The Shabby Scholar in Carlisle

Arrived in Carlisle on a Saturday evening with no booking for dinner! Eventually found this place and staff went out of their way to find us a table. We had a lovely meal and were well looked after. Thank you.

Travelled here from Cheshire for a couple of days as we love carlisle, sadly medusa, the awesome Mexican over the way from this has closed down :-( High expectations for shabby! Not met! Seated late, lots of tables free but chose to squeeze us in next to other couples. I told them earlier in the day it was my partners birthday, no mention, nothing on her behalf, very sad. Food, mediocre at best, bang bang cauliflower, smaller pieces cooked well, larger bits raw. Just wasn't a good experience!

Lukewarm service, and felt like we needed to hurry up and leave. The servers seemed bored and indifferent. The food was tasty, well spiced but would benefit from tapas pricing to allow for more variety on the table. £13 for one 'tapas' dish doesn't make for sharing at all and kind of kills the whole 'tapas' thing. Murdered further by the indifferent, bored service. Food should be about passion. Not here.

Intimate stylish interior, such a good atmosphere and buzz. Food & cocktails were fab, freshly prepared in front of you, great selection, amazing taste, we loved it. May have to have a bigger table next time to fit all our plates on! Food didn’t last long enough for photos!

Really good experience ! Will be back

Very good quality food and a nice atmosphere

Me and my friends have lived in carlisle for just over 3 years now and we were desperate for somewhere new that isn't overly priced with tiny portions. I am happy to say that we loved every bit of our visit, we were kindly greeted by two ladys and treated to a lovely 80s type aesthetic. Also the FOOD! Oh my god the food....you can tell the chef uses quality over quantity. We will definetely be visiting here again <3

Fantastic fajitas and land kebabs great service well priced. No photos sorry liked brilliant and tasted even better

Where to start? With the positive...service with a smile and now the negatives... cliched decor with touches of offensive sexism, inconsistent presentation and awkward serving dishes, unimaginative menu and since when was falafel a tapas item - I'm being generous when I say falafel, where was the sesame, where was the seasoning? Pea shoots do not equal a salad. Last but not least we were given TWELVE individual single use plastic cups for a dine in experience. Wake up! Ho hum when needs must!

Great breakfast sandwich. Friendly staff, good space in the centre of town.

I went to the shabby scolar on a Christmas night out. We had a lovely tapas selection and plenty of drinks. Service was really good there was so much food we had to take it away with is. Which the staff where happy to sort out. Great night out for everyone involved.

We have never been disappointed with the food here, it is freshly made street type food served in a stylish building.

A delightful friendly cafe, with the added bonus of being dog friendly. The food was delicious too! We arrived about 2.30pm and the staff were so friendly and accomodating, asking us if we needed a water bowl for our dog. We had the Shabby burger, goats cheese toastie and the christmas toastie, all the food was hot and delicious. This was then followed by brownies and the best ice cream I have tasted for some time. The cafe is also licensed, I can thoroughly recommend the Shabby Scholar.

Great service would highly recommend it, food was amazing and wasn’t expensive at all will definetly be coming again!

Absolutely lovely food and great service

Well nice food. Also had a northern lights cocktail. Amazing 👌🏻

No wonder you are always fully booked! Shabby Scholar has to be one of the best places to eat and socialise in Carlisle. My cousin and I brought our second cousin from Italy here and my cousins 1 year old son. From the moment we entered we were greeted with open arms, the staff really couldn’t have been more helpful in seating us and the baby. We were served quickly and our drinks were brought out very promptly. Food was perfect! Thanks for the immaculate service. ❤️

Very good and got lots for my money

Went to Shabby Scholar for a 30th birthday party. As there was a group of us (7 people) rather than picking individual dishes, we all paid £20 per person to get a selection, food was amazing and there was enough food to feed 10 people!!

Always have a great meal here. But you need to book in advance.

