The Whitaker in Rossendale

Bad service. Poor food. Gave the place a second chance and its was no better. Soup served cold no butter or spoon. Very slow service. No atmosphere.

Lovely cafe the best scone I've had in a long time . Warm scone lashings of jam and real double cream . And a good coffee. View amazing if you are in a window , staff are very pleasant and welcoming. The museum is fantastic and free , I was very surprised by what was in there . The staff on the reception as you enter are very chatty and explain things to you . There is also a lift to take you one floor up to the cafe .

This place is convenient location wise, been a few times and each time I regret it. Majority of the staff are rude, can’t muster up a smile at the best of times although there was a new young girl there yesterday who was lovely which was a nice surprise. We were half way through mains at half 3 and we were asked what we wanted for dessert because the kitchen was closing in 8 mins. When I looked to book a table you could book up until half 3 so fairly sure the ‘chef’ just wanted to get home to enjoy the bank holiday with his mates. Felt like an inconvenience from start to finish as always in this place. Always in a rush to get you out and staff stand around at the bar glaring over until you eventually do leave. Kids menu is naff, I’ve been on a Wednesday when kids are meant to eat free but I wasn’t given a kids menu. Food is alright but overpriced for what it is. Each time I come I want it to be better but it’s not so I won’t be coming back which is a shame because it’s a great location.

Absolutely lovely food and even lovelier staff! We’re all looking forward to our next visit, especially when it’s sunny and we will be able to use the gorgeous terrace.

Excellent food and service. My friend had the cheese and onion pie, best she’s had in years. The homemade soup was delicious. Very reasonable, we will be back!

Food not good, been numerous times and used to be decent, on enquiring why it had gone downhill was informed James the head waiter had had every decent chef and helping hand fired, apparently his boss does as she’s told as he runs the show, coworkers saying he’s only interested in closing time so he can get pissed on free drink, he’s a rude person that isn’t interested in if you are enjoying your meal and surroundings, more looks at you as though you are a complete inconvenience if you request anything, shame on ruining what was once a enjoyable treat.

Where do I start ,is it the steep entrance up the drive "it is a hilly area no" The room nice and warm no "not this time of year its freezing out side and heating cost are through the roof so wear warm clothing" The food was expecting great things here "I'm in the north its pie Country " and this is where it fell flat on the floor like a missed tossed pancake ,had better school meals,dont think the cook tastes his or her food salty bland over cooked I will leave their. Friend told me 5* food in the North I would give it 1* and that being generous. Before you say what would I know of cooking well I use to be a pastry chef cooking first and business class food for the major airlines, not your cattle class economy seat and I wouldn't feed it them.

Excellent, you could have 2 courses or 3 I opted for a main and a dessert, the roast beef dinner was excellent and plentiful, the frangipan tart with crème anglaise every piece was like heaven…loved it…….one of the best Sunday lunches I have had in a long time…..thank you Whitaker…….Sarah..

We wanted 2 cartons of tea to take out and I asked for a flapjack, £8 !! The thin oily flapjack was £3.50 .

They have ruined a lovely, friendly little gem. Trust Architects to fail to improve on the excellent existing facilities. It is an awful shame that the old bar/restaurant was not retained. The new is awful!

It was my first visit here in a long time (back in my early teens), and my recent visit was to come to have a spot of family lunch. The entrance is spacious, and since I don't recall what it looked like before the refurb, I can say it seems to be a waste of good space in areas. The welcome was great, attentive volunteers (I believe). We were directed to the cafe area. We made our orders and it did take an age to get the food - considering the place was very very quiet when we were there. There were two staff waiting on tables and they were not the friendliest when they were not directly serving you. They walked about as if they did not want to be there. One actually looked under the weather with who knows what. Who I can only assume was the manager or supervisor (dressed differently in jeans and a shirt) was not particulary friendly and would try his best to not look in your direction if he knew you were trying to get his attention. My food was dry as anything and we did request condiments but the bloke wasn't listening and didn't bring what was requested. I was expecting some chips with my meal if I am honest, with the price charged, but all I got was a dry meal and a bit of salad. I would not go back here. I think it is a good place for kids though (from the human aspect of it, Professor Jiggety?), was a delight to the young ones. Some of the exhibitions in the museum are ...curious to say the least.

