The Thatch Inn & Restaurant in Ballymena

We had lunch in The Thatch in Broughshane today and it was really nice! I had Chinese Chicken which came on flat bread with coleslaw and dip of choice, my wife had the double burger. The food was very good and the portion sizes were generous. Lunch is served in the bar/restaurant downstairs which is cosy and old fashioned looking as you might expect from a building with a thatched roof! There is plenty of parking out the back of the building so no worries there. Overall very good and worth a try if you're in the Ballymena area.

First visit hopefully not the last. Good varied menu. Friendly efficient staff.

This is a really welcoming pub/restaurant. They are a great support to local groups, and they love doing what they do. We all had 2 courses for only £21 hard to beat that !!

What can I say about this place, probably some of the best food you can get up north. Came here on a rare occasion (not from the area so sadly can’t go every day) and stopped in for a bite to eat and a pint of Guinness. Where to start, the server brought over the pint of Guinness and it was almost as if the gods had served me a pint of creamy heaven, nearly finished it before the food even arrived. When the food arrived, the pint felt so nice I had to do it twice and got another one. Onto the food however. Salt and chilli chicken straight from heaven, flavour was in full supply with this one. Perfectly breaded chicken, marinated in the best tasting sauce known to man. Garlic skinny fries, which thankfully to anyone I spoke to that day, weren’t overly garlicky. Garlic mayo served on the side must be a closely kept secret in that restaurant because I have never tasted a sauce like it. Overall the atmosphere in this place was that of an old Irish pub, good craic, beautiful pints and great staff that were as welcoming as anyone could be. Only critique I have for this restaurant is that it’s not close enough to home for me, nor does it let you live there to have that amazing food everyday

Visiting old friends and surprising my niece who works there. I had the Brie for starters and Gammon as a main. Was sadly too stuffed for dessert as portions were more than I expected.

Best fish and chips I have had in a long while, great service!

Food not great don't know what the hype is about .Just average frozen food fried

Open 🔥 great atmosphere and food.

Always good food and friendly atmosphere..

I attended a large group dinner function event last Friday night with over 80 people upstairs in The Thatch. Food and Service were both Excellent. Pre-orders were submitted a few days in advance and everything went smoothly.

Excellent 3 course dinner at the Thatch restaurant on Friday night. I attended as part of a large crowd 80+. service and food both excellent. Would recommend for any occasion.

Lovely ambience in the bar with 2 large open fires.

Great service as always and quality of food is top tier.

We've been to The Thatch some time ago and it was good then, and our return visit tonight certainly did not disappoint. Celebrating a birthday with family we were looked after very well from the moment we entered. We were shown to our table not far from a cosy open fire and our drinks order was taken quickly with the drinks delivered in no time. Given time to browse the menu, our order was then taken and while waiting for our meal to arrive we relaxed by the fire. The food was beautiful with our main course choices including pan fried haddock, mixed house kebab, peppered chicken stack and crispy battered chicken goujons. The food quality, quantity, taste and presentation was outstanding ... every plate was cleared. Alison looked after us extremely well and even made special effort bringing birthday candles in the hot chocolate fudge cake (which was amazing too)!! With prices being reasonable too, all in all, we had a lovely family evening at The Thatch and will most definitely return again. Thank you to Alison and all those working hard behind the scenes ... you are doing a great job!

We arrived at 2.50 on the Sunday in September think it was 23 rd.went upstairs and stood for five minutes waiting to be seated.their was only two tables sitting and plenty of waitresses about so could not understand the delay.we were then shown to a table and ordered drinks.sat for another 15 minutes before we had our order taken.no roasts left so I ordered a mixed grill steak cooked medium and my wife a vegetarian meal.t this stage there was no one else in the restaurant.40 minutes later the food arrived.the waitress was walking away and I had to call her back to ask for salt and vinegar which should be on the table.the food was fine but sitting a short distance from us some of the kitchen staff and waiteress had sat down for a break.they were very vocal.anyway we finished our meal and waited.at no point did any of the four waitresses come to our table while we were eating to check everything was ok.i sat with arms folded waiting for plates to be lifted.we were still the only customers in.waitress after waitress walked by until I had to stop one to lift our plates.we asked for a sweet menu ordered pavlova and chocolate orange tart both are cold sweets but we still waited 15 minutes on them.the place needs an uplift including the floor staff.i have been manager of restaurants in Ballymena for the last 30 years and would definitely not have such unfriendly staff working for me.will not be back.i am only writing this now as I saw the thatch had won an award in the Ballymena business awards.would love to meet the judges.

