West Hill Cafe in Hastings

The best spot in the whole of Hastings, completely wasted. Such a shame.

A star for my baguette and the pleasant man in the kitchen. Aside from that, the place absolutely stinks. It's filthy, understaffed and in disrepair. The sooner the lease is awarded to a serious business person, the better. Yuck.

After making the effort to get up to the West Hill Café ,it's often not open (this past August Bank holiday being a case in point!) No sign on the windows, no answer to the mobile number listed to call. Now, when it is open it's grubby and expensive for what you get. Dreadful place This Café is in a beautiful, unique position which is leased from the council who should be ashamed of it....it could be a wonderful place.But it's not!!! AVOID AT ALL COSTS

I meet my son and grandson here because nothing can take the beautiful view away, that's the only thing here that's beautiful sadly. Shabby, over priced café, that seems to open only when it wants to. The council issue a license for this prime location and has been issuing it to the same rude man for years, who doesn't actually do anything more than sit reading a newspaper for hours(?) being absolutely rude and obnoxious to the man who actually does all the work. It's short staffed and very overpriced. We waited an hour until gone 12:00 and still there was no sign of life ..... really it did us a favour as we went down in the lift and found a really great Italian restaurant which was actually not only miles better but cheaper! Either take a picnic after all the view is free this place cost me money (cab and lift) even though it wasn't open - that takes some doing - so many people arrived hoping to use the cafe in the time I was waiting for the cafe to open!!!! Avoid!

Nice view on a.sunny day except it felt that we were sitting on the terrace of a derelict building covered in graffiti which also had a hint of stale urine. The cafe has definitely seen better days. The cakes on offer looked like they had been bought at Morrison's.

This place is only surviving because it has a captive audience. It’s grubby, dated and selling very few soft drink options (no Coke Zero, Fanta or Sprite). The Walls ice cream advertised it actually a cheap knock off yet sold at Walls prices. We waited 10 minutes to be served when it wasn’t busy and the bloke out the back just kept pretending he hadn’t seen us. I realise he was busy but a “be right with you” was all it took. The views are stunning and this business doesn’t deserve them.

The view was so good from this cafe. I only bought a bottle of water here, not sure how their food is. They have toilets also.

Don't bother cost £18 for 2 baguettes and 2 cokes I had ham and cheese well if you can find the cheese and the side salad was literally a few strands of lettuce never again

The cafe is a usual price-bumped for tourists which is to be expected. But whatever you do, do not use the toilets round the back of the cafe, lots of junkies hanging about, shooting up all over the place. They stink. Find a nearby restaurant or a bush, less chance of getting HepB.

I gave 4 stars for an amazing view and great customer service. Food was slightly disappointing as it was very greasy and oily.

We hoped to have lunch here after a ride up on the lift - but it was too dirty. Tables dirty, high chairs sticky and dirty, windows dirty, cobwebs, unkempt staff smelling of alcohol in dirty aprons, microwave pinging (probably due to the fact there is a huge menu) no way would the ingredients be fresh etc. Staff abrupt / rude. No thanks. We'll go elsewhere. What a shame. (BRING A PICNIC)

Top of the hill, after the funicular ride. Glorious views. Sadly no scones. £2 for a pot of tea. £2.80 for coffee. Toilets

Ridiculously expensive! Ordered a milkshake for £3 and ended up with a bottle that I know is 89p in Home Bargains! Staff are rude. No tables or seating on the terrace. No recycling bins. Decor is aged and needs a good clean.

I have been a few times over the past few years but unfortunately the irregular opening hours have now put me of , It should be a gold mine but like most mines they are now closed for any type of business

Such a shame this cafe has gone down, smells of dirty oil slow service although the staff did their best. Very over priced. Needs a bit of TLC

Supposed to open at 11, sat outside until 11:30 as only place to get food on the hill and no sign of life at all, doesn't answer phone or messages... waste of time.

I visited with my daughter yesterday and we loved this cafe. The views were wonderful as it was a beautiful sunny clear day .I had a toasted sandwich and my daughter a jacket potato which we both enjoyed and thought excellent value for money. The cafe is quirky and fun and we will definitely be back.