What were they thinking? Loved the old Whitaker quirky, dog friendly, great little bar and restaurant area. Good wine and food. New space is truly awful. Like a school canteen, too bright acoustics so bad hurts the ears. Told no table service outside, no food served outside. Wine by the glass two choices both awful. Staff indifferent, no crisps or nuts served anymore. Not dog friendly anymore. Absolutely dire avoid at all costs.

We’ve been looking forward to Sunday lunch having not been since the redevelopment of The Whitaker. What have they done! A pointless reception area. No restaurant just a cold soulless cafe. It’s lost all its charm of the previous lovely bar and bistro style restaurant. I had the roast beef with a cardboard Yorkshire pudding, cauliflower cheese which was dry with no sauce, practically raw broccoli and cauliflower. Inedible. No check back and service was poor. Will not be visiting again. What a shame.

Myself and 2 friends met for lunch. Friendly and efficient staff. Tasty food, 2 of us had king prawn skewers with couscous and one had the celeriac dish. Very tasty 😋 from the special menu. I’d recommend sampling the specials.

After a walk we decided to have breakfast as a treat. Disappointed doesn't even cover it . Food was overcooked and over priced, pretentious is a word that comes to mind. 26 pounds for breakfast!! I am happy to pay for food if the quality is a match of the price. Then was addressed at the till as love and questioned when I declined putting a gratuity on the bill. Needless to say we will not return.

Just an awful, awful restaurant. Food was served cold and was given dirty looks when asked for it to be heated. Couldn’t remember who had what when bringing it back out. Made to feel like the problem when trying to get this resolved. Particularly pathetic when you consider that this was Sunday lunch and only two meats were picked by the six of us so essentially the same food being prepared for all. Not cheap either. Avoid.

It’s was a bit of a disappointment my meal here today. I’ve been looking forward to trying the food here since the revamp. We went for the Sunday lunch and one of us had the Dukka spiced cauliflower steak and the other had the roast...

First and last visit at the new Whittaker…came for a bite to eat but didn’t stay!.how can a cafe stop serving food at 11.30 and start again at 12.00?!! The old Whittaker was so much better full of atmosphere, the bar in the front was...

Having been here (many times) previously, I went with an open mind, to view the £2.2m refurbishment, and taste the food, described on their website as "full of flavour and incredibly delicious!" Arriving at 11:40am (between existing customers finishing breakfast which apparently ended at 11:30,...

Museum attempts to provide an impression of life, past and present, in the Valley around Rawtenstall, the art galleries provide a space for local artists to exhibit their work.

Staff training needed, building is very nice, refurbishment well executed , but a waste of money unless you have trained front of house staff!

Lovely lunch at the revamped ‘bar and restaurant’ at the Whittaker. The restaurant space is complete new. Limited menu but the vegetarian options. Friendly staff. Pop in to the re-designed natural history museum and the art gallery. Nice walks in the parkland area. A great...

We went prepared to like this refurbished venue and to support it. We ordered two coffees and two croissants. Menu was inadequate. It was not particularly busy. After a 25 minute wait the two tiny coffees came. My Latte was in a small coffee cup...

Lovely welcome to the restaurant for our group of 17. Delicious food and plenty of it. Very attentive staff, nothing too much trouble. A thoroughly enjoyable lunch, I recommend it to everyone.

The museum is small but we'll worth a visit and had frequently changing temporary displays. The cafe is lovely and serves amazing homemade cakes, alongside breakfast and lunch menus.

Lovely food, not too much choice. Lovely friendly staff and gorgeous surroundings. Always enjoy looking at the museum after a meal but is a little bit pricey just for a lunch

Visited for lunch with partner and daughter. Weather was dreadful but it was also quite cold inside the Whitaker. Place is clean and I love the style. Ample parking. Staff very friendly and polite. Menu quite limited and I was a bit shocked at the...

I am a regular visitor to The Whitaker, and I just can't fault it! The food, whether it be breakfast, lunch or dinner is always delicious.

Had breakfast here and it was beautiful. Homemade beans which were very tasty. Well worth a visit. There is also a cycle friendly area with tool station, bike racks and washdown area.

This place has been around for a long time. The building is lovely with all the old architectural features complemented by huge modern art. The menu was varied with fresh being a draw for us. The soup was good, big pieces of chunky bread. I...

Full English with sausage, bacon, egg beans, mushrooms,fried bread and, wait for it, black pudding. Served on hot plates and with a smile. Thank you

What a lovely experience of a bar menu after a short Saturday morning walk in the sun. This community run venture served up vegetarian soup and humous. Very tasty and good value. What a fantastic museum to also wander around too. And a Thursday film night once a month.