This place is a must visit when coming to the island. I go here every year for dinner after the North West 200 motorcycle racing festival and have enjoyed great food and fantastic staff year after year.

Food was fantastic and staff were super friendly.The price of food and drink were spot on.

Lovely homely feel and food pretty good.👍

Visited for our evening meal on Saturday, 23rd September when we were staying overnight in the area. The pub staff were warm and welcoming, helpful and professional. We both ordered the chicken goujons with chips, which was enormous and very tasty; sorry we couldn’t finish it all. Would highly recommend the food and pub, and hope one day to visit the area again 😊

Great bar . We popped in for some lunch on a Sunday, and although the Sunday lunch was sold out , it looked very good . We took off the menu in the bar . It was very tasty. Defo worth a visit

Called into our local for the first time in a while. Not disappointed: slick efficient, cheerful service, good food, value for money.

Great little gastropub on the main street. Have eaten here a few times and the food is always excellent. Good size carpark round the back.

Cosy with lovely food and friendly service.

We both had a fantastic meal. Service exceptional.

Lovely food quick service. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Great pub open fire, pub quiz most Wednesday

Love the deco loads of options for the kids 10/10 would go again

Very busy on the day we were in so explains food and service but would recommend to anybody .

Friendly staff, massive food portions and very tasty pub grub

Good evening meal friendly service

Gorgeous food, good prices and great portion sizes

Absolutely delicious meal, I had the tennesse pulled pork burger, really really nice.

Warm friendly staff very relaxed feal two coarse lunch in and out in 1 hour perfect menu

Visited the Thatch Inn in Broughshane with my Wife. Super sirloin steak. And friendly pleasant service from all the staff. Relaxed easy atmosphere. Very good

Great place & lovely people. I stopped in after arriving from Glasgow as I was having trouble getting in to my AirBnB which was close by. I enjoyed a drink sitting by the fire & decided to come back later on for dinner. Had the fish & chips which was delicious & all the staff were charming & attentive. Highly recommended.

Amazing food lovely staff beautiful relaxing atmosphere

Great food and great staff service. Will be in again.

Nice country pub and restaurant, with good menu.

Outstanding food and service. Relaxed atmosphere with welcoming staff. First class service every time!

Tremendous food that is well worth the stop. Don't forget to look for the pictures of King Charles having a pint there.

Our 'local'. Steady service and good food. Value for money

Would have considered it to have been a favourite haunt at a time but for various reasons hadn't been in sometime so thought when we had the chance we'd call in for lunch. Big mistake. It was busy when we called in but we got a table in the front end although my seat was half over an open door to the bar and back of the restaurant which was causing a draught. My seat was even too low for the table. After we got our drinks we were able to move to the bench seat in the corner by the fire. Much better. Or so we thought. Our order was taken and we settled back to relax with our drinks and have a chat. That was until the 3 young males at the next table started to tell tales of their "holiday experiences " The least said about it the better. But the noise was shocking. At no time did any member of staff have a "quiet" word. Yes it's a pub etc but if you are offering food, people want to be able to sit and chat in a pleasant atmosphere and surroundings. I couldn't even say that the food was that good that it made up for the racket, it was just OK. I won't say I'll never be back but it's going to be a very long time. It certainly isn't the place it once was, in my opinion. Disappointed.

Really friendly service, comfy seating and good tasting food with really good portions. Easy parking and good lication

Lots of diverse dishes to choose from on the menu. Something for everyone. The service was excellent and the food was delicious. We will definitely return.

