The Starling Cloud in Ceredigion

Great food, fast service. We took the dogs with us in there. They have a doggy station which has treats, water and doggy bags. Highly recommend the fish and chips. Better than any fish and chip in aberystwyth

Excellent service from friendly staff. Wheelchair accessible, and accomodating with no issues. Food was delicious and prompt, staff flexible with requests around both food and drink. While not vegan myself, I went for a one of the vegan options-the menu is varied catering to various dietary restrictions, without making you feel like you are being awkward, or that you have gone to a 'hippie' or 'hipster' place by mistake!

Mothers day 3 course dinner grear service great well cooked food and plenty of it no complaints at all

Loved that it was dog friendly. Good selection of meals to cater for all requirements. Very friendly staff.

Generic breakfast done to a good standard . Pay extra for the good coffee

Excellent dinner and evening out. Food and service both very good, and just a short walk from the centre of town.

Much improved since I last went to the starling cloud. Polite staff and fast service. The food tasted great.

We arrived late due to visiting family first, the staff member that helped us was really polite and engaging. She had technically shut the bar, as it was after hours, but served us a drink to save us driving to the shop. The room was cosy and had everything we needed. Only thing I would improve is more sugar sachets, you get 4 coffee bags and 2 tea bags, but only 2 sugar sachets. Also, the TV remote wouldn't work so we had to get out of bed to turn the TV off at the wall. Would definitely recommend this hotel!

Having book a meal after reading the website for the Starling Cloud it looked lovely. Greeted with a hello at the door and given menu by I think the duty manger. We sat and look over menu the drinks came then we were told what wasn’t available on the menu which to me was not great no meats or flatbreads plus some other things, so look again and decided. The start which was cauliflower wings was over cook close to being burnt. Next the main course came which looked small, not much sauce on the chicken plus not much cheese.very little salad on the plate plus a pot of oil as the dressing which to me isn’t a good look. The one male member of staff was good at his job but he lacked the support from the female member of staff who I think was the duty manger. I hope this will be feed back to the general manger plus to head office.would be nice to get some feedback? ****Having now spoken to staff at the Starling Cloud I would say it was a waste of time me phoning to sort the problems out all I was offered was to phone before visiting again and they would tell me if it was a full menu that was being served.plus the staff would be spoken to and given more training. Still no explanation of why there were so many items missing off the menu, this shows as being a very poorly managed restaurant. Would like a number of the head office so that I can follow this up with them.

Fabulous welcome from staff, great choice of food & excellently cooked & presented. Excellent choice of wines. Relaxed & comfortable atmosphere. Thank you.

All the staff were excellent and efficient. The food was excellent and hot when served at the table. I would highly recommend The Starling Cloud.

Just had the one night here this weekend. Great car parking. Comfortable room with everything you'd expect in it. Had soup, roll and a beer for lunch before going to a football match at Park Avenue, then had dinner on our return. All the food, drink and service was excellent. Easy check in and check out, and only a short walk to the football ground or into town. We've stayed here before and will return again. Thanks.

I don't understand how this place has such great reviews. We stopped by today with 4 and the dogs on a late Sunday lunch unplanned visit where we had tried a few places and been turned away due to them being busy, this was our last option before heading home and cooking something up for ourselves- I wish we had just opted for this instead. We stood by the doorway waiting to be sat for much too long, to the point where we decided to sit ourselves. Only then did someone take note of us and direct us towards the area where dogs were allowed. I'm all for dog areas in restaurants but we were sat about as far away from anyone in the corner by the toilets on a wonky, decrepit table. The restaurant was freezing and we kept our coats on. We were given menus and were all starving so started making our decision as to what to eat. One of our party was Gluten Free, and we weren't asked about this or given any guidance to this at all at the start, on initial glance, it appeared that the menu had very limited options in this area. I tried to order online but it was very confusing as to what was available. Sunday roasts had stopped serving at 1430 hours which wasn't advertised earlier. We went to the bar to order instead and were very disappointed to be told now that half the menu wasn't actually available, there was no grilled options, no speciality pie options and several other dishes unavailable. At this point, we all had to make a new decision as to what we would like as everything we had chosen was not available. We wished that someone had told us this before we sat down, although we likely would have just left if that was the case. We made our orders and sat back down. It was at least 30 mins until our food arrived. When it did, the quality of the food was absolutely shocking. The hunters chicken was almost inedible, it was so thin even with the breadcrumbs, it was burnt around the edges, so dry, the very limited amount of BBQ sauce had clearly been microwaved onto the awful breaded thin chicken. The lettuce was brown and wilting. The chips on all our plates were cold, and the skin on fries had black off potato bits in them. The mash that came with the pie was not even a full potato portion and was awful quality, likely also microwaved. The whole experience was not pleasant at all and extremely overpriced for what it was. Not once did anyone come and ask us how our food was and we had waited so long and paid so much, that we decided to eat what we could of it. The lady at the till was sweet and regrettable about the limited menu on ordering. And we did not wish to complain to her, as we had already seen another customer kicking off just prior to ordering and making quite a scene with her. So we decided to just leave without saying goodbye. Honestly would warn anyone about going here, it was one of the worst "restaurant" experiences I have ever had.

