The Narrowboat Cafe in Broxbourne

This place is hard to find, postcode does not match the actual location. More signs needed to find the place. The property is very tired and dated. Sandwiches were very tasty and fully loaded.

Staff always helpful & efficient, food always good & the place is always spotlessly clean. Soft play area for the children, what more could you ask for?

We cycle from Forest Gate regularly to The Narrowboat, and always succumb to the millionaires shortbread. We reckon that we have used 1000 calories cycling so it would be rude not to have one each.

I love this place, the location, the character, the good traditional food.....well worth a visit. Thanks very much!

After taking a while to find the cafe, it was unclear if there is table service or we order inside so wasted time waiting. We waited so long for food and managed to get in before a big group of cyclists however there food still came out first! Have an 8yr old with us who was starving . It’s not overly busy so hard to know why it takes so long to serve and orders not organised. A shame as review seemed good.

Great food; lovely people and showed me special lockdown kindness when I got all fainty from the heat!

many times I have traveled out to eat for breakfast found this hidden gem on a Saturday well I and the wife who likes to be obeyed were over the moon with this cafe I had the full English with me being a scot and my wife having Mexican omelette we both enjoyed it roll on summer.

We had a great time at the narrowboat cafe with our two 4 year olds. Lots of fun things for them to do,bouncy castle and outdoor toys etc, soft play inside. The food was really nice, presentation was excellent and all made fresh, homemade lasagna was so nice and all very reasonably priced, we will definitely be back, well done!

As a local place to walk to with the kids so they can let off steam, it’s great. No frills, but none needed, the kids love it. Ok some of the older toys could be a bit cleaner in places but it’s free!!

Our experience at The Narrowboat this time was much improved compared to the previous visit. The coffee was good flavoured and the speed of the service and friendliness of the staff was very good.The toilets were clean and tidy and we watched the little ones enjoying themselves on the bikes, scooters and mini cars.Definitely, a place for small people to enjoy a bit of fresh air whilst the adults can sit and enjoy a coffee or two.

We only had a cup of fruit tea at £2 each as the cakes on display looked very tired and not at all appetizing. The cleanliness of the establishment was rather grubby but on the plus side, there were lots of children running about enjoying themselves and letting off steam.It is doubtful if we would go there again.

Have been meaning to visit for ages as this cafe in on one of our regular dog-walking routes. Pleasant staff and VERY dog and child-friendly - but the food was over-priced and very underwhelming. Opted for a breakfast bagel ("toasted with melted cheese, topped with crispy bacon and 2 softly poached eggs...") - but the poached eggs were completely over-cooked/hard-boiled, the bacon wasn't crispy, and the bagels were like rock. The knives provided were like butter knives and couldn't cut through the bagel - so I ended up having to eat it with my hands. Not what I expected for the price we paid.

Absolutely disgusting. Half a breakfast and you after pay per item for the rest. Tesco value ham and disgusting cheap bread on the Eggs Benedict! Avoid like the plague or you might catch it. They also delete any negative comments and reviews on thier Facebook page. Cash only!?

We go to the narrowboat at least once a month for the past year. The out door kids toys are great and the indoor softplay / toys are just brilliant. And the best part is unlike most softplay places this is free for the kids. The food is very much cafe style and somethings are better than others. I would recommend the lasagna :)

Had a fantastic day out with the grandkids they loved the soft play area (which is free) the food was great good sized portions and very reasonable in price we were created by friendly staff and they made us feel most welcome. Would highly recommend and will definitely be going back

The tables were dirty. The lasagne was as dry as a bone. Two of our party got overcharged by £2. Parts of our order were missing. Staff are unfriendly and unprofessional. Won't be going back. It's a dirty hovel.

Lovely cooked breakfast all cooked freshly - reasonably priced would definitely go again. Great place for families with soft play area and bouncy castle all free.

Fabulous, quirky little place, very family orientated with a crazy, interesting outdoor area for adults and kiddies. Inside soft play(free) and cafe that serves beautifully cooked, beautifully presented great value for money food. Very extensive menu with lots of choice. Highly recommend a visit ;)

Went there just for burger and tea. Ordered but waited over 15 mins and later arrivals served. Complained only to be told ticket didn’t get to kitchen. Still took another 15 minutes for service. Apologised but not accepted. Was supposed to be a quick stop whilst cycling the Lee Valley. Put an hour on instead

I went with a friend 2 days ago. Not, what we thought, Narrow boat, not, but how lovely is this place. We were greeted by a lovely little brown dog, we are dog owners ourselves, but, no dogs with us.

Popped in on a walk along the canal for lunch. Although the place doesn’t look all that from outside the food was great and service quick and friendly. Reasonably priced and very tasty cafe food.