Sunday 2nd of April 2023 My wife and myself were recommended The Thatch by several friends and family . We arrived around 3pm to find the bar pretty empty and a few people eating at the back of the restaurant. We ordered drinks and prawn cocktail between us to start. It came to the table very quickly and it was beautiful, great start. My wife ordered scampi and chips and I ordered the mixed grill with garlic fries. Again it arrived very quickly to out table. Mixed grill:- 6oz rump m/r Pork chop Bacon Sausage Fried egg Fried onions and mushrooms Peas First impressions it looked beautiful, until I check the egg. Fried hard. Pork chop was not fried or grilled as the fat was not rendered at all. Rump steak was perfectly cooked but had a taste of lemon, no idea. The bacon was just cooked and no more and the sausage was beautiful but over cooked. Chips, peas, onions and mushrooms were fine. Scampi and chips Again it looked perfect on the plate and for the most part it was nice apart from the oil that they were fried in, it had a very slight burnt taste as it needed changed. As The Thatch was recommended by so many people to us and I have read the reviews on Google I'm a thinking we hit it on a bad day. Atmosphere and the staff were very friendly .

A big improvement than my last visit, still great atmosphere and the fire is lit.

10 out of 10 well worth a visit

Had a beautiful meal in the Thatch , would recommend it to anyone

Popped in for dinner, walked in and the warm fires welcomed us in from the cold. Lovely food and lots of choice. Get service, friendly atmosphere and comfortable wee pub.

Called in after a walk round Glenariff. Arrived a bit cold and a bit wet so the open fires were very welcome. Menu had a wide selection of food. Our group tried the tacos, steak and veggie curry and all impressed. Tasted great and good portions. Friendly staff and quick service and reasonably priced Perfect place to stop and recharge

We recently met up with friends for lunch at the Thatch, not having been for two or three years. It was bucketing rain outside so the roaring fire inside was very pleasing. From the get go the staff were most welcoming especially when dealing with our two grandchildren. We all enjoyed our meals which were generous and of a high standard. Portions were both large and reasonably priced. If anyone is in the area I would certainly recommend stopping off at the Thatch for a satisfying meal and a worthwhile experience.

Went for a lovely lunch there with my mum and the food was superb! Friendly staff (especially Alison) Cute little place with coal fires which added a bit of character and warmth, will definitely go again!

Impromptu lunch with husband. Very slow service, even though not visibly busy. The usual with most business at the minute - not enough staff. Ordered the platter was gorg & good sized portion. Chinese children, highly recommended. Will return to see if service improves.

In today for dinner, food was amazing. Chinese chicken is to die for. The thatch platter was also 10/10 Staff are super friendly and accommodating. Can’t recommend enough.

Its been about 14 years since we last visited, far too long to be honest. Typically an irish Country Pub. Nice clean country pub, lovley friendly staff, good menu reasonably priced.

Family of 8 went for evening meal and was not disappointed. We have been to.the Thatch Inn numerous times and always go for an evening meal when we go to northern Ireland to visit family. They do good kids meals and their menu is really...

Call in for dinner ordered 2 grilled gamon a platter and burger food was outstanding served was brilliant couldn't do enough for us outstanding 5****** all round

Went to the Thatch on wednesday night as we had not been there for a while. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Food was great. Our server Andrew was amazing, friendly and informative. Cannot wait to go back.

As per usual service was excellent. Staff very friendly and go beyond to make your visit pleasant. Food was excellent just make sure you have a good appetite. Portions are more than ample.. Nice family atmosphere.

Been here a few times. It's my parents favourite, food was good, fast friendly service in the pub downstairs only downside was the amount of flies & wasps about the place. Constantly have to swipe them away from my food & couldn't eat my chips...

Lovely Sunday roast. The meat was so tender it literally fell to pieces. Quite busy but didn't have to wait long. Very good service

Had a meal here today & was absolutely fabulous 😋 lovely, friendly, atmosphere & service great also, will definitely be back 👍 totally recommend 💯 👏👏👏

Visited at 1945 last night and told our orders woukd need to be selected in 10 mins which was ok. Unpleasant atmosphere, drunk man at bar and his language was disgusting, every other word. Staff chatting to friends and letting children run wild. It looks...

Went here for Sunday Lunch on our annual NW200 trip and yet again the food was superb. The staff here are so attentive, friendly and have a warm welcome for everyone. See you all next year!

Very poor service and average food quality, Catherine ordered the burger when it arrived it was adequate, however when she asked for some raw onion for it they didn’t show up, my fish and chips were very average, my fish was flat with soggy batter,...

