Trenabies Bistro in Orkney Islands

Great local food, good selection to choose from. Friendly service. Have only stopped in for lunch, but think they also do take away.

Excellent service, great cup of Darjeeling tea and best coronation chicken sandwich I have had in 2 months of travelling the UK. Lovely young ladies running front of house.

Went here for lunch twice while in Kirkwall. Excellent food and friendly service, despite being busy. We had baked potatoes, paninis and ciabatta buns, all great. Shared carrot cake and chocolate banana loaf and loved them both.

Walked in and sat at dirty table, For 15 minutes no one cleaned our table no one asked if we are ready to order. Luckily there are many other places around with better service and food

Amazing food! And amazing choice of drinks too! You can even grab a wee wine if you like. The food isn’t just a regular wrap or panini, there’s so much flavour and all local produce too.

In Kirkwall for a couple of weeks ate here a few times. Clean restaurant with friendly helpful staff. I am gf , very good gf bread for sandwiches, delicious sweet potatoes fries. Some gf cakes.

Great coffee. Middle aged women with short hair. I would recommend you tell this lady you’ve got working that a smile would go a long way. Very unprofessional posture. Seemed to be in a rush to go nowhere, if she doesn’t want to work then I suggest she doesn’t or you look into a different position within the establishment because front of house isn’t for her. As for the food, menu looked fantastic but I’d like to know what health & safety officer gave that monstrosity of a pull up system to transfer food. Diabolical.

I've been coming to Trenabies every time I am in town. Food,homebakes,coffee absolutely delicious!!!Unfortunately I can't say that about service. Young girls behind the counter (four today)has time to speak amongst each other,welcoming friends and being on their phones but I've been waiting 20 minutes for someone to get my order. Is exactly this same situation when is not busy so that's not excuse.

Stopped for breakfast- the fry up was good. Coffee too. The cakes looked amazing but we were too full to try! The pot of tea was good too! Nice little cafe.

Had a really good traditional full breakfast, while my partner had scrambled eggs. Both were really tasty . Large coffees are very big!

Excited for our first family visit but left disappointed. Arrived just after opening time, servers pleasant. Waited 40 minutes for our simple order ( 3 things) one of which came wrong but was amended. Our cold drinks never did arrive. Could definitely do with a decoration freshen up. Homebakes looked nice but we didn’t sample and they were “ homemade”.

Lovely little cafe/ bistro. Staff polite and friendly and coffee lovely. A nice place to sit in the window of you can and people watch!

This café, located right in the centre of Kirkwall, does absolutely everything just right. Whether you just pop in for coffee or you want a full meal, there is an amazing choice of beautifully prepared, high quality ingredients and a friendly young, professional team waiting to help you. The coffee is first rate. So too is the breakfast. Although this review covers breakfast, the truth is, we were there several times, at different times, and found it to be amazing every time! Surroundings are really nice and, for culture vultures, the cathedral and most museums are on the doorstep.

We had a nice pot of tea and cake. I had carrot cake and my wife had fudge cake. The service was cheerful and efficient.

The young team of staff were responsive in fitting us in as a walk-in, serving good beers, great food and coffee. Good value and delicious.

On a recent visit Orkney found this bistro/cafe by chance on our travels and came back 3 times for their excellent coffee and selection of food, all well priced and plentiful...would highly recommend

Decided to try lunch in here during a visit to Kirkwall. Menu itself has a reasonable amount of choice on it, prices are variable - felt some was expensive for what you were getting. Staff didn't seem too happy. Food was brought in reasonable time...

Not much choice for vegetarians for snacks. They do a vege breakfast but it is the normal one with meat taken out. No vege sausage or vege burgers. Do offer oat, soya milk which is good. No vege sausages in roll . Good service friendly...

Visited for lunch and had a bowl of soup and a cup of tea. Quality of both was very good. A nice atmosphere and good, friendly staff.

Family of 5 adults arrived just before 11am looking for breakfast. There was not another customer in cafe/restaurant although there were several staff. I asked if we were in time for breakfast which stopped serving at 11am, after a monosyllabic conversation with the kitchen on...