Overpriced for what we had,the staff were friendly enough but bacon had obviously re-heated and like leather,rolls were toasted and hard and jacket potato shrivelled and not at all warm,part of order was left off the plate and had to be retrived from kitchen......will not be going back as so many good cafes in the area !!....we had not tried this one but part of a learning curve we will go back to the good ones

The staff were very friendly. However, the food was just awful. The scrambled eggs had obviously been 'cooked' in the microwave and where like broken up rubber on the plate. The bacon was good. The waffle was something from the freezer and toasted - I would have expected freshly made for the price. The coffee was mediocre and the teacup smelt like it had been washed up in last weeks dishwater. The place was not the cleanest and just tacky. There is no view of the waterway, so the name is miss leading. Will not go back. Would not recommend.

Visited the narrow boat cafe today for the riverfest. Very busy. Bit of a wait for food but this was expected due to amount of people. Lots of choice on menu. Big portions No complaints . Will be back again !

Four of us visited for breakfast, and were surprised by the range of food on offer. I had eggs benedict, which I wasn't expecting in a cafe. It was lovely. Service was good and the place was very clean.

Es un lugar que los fines de semana está abarrotado y si hace sol, aun más, Además está muy sucio y desorganizado.

This is a nice place to go for a relaxed lunch, couple of cold beers with a scenic view of the canal, complete with ducks and swans. Food was tasty with large serves.Sevice was very good, give it a go well worth the experience.

Poor service, greasy food and there was a distinct lack of cleanliness and hygeine in the cafe and the server.

El Café en sí es precioso y un buen personal amable.

He visitado en el pasado y siempre hemos sido impresionados. Pero en mi reciente visita me decepcionó. Frijoles ordenados en una tostada. Me dieron un recipiente pequeño con tostadas de frijoles en el lateral. Los granos estaban fríos, así que les envió. Cuando llegaron fueron tibias. Mi comida amigos también estaba frío. Nos dijeron que hay un nuevo chef. Necesitan aprender a conseguir lo básico a la derecha.

Visitamos un domingo con la familia. mi segunda vez aquí. Las comidas de niños eran geniales - mis 2 yo devoraba su pastel de 7 años le encantó el pollo goujons ("mejor que he tenido") - se notaba estos eran caseras y no directamente desde...

I'm in the local area due to work for a few days and thought I'd pop in for breakfast. What a great choice! My breakfast took a while to turn up because it was freshly cooked, not just warmed up. There was more on my plate than the menu offered which is definitely not a complaint. I got a pot of coffee, not just a mug. A real log fire burned in the grate. This place is worth finding. I will be back. Thanks for great food from a children's author.

Waited ages for food in this place. Lady serving was also trying to manage her two year old daughter. My food was alright my companions was better. Good location and not much competition but not recommended due to service and average food. Breakfasts looked good but they need more staff front of house.

Ordered 2 all day breakfasts, toast arrived a good 15 mins before the breakfast, mushrooms where so burnt that they were inedible, fried eggs had broken yokes that had spread and congealed on the plate, very overpriced for what you get. When I told the waitress that we were unable to eat the mushrooms as they were so badly burnt she said 'oh were they, sorry about that'. Will not be using this place again.

Had the Ham, Egg & chips on a oblong hot summer's day. Staff (and dog) were really friendly, in an excellent location!

Whilst walk down really nice river with people living on there boats we saw this lovely cafe . When we went in it was lovely family run business with great food . Would recommend highly !! Defently will be returning .

Had a slow stroll down a lovely canal riverside stumbled upon this qainte little carvary/cafe which had a small number of staff but very welcoming and acomdating if have good weather like me I sat out side .. food served was of home cooked style and was presented well and had the loving mother feel to the place ..Noticed a kids area ...goats also served beer on tap which was a plus although I never drank.. bouncy castle for kids .Had a more homely feel then a £5 serve you self crappy carvary will 100 percent be going back

We had seen this advertised locally and decided we was going to try took my family here for lunch today and we had meals from homemade menu and wasn't disappointed really could tell the good was quality we will deffo be back

Great variety of freshly cooked food,Friendly staff and most important kids friendly...they have an indoor Kids play area and when the weather is nice a bouncy castle outside.I love this place can't recommend it enough!

Called in for breakfast whilst working locally. Decent breakfast although overpriced for what you get. Friendly staff, nice location and views, wifi not very good connection. Ok if it's convenient, wouldn't go out of my way to come here.

First ever visit. It was lunchtime - yet the place was almost deserted, that should have started alarm bells ringing!!! Two people on sofas, one guy drinking a tea, one waitress and a young `chef` cooking.......Oh yes, and TWO DOGS roaming around inside the cafe!Had made the trip, so settled for just a cup of tea and escaping quickly.Very un-nerving having the `chefs` dogs wandering around. Came up to the table and sniffed around before beuing called over by the `chef` "They are friendly mate" says he.Will never be going back there.

Nice food but what a nice place something relaxing by the river uou could just sit forever the odd boats and walkers plenty of activity. Sorry I am not saying much about the food. Limited dairyfree.no change there. My friends food was ok.But would go back to have a black tea and take in the view.