Visited for a pre Christmas fine dining evening on 22nd December. After a nice ale in the bar we were seated in the delightfully Dickensian drawing room which had been decorated for Christmas with a lovely tree and subdued candle lighting. This room seated 12 which, being intimate, added to the atmosphere.The gourmet menu was varied and each course was, as expected, delicious. If one course stood out it was the duck, with maybe teh desert a close second as I really enjoyed the bread and butter pudding and salted chocolate slice.It's always enjoyable having a look round the museum too. Loved it.

Beautiful surroundings. Excellent service. Modest prices and very interesting food. Everything works! Have a drink or coffee and wonder round the museum and galleries then sit down and spend a pleasurable couple of hours, safe in the knowledge that you won't be disappointed!

Perfect meeting place for friends, lovely building excellent food and friendly service all at a great price.

Called for lunch as been on numerous occasions. Decided to sit outside as a nice sunny day. Approached a bar and told we couldn’t put drinks on the table if we sit outside and have to pay in advance. Obviously thought we would do a runner! Given we have visited on a good number of previous occasions I object to being treated like this. Decided against eating and won’t be visiting again. This place is gonna my downhill and they really should look after loyal customers.

Have eaten in this little cafe / restaurant on numerous occasions and always found the food and service top notch. The belt with avocado is great, fish and chips are fab and the special sliders days are superb. Some local beer on draught, friendly service and nice surroundings make it five star for me

Really can't believe the reviews posted here - we had good imaginative food at a reasonable price. The huevos rancheros was really good as was the BLT. They had gluten free bread which meant that we could both enjoy what we fancied from the menu.

I popped in to treat myself to a hot chocolate and a slice of Bakewell tart, I was somewhat taken aback to be charged £6.30 but hoped that it would be worth it as a one off. I sat outside, the table had the previous occupants plates etc which weren’t cleared for a while (mid afternoon so not a particularly busy time) and eventually my order arrived. It was okay but nothing special, I won’t be rushing back.

Having read the pretentious descriptions on the menu I was expecting excellent food. But it was a huge disappointment. The fish and chips were not nice. The fish was okay, although it was two small fillets in batter, rather than one good quality fillet. The chips weren't chips. Each one was a huge chunk of pre prepared undercooked potato. The peas tasted odd and the garlic sauce was a strange accompaniment. It wasn't particularly cheap either. I doubt I will visit again.

My husband and I called for coffee this afternoon having read about Whitaker. We would have ordered cake also but having seen the food on the bar without any covers we decided against it. I would like to see the food covered instead of being open to all types of germs.

Called for lunch with a friend and ordered a BLT sandwich which is usually very good. I was informed that the chef now puts mashed advocado on the sandwich which I initially refused but the waitress persuaded me to try this as it was very good. Consequently the sandwich arrived and I requested well done bacon but I don't know why as the advocado ruined it by affecting the bacon and making the bread soggy. I told the waitress when she enquired if we had enjoyed it and she just apologised. The cost for the sandwich chips between us and tea (weak) was £10 each. I will be going elsewhere for lunch as the cafes in Rawtenstall are a good standard and better value for money.

We have lived in Rossendale for a year and a half ago now. Driving past Whitaker Park quite frequently we kept meaning to bob in. Bank holiday Monday in the sunshine was just perfect. Lovely friendly staff, nice atmosphere, tasty menu.

Was looking forward to the food festival with influences from North Africa with music etc, which was advertised.

A very relaxed comfortable place to eat, the carrot cake to die for! ! Situated in open parkland with plenty of parking, the small museum well worth a visit and the staff very courteous and friendly. Can recommend a visit if in the ares.

The Whitaker is an absolute gem, a wonderful venue with exceptionally friendly staff a lovely place to visit at any time of the year, one of my favourite venues.

We had two light lunch options, the Gluten free option(a choice of 5 meals) was excellent and unusual. The hot beef sandwich was excellent with one of the best horseradish sauce accompaniments I have eaten(a real zing). Reasonably priced good service.

Visited today and had a great visit to a superb little museum. The park was a nice walk to help the digestion of a very good lunch. The only complaint is ,PLEASE have a menu in simple English that can be understood.