I had lunch with friends and the service was great. A lovely friendly waitress. Food cane quickly after ordering. It was presented beautifully and tasted fantastic. Would highly recommend for a light lunch and drinks,

Stumbled upon this restaurant by chance & so glad we did!

Absolutely excellent food!! Everything tasted so good it was a genuine shame I couldn’t fit more food inside me. I really tried. Cocktails were amazing.

Frat good, lovely cocktails, nice atmosphere

Lovely atmosphere, attentive staff, lots of choice of hot & cold drinks/cocktails, great choice of food, service with a big dash of TLC, well worth a visit or 2, perhaps more

Fast service, tasty food, and nice beer. Will be back! :)

We went to the shabby scholar for some lunch asked for gluten free soup and chips, after a couple of spoons of the soup Which tasted awful thought it wasn’t right so I left it, we left, and after about 20 mins I was poorly so I knew I had been glutened which leaves me very sick and we had a long journey home by train hence our day out on Carlisle was spoilt. However my husband had no complaints he enjoyed his lunch.

We visit Carlise several time a year and we always visit The Shabby Cholar for lunch or dinner. We just love it! The food is amazing, portions large, the nachos are to die for. The staff are grea, the service impeccable and the cocktails, well what can I say? The variety and attention to detail are fantastic. You won't be disappointed!

After intending to only pop in for a cocktail, we couldn’t help but be drawn in by the (not Spanish) tapas menu. From bacon wrapped halloumi to steak verdi to salt and pepper chicken, every plate was delicious. Service was quick and friendly. Throughly enjoyed and glad we stayed!

After work tea and a couple of drinks with my husband lovely selection of small things to choose from we were spoilt for choice especially after having the home made natchos to start with lots of vegetarian options too fab cocktails

Great place! In for food with my wife and the actual eating was great. They didnt remember my wife birthday even though we told them at booking but the food and atmosphere made up for it. The sweet potato fries with honey was the highlight!!!

Lovely lunch and catch up. Quirky decor off the beaten track. Food was delicious... Friendly staff will defo be back! The bar opposite was great to ran by the same people.

Great bar but will need to book next time only in for a beer

Fantastic food, very friendly staff, never rushed to get you out, very homely atmosphere. Would definitely recommend

This delightful small restaurant was most welcoming and accommodated our every request. The staff were extremely helpful and the tapas dishes ordered absolutely delicious. We wished we had stayed there another night to visit again.

Had the halloumi fries, brie balls and tofu sliders. The food was really good and one of the best halloumi fries I have ever had, as I normally will have hard fries as halloumi goes hard very quickly but these came out really soft and with the taste of halloumi which was brilliant. The only down side is the price which I though was a bit overpriced but the food was very good, definitely would recommend if you are vegetarian/vegan as there are lots of options on the menu! Food came out fast and well presented as well.

Excellent food and the vibe is excellent too, with the old school tunes being played in the back ground. Visit this place, you'll love the groove and the food x

This place is absolutely amazing. I went there with my family after graduation. They made room for us even though there were 8. Fantastic food and service. They really went above and beyond. Thanks to all the staff for making our day even better!

First time customers, excellent service, polite & helpful staff, great food, great value.

Served my wife a lump of gravel in her chic pea salad, replaced salad but actually poorer in flavour (although at least it was gravel free). Didn't even offer a complementary drink in recompense. Generally food was OK if overpriced and too dairy biased.

Visited this for a spot of lunch after a walk around old Carlisle. Really nice chilled atmosphere. Great food and music. Staff really friendly.

Popped in after work for eats, lots to choose from and plenty vegetarian options. We ordered 4 items to share and potions were good. Service was quick and staff knew the menu and were able to make recommendations. Overall lovely food and relaxed atmosphere, was a problem with our bill but was quickly sorted out. Would recommend a visit.

