was too dry, and in the end I could no longer eat it). But the portion size was appalling, most of our plates where half empty. While I appreciate covid safe working practices may cause additional delays, it still even does not account for dry chicken / small portion sizes. Previously I have recommended this restaurant. However after todays mask I suggest people avoid the restaurant, as plenty other better restaurants about.

Fantastic food, great drink and very covid secure. Dealt well with everything despite it being busy when I went.

Pleasant pub garden next to canal. Very friendly service. Dog friendly. Nice gin. Nice people around us.

Lovley pub. Only stopped for a drink but will be trying out the food in the future

FANTASTIC food fantastic staff great place to relax look at boats just chill

Outside dining only at the moment food good service good long walk for staff well done one and all we had sunshine was okay

Delicious food, great drinks and a lovely service. Felt very "covid safe" in the garden. Will be back soon!

After booking a table and coming from Cambridge thinking this would be a nice end to a Sunday afternoon with my partner and child We was left waiting 15 minutes after our time of 3pm To be ExpectedTo sit at a childs table where we couldn't even fit our legs under let alone be expected to eat there so left with out ordering and very disappointed 😞

What a lovely way to spend the first lunchtime out of lockdown! We arrived with our little dog and were welcomed by 2 lovely ladies. Everything was very friendly and professional. We sat outside in the garden with a lovely view of the river and narrow boats. There is also a large, gated play area for children Our food was delicious! I can highly recommend the brisket loaded fries and the spicy chicken wings. Both very tasty and plenty of food for a lunch. We were waited on at the table and both ladies were extremely friendly and efficient. We will be going back soon!

Little hill on out back with a bench and the lady who was training made me laugh. Mum kept telling me off.

Great pub food. Been hit by the corona lockdowns, but has worked hard to keep going with takeaway meals.

Been twice food both times is very below par and staff have inadequate knowledge of the food being served

The food wasn't to bad plenty of it but it was a shame they didn't have the tzatzaki that was suppose to come with the meal .

Make a big effort to maintain a friendly atmosphere despite virus restrictions. Great Sunday lunches after a walk along the river. Thanks

Nice place with garden area beside very small boat moorings. Good food at a good price and friendly staff. Good service all round.

Friendly, attentive service and very generous portions of decent food.

Last visited late afternoon Bank Holiday Monday (4 adults +6yr old). Fully booked inside but had a few tables free outside. Weather was great. Had fish & chip, 2 X Burgers, pull pork ciabatta plus childs tomato pasta. The adult meals were fine, good pub grub, the child's pasta was just some penne pasta with tinned chopped tomatoes poured over it. Child would not eat as doesn't like chunks of tomato (we were expecting more of a blended sauce with herbs, etc). Staff attentive and service good, meals took a reasonable 20 mins, not surprising as very busy inside. Great ambience and lovely location by the river Gt Ouse/Old West. Good children's play area. Will definitely be going again as it's right next door to our marina.

The beef brisket....absolutely superb!

Big garden. Good moorings. Food was lovely

Fair value for money as they are large portions. Battered halloumi and chicken wings were nice for starters. Meat free burger was quite dry, normal burger was fine.

Lovely pub, great menu, especially for vegetarians. Friendly, accommodating staff. Big outdoor area with playground for kids. Highly recommended.

Lazy Otter is a wonderful place, great food, awesome staff and a beautiful location.

Brilliant location with a lovely beer garden. Good food but had run out of a few things on the menu.

Always stop here whenever I'm in the area, Great pub, lovely beer and Very friendly staff, and on a hot summers nite lovely garden.

Stopped in for a drink on a walk. Nice beer garden play area for children.

Beacuse I didn't have to que for for a pint of covid, not the beer, just other alinens around me.

Lovely staff, lovely atmosphere. Even with the Covid19 restrictions, it was a really lovely meal, for myself, hubby and our little one. The staff were fantastic and the service was great. We will definitely be going back time and again!!

As always, the best pub for food and drink around. Oh and, the staff are pretty good too

Very happy with food. Service excellent

Superb food in a fantastic environment right next to the river.

Nice setting on a summer's day.

Good food, service excellent, water bowls around for the dogs, did not chuck us out when we had finished the meal. Was popular with locals and we would certainly return in the summer. Friendly and welcoming staff.

Run by Good peoples,food is 100% banging 💯🔥🔥 Made me feel welcome, being carribean and from london i felt not at anytime out of place i recommend this place to everyone. Prices are LOW especially if you are from london

Very friendly pub. Lovely food. Well worth a visit

Des plats gourmands et un cadre très agréable avec vue sur un canal avec bateaux. Nous avons vraiment très bien mangés, bien repus aussi haha Il faut être véhiculer ou prendre un taxi pour y aller.

Poor food, atmosphere and service. Would not return.

Very pretty spot overlooking a private marina. Good food, very friendly young lady who took our order. My only gripe would be that the quiche portion was a bit on the small side and my husband would have liked to put his own gravy on as he doesn't like to flood the plate. A jug of gravy on the side would do. However, we did enjoy our meal and surroundings and it's highly recommended.