Having lived in the area my whole life, I'd never actually been to the Whitaker since the restaurant opened - when a friend suggested it for a catch-up it was a great idea.

There’s a new chef and the food is eclectic and excellent. We enjoyed a sea bream on saffron potatoes with a ‘mojo verde’, a green salsa ,and mussels which was superb, a haddock tempura and chips with unusual flavoured peas..again excellent. These were daily specials but there is a good selection of dishes from snacks and lite bites to a roast dinner to fill you for a week! We always have a look at the gallery and the intimate local museum, including stuffed boa constrictor before resuming the eats in the cosy bar which means delicious cake and absolutely the best coffee of our northern trip . Great visit with superb views of snow over the hills.

My husband was born around the corner and spent the leisure time of his formative years in Whitaker park. We used to bring the children when they were little and now it is our lovely grandchildren who enjoy the park and museum, even though we travel a fair distance to get there. We have eaten in the cafe in the past and found sufficient choice for children - something to appeal to everyone. There is a very restricted palette for their palates today. In the event, beans on toast were the only option to suit. The children felt short changed by the posh beans served - which didn't look very appetising at all, but they were quite happy with the chunky toasted bread. One of them did their best to eat the beans. The other tasted them and asked what they were then left them!

I attended here yesterday as a group of 10... 6 adults and 4 children.

Love it here. Visit frequently. Lunch, drinks, sometimes evenings for food, drinks and Art events. Great welcoming staff. I’m not a cake person BUT if you are......they are amazing to have with your coffee! Savoury food good too. Interesting place. Always something interesting going on.

I have been to the Whitaker to eat three times now. Once in June, once in September (on my birthday) & the last time last Sunday (25th February). I have never been disappointed by the succulent meat, nice crunchy veg or the amazing couliflower cheese! There's always a choice of meat & whichever one you choose it's very tasty!

Great cafe / bar serving superior bistro quality dishes in quirky small museum setting.

We called in one Sunday for a coffee and possibly breakfast. We were asked to eat in the bar area next to the 'cafe'. Ok we had not booked but it did not look full and no explanation was offered. We decided to just have a coffee each and to be fair they were very nice. However I did over hear that the next table received the wrong orders and it seemed a little hectic. Then my big surprise as I turned from leaving our table I noticed the waitress taking our little milk jug and putting it on another customers table for them to use. I remarked on this outside to a friend and she confirmed that she had seen it too.

Set in a lovely park, not over clear where cafe bit is as just a sign saying coffee not actually where it is. Only had coffee and cake and both were very good. Homemade cakes which all looked good, carrot cake I can recommend. Will definitely be back.

We were attending an East Lancs Railway steam event and decided to look in and to try the cafe. The building looks quite small at the front and is in a park which slopes up quite a way. Car parking is available in 3 separate areas.

This place is fabulous. Museum, art , music, poetry, food, bar, eco gardening, children's activities, park, gardens....all in lovely surroundings

Good food. Varied menu. Friendly staff. Well worth a visit even if you don't wish to visit museum. Serves local produce.

Met up for mid morning coffee and cake, and the service was so slow - think they were short staffed. Enjoyed our cake and coffee when it arrived in stages, half our crowd served long before the other half.

This was an impromptu visit as we originally went to look round the museum and a visit to the park, and we are really glad decided to eat there. I ordered the Roast Chicken and my husband the Roast Beef (visited on a Sunday) and our daughter had the children's Meatballs. I can honestly say that my meal was one of the tastiest I've had and my husband thought the same of his. The Chef really knew how to get the best flavours out of the ingredients. We followed with a delicious Sticky Toffee Pudding.

Called in late afternoon for a quick coffee! And I got a quick coffee and a piece of Victoria sandwich cake which was fresh and tasted good. Not many customers in but I was initially put off by a board by the door saying private function! I questioned the staff about the notice board they said it doesn't apply today so I said it was of putting and they promptly removed it. I should imagine some prospective customers met have left before entering! But on the whole I now feel refreshed after my visit!

Después de pasar una gran proporción de mi infancia en el parque y museo, me gusta visitar este lugar. El menú es limitado, pero la comida es buena. Mi amigo tuvo su boda aquí hace 2 años y alquilamos todo el lugar y fue fantástico. Otro amigo tuvo su 80 ª en la habitación de arriba, de nuevo muy bueno. A veces, el servicio puede ser un poco lento, pero puedo vivir con eso. Entorno luminoso y agradable entorno al aire libre y es estupendo para sentarse afuera cuando el clima lo permite.