The table was a bit wonky but it’s not the end of the world! Food was served amazingly. Drinks were gorgeous, and the outside was beautiful. The staff were so polite, friendly and welcoming

Had pre booked shown to table and given menus. waiter came to take drinks order, these were delivered promptly. Waiter then came to take the food order and asked if we had been told what was not available, which we hadn't. He then told us that there were no items from the grill menu available, not flat breads plus a couple of other items, in essence a very limited menu. This was very disappointing, we then had to rechoose meals as we had both selected something from the now nir available items. The waiter was very apologetic and pleasant, this probably stopped us hoing elsewhere. We should have been advised of this issue as soon as we arrived and as we had pre booked we could of been contacted. Very disappointed and think it is very poor that there were so many items not available. Would think twice about booking here again.

Jess really made us feel welcome. My children are very hyper and she made sure they had everything we all needed. The rest of the staff were amazing as well and the food was gorgeous! The deserve the 5* and more! Thank you all so much 🩷

Popped in for a drink this time, quiet and friendly. Have eaten there in the past and food quality can vary from excellent to very poor. Service always very good though. Update: visited again March 2025, service great, Rowan was very helpful and friendly, good tasty.

Excellent service with even better food to follow. Would 100% recommend to anyone and will be coming again.

Brilliant night good food and atmosphere.

Very good value in every way. Clean and comfortable

Unfortunately had a bit of a negative experience here. We came in early evening with two small children. Had to wait over 40 minutes for our food (it wasn't particularly busy) and when I asked about the wait I was made to feel like it was our mistake. Then when the food came the sausages my 5 year old girl ordered were raw inside and had to be sent back. They kindly recooked them, but it was still far from a great evening...! I wouldn't go here in the evening if you have kids.

I arrived at the Startling Cloud with my friend for an evening meal last Saturday evening. It was not very busy and we waited over 30 minutes for our food to arrive. We ordered the chicken curry and sausages with mash. I was startled by the quality of the food, it was appalling. The sausages were burnt on some sides and not cooked properly and my friend's curry was a very small portion and not cooked well. We had to leave most of our food. The table had bits of food everywhere under it. Considering it wasn't cheap either, it was a waste of time and money. It brought a cloud to the end of a nice day out. Will not return.

Would have been 5 stars had Jess (who i had specifically asked for when i booked.. had been working) been holding my sons birthday party there for last 3 years the previous two parties I've had there were amazing and it was Jess who works there who's amazing with the children, patient, kind and really made an effort with them (going above and beyond to make sure they were all happy! ) really made it extra special. Had to wait a bit for food to be served this year.. had Jess been there to entertain the children in between her duties would have made life much more easier. The food was nice once we received it (the children aren't the best at waiting) Will try again next year.. with most the children having special needs it's good for them to have the same routine, interaction.

Very modern clean room good size and facilities. Will definitely stay again

Excellent service from our waiter John. Food was really nice and plenty of it. John checked in with us during the meal to see if we needed anything else. Our best experience yet at the Starling Cloud in Aberystwyth .

Friendly greeting and showed immediately to our table. Nice clean roomy table and given plenty of time to order drinks / food. Tasty hot food and generous portions delivered to table with care. A very good experience - and nice clean environment. Thank you. See you again!

A great visit to the starling cloud. The whole experience was perfect from the tasty food to the service.

Room was great. Pub breakfast was delicious with great vegan option. Could not hear a single car outside even though we were on the road side. Walkable distance from the town. Would recommend

Woken up at 7am by workers dismantling scaffolding. It was extremely noisy drilling into the walls. We called to ask them to pause, which they did for about 30 minutes! You would think people operating a hotel would use common sense and arrange this job to be completed after 11am. So stupid. No apology since, which naturally would annoy any customer - hence my review.