Old style cafe with probably the best views views over Hastings. Even when the weather is bad, it’s a great place to enjoy a coffee and watch the world go by.

Had a lovey breakfast that was good value and good quality. Beautiful view of Hastings. Well worth takingthe funicular to the top of the hill.

What an absolutely wasted opportunity this cafe is. One of the best locations and views on hastings and it’s been allowed to fall into the hands of people that clearly don’t know what a cleaning product is. Drab, dark and dirty, over priced horrible food, rude staff and bad service. The inside is so outdated, everything is torn and worn and dirty, I got cake for my little boy and there was actual dirt on the cutlery. Outside is a Mish mash of faded plastic chairs and dirty tables, graffiti all over the walls. Not a care in the world has been given here, I don’t even want to know what the food hygiene rating would be .

Only thing going for this cafe is the view, felt sick after coffee. The place needs cleaning looks like a mess. And the manager needs a good wash and spruce up. Such a shame could be made beautiful. Wash graffiti off!

Thanks to Dave for a lovely afternoon on the outside balcony of his Westhill Cafe Hastings, The views are stunning from there, not just overlooking the sea but the Old town and East cliff too, down to the funfair train and go karts too , Dave is from liverpool and when you get to know him one of the friendliest guys around , have been going there several years and will continue to do so.

Have been today, it is open for business and the owner and chef very accommodating. It is cash only temporarily but the views are second to none and you can have a variety of different food choices. Make a day of it, go to smugglers adventure which is a short walk away, take the children to the park and visit the cafe for some tasty food !

The cafe could do with a good clean, it's drab just like the staff, could be a gold mine,just about got eye contact from staff, if the owner is a large scruffy chap with the personality of a dead cod, I have met him !!!!

Shame ... What a location ... Let down by absences on the menu...including soup of the day. Needs a deep clean a lick of paint & dragging into a more current era.

Not very clean tea had a horrible taste coffee was as bad

Had a quick bite to eat and drink after flying my Mavic Air Drone and visiting the smugglers cave the restaurant was clean reasonable prices on the menu board to choose from friendly staff

Fantastic location. Good service and a damned good cup of tea. The place does look a bit tired, but we still enjoyed our visit.

My first ever Trip Advisor; had to be written in honour of the worst cafe in Hastings. Go here if you fancy some very overpriced & badly microwaved food chucked haphazardly on a plate or if you would like to see a “salad” reduced to 2 shreds of iceberg lettuce, a slice of cucumber & a quarter of tomato. Having worked in hospitality; I never blame staff for poor quality food or service - always comes down to bad management so as it goes, just feel sorry for the staff. Manager guy just seems to sit around talking. Only redeeming factor is the view.

With the cliff railway out of action we walked up as we had already paid for the smugglers caves. I was gasping for a drink. We went in I sat myself down outside with my son while my husband went to the counter. He stood there for ages while the staff chatted amongst themselfs. And he was ignored. The member of staff then went into the kitchen, leaving my husband just standing and waiting. Hubby then came out and sat down as we wernt sure if staff came to us. (he could have been told while standing at the counter) we waited another 5 minutes with a member of staff even walking past us to take another customers order to them, looking at us as he walked past. It wasn't busy(no surprise) And no one came. So we left. Not at all impressed.

I stopped off with my clients for a spot of lunch. We walked in ...one person behind the counter and one in the kitchen. Both spoke little English. The person behind the counter then went into the kitchen and started to cook....the other guy came out front and cleared some tables. Ten minutes later our order was taken. I asked for a cheese baguette and one hot dog to be told there's no hot dogs. So I asked for a sausage baguette instead (that was ok ...what's the difference ?) ..two hot drinks and two Fantas. Asked for a receipt. The guy started to take the till apart then gave me a till receipt with nothing on it !! I asked for a written one. He the wrote on a notepad 'ches - 5.95 ..saus 5.95' and that was it. I said I would write the receipt myself so he gave me the pen and I wrote my own receipt ! £20.90 for what we ordered. The baguettes came 20 mins later !! I Whether these guys were on their first day or not I don't know....but they were shocking. This cafe is probably in one of the finest positions to have a cafe in the south east...views are stunning....but carry on like this and you WILL close down ! PS...I'm local to the cafe which makes it worse !