We went on a Friday night when it is more restaurant than café. Easily some of the best food in Rossendale.Excellent food cooked well. There were many elements to each dish which was great. Staff were great too.Price matched the quality.Well recommended!

very busy.brass band playing outside.Staff extremely helpfulfood excellentbeen several times.when weather good as seating area outside and tremendous views gets very busy.

First let me say - the good is extremely good. My problem was, and after reading some of the reviews I'm not the only one, waiting to be served or even acknowledged. Arrived in good time for lunch, dining room empty except for 3 ladies drinking coffee. Waited 35 minutes before anyone showed an interest in serving us or taking our order. We ordered drinks in the meantime from the bar in an adjacent room, they never even arrived! Two young lads acting as waiters looked in at us 4 times but never came into the room. Finally a young woman asked had we placed an order and seemed genuinely surprised when we told her how long we had waited. Then the young mothers and babies arrived in the room when the rain came. They had been sat outside, so now we have 11 women and 9 babies and youngesters in the room, all waiting for their food. Finally got our food, ate half and took the rest to our car to shoot off as we were late for an appointment. Excuses given for the lack of drinks was the beer needed changing, the food delay only one chef on and later event being catered for. The two young lads, not been here very long. It's a poor workman/ busIness that blames its tools. As I said in the first sentence, make lots of time if your going to give it a try, shame as the food is really good. When I paid my bill I was asked was everything ok with our visit, food etc. When I enlightened the lad on the bar that the drinks didn't arrive, food good but terrible service, he Seemed surprised, obviously hadn't realised he was part of it plus he couldn't take my cash payment as the previous customer had messed up her card payment. This place is operating in slow motion. Shame.

Can't recommend this highly enough. Went to see I Daniel Blake and a film themed meal. Great food lovely and helpful staff and a brilliant film. It was exceptionally hot so efforts were made to accommodate this by having a mid film break and lots of water. Will definately go again

My husband and daughter arranged a surprise birthday party for me at the Whitaker, and have had nothing but help and support from Jackie and the team. The evening itself was fabulous, the food was lovely - so much so that the guests were asking for recipes! - and the service was discreet but very friendly. There were enough staff on the bar, enough staff serving food, all in all the venue made the party perfect. We had lunch there today too, as we needed to pick up the car... and although they were very busy they arranged a table for us and sorted us out with food. If you want fast food, go to McDonalds, if you want excellent food served at a more leisurely pace then go to the Whitaker.

The food at this 18th Birthday Party was excellent, good helpful staff and interesting venue incorporating a museum. Ample parking space and nice gardens.

Visited with friends for lunch, totally ignored on arrival even though table was booked, felt like an inconvenience. It was a lovely sunny day so surely things could only get better.........after we ordered we had to wait for what seemed like forever. 2 of us ordered the antipasti board at £13.50 each, eagerly anticipating a tasty special lunch we had ordered, well what a disappointment, very overpriced and poor quality, really felt 'ripped off'. Certainly won't be returning, regardless of the pretty location.

We went here on a recent day out having read good reports about this museum,The museum, although small didn't in any way disappoint with some fantastic and quirky exhibits. The staff we encountered were very helpful, welcoming and informative in marked contrast to the staff and the service in the cafe.Having placed our order to a seemingly disinterested young man behind the servery counter, we waited for a very long time for our order of cake and coffee which only arrived (without apology) after our further enquiry as to its whereabouts and after it had wrongly been briefly placed on another table to customers who were themselves patiently waiting for their own order and seemingly desperate and willing to accept anything! The service was I'm afraid woeful, the quality only mediocre, the pricing certainly not cheap and although the place was not busy with customers cluttered with dirty crockery.Such a shame, hopefully a 'one off' perhaps just a bad day?

Called in here to visit the museum which didn't disappoint then we thought we would have some afternoon tea. Although overpriced we did enjoy our tea and cake but unfortunately it was spoiled by the surly staff. I was treating my 90 year old friend to a rare outing and he was disappointed by the lack of warmth or welcome. Should be so much better!

The afternoon tea is a new offer here. There was a lovely selection of sandwiches, scones and cakes with plenty of clotted cream. A good variety of teas offered too. Too much pickle in some of the sandwiches, but otherwise lovely fresh food.The thing that spoiled it a bit for me was the shrieking baby in the room - not their fault but perhaps people with kids could be put in the other room away from adult parties. Service was very attentive.Recommended.