Brilliant had a fab meal as always x

Great tapas night and cocktails with the girls. Strange thing to compliment but toilets were lovely kept

Our wedding anniversary and our first day together, off work, whilst our children were at nursery. We wanted a relaxing lunch together so went back to The Shabby Scholar. We’ve been here a few times and always like the laid back atmosphere and wide range of great food (and cocktails). The menu is extensive which usually means a compromise on quality, but not here. We’ve never had a visit that we haven’t really enjoyed. The staff are friendly and it’s all great value!

Amazing food and service again.

Can't remember the last time I had a chicken burger so juicy and tasty. Salt and pepper chicken burger.... Would recommend highly!!!

Recommend by a friend and it did not disappoint. Food was fantastic as was the staff and service.Highly recommend a visit.

Fantastic meals, reasonably priced. Potion size is enormous so don't order too much.

Called in for lunch on a Saturday, the food was amazing. I had the halloumi wrapped in Parma ham and it was one of the nicest meals I’ve had in a very long time. We had some cocktails for desserts which were great, and really good value (especially the ones that come with the little bottle of prosecco) staff were lovely and friendly. Couldn’t recommend more :)

I am not vegan but I went for the vegan curry and it was amazing.So tasty and fresh.A great place to go with friends.

A properly decent selection of 'burgers' done differently and not for the sake of trend. Well priced and definitely tasty! Really enjoyed it.

Wonderful food an friendly staff. A wide variety of tapas food and excellent choice of wines made our visit worthwhile.

Been here 20.mis no order for food taken.. drinks arrive in dribs and drabs.

The lunch was fabulous. What a lovely place to eat. Very chilled atmosphere. Very quirky. Menu varied and food plentiful and gorgeous. Will be back.

My daughter ordered the nachos, but when they came, they weren't what she was expecting. Our server immediately took them away, and replaced them with something else.

I recommend coming here with a group of people so you can order a lot of dishes off the amazing tapas menu to try everything. The food is always delicious, and the service is great. They bring the food out hot and when it's ready, so it's great for everyone to dive in between conversation. We tried eight dishes between the four of us and the portions were perfect. The extensive cocktail menu is just as good as the food menu and requires several visits to try everything they offer. The best thing to start with on the menu is the homemade nachos! They change the menu every so often as well which helps keeps the place exciting and always worth coming back to.

One of the cities older pubs now transformed into a trendy eatery. I has an assortment of furnishings with lots of quirky touches. A good assortment of drinks and brilliant burgers on its food menu. A venue ladies can enjoy.

Menu is very easy to read, friendly staff, cocktails very nice and food all homemade. Will be visiting again soon.

We called in on spec one Saturday afternoon and it was very busy, nevertheless the waitress said it shouldn’t be too long till a table became available. She sat us on stools by the window while we waited. We had a drink each, both very well priced. After about 15 minutes they came to tell us they had a table for us. The menu was varied and again well priced, the food came quickly and was very good. All in all a great place to eat. Worth the wait.

I took my wife to shabby scholar at Carlisle for Valentines lunch we had spicy prawn nachos they was excellent the staff couldn’t do a enough for you we finished with a lovely cocktail from a a very large selection thoroughly recommended we will go back there definitely

Just visited The Shabby Scholar for dinner before going to see a show at The Sands Centre. Lovely atmosphere, great food and good service. Staff were very helpful and attentive and the food is amazing. Will definitely be back!

Having done research prior to the Shabby Scholar's we knew that they advertised themselves to be dog friendly. When we arrived the waitress told us she would just clear the table for our party which included one very well behaved dog. We waited outside. A few minutes later the waitress came outside and told us we cannot stay for lunch after all. She said it was the policy to ask every other customer if it was OK for a dog to come in. Absolutely ridiculous, never hear anything like it. Completely false advertising as it certainly is not dog friendly.

We had four different cocktails which were lovely, I can’t wsit to visit again to sample some more. Perhaps next time you will still be serving done food. 😊

I came here for a friends birthday and they put food on. The food itself was really nice, every course they bought out was really well done. They have also got a good cocktail menu.