Never stopped here before. But very friendly staff and the food was lovely and very hot. Very impressed, thank you.

We came in last night while it was quite empty at around 7pm. We stood at the door waiting to be served for over five minutes which is fine but no one acknowledged us or even said we will be with you in a minute. We then finally got served, and got given an A4 sheet of paper with severely limited food choices on it. There was only one vegetation main option, which was very disappointing considering online it said there was several. We usually love marstons and hate to leave a bad review but we were left with long waits and nothing said about the limited menu. Very disappointing.

Much improved since my last visit.

I had a lovely experience here I had a roast dinner and for me as I’m a very fussy eater I ate majority of my meal. I want to leave a massive thank you to the young gentlemen who was serving us his name is Luke he was extremely friendly and very polite and very helpfull!

Second time I’ve stayed here now. Lovely clean warm rooms with a great breakfast and service.

Always had good food & the staff are really nice but the policy of switching the bar area down the other end near to the childrens play area is a total disaster for anyone wanting a relaxing pint

quiet. great rooms. all the amenities in the room. best place in aber to stay

Your basic average pub like restaurant.

3 stars seems suitable for my experience here. The hotel side is a bit smelly with bad A/C. The breakfast was ok, if a little bland. But totally suitable for what you pay. Would stay again if in the area

We had a great stay, hotel was clean and comfortable, food was delicious and staff were friendly and helpful

Good drinks and friendly staff 5 stars to chairle for the service

We thought the restaurant was badly ran with regards to food supplys many of the items on the menu we're not available,perhaps better planning from the kitchen is needed,if not available please remind customers before ordering.Coffee was luke warm even after complaining and adding hot milk which unfortunately diluted the taste of coffee .

Rewriting this review because they've really upped their game in the last 6 months. Food is very good with decent portion sizes. Staff are very attentive and polite also! My only gripe was that my mixed grill was slightly overdone/burnt on edges, but the quality and quantity of meat made up for it. Chicken burger was immense and huge!

Decent place to eat. Friendly staff, prices aren’t bad. Foods good. Family friendly.

I'm a Truck driver parked up for the night on a nearby Car Park. Popped in for a drink and a bite to eat. Very friendly Staff, good Menu with plenty of choice and competitively priced. I had the Steak and Ale Pie with a side of Fries. Very happy with my food, pie was full of meat and very tasty. Highly recommended.

I met a friend for lunch and we were looking at the special menu, however when came to ordering the main dish we both wanted was unavailable. So we had to the choose from the main menu. The staff were fab, and explained everything to us. A bit disappointing as special menu was a set one and a better deal. The food we had was very nice. Really enjoyed and also had 20% off the food as I work for the NHS so was happy. Would recommend.

A wonderful Xmas Day lunch. Staff excellent expecially Phoebe who had masterminded such a special day . Thank you to Grant and ex cellent & friendly Manager. Always a welcome. Recommend highly & will book for Xmas 2024

Great menu and customer service

Beautiful accommodation, quiet, clean, spacious, ample parking, local amenities could not fault the place, oh and super comfy beds and pillows, which is certainly a must.

Good food surprisingly like home cooked. We ate from the festive menu.

Good food and prices. Staff very helpful.

Not very good food very disappointed but staff great 👍

Very enjoyable evening, great service and lovely meal

Great service and lovely food,thank you Gerry and Rowan.Have been to Starling Cloud about six times lately (largely to use their 30% off vouchers)and have been impressed by the standard of food. Keep up the good work team.

Great service Rowan and Phoebe were very helpful recommended

Considering I've been coming here for coffee since last year was told today they haven't been open since 12 for 2 years . He was very rude even on your opening times says your open at 7am sort it out

Great food, been at the starling several times due to dropping our daughter off at uni. This time food was really good,, and more importantly to me staff we so friendly and helpful. Don’t usually eat and drink at the starling when at Aber, but I will rethink this. Asked about the chef/cook and server their names were Roman and ally and both were excellent. Also another guy with curly hair and glasses, sorry didn’t get his/their name gave great service was friendly when ordering our food and drinks, also gave good recommendations on the wine that my wife enjoyed.

Cheese and leek pie was absolutely delicious, especially the carrots.great service from Rowan and tasty food by Ally

Some of the reviews were not so good so we held our collective breath when arriving to see if our experience would be better than others have reported. Early indications were positive for us and, I am happy to say that, despite a couple of menu options being unavailable (odd for a mid-afternoon, but hey), our experience was generally positive. There was a difference of opinion between the waiting staff as to whether our order was to be given to the table waiter or to the bar staff. Other than that, the meal was delivered in good time, to a good standard and was enjoyed by us all. The staff were friendly and attentive although the drinks choice was somewhat limited. Apparently Wainwright's beer was the only one available. All in all, a much better experience that we were expecting, and one that we will be happy to repeat on our several more planned visits to Aber.

