Undercroft in County Durham

Good food choices, both savoury and sweet, though l would caution against the scone laden with jam and cream!

The Undercroft Café at Durham Cathedral is a hidden gem that offers a truly magical experience. Nestled within the cathedral’s ancient stone walls, the café provides the perfect setting to enjoy a peaceful break. As you sip your coffee or enjoy a delicious snack, you’re surrounded by centuries of history – the vaulted ceilings and stone pillars create an atmosphere that’s both cozy and awe-inspiring. The menu offers a great selection of refreshments, from freshly brewed coffee to tasty sandwiches and cakes, all served with warmth and care. But what really sets The Undercroft apart is the incredible ambiance. There’s something special about enjoying your food in such a historic and serene setting, where every corner whispers stories of the past. Whether you’re visiting the cathedral or just looking for a unique place to relax, The Undercroft Café is a must-visit. It’s not just a café – it’s an experience that perfectly complements the grandeur of Durham Cathedral. Five stars for the magical surroundings and the perfect place to recharge during your visit!

Obviously, it can get very busy between midday and 2pm, so try and visit outside of that, unless you're lucky enough to bag a table. Really good choice and the prices are not bad considering that you're really a captured audience. Toilets are outside, a few metres from the Undercroft. To the right as look at the cafe from the gift shop.

Exceeded expectations. Great coffee. Hard working friendly staff. Highly recommend!

Excellent cake selection and reasonably strong coffee. Pretty busy as school holidays but didn’t feel hemmed in.

I loved the place, the service was excellent. I only wanted a salad even though it was not on the menu. I asked and I got exactly what I wanted. The place is clean with s friendly atmosphere.

We had scones and a tea. It had to be done!! Can recommend the cheese and chive scones. That was a bit different and very tasty. Very busy and noisy and we were a bit squished. The actual setting is stunning however!

very tasteless. If you want to eat, then only until 3 pm

We were the last customers at about 9pm one night because a show was on. They were packing up but still friendly and welcoming to us. And they let us stay until they need to lock the doors and go. Thanks guys!

We attended a special "Greek Mezze Night" at The Undercroft. The whole event was thoroughly enjoyed by us all. The food was excellent, both in quality and quantity and the service was impeccable - and the staff ever so nice. Thanks to everyone for a lovely evening.

Had broccoli and stilton soup with a roll, and it was delicious, I could have eaten more. There was a good variety of cakes and sandwiches.

Lovely coffee shop/restaurant within Durham cathedral. Food is lovely, so many cakes too choose from which are all reasonably priced. The cakes are replenished all the time. Very good selection of hot food to choose from if you want a meal. There are plenty of seats to sit at. Staff are friendly and helpful, and everything is kept clean and tidy

The chocolate cake was old but rest of them nice and good service good staff

Fair cafe in the cathedral. Sandwich portion was decent. Chocolate cake was too dry. Couldnt help but the overall ambience felt like being in an old folks home when visiting on a weekday afternoon.

Lovely cafe for a bite after visiting Cathedral. I went at half term and they had free lunch boxes for kids which was great

Great food and drinks, lovely atmosphere and reasonable price. We'll worth a visit.

Fab place , food offerings looked good , well priced , wished we had discovered earlier..

I ordered a tuna sandwich without cucumber. They served a tuna sandwich (very salty) without cucumber, with a side salad that was 50% cucumber. Shame. I wouldn't normally mention this, but I was unable to pay for the sandwich despite lots of staff being around, because they were all dealing with unhappy customers who had paid for 2 portions of quiche when they only had one available. The manager told the staff that they were wrong and there was another in the kitchen. Turns out she was wrong and there was not. Not a good day for the Undercroft. Maybe just one bad day.

Good place but FOOD quality is poor.

Sorry but no chips not happy leaves me with not a lot to eat as an autistic person not good. Chocolate is good.

Very good selection of food and drink the Lemon Cake was lovely. Took a while to get served though. Lots of giggling from the kitchen. But all staff very polite

Nice to sit down and relax with a cup of tea /coffee and a slice of cake.

Good selection of cakes and savoury items. Good stop when visiting cathedral

Gorgeous home made delicacies in an amazing setting!

Fabulous lovely sandwich and salad great service

Nice place to have lunch or tea after viewing the Cathedral.

Excellent place for a light lunch and sit down

Nice Earl Grey tea and the carrot cake is gorgeous..

Superb surroundings, peaceful and relaxed vibe. Great menu and excellent value for money.

The food always looks good and is well cooked but there is one big problem. They dish the hot food at the far end of the counter and then send it along to the till for payment. If there is a queue then you can wait a while before you collect and pay. By then it is lukewarm and by the time you are half way through it is cold. Best for cold snacks and cake but not for a hot meal

Enjoyed a superb lunch here when last visiting the cathedral. Great food, great coffee and 5* service. It makes the food taste even better knowing that any profit they make in the restaurant will help to keep this beautiful cathedral in the fantastic condition it is.