Slow service, expensive, ineptly made unpleasant sandwiches. Plan ahead and bring a pack of sandwiches from any shop to eat up here and you’ll do far better.

I love this place, good service .. fantastic owner .. great Breakfast !!!!! I wish all Hastings could live up to this Cafe ...true British nostalgia.

Service was quiet slow and left waiting for a few minutes before being served, despite being directly behind the previous customer. Tea didn't taste as would have expected but maybe it was the tea bags. 2 Stars given as great views over the town

Visited today - dirty shabby - food on display looked stale. Very expensive - the tea & coffee were slopped all over the tray - what was left in the pot tasted disgusting. The outside seating area at the back was full of rubbish on the floor with swooping seagulls that were walking over the tables - which were never cleaned whilst we were there. Left to see the man that had been serving sitting on one of the work / surfaces - just disgusting all round - will never go again - no one should visit here for the sake of their health & wallet. Hastings council -how the hell do you let this situation exist in one of your tourist areas ???

I live near here and was walking my dog , as we reached cafe my dog went to water bowl which was virtually empty, I picked up to go and ask for refill and he told me off not to bring inside , I said ok can you refill please he said “ later” , I replied that’s too late my dog thirsty !! Anyway I shall never bring any business here ever !! I told him he was rude !!😡😡

Was hungry and thirsty after exploring the castle so popped into the cafe. Waited in vain for service. While waiting we had time to observe the dirty cutlery and tables so decided to go elsewhere.

It closes too early on Sundays.

Attended here for a quick warming tea and coffee as the weather was bad. The price for a coffee and tea was just under £4. The drinks were sufficient but my partner says the coffee was flavourless. Staff appeared uninterested and service wasn't their forte. Unfortunately if we visited again we wouldn't come here.

Rude and so overpriced. You're paying for the view. Might as well bring a picnic and sit out on the grass. Can't believe how expensive it is and how rude the staff are. Food was poo aswell. Better at McDonalds.

Piękny widok z kawiarni na plaże w Hastings . Można napić się kawy przy dobrym ciastku .

Lovely views overlooking the sea nice cafe with good selection of food & drinks

Wanted a quick warming drink to takeaway whilst enjoying Jack in the Green. The queue was out the door and was barely moving. I couldn't believe there was only 2 staff (1 doing drinks/money whilst the other cooked) on probably their busiest day of the year! A half hour queue later was told they had run out of soya milk (by 11am?!?) and I could come back another day. I don't think so when there are plenty of fantastic cafes a mere stones throw away at the bottom of the hill!!!

We had the best jacket potato ever. They have always done brill jackets .if u are in hastings for lunch its a must

Ive always liked this place. I especially adore the home made Shepherds/Cottage Pie. I also like the Chilli Con Carne. The cafe affords one with great scenes of Hastings Old Town and the fishing fleet and harbour, the East Hill and Country Park, Clive Vale and Ore. This cafe has brilliant staff and has had the same proprietor for over thirty years. I believe that the only day of the year it is closed is Christmas Day. I highly recommend it

It is overpriced microwaved food that is not even tasty. The owner is a rude miserable man and doesn’t even have the decency or courage to defend these poor reviews. It has been this bad for too many years. It’s about time the cafe was taken over by a decent chef to offer a service that Hastings could be proud of. A facility in such a position should be the pride of Hastings not the shoddy embarrassment that it is.

The View is amazing, but that because its always been there.

Beautiful view of the sea from the terrace

Very Expensive £8.95 For An Omlette

Lovely views over Hastings old town

Great views over Hastings.good coffee.

Went there with family after a walk on the breezy West Hill in Hastings. Pub standard and pub prices for Fish n Chips, Lasagne, home made cake, coffee. No alcohol. Informal atmosphere, wonderful views, furniture looking a bit tatty, child friendly.

I come for a weekend with boyfriend. Hastings is wonderful, we found this little