I love the starling cloud because the staff is fangtastic,the room are big and the food is fangtastic and lovely that is makes you full so I would love to come there anytime

Lovely lunch today, Jess and team were very friendly, would defo recommend 😊

The staff were very attentive and hard working. The food was tasty and well cooked.

I don't understand how you have tables for drinks alone and no tables for people who want to dine in.

Need more staff per customer ratio

Very satisfied. Great food. Friendly staff.

The staff here are outstanding. We met Jess and Phoebe tonight and their wealth of knowledge and interpersonal skills really shone. My wife and I brought our five year old for a short break. When we arrived there were easily ten tables dining and plenty of activity! Including ourselves wanting to check-in, book breakfast and our evening meal after a harrowing car journey. Jess lifted our spirits, was uplifting and maximised our sons enjoyment of the evening too. I witnessed her repeating serve at the bar, serve tables, clear tables, check the toilets and far more to an impressive standard. Phoebe also served me at the bar when I ordered our meals and she is equally as unflustered and capable as any other hospitality member I have ever met. These two ladies were exceptional at customer service, at judging the mood of every client and meeting every person's needs at every level and serving over and above the expected to everyone. Marstons, I hope you realise what you have here at the Starling Cloud. Many many thanks to them both please!

Plated carvery is tasty enough but the portion size is on a small size. The waiting time on Sunday for food is very long though.

Fantastic service from Phoebe, Rowan and Jess. Very loving and caring. We were there for a birthday meal we arrived and the table was decorated lovely so we felt special on arrival. Ali and Henry in the kitchen cooked all our steaks to perfection. I have mine blue. And it was perfect. Warm in the middle while still being raw. Well done Ali fantastic steak. After the meal. The cake came out and all staff including kitchen team came out to sing. Well done to the entire team. Thank you

We didn't eat there hence the lack of stars, but I assure you, everything else about the place was brilliant. Well worth a stay.

Had roast pork dinner. Friend had roast beef. Roast potatoes were so hard they weren't edible. And it was cold. No apple sauce. Very skimpy on the gravy. Won't be rushing back for food there again... Over priced and over cooked and cold.. And not very nice

In the same league as a premier inn. Good location and food and drink were as expected for a pub chain.

I cannot account for why my husband and his friend were turned away from ordering coffee/tea by the uncooperative manager this morning. It was before the lunchtime trade, but they didn’t want to order food. It’s been a convenient rest stop many times during dog walks or to assist with a friends health recovery. Your web site states that the bar is open from 7-11, why were people being turned away?

Stayed in the hotel and had a meal in the pub. Really nice place to stay whilst visiting my step-son at University.

We booked Sunday lunch yesterday (very easy to book online) and received friendly, attentive service from the staff member who greeted us, took us to our table and served us thereafter. I have downgraded you by one star for the fact that the table we were taken to was dirty and had evidently not been cleaned following the last diners' departure. This is not the first time we have found the same issue at the Starling Cloud - in fact on our last visit a month ago we had exactly the same problem with our table needing to be cleaned after we had been seated. This makes a very poor first impression, although as regular customers it is something we have now become used to! Although your staff member was very attentive and immediately went to get cleaning materials (and subsequently left the table spotless), I would say the management are definitely missing a trick here. If I were a first time visitor, I would not necessarily stay to sample the cuisine after being seated amongst someone else's spilt peas, carrots and gravy! Unfortunately cleanliness of tables seems to be an ongoing issue at the Starling Cloud that someone in charge needs to get to grips with - your standards could and should be improved! The food was excellent - we had two Sunday roasts (one beef and one pork) which were both delicious, well cooked and a generous plateful. The reason we booked the Starling Cloud yesterday was because of positive previous dining experiences here. We have a holiday home in the local area, we eat out in the local area very frequently and we rate the Starlling Cloud as serving one of the best Sunday lunches in the area. We are dog owners and only eat at venues which are dog-friendly. We are therefore glad you choose to welcome dogs, which in turn makes it easier for us to choose the Starling Cloud as one of our regular eating-out destinations. Top marks for food and service.

Good friendly pub, food was good

Fab pub and the staff were so friendly and helpful. As soon as we walked in, they made you feel welcome and couldn't have done more for us. The food was great with a tood selection too.