Popped in for a quick coffee and was impressed. You can peruse the museum and have a snack or a meal, great coffees or cocktails! Friendly and helpful staff, great location. Will definitely pop in again

Come here regularly for evening drinks and breakfast on a Sunday. Doesn't disappoint! Excellent choice of beverages, service with a smile and the breakfast is second to none in the valley (and we have tried a few). The ingredients are high quality and cooked very well and are tasty. The tea and coffee is very good. The surroundings are very warm and welcoming even on a drizzly day. Highly recommend.

A cracking Sunday so decided with friends to have a coffee. Waited 20 mins at the bar while staff ran about. Placed the order and waited another 40 mins for the coffee and when it eventually arrived the order was short. Style over content and won't be bothering again.

Went in following recommendation for a light lunch. Superb mushroom soup with rustic bread and butter. Honestly perfect. Had Illy coffee afterwards: it was like being in a first class Italian coffee shop. Very good service indeed . I left my glasses on the table, waitress came out into the carpark to find me. You will be delighted by this place. Will certainly be back for more dinner.

We had been to rawtenstall for a railway event and fancied letting our nearly 3 year old loose in the park. We decided to nip in for lunch. Firstly I would recommend booking as it was busy but to their credit they found us seats. The menu isn't extensive if you have a fussy eater I would just check there is something they will like it's not your typical museum cafe it is in my opinion a restaurant within a museum. Our food was really good, our loud child was delighted that he could venture off with daddy to look at stuffed tigers whilst we waited. Service was excellent , knowledgeable senior staff keeping a good eye on younger junior staff who were keen and attentive. A thoroughly enjoyable experience. A destination on it's own even without the surrounding museum and park.

Went to the cafe at whitaker park this morning for a coffee and cake.Felt as if we were interrupting the two ladies behind the counter who were too busy talking to each other to even smile and say hello. Seemed as if we were an inconvenience!Eventually the coffees arrived but took ages and they were barely warm.We have been to the whitaker many times before and the service has never been great but this time it was abyssmal. Needless to say we will not be going again!

We headed for this place following a recommendation and we weren't disappointed. The food and service were exceptional and the setting captured the kids imagination with the various displays and exhibits.

The weather was terrible, not fit to drive very far, so decided to go to the whittaker, as my daughter had not been before, I had, but in the first week of opening, and not very much on the menu, although very nice. What a lovely.meal we had, very nicely presented and delicious. The service was good,very pleasant staff and lovely atmosphere. Will definitely go back. We also found out about the film nights they hold, and will be going to them. We feel very lucky to live in a five minute drive to here, but worth travelingl.many miles for the experience

We hired the downstairs Victorian room for a family celebration this weekend. I was absolutely blown away by the incredible service. I didn't realise it at the time, but we caused them big problems by spending half an hour having photos taken outside. Apparently they threw away the mixed starters/nibbles which they'd cooked and did them all fresh. They were lovely...mixed sliders, tasty hummous and upmarket Scotch eggs where the yolk remained soft.As the day went on the Manageress and staff looked after us beautifully. We stayed a long time and they didn't rush us. The food was excellent and both adults and kids ended up full to the brim. The lager was as good as I've had in a long time.The room and service really made the occasion and I recommend it highly to anyone seeking a similar party experience. The manageress/owner lady's attitude was utterly and totally first class.

the cafe in whitaker park was full so i ordered a scone jam and cream with a coffee latte and i must say the staff were very friendly and brought it out to me with extra sugar and i must say the scone was fabulous the best i have ever tasted and quite large with lots of jam and real cornish cream .and the large coffee was lovely and for £6 it was worth every penny

We went last night 6 adults for my sons birthday the food was amazing, service & atmosphere were really good, we have a lovely evening.

We have been several times for different reasons...the food and bar are very good quality...lovely coffee and great entertainment... and we will keep returning...however...the service can be very slow and one or two staff have been offhand...easy to improve guys !!

Me and the family & friends go to the Whitaker a few times a year. Lovely relaxing place, more so if the sun is shining as you can sit outside looking across the grounds for drinks first before going in for your meal. Very pleasant staff always there to please the customer.