Breakfasted here several times in July 2020; rate the bacon and egg roll as 5* quality and value, good coffee

Nettes kleines Cafe (Starbucks, auch wenn draußen nicht Starbucks drauf steht) in der Fußgängerzone. Trotz Corona Restriktionen geöffnet. Bustroangebot mit...

I had a lovely lunch here, while my other half was cycling and then hiking to old man of hoy, I’m so pleased I went in. Lovely tomato soup followed by a generous coronation chicken sandwich, the Coffee was good too. Staff were sweet, (...

Stopped in for breakfast, lovely full cooked breakfast and coffee. Cooked to perfection. Will visit again next year

We popped in here a few times on our recent trip and were never disappointed. One way system in operation sanitiser available and visits recorded. Plenty of room between tables/ booths and staff regularly cleaning. Good coffee and the cakes are lovely try the carrot...

I had a nice break here with a pot of tea and a Brownie, all was very nice, staff friendly good atmosphere and clean. We will visit again.

Nice little cafe but the music they were playing in the cafe was blaring far too loud. Staff quite young and it felt like the music was turned up loud for their benefit. I'm sad to say, I won't be back until they sort this...

I was in with a friend last year and I can guarantee you it was the last time we set foot in that terrible establishment and ever will. Sat down in a free booth, but the table was covered in plates and cups and dirty napkins from the last table. A young girl eventually came over to do a shoddy job of wiping up. And made it seem like the biggest chore in the world, before asking our order. We then waited what felt like years for our bang average food to finally arrive. My pizza was more or less cold and some of my salad was rotten. To make matters worse there was about two or three flies hovering around us as we ate and we witnessed staff laughing at us as we tried to bat them away from our food!!! Disgusted we quickly drank our drinks and ate what we could and went to pay. The staff stood on there phones behind the counter and gave us horrible looks as they discussed going out to get pished that night!

Came in to trenabies to be greeted by friendly staff, they were quick to get our order and made sure our dietary requirements were taken care of, I had a coronation chicken toastie which was amazing! Tasted lovely and the wifi was quick, overall a...

Staff were very rude, ignoring customers at the till. Heard one staff member saying she “couldn’t be bothered” and “just wanted to go home” Took around 10 minutes for us to even be served, understandable if the cafe had been busy.

Small cafe on main street (Albert Street) in Kirkwall. Good coffee served and limited range of eats but tasty and fresh. Wifi available. On a cold day in Orkney winter it's a warm haven to spend an hour. Not expensive. Happy to go back.

My personal favourite for lunch in Kirkwall, great staff, excellent food, recommend a cookies and cream frappe!

I called in here for breakfast prior to catching the bus out to the airport. I had just about an hour to spare. Early morning there were only a couple of other customers who were drinking coffee so I sort of assumed that I had plenty of time. I hadn't factored how incredibly slow the the kitchen was! 35 minutes to cook breakfast????? And when it eventually arrived (after having chased up the waiting staff as to when it was likely to arrive) it was really poor quality. What a struggle to eat it! Particularly in the short amount of time that I had before catching my bus to the airport. To add insult to injury I discovered that the airport cafe served a full cooked breakfast! Be aware and warned!

It was only a week ago, and I remember a nice little place in the middle of Kirkwall, but to the life of me I can’t remember what we ate or what the service was like. We enjoyed it, but it was just not memorable. This must seem like a weird review, but there you are.

When I came in it was quiet my order was taken I then waited for my cheese Cajun wedges to come, when they did come the upstairs staff obviously hadn’t listened at all as all they sent down was wedges, how hard is it to get one order right especially considering I was the only customer.

Very disappointed by this address! The bistro in itself looked nice and cozy, but once we entered, the impression totally changed.The restaurant was very busy and the staff totally unable to manage it. After a long wait, the waitress finally came to take the order. We wanted the lunch of the day (burger+side) but we were confused by what it included or not. The waitress was unhelpful and rude, and told us to just look at the board. When she finally realized we did not understand what we could take or not, she gave a few explanations. Since the room was very noisy (and Scottish accent not easy to understand when it's not your mother language), when did not get what she said. She clearly showed her exasperation, which made us uncomfortable. So we finally just took the burger and the french fries, even if we could have had more for the same price (the burger was OK, and the sweet potatoes fries really too sweet). So the experience was just unpleasant and frustrating.