No vegan options in either savoury or sweet - not acceptable in 2021! Missing out on a huge and rapidly increasing sector, a student city as well!!

I'll preface by saying that the atmosphere was majestic, but the configuration of the dining room leaves an uncomfortable aura around those who eat, depending on how many are in your party. When my wife and I sat down, we were surrounded by another family of 6 at the same table within less than a minute. While it's to no fault of their own, we were given a jaundiced eye the entire time because we felt like we were intruding on their family hour. If you intend on eating here, take your food elsewhere and find a bench outside, because all seating arrangements are horribly skewed.

Good, clean, straightforward and friendly for light meals and drinks.

A simple cafe for a cup of tea and snack while visiting the cathedral.

Walked all the way from the front door of cathedral to the shown entrance only to be told by officious person to ho back to the front because of track and trace. Even wheelchair access closed I did not go back to front and will never call here again

Usually a lovely place to eat. This was my first visit post lockdown. Disappointed that I was supplied with plastc cutlery (could barely spread the butter I had with my scone) and the cheese scone, which are normally lovely, had virtually no cheese. I hope they revert to the previous recipe. The table was also sticky - this may be related to the cleaning agent they use. It was still a pleasant visit, thanks mainly to the surroundings. The staff were pleasant and professional otherwise.

Good value wholesome food that uses local produce. The portions are generous and the atmosphere is relaxed with helpful staff. There was a good choice to suit all tastes. The tables were nicely arranged and staff were quick to clean and refresh a table after the previous guests.Warm, welcoming and tasty food - add in good value and it made for a perfect meet up with friends.

Very good, big plates, and tasty

We came to this self service restaurant on our Cathedral visit. Their hot food looked excellent but we just wanted a snack so I had a pre packed sandwich and bowl of soup and my wife had a sandwich, crisps and bottle of water - both meal deals. The quality was very good, as was the value.

We stopped here for morning tea and scones. Friendly service, good food, in a nice setting, well worth a visit.

Expensive. Two small sandwiches, 2 drinks £16.00

Opposite the giant lego model of the Cathedral this cafe/restaurant was a peaceful haven - mid afternoon. Fine fare is on offer at a reasonable price.

Unevenly heated food, nice staff, good place for a snack but not a meal. Good amount of food for value.

We stopped for a quick lunch. Had soup and a bun for under £4 each. Clean. Great ambiance in the old priory wine cellar. Free toilets. Free admission to the cathedral and worth a visit. We took the tour and Open Treasures tivket for a £10 each and loved it.

We went here for a coffee break whilst we we were exploring the beautiful / historic Durham Castle. We were amazed by the taste of scones and how big they are for £1.80. You probably can share a scone between two adults. The service we received was very good, coffee/ scones were good and reasonably priced, the seating area is very glamorous. I would definitely recommend The Undercroft for a coffee / tea break. Thank you.👍

We had afternoon tea week after mothering Sunday. 4 adults and two children.We enjoyed it apart from i myself i do not have a sweet tooth as much as the rest of the familySo if they had been maybe another round of sandwiches or even pieces of quiche it would of gone down better.

A party of 17 had tour of Cathedral so before our tour of open treasure we had light lunch in cafe with 10per cent discount with open treasure tickets. It was busy we managed to find seats for everyone. I had home made soup with roll which was delicious and good value. People commented that cake was delicious and good portions. Well worth a visit.

The Undercroft enjoys proximity to the cathedral and St Cuthbert's treasury, which brings in a lot of customers. The coffee is pretty good! Sandwiches, whilst fresh, are pedestrian, and we love a coffee and walnut cake which perhaps means we have set too high a standard. But you must visit the Lego cathedral (my bricks are near the south door)

Having inspected the Lego model of the cathedral (worth a visit), we had a delicious ham and cheese roll and pot of tea for lunch. They also had really fresh salads on offer and very interesting cakes. There is good access, including a lift, and plenty of seating. The prices are far less than usual city expectations.

Called here for a midday snack and had an excellent Quiche and salad for £5.75 - very tasty! Everything was well presented, the staff were smiling and friendly and we retruned later for a cuppa and a cake.

After walking around the Cathedral you need the comfort break. Here it is, they have a nice selection of cakes and biscuits, also a selection of hot meals, all in pleasant surroundings. But as with any Attraction it is not cheap, but it is in line with the day.

The Chef whipped up a fantastic vegan special for my daughter's meal today.

Visited Open Treasure Exhibition and then had afternoon tea at the restaurant. Cherry fruit fruit slice was dry and lacked flavour. Wife's plain scone resembled a crumbling clay brick; very dry and no flavour. Hope this is a one off as usually the food is very good.