Having regularly eaten quality 'taster' menus throughout the area (Northcote / Freemasons / Nutters / Hearth of the Ram etc, we booked the taster evening for the night before New Year's Eve. It is very local to us and we have enjoyed very pleasant lunches in the gardens during the summer and a lovely 'meet Santa' and lunch for the grandkids just before Christmas.Not expecting miracles, I was very pleasantly surprised with the standard, quality and imaginative nature of each of the courses served and will definitely return for the gourmet Fridays offer in the forthcoming weeks. What a pleasure having such a quaint, atmospheric and quality restaurant on your doorstep. Top marks and keep up the good work!

I've visited here many times but the Christmas meal I had with friends was one of the best yet. The place oozed Christmas spirit and the food and service couldn't have been better. Attention to detail was superb as usual, I had pate, turkey and cheese but none was as plain as it sounds, all prettily presented with all the accompaniments you would want. Can't wait for next year - well done

Been here a few times recently and love it. The food is always wonderful and exciting, food service excellent although the bar service has always bed particularly slow, please improve this as everything else is perfect. Had lunch here last wend with the Grandchildren splendid, they were visiting Santa at the whitaker and it was magical. My Husband couldn't resist booking us in for the special tasting menu on the 30th Dec, so looking forward to this.

You are advised to book for lunch at this popular restaurant at the Whitaker. There's plenty to choose from the menu, something for everyone. The restaurant is decorated with original Dave Pearson oil paintings. Food good, prompt service - just remember to book to avoid disappointment.

My personal recommendation for lunch is the scotch egg with leeks and the sticky brioche - delightful. We've booked our Christmas party here 3 years running because of the quality of the food! If you enjoy quality over quantity- give it a try, they have a great chef!

An intersting location for a lunch, snack, afternoon tea etc. The restaurant is located within the museum inside the park. It is a nice setting. The menu is unusual and the food is tasty. The sliders ( a choice of 3 mini burgers) is very tasty.

We knew first hand of this stunning venue's fine reputation for its cafe fare through the day as visitors to the park and museum so we looked forward to an evening visit for dinner. So glad we finally went! We went with friends on Friday night and experienced gourmet dining even beyond our high expectations. From being seated in the bar for preprandial refreshments, we were notified how we may have to wait whilst our table is prepared for us in the main dining room (It is deservedly a busy popular event). As both rooms are exquisitely comfortable we were happy to be served our first courses there. The three-course meal consisted of a meat, fish and vegetarian choices and our party of four tasted all the selections in our choices. Seriously this is very good food, beautifully presented and quite delicious. The maitre D helped select matching wines, all excellent. The desserts were consistently pleasurable. Without a doubt we think the entire Foody Friday experience at the Whitaker is absolutely fabulous and heartily recommended.

Absolutely lovely lunch, followed by freshly cooked scones. My son had a hot white chocolate and had to ask how it was made because it was so delicious. Highly recommended and will definitely go again.

We had a table to sit 8 for lunch last Friday with my 86 year old father and some relatives. The last time I was here was as a little girl when it was a museum and my sister and I took turns at look out while the other rode the baby elephant. It is still there but protected by a glass case now!This is a great place for lunch, lovely atmosphere, excellent staff and good food too. We were made very welcome and were well looked after.I had one of the tartines for lunch and it was delicious, others had traditional fish and chips but all is served in a very elegant and modern way, not pretentious, just rather smart. The wine was rather good too, as were the little buckets of hand cut chips!It is clear that the Whitaker is run by a team who really care about their restaurant and the provenance of the locally supplied food. I shall certainly be back but wish I could still ride the elephant!

A family member booked the Whitaker for a party, and it was great.Food was excellent and plentiful, Bar well stocked and ran.There was a friendly 'maitre'd' organising everything with great efficiency. I think she may have sneaked onto the dancefloor to 'buss a few moves' later too....its that kind of place....relaxed but classy.Everybody had a great time (Unit 22 Band, highly recommended too)This is a fantastic advert for private enterprise taking over stuffy (there's a joke there) museums that have been abandoned by local councils. Loved it!

I know it's late,but me and now my husband got married here,we cannot thank you all enough,wonderful day truly enjoyed by all....xx

Table booked for 3pm for a late lunch. The food was excellent although by this time there were a few items on the menu which Had sold out , but we were given alternatives which were not on the menu so all was well in the end. Will certainly return .

Would recommend. The food is lovely although expensive. Great to look round the museum and the nice grounds. Has a nice sitting out area.