Food was fantastic in this cosy place which is great with friends, family or just yourself. Beer and cocktails are great as well. Staff are really good and chilled. Little known fact is that if there are six or more you can have the taster menu.

You are made so welcome and can chat along with the staff. The food is lovely and you want to stay longer!! The Shabby Scholar seems to say to you; 'Relax, there is no rush and enjoy both interesting and varied food with good company.'

Went there for dinner with some friends and tried their tapas menu for the first time (I have been a few times for lunch). We loved all the dishes we tried! The food is excellent and there is a good variety of tapas. I particularly loved the deep fried Brie balls, the homemade nachos, and the chicken suiza! We were recommended to have about 2-3 dishes per person but for some of the dishes the portions are quite big and we were happily full with just 2 dishes per person! Overall we had a great time! Staff was helpful and friendly and will definitely go again!

Ate at shabby scholar last night with a friend and was very disappointed. Had an artisan pizza which you would have been light and tasty, however what arrived was heavy stodgy pizza which tasted no better than some thing you would get off botchergate at 2am. My friend had some chicken dish, which he said he'd had tastier ready meals out of aldi. Neadless to say wont be going back. The staff were polite and ok. Shame about the food.

Nice food but slow service. Nachos bland.

Try the homemade gin.. simply amazing

Best ever. As always. If you haven't been yet then your in for a treat! Lovely staff, great food and drink! Don't take my word for it, TRY IT!

Four of us were there yesterday (16 Nov) and they booked a table for us and allowed us to stay there for 3 hours with a meeting ongoing. Brilliant co-operation from them with arranging that facility, the food was fab and the service very attentive and certainly not expensive with a wide of choice on the menu. A hidden gem in Carlisle off the beaten track but certainly somewhere I would recommend and definitely somewhere I would return. Thank you ladies for your hospitality

Had a fantastic meal here with my wife. Visited based on reviews and we were not disappointed. Arrived earlier than our reservation but were seated immediately and without fuss; the staff were all very friendly. Menu choice is very good, both food and drinks options should suit most people. Quality and quantity also very good for the price; we will definitely return if we're back I Carlisle.

Spent last Friday evening at Shabby, the tapas were amazing. There were 4 of us and we ordered 10 tapas between us, all the dishes were tasty and plentiful. The staff were very friendly and attentive. We’ll definitely be back

We called at lunchtime after visiting Tullie House. Our party of five all enjoyed the food from efficient and friendly staff.

We visited this restaurant during our weekend away in Carlisle, had some sweets and coffee and it was amazing. Staff are friendly and very welcoming. Nice design as well. Well priced.

Stumbled upon this wee gem by accident . Amazing choice of cocktails. Portion sizes huge and food delicious. Absolutely recommend and wouldn't hesitate in going back. Staff very friendly and knowlegable

My boyfriends sister was visiting from Kent so we booked a table for 4 at 17:15 and were told upon booking that they would need the table back before 19:15 which was fine by us.

Really great freindly service and nice well presented tasty food. Couldn’t fault it and will definetly be back

First time here but certainly not the last, real warm welcome from all the staff, end to end attentiveness.

Food amazing, service fantastic, highly recommended

We have enjoyed previous visits. Interesting menu and good value with good portions. Just tried their new winter menu. Beetroot and falafel flatbread tasty but small and thus poor value for over £9. Toasty - bread uninteresting and dry. Service good and tap water well presented, cold and with lemon. There is so much choice in Carlisle we will try something else next time. Noted it was also very quiet - in the past heaving at lunchtime.

Lovely lunch good gluten free options

We recently enjoyed lunch here. Good heathy, tasty food. Service was good and friendly. Relaxing environment. I particularly enjoyed the falafel baguette (although the marmalade served with it was too bitter for my taste and I would have preferred something like a sour cream).

Found this gem of a place while spending the weekend in Carlisle, staff were really friendly and attentive, lovely food and the most amazing cocktails I recommended the teapot cocktails 😍. You really need to visit here!