Cute little place on main street. Great coffee, friendly staff. Nice selection of homemade cakes, cookies, also gluten free selection.

We came by just for a bit of lunch, the selection of sandwiches is good and the serving was quick.

Not really knowing where to go, we stopped at Tranabies and found the place ecellent. The staff were really friendly and helpful for local knowledge. Food was freashly cooked and tasty. Well worth a visit.

We had a burger and it's average taste! Don't know if because we sat upstairs, the service is a bit slow.

We had a lovely brunch at Trenabies (panini, wrap and ciabatta), the portion was great and the food was really lovely! We decided to come back for breakfast the next day but sadly on arrival we had to clean our own table (coffee spills and sauce spills) as nobody came to do it and although they offer table service nobody came to take our order either. The breakfast was tasty but was an English breakfast as it did not include any haggis or black pudding.

I am local, and have been visiting Trenabies for coffee and food on a weekly basis for many many years. Sadly I feel I have to agree with other recent comments on here. The young waiting staff at the moment, although polite enough, are seriously lacking in customer service skills in all areas. Definitely a serious need for some training and leadership. There appeared to be no system whatsoever to the running of things and it all felt a bit chaotic and not a very relaxing atmosphere. We ordered 3 drinks (and 1 piece of cake) they each arrived 5 mins apart. Had to ask for a spoon, knife and napkin. It’s maybe unfair to lay all the blame on these young girls, and maybe ‘management’ need to be stepping up to the mark?! It ‘has’ put me off a bit, but will visit again soon and hope to get a pleasant surprise!

Lovely atmosphere and waitstaff. Delicious breakfasts that were consistently good. We had the maple and bacon French toast, the porridge with banana and honey, and the big breakfast. Great tea and coffee. Was also lovely to see some locals going there regularly for their breakfasts too. Great experience and made every breakfast much looked forward to!

Fairliy busy but young staff were very slow to take orders, and took ages to fill them. Roll with egg mayo and ham was awful. Water, sloppy egg and cheap 'square' ham. Even took ages to take our money. Prices were cheap but so was everything else.

A great Bistro with an excellent menu. More large portions - seems to be a theme here in Orkney! Well worth a visit. Very reasonably priced too. Lots of locals favour this place which is always a good sign.

Food and drinks are ok but service is awful. I went in at 17:15 for a takeaway coffee when they don't shut till 17:30. The staff were really rude and belligerent. You'd think they'd want the business and not close the machines so early. I know Orkney is rural but that's a joke.

Visitato in giugno con la famiglia per un pasto veloce durante una tappa della crociera. Molto veloci nel servizio ed estremamente gentili. Da mangiare cucinato bene. È possibile mangiare panini e tipico brunch scozzese. Veramente buono da visitare.

Thought we were lucky to get a table - at no point did anyone point out there were more tables upstairs.

We ended up eating here twice as the choice of good cafes in Kirkwall seems to be very limited, especially after 2pm.

terrible staff and service. staff member knew nothing of the cafes' produce and was rude beyond belief. the café itself was filthy and stank of tobacco smoke. the staff permitted people to fill all available space with buggies and bikes making any quick exit in an emergency impossible.

Went in for a mince roll got the shock of my life roll was £3.20 wtf soupspoon of luke warm mince and roll probably cost 35p at the most rip off not even tasty avoid plenty other better places.

I am a local resident who went into Trenabie’s thus afternoon, having been in twice since it came under new ownership. On the previous two occasions I actually left after 5-10 minutes as no staff came near to ask what I’d like to order, or to let me know they’d be with me soon. I decided today to give them another chance but what a waste of time that was. Several tables were empty but had never been cleared, while staff chatted behind the counter. Again no-one came to take our order or to clear the dirty dishes off our table so we left. No-one even noticed - incredible! In a small place where there are many different places to eat or have coffee, this is not a wise attitude to have towards your customers. I will certainly not be trying here again and do no wish to give my business to a company that clearly cares very little about their customers. If I could give zero stars I would as even 1 star is too generous.