Brought my grown up kids here with a friend and standard was generally poor for the prices being charged. I didn't expect The Thatch Inn to be expensive but this was really poor value. Soggy fish and chips (4/10), veg. soup (6/10), nachos (5/10), Thatch...

Outstanding meal. Excellent customer service & fantastic choice. The platter def recommend. Alison had great rapport with all the family. Desserts highly recommend.

We have frequently over the years eaten in The Thatch however tonight was far below their usual standard . One meal was very poorly presented and luke warm . Staff were pleasant and friendly but were let down by the chef . When we complained...

Had a family Sunday lunch here. Staff greeted us warmly. There was a lovely cosy fire nearby. When our party arrived, took food and drink orders promptly. Although there was slight delay with one dish all food came warm and together. Large portions. Good value...

arrived in a party of 6. table had been booked. no sanitizer in the dispenser. shown to our table. menu was not appealing. waited ages to order. waited ages for the food although the place was only a quarter full. four staff on the floor....

My partner and I took my mum for lunch to mark her 84th birthday, during the bank holiday weekend. We thought the Thatch would be a nice place to go as we had always a good dining experience there but sadly no longer after this...

We booked the Thatch for dinner for all our visiting family and friends, from Wales and Scotland, the day after our wedding. There were 37 of us! We were not disappointed. Everyone was well looked after, the food and drink was delicious and we didn’t...

What a place, what a find, absolutely spot on. Staff are amazing, locals are friendly and the food is outstanding. Visited for my brothers wedding and how they dealt which such a large party with enthusiasm and such friendly service was a credit to the...

Had such a lovely meal as always, service was perfect and the staff were friendly and very helpful could not ask for more 😊

Fantastic evening at the Thatch. An amazing welcome, the food was outstanding and served upstairs the bar was downstairs was even better great atmosphere ! I can recommend the curry! Oh and the chicken dish below with Tobacco onions Can’t wait to visit again Robbie...

Came to northern Ireland for a wedding on the Friday and ate out at 'the thatch' on the Saturday night.....and what a night t ! Fantastic food from a very original menu mixing traditional British food with the Orient. Later we joined together in the...

You have to eat here!! Delighted that the Thatch has re-opened with the great standard of food and service they are known for. Servings of Chinese chicken, cajun chips, mixed kebab and rice all washed down with the best Guinness in town and a wee...

Good menu, reasonably priced, excellent service and the food ordered was very tasty. Nice ambience. Only reason for 4 stars...and I know this may sound bonkers...portions are far too big. I really felt bad about the amount of food we sent back but we genuinely...

Great attentive staff working under difficult situation very warm welcome. We felt safe and tables were well separated. The food was lovely and when allowed next year we shall return

October is not the most kindest of months for warm sunny days in Northern Ireland, so I highly recommend getting into the warm indoors after any outdoor trips and after a day out climbing Slemish me and my brothers decided to head into the nearby...

Visited Tues afternoon. On arrival I was pleased to see a sanatiser station on arrival, and was expecting to give my details for the track and trace service required by law, but this wasn't asked for. Seated away from people by the barman who was...

Called in for a lunch a couple of weeks ago. Hubby had the Chinese chicken with the naan bread which he said was ok but nowhere near as good as it used to be. I had the chicken goujons - that was a mistake. Had...

The food first class and the staff very friendly would go out of there way to make you feel welcome. The food comes hot and very tasty would recommend it to anyone looking for a good place to eat. Thanks The Thatch.

Always been a great place to go , was surprised and a bit concerned with the lack of covid measures in place, no staff wearing masks or shields , not keeping there distance when ordering? This needs addressed. The food however very good , service good , possibly a little slow , took 40 minutes or so to get our main course.

How anyone can give this place less than 5 stars is beyond me. The best food in the ballymena area all served by attentive and friendly staff. The Chinese chicken, burger, gougons and lasagne are personal favourites but the entire menu is delicious. Large portions and great value!

We hadn't booked but were assured that they would fit us in. The restaurant upstairs was closed due to Covid-19 but were found a seat. The host was very pleasant. We sat next to a couple who lived locally who soon made us feel right at home. The food was good.

Visited today with family.had lovely meal. Young lady taking order was lovely as was lady sanitizering tables.Felt good safety measures in place but importantly food was great.