What an unexpected find! Great menu, unusual choices, recommend the Gambas prawns and haggis club. Excellent and inexpensive.

I went for an early supper one evening with a work colleague as I love tapas and had seen the Shabby Scholar did them. The restaurant is very small, but there are some tables outside in the courtyard. However as it was not a very good evening, we sat inside.

We booked this restaurant as a large party (choir and friends) so the menu was fixed but there was a massive choice. Unfortunately we were not given a list of choices and how much food was coming before it was put on the table. Excellent, tasty food too but so much that it was impossible to know how to control the intake. Despite the menu being fixed and having booked well in advance we had to wait about 1 hour for the first morsels. That’s not very good service. In the end someone had to go begging for a taster! Not for big parties I think.

Hidden in a 80’s place just down the town center sits this nice little restaurants. The dishes are based on “tapas”, but with a twist. They’re huge, for one. And interesting combinations too. We had the falafel, chicken, hamburgers, “Italian” salad (ok, it contained Parma ham) and wraps. All delivered to our table with “gusto”. Well recommended as an alternative.

With less that three hours in Carlisle on the 7th August 2018 we needed to find a good place to enjoy a lunch to celebrate my wife's 70th birthday. Reviews on Trip Adviser and recommendations lead us to the Shabby Scholar and arrangement were made for a lunch for eight people. We travelled first class from Preston on the "Fellsman" steam train excursion and arrived at the "Scholar around 12.30pm. Our table had been reserved, sparkling wine was ready on the table together with celebratory baloons. The welcoming staff sorted out other drinks and confirmed our menu choices.

Visited this place a couple of times and great choice of drinks and various gins service very good also if you want to eat great selection of comfort food plenty of seating area worth visiting we enjoyed it

Only went for a drink but ended up sitting outside for most of the evening we were having such a good time. Service was friendly and professional

Good place to sit for a drink, only small but good choice and great staf, good place to people watch whilst catching up with friends.

Lovely place. Not all staff are up on the whole cross contamination deal though. One almost served my meal with bread! Difficult to relax and trust them when errors like that are a possibility. One very knowledgeable member of staff though, but they need to get their act together. Only 3 gf options, but the prawn dish was delicious. For more choice go to their sister place across the way (can’t remember the name but they told us about it after we’d eaten at the Shabby Scholar). We didn’t eat there, but the menu looks good. They do street food: a lot more choice.

Absolutely one of the best places in Carlisle for freshly cooked food. Even the chicken nuggets were made from scratch the children loved their meals. Excellent value for money and the service was quick. Very efficient. Definitely 5 stars.

Al vivir en esta ciudad, vamos muy frecuentemente, es un lugar agradable, comida exquisita, tipo taverna, y los empleados excelentes y simpáticos y atentos a cualquier requerimiento, a parte de nachos, hay Carme vacuna, cerdo y oveja y comida vegetariana.

Nice staff, good food. Lovely layout with interesting decor. Worth a visit for food or drinks.

I need to start by confessing that I was a first time visitor to Carlisle last weekend and was lucky enough to stumble upon the Shabby Scholar hidden in a courtyard near the cathedral. Everybody around us seemed to be local and some even helped us with suggesting their favourite cocktail or meal. The cocktails were excellent (tried 4 different ones) and the meal was much better than anything I could have possibly expected. I ordered the Philly cheese steak sandwich and was surprised to be asked “how I’d like my meat cooked” for a sandwich. They cooks the meat perfectly and it was more tender than many steaks I’ve had in restaurants. We also had the cheese board which was great too. I can’t say enough of this place. The service, setting , unique menu, cocktails. Can’t find a fault.

My friend & I had lunch here one Saturday afteroon. I had the salt & pepper chicken burger, it was top notch, so moreish, never tasted anything like it. Its my fav from the chinese and to find it in the form of my other fav, a burger, was fantastic!! The staff were so friendly, I will def be back to sample somemore of the tasty cocktails, the teachers pet is a must try!