Having arrived in Kirkwall too late for lunch at our hotel we went into the main street and found Trenabies which serves food all afternoon. Friendly staff, a good and varied menu and it is licensed. The food (two prawn salads) was fresh and the helpings generous and good value for money.

Took my friend here for lunch and hate to admit that I hadn't been in since her last visit! Food very good, staff friendly and helpful. Nice atmosphere and comfortable seating. Hopefully get back sooner between visits!

Myself and a colleague went here for breakfast and upon ordering we both requested no mushrooms and asked for this to be replaced with an extra item instead.

We ordered a chocolate milkshake and a coffee and waited 20 mins for them to arrive. The chocolate milkshake did not taste of chocolate or milk. It was also not cold. After sending it back it came back tasting weakly of artificial plastic chocolate. I was unable to drink it.

I lasted visited here 10 months and was disappointed but understood at that time it had recently been taken over. Back in Orkney I decided to give it another visit.

Popped in for lunch when home at start of April. Getting a table is a challenge. Staff very slow at engaging. Placed order at counter. Table service is for friends. Waited 10 minutes for the tea. 20 mins later we still had no milk. 15 mins later we got paninis. Plenty of staff. Just no management.

Came here for lunch with my friends, the food was fantastic and plenty to a portion. Service was also fantastic, the girls are so nice and welcoming! Strongly reccomend!! Dont miss out!!! 😁

I have mixed feelings about this place. A couple times it's ok, otherwise service is horrific. Nearby table got almost immediate attention, while mine got ignored. Went to order at the counter and they were happy to help. Waited 20 minutes for tea, decided not to wait for the rest as was absolutely starving. Food is delicious, but the rest is just disappointing.

Was extremely disappointed with the service we received. Table was not wiped down, my husband was given a diet coke in a can as there were 'no clean glasses'. We were not given any cutlery to eat with or napkins. My children's milkshakes weren't frothed up as they normally are, everyone else's we saw in cafe were! We had to send my son's first one back as there were little hairs floating on the top. Got the wrong flavour when returned. My son said it was the worst milkshake he's ever had. Won't be returning any time soon.

Went in for lunch today. Utter chaos. Waited 20 mins for milk after receiving pot of tea. Had panini which was ok salad was handful of lettuce on plate! Need to organise staff better 4 behind counter getting in each other’s way.

Trenabies is a centrally located restaurant with a good range of light lunches and snacks. Service was friendly, prices were reasonable and the lunch very enjoyable.

This café serves Starbucks coffee which was it's draw for me. I was missing my Starbucks and Trenabies came as close as one could expect but with good food and tasty treats. Wait staff could put on a smile but food and coffee is good!

sought this cafe out first morning I was back in Orkney and thought like most it would have closed doors, but delighted to say it is still thriving and we got last table for coffee and cake, in fact it is so busy that just as we finished a couple of elderly ladies needed a table so i gave them ours.

I was recommended Trenabies by my partner and was not disappointed. I ordered a panini and he ordered a cheese toastie. Both were nice. I got a hot chocolate which was really nice too. I cant fault it at all. The staff were happy and cheery. Will be back again

Have visited Trenabies fairly regularly for about15 years. It used to be a reliable lunch stop and always have excellent coffee. It has gone downhill recently - disinterested staff and messy tables. Visited today for coffee and a snack with family. Waited at an uncleared table for 10 minutes before order taken, plenty of staff on duty and not otherwise busy. Had to ask for table to be wiped down, it was still dirty afterwards. Coffee when it arrived was off white in colour and had no coffee flavour. Snack was OK but nothing special. Menus scruffy in appearance and there was food debris lying on floor at neighbouring table. Staff appeared to be a bunch of school kids. This should not be a problem if properly trained and supervised but unfortunately this does not appear to be the case. Sorry to say I won’t be returning any time soon:-(

Dropped in for a coffee and a bit o cake. The Banoffee muffin was rather showy and appealing with its split top and the cream peeking through. Not too sweet, the cake was moist with good flavour. Totally recommended, we split one so the calorie expenditure was reasonable but could have easily eaten a whole one! Just the right size - harkens back to when we all baked at home - years before muffins turned into the gargantuan slabs they are at most places today.