Very polite and friendly staff. Great place to eat and stay

Cold food on hot plates is not conducive to an enjoyable meal. Poor quality veg and undercooked spoilt our lunch

We had a family meal for 6 adults and 5 children. Staff were polite,helpful and friendly. Food was excellent in standard and portion size. Service excellent.

Greeted on arrival by Charlie. A young and lovely waitress nothing was too much for her. An absolute credit to the place. Food was amazing will 100% be back

Very nice . Friendly staff food is fantastic 😋

Standard no fuss rooms, pub next door and a shory walk into town And free parking Good place to stay

I visited for a family lunchtime meal. Our food order had to be chased because it was so slow, and the food was decidedly average. I am unlikely to return.

Exceptional service by staff as well as delicious food, a great evening out with friends in a comfortable environment

The hotel was nice, the bed was huge and comfy, and the shower was great. I went for breakfast in the morning, and I wasn't too happy with the quality of the bacon sandwich (which was literally over cooked bacon between to slices of unbuttered toast) and how much that costed me. For a bacon sandwich and a bottle of water, I was charged almost £10. Everything else was nice, including the night porter, very helpful.

Not a bad little pub but not one of the best Marston's we've stayed in on our bike trips! There'd just been a rally and apparently most of their food had been wiped out so our menu choice was limited. There was a baby shower going on as well which made the place a bit of a tip! Not cheap for beers. £6:15 for pint of Estrella. Room was fine.

I took my young family to starling cloud for a meal recently and everything was faultless. We were so pleased with the level of service and had a lovely warm welcome from a young girl, I think her name was Charlie. She was so accommodating and went out of her way to provide us the best service with a huge smile.😊 Food was delicious. Overall I would highly recommend visiting. 5 star 🌟

Socially distanced attentive staff and lovely food really like this place

Sorry to say that today's meal & service was poor. Waited at the door but there was no staff around. Another customer waiting at the bar said she hadn't seen anyone. A barman appeared after 5 minutes and announced he was on his own. The chicken burger was very dry & overcooked. 3 onion rings for £1.50....

Wonderful friendly welcome, escorted to table, menus given, procedures explained and drink order taken. Drinks served and food order taken - checking on preferences etc. Starters arrived in good time and were good quality followed by main course and offer of further drinks or wine. Service throughout was very attentive and charmingly friendly. We will definitely be returning for the service and value for money.

Kayla is extremely helpful and efficient. Service was absolutely brilliant. Food was of great quality also. Would highly recommend!

Lovely food Lovely staff very friendly I would recommend

Room was comfortable and clean. Plenty of tea/coffee. Keycard was easy to use. Despite having to go into the pub to check in, everything was explained thoroughly about checking out, booking breakfast & evening meal. Hotel was within walking distance of town centre for bars & restaurants. Lovely walk through the park which is easily accessible behind the hotel. A visit to the train museum is highly recommended and there is something to see for everyone.Would definitely stay again and would recommend to others. Price was reasonable considering we stayed over August Bank holiday.

Had a most pleasant evening meal here, the highlight of my meal was the Beef and Ale Pie—perfectly cooked, with tender, flavorful beef encased in a rich, flaky pastry. The ale gravy added depth and warmth, making it comfort food at its finest. To top it off, the Chocolate Brownie for dessert was divine—decadent, moist, and with just the right amount of sweetness. It was the perfect end to a wonderful meal. Good range of drinks, all priced at arounf the going rate. The atmosphere was cozy and inviting, and the service was top-notch, Rowan was our waiter and he was attentive and good-mannered. I can't recommend Starling Cloud enough—truly a five-star experience!

absolutely lush! lovely atmosphere and brilliant staff. was served by rowan who was extremely helpful.

Good food but expensive for a chain

Came here with the wife, very good, served by Rowan 👍👍👍

Grandson treated us to a lovely meal, came out fast and hot, husband had a steak and ale pie while I had a lasagna both lovely, server Rowan was very polite and we will definitely be coming again

Best restaurant pub hotel in Aberystwyth 😁 FoH staff are top tier especially the short one

Nice pub close to town. Rooms were clean and comfortable. Breakfast was great. Only down side is this is a pub and then stop serving at 9 40. Very disappointed after a long day out not to be able to get anything to eat or drink

Visited during the Rally event & they smashed it out the park fair play. Beer was good & food was spot on! The staff seemed well prepared and organised for such a big busy event, they should be so proud of themselves. Well done all