Been coming here regularly for 2 years now and love it. The food is way beyond average I always have their Sunday roast home cooked and very tasty. They recently moved premises from Waltham abbey tho 10 minutes pleasant walk down the canal path away these premises are bigger and better equipped than before and have a lovely comfortable decor. Love it will always go back too the narrow boat.

We ended up at this place, but was looking for a different cafe. Well just reading other reviews with friendly staff. This has changed hands I think, becoz the young chap with green hair and glasses was miserable as anything. No please or thank yous, he needs teaching people skills! He put our toast in toaster, then started sweeping and cleaning, then when our toast popped up, without washing his hands, got toast out and buttered the toast, put me right off it. The breakfast had no taste, plus was very expensive for what we had

I was having new tyres fitted, and followed signs along the riverside toe path in search of this cafe. Rare to get a lung full of fresh air these days, I finally arrived at this narrowboat cafe. It was basic but, had a good selection. I was working, so no alcohol for me, but next time I go for a walk along the toe path, I may just indulge in a tipple.Good service too.

Good prices, good food, showers, laundry, toilet and waterpoint. What more could a boater need? The staff are lovely. The cook seems grumpy but he's more of a character than a meany. Love the place!

We visited here for Sunday lunch as id heard good things but had never visited and a local Facebook page had always posted pics of the food served which always looked nice. We ordered our food and when the first plates arrived they were being flung around so fast that half of a panini landed on our table to which the girl serving laughs and said 'you don't mind having it off the table do ya?', when we said we'd rather have a new one she stormed off muttering under her breath. when some other bits we ordered didn't turn up we asked if they be coming and were met with pretty much a tirade of abuse. I have literally never seen such awful customer service in my life and have never been spoken to like it in a place where I have paid to eat in. As it turned out the food wasn't too bad although the place was a bit grubby. Won't be going back though as there is no excuse to speak to people like that, especially when they are paying for a service.

A lovely friendly café, amazing Sunday roasts, huge portions and loads of veg. Very friendly helpful staff. Great place for a break on a riverside walk.

Honestly from the pictures on facebook looks great. Arrived there I was appalled by the cleansiness of the place. In a awkward moment of not walking out straight away. I asked do you take card. Thank god they did not. The staff behind the counter were grubby looking in regular clothes including chef. I had my toddler with me. No way would we have eaten in there. Local places on Facebook recommend them and I am not sure why, I went there on that basis. Needs a good looking over in my opinion!

Really outstanding food. I had the short rib of beef with red wine jus. I wouldn't have been disappointed if I had this at The Ivy. I ended up having a second portion. It was that delicious. It was well presented with a gravy boat of jus (places hardly ever give you enough sauce but they do). They had run out of red wine so we had the last bottle of rosé then had to go for the Black Tower. A better white wine would be nice - but we loved this place. The food seems to be all made by them on the premises.

Being a resident of Waltham Abbey, we decided to give this place a try as a change from our regular Sunday treat breakfast. The first time we went, we did have a lovely meal, and very impressed they had a veggie sausage option for breakfast. However we were sitting and didn't really see the cooking and prep service in their open kitchen. However on our second visit, we had trouble ordered from the menu as most veggie options were off. Whilst deciding, I managed to see the kitchen operations, I was appalled to see the chef open a packet of bacon, place the raw bacon in the frying pan then immediately go to get a ready toasted Panini out of the grill and using his bacon juice covered hands, hold the Panini while he cut it. Sorry Narrowboat, you need to up your hygiene. We left immediately afterwards. Its basic food hygiene, raw meat and cooked meals should not be handled like this. I would love to see this restaurant prosper as the local area needs it, but the game needs to be upped significantly for me to return.

We stopped here on our Tower-to-Tower bike ride (Skegness Clock Tower to the Tower of London), and despite being in what appears to be boat yard the food and service were perfect. This is cafe-food at its friendly best. We stopped at lots of places en-route and this was the jewel in the crown.

my colleagues and I ordered takeaway breakfasts and they were absolutely amazing!will definitely be going back.

Lovely little place, right on the river. Great food quality, good prices and good service. It's a family-run vibe, friendly faces all round. There is outside seating for the nicer weather and there is even a pool table! We really enjoyed our meals, in fact, have already been back twice! (Highly recommend the Sunday roasts..... Mmmmmm )

This cafe had been run down in the last few years, but chatting to the new owners, they have brought it right back up!! really nice home cooked food, served beautifully. Right beside the river, nice location. Absolutely packed on the sunny afternoon we went on our bikes!!! definitely a hidden gem!!??? will def be on our list!!!

Well what can I say but this was totally awful from start to finish it left me speechless!! (Not in a good way either)We came in no welcome- helped ourselves to a table, took a while for our order to be taken and when it finally was the girl stood a couple of feet away from us (Not what I would call good customer service) no smile or hello just "So what do you want to order" !!!! Very poor attitude.Dirty cutlery/Cups/Plates- Actually the whole place was.To top it off they had a dog in there!!! Sorry guys I really would not recommend this even if I was starving!! Good thing was there's a Macdonald's few minutes walk....