I stopped off for brunch at Trenabies Cafe Bistro before catching a ferry to Stronsay. It was busy when I arrived but I was able to find a table with no problems, there was a varied menu with a lot of food options. The cafe itself is comfortable and it was nice to spend some time in there before heading out into the heavy rain. Trenabies is a good option whilst in Kirkwall, and also the coffee is very good and I ended up having several cups whilst I was there.

A small cafe that is as good as anywhere. Nothing great but nothing bad! Cajun wedges were good and served really hot. We had milkshakes that were ok and reasonably priced.

On our trips home to Orkney, we usually go for a coffee to Trenabies. Although there was nothing terribly wrong with our visit, we thought standards were a bit down from the last time we had a snack here.

Quite often drop into Trenabies for a mid afternoon snack and for the first time we were extremely dissatisfied with the service or should say the lack of service. The cafe was very empty with only a few tables occupied and three server staff behind the counter. We waited and waited and without any acknowledgement of our presence we decided to leave as two of the serving staff were otherwise engaged in entertaining each other and the third was far too busy folding napkins

I normally say that you can judge a cafe by their scrambled eggs. If you can get your basics right, you can’t go wrong and scrambled eggs is where a lot of places struggle. Unfortunately the eggs at Trenabies were not good. It’s possible that we just got a bad batch because we saw the eggs at another table and they looked better than ours but it’s all about consistency. My husband ordered a big breakfast and the eggs is what we noticed first. They were not even whisked properly as you could clearly see the white and the yolk separated. They were also cooked until oblivion and tasted really eggy and not creamy at all. I ordered French toast and it was ok, very plain, no garnish or maple syrup in sight. We were a bit disappointed with our breakfast so we won’t be back.

Stopped at Trenabies for a coffee and snack mid afternoon. It is a welcoming cafe in the heart of Kirkwall, and is a great place for a break from shopping or sightseeing. They offer breakfasts, lunches and snacks in a comfortable environment with friendly staff.

Stopped in for breakfast one morning. Service was good and we really enjoyed the food, we both had a full breakfast. We found the staff to be friendly and helpful. There was a good choice of food.

We stopped for a cup of tea and a biscuit in Trenabies. A quaint cafe with a good menu and fresh cakes. The ginger biscuit was beautiful so we bought another one! Nice tea, nice cafe, good service.

Had a great lunch here, lots of choice but a little bit noisy. I wouldn’t let that put you off. It was the people not the owners making the noise. Has had an excellent reputation for years.

Staff are a bit young but they are doing their best. Cake was average but a nice cup of tea. Surroundings are good and old- fashioned

My son and I happened in for lunch last week on our almost-yearly trip to Orkney from the United States. It was a pleasant surprise to recognize that I had been in this restaurant before on a trip many years ago and I anticipated a lovely experience. Our table was cleaned by the dark haired waitress with heavy eye make-up without a single word or even a glance up at us. There was no menu, nor was one brought to us. After waiting and waiting for a waitress we asked the gentleman next to us if there was table service and he said there was, but "this is Orkney." Eventually I ordered at the counter from the same sullen waitress who again refused to even look at me. After our meal again no one came to our table and so I paid at the counter, where I was helped by a young lady with long red hair who actually spoke to me, while the dark haired and heavily made up girl studiously ignored me while making herself a cup of coffee and commencing to drink it while other diners were neglected. Thank you so much for this reminder of the bad mannners of Orcadians and their myopic approach to one of their most important industries - tourism and hospitality.