I never usually complain about restaurants but this experience was too poor not to.I booked a table for a special family dinner (60th Birthday) on a Monday night. When we arrived they seated us at a table of four even though we had 5 adults and a pram. The tables were small bar tables which weren’t comfortable and we were going to leave at that point but then they seated us at another larger table, even though it was free and we booked for 5 in the first place. Was the start of a litany of disasters.We were seated at 7:30 and our food didn’t come until at 8:15. The place was empty. We ordered fresh drinks once the food arrived, they arrived 10mins after we finished our meal, nearly 30mins later. Even though we watched the waitress/waiter do routine jobs first. A meal was supposed to be which was supposed to be served with rice, never came. We waited ages for the plates to be cleared and had to ask to order dessert. We asked for a jug of hot water to heat up a baby’s bottle was it was feeding time. Never arrived and child was fed cold milk. Waitress/Waiter did not seem to care when we pointed out things like the water not arriving, didn’t ask if we had a good meal, if we needed anything/was missing anything etc. Just a disaster from start to finish and ruined a special birthday.

We stopped in here for some refreshments plus to get out of the rain. The food menu looked basic, and they do not allow dogs (shame - don’t understand why), but their choice. The Guinness was very good in front of the lovely fire.

We hadn't been here in years because on our last visit with family the food was terrible. Sorry to say nothing has changed. We booked for 7.30 - our meal arrived at 9.15. To be fair, the waitress was very nice & did apologise for the wait but we had to ask again how long it would be. She said the kitchen was running slow because of a larger party of guys at a table not far from us - about 10 of them. I'm sorry, but if you take bookings you clearly know in advance how many you are catering for and therefore adjust staffing & preparation accordingly. When our meal came, it was....ok. my steak was cooked properly but not warm, it was served with cold mushrooms, onions and tinned garden peas. The chips which were extra, were good. We were told a discount or something complimentary would be applied. We ordered coffees and these were not charged on our bill. We were given extra biscuit and chocolate with our coffee. The waitress staff, I have to stress, were lovely and seemed embarrassed that we were waiting so long - not their fault at all. We thought we'd give it a go since it had been so long from our last visit, but we wont return a 3rd time. Such a shame....the place has so much potential.

Had a lovely family lunch while our in laws were over during Christmas. Great table down stairs in front of the fire. Lovely meal enjoyed by all.

Homely grub made beautiful the staff are an extra bonus. We had lunch and the menu covered everything you need.

Went to a family members Birthday lunch approx 12 of us including 2 small kids has to pre order days in advance bare in mind we had another family birthday lunch with 14 they took our order on arrival so we all got what we fancied on the day with no delay on the food but anyway I pre ordered scampi poo track was still in it could probably have got better in Iceland we also dispite having had to pre order chase up the food being brought to the table most of which seemed to be straight out of the freezer they weren't even that busy waiting staff didn't even take drink orders we had to go to the bar ourselves to get these vey disappointed overall I'm afraid

Family celebration meal on Saturday afternoon. Not busy at all. Service was good and staff were attentive. Food was tasty and plentiful portions.

Really friendly place, the locals made you feel welcome. The food looked very good, unfortunately we didn't manage to have food, but when we visit again we will definately try it.

Cosy fire great start that's also where it ends I ordered ploughmans which should be easy to plate and any fool could do some cheese with pickle and salad unfortunately not in the thatch two pieces of stale cheese with some mould removed and excuse from chef its pre cut and put on plate no one noticed I obviously did not pay for this and was offered a £20 voucher but if they cant set out a of piece of cheese and not see its moulded even though u can see where they have cut of some mould I will not be back in the thatch

One of the friendliest places you can eat a really good menu good variety of food good entertainment on the Saturday night we went

We had another great evening at the Thatch. Had a table for 11. Service was very good and food was great (and really good portion sizes). Always a favourite place to go !

Love a nice meal in The Thatch. Always the same high quality food. The Chinese chicken is definitely a favourite!! Was recently painted inside. Is definitely not a fancy restaurant but the food is amazing

Had a meal here on Sunday. the starters were lovely but the main meal was far from good. I would say there wasn`t an item on the plate that hadn`t seen the inside of a freezer. The vegetables were soggy and had no flavour and the beef was very tuff