Very nice place to have a snack or lunch after a freezing cold day in the City. Loved the Athedral and the lunch here was just what we needed.

Very tasty scones (the Devon ones)!

Handy location /stop off for a break and refreshment if you are trying to take in the whole Durham Cathedral thing! Café is pleasant enough with the usual fare, prices are reasonable and the service is friendly enough!

We had a baguette and baked potato. The service was pleasant and the food was nice and not too expensive. The cafe is conveniently located within the cathedral.

Como local estoy acostumbrado a estar ocupado el lugar, quizás esto ha cambiado desde el sufragio estaba reasignadas? Era tomar un te por la tarde y los gabinetes estaban volviendo descuidado, así que quizás no lo teníamos prisa. También los clientes potenciales pueden haber sido puesto por obras, pero no tenía ningún impacto en el restaurante. Bastante estándar, quizás no más rentables, estilo cantina empelado y menú.

Vivo en Durham pero rara vez visitar el restaurante cripta medieval en catedral de Durham.

A good Restaurant in the Cathedral, good prices & clean. Friendly staff. Worth a visit. Accessible/Disabled friendly.

Tuvimos un tiempo para matar antes de nuestra visita guiada por el castillo era empezar, así que en la tienda de regalos y un almuerzo ligero en la cripta medieval. Mi esposa y mi hija tenía una bonita quiche y yo tenía un bollo con mantequilla y Berry Preserve... y desayuno inglés té por todos los lados por favor. La comida era muy buena y el servicio agradable y rápido. Era agradable consolidado ligera antes una tarde recorriendo el castillo y más tarde la catedral. observé que la cripta medieval fue bastante una instalación moderna dada la historia increíble que la rodea.

average scones although service was friendly. Have tried various cakes and they are hit and miss! Love the cathedral

Este es un café muy concurrida, pero el personal era muy capaz e hicieron un buen trabajo a la hora de limpiar la cola rápidamente. Hay una buena selección de comida desde comidas calientes para tentempiés fríos y hay un montón de mesas por lo que puede que sólo tienes que esperar un par de minutos para uno a clear. Opción de Fácil es que uno espera para una mesa mientras los otros salida la tienda de regalos está al lado.

No es un mal pequeño restaurante con una buena variedad de comida para comprar precios razonables, pero llena

We had the Afternoon Tea for 11 people and it was excellent. The food was lovely and very beautifully presented on wooden blocks. There was plenty to eat without it being over-indulgent. The staff were friendly and accommodating when we added 2 extra people to our party at the last minute. The only suggestion would be to ensure that the staff come to ask if anyone would like a refill of tea or coffee (unlimited refills are included in the price). It was very good value for money and a lovely treat.

After looking at the wonderful Lindisfarne Gospels exhibition we decided to have a cup of tea in the Undercraft cafe at Durham Cathedral. My husband decided to buy lunch as well & returned to the table with 2 fish lasagnes which were delicious. We were so pleased we had decided to go for a refreshing drink. My pot of tea was perfect & my husband's coffee was excellent. The cafe was very busy & tables filled as soon as they were vacated. The staff were very friendly & efficient working very hard to keep up. Everyone was enjoying the food & the ambience.

Although we visited at the end of the lunch period, this did not excuse the poor standard of cooking. The mince in the savoury mince and dumplings was in lumps & had not been broken down when initially cooked. It also had no seasoning and was flavourless. My friend's Honey Roast Gammon ( hot) was cold & insipid. She was also offered gravy with gammon! Who ever heard of this. The aggresive young man who, whilst we were being spoken to by the lady serving our main courses, asked what drinks we wanted but couldn't be bothered to explain the flavours of the cold drinks, needs some training. Whilst the cakes etc looked appetising, we did not feel inclined to try them after our initial experience. Spoilt a pleasant visit to a lovely cathedral.

Fabulous setting, lovely meals, staff extremely friendly and have advised friends of its location. I think a little more advertising of this very nice cafe would be helpful, we found out through friends.

Undercroft restaurant is situated in themost magnificent Cathedral in England -- Durham. as might be expected, the restaurant gets very crowded and noisy. The food is plentiful, and good value, but nothing out of the ordinary. I didn't much enjoy the coffee.It is pleasant, though, to sit and eat in such a historical setting, where St Cuthbert and St Bede might have sat many centuries ago.

This is the coffee shop at the Cathedral. Very good whether you want a snack or a meal. Good selection of home baked cakes.....but please bring back the cherry and almond scones!!

The food in the Undercroft never disappoints. The variety of cakes and scones is excellent and the coffee great. Even though it is busy and lively at most times there are usually seats available.

See my review attached to Durham Cathedral. Cafe only open from 10 am to 4.30 pm