Traditional tables & chairs or pew like cubicles are in the first section, then, up two steps are more with sofas too. The bar offers an excellent of drink choices and an array of cakes. The kitchen is on the first floor [where the overflow dining is] and sends food down to the ground floor via a dumb-waiter.

L’unico bistro con apertura alle 8:30. Tappa obbligata per i nostri due giorni a Kirkwall. Personale gentile, varietà di offerta, torte molto buone e il miglior porridge che abbia mai mangiato! Peccato non faccia servizio per la cena.

Called here today at 3pm not having had any lunch so we ordered toasted sandwiches and coffee. The coffee was lovely but after about 10 minutes there was no sign of the food. Apparently they had forgotten to send the order to the kitchen! Shame really cos I’ve eaten here before and it was good but today we needed to get to the supermarket before it closed so didn’t have the time to wait.

Friendly staff, good choice of desserts and very good coffee and tea. We came here a second time after our first positive impression yesterday and were not disappointed.

Lovely traditional feel to this really lovely place. Food is really good, cakes too tempting for words. It is the place we use and have used on all three of our Kirkwall stays for lunches and coffee breaks. The hot chocolate with chilli is great.

Stopped in once for an early lunch and was stuffed full after a lovely panini. A wide range of teas to choose from. Portion sizes were good and the staff were pleasant. The cafe itself has lots of nice touches from when it was built as it seems to have always been a cafe so if you like your interiors this is one for you. We went back the next day for a late lunch and were still happy. Wold stop by again if I am ever in Kirkwall. You can order at the counter or have table service

We ate breakfast here twice while in Kirkwall, as it seemed to be one of few places open at 9am. I had both the full cooked breakfast and the porridge. Both were okay for breakfast, portions were very generous. Staff were very willing to accomodate changing items in the full breakfast for me. The tea was extremely hot even after several minutes- this was great though!

Lucky enough to find a free table in this lovely cafe. Despite being extremely busy the staff were all very friendly and helpful.

Last visited this place 18 months ago and disappointed to report in my opinion that the place has gone down in service, food and cleanliness.

A good find for lunch and a coffee. Food good and service very friendly. The cafe has been around for a long time and has character and a nice charm. Worth a look!

Nice little restaurant.cafe / wine-bar. Good location. Excellent little wine list. Interesting menu but . . they forgot our food order. Oh well - it wasn't a real problem this time. Nice people

Very pleasant café, now a Starbucks but with a local flavour. Friendly staff. Coffee was fine, can't comment on the lunch as unfortunately it never arrived and we ran out of time having waited for an hour. But, give them their due, they refunded our wine.

Bistrot carino, ci siamo fermati per fare una colazione e la qualità del cibo era buona (diverse le torte presenti). Discreto il caffé

Arriving in Kirkwall we had a delicious full Scottish breakfast in this cafe. Nice interior and atmosphere, friendly staff

We had a light lunch here - soup and a sandwich for my wife (soup was good, but interestingly no choice) and I had a panini. Fairly slow service. Building has been kept to an old style - they still use a dumb waiter to bring the food! Prices fair.

So, the service was mediocre as was the food. Had to wait a bit for someone to come and take our order. Our server was pleasant enough, but nothing special. Ordered the soup - average. Bread was processed brown bread. Not really impressed with the food or the atmosphere, or lack thereof. Meh, a bit average and a bit disappointing. Can't really say anything negative but nothing to rave about. I would not bother to go there again during our visit.

Exactly like most of the other Starbucks you find but it has a nice island feel to it. They do delicious bacon rolls. A nice place to sit for a while.

Visited here on the recommendation of a friend. Plenty of tables and a good choice of cakes and bakes. Tea served in a pot as it should be!

Good selection of home baked goods and excellent variety of hot drinks, including specialist teas. Seating on 2 levels either at tables and chairs, in benched cubicles or on sofas.

Really well priced, quick service. Nice environment. It has a child’s menu which means that it’s great for families.

We stopped by here on a Saturday afternoon and were lucky to get a table. Good choice of food with delicious Panninis. staff friendly and welcoming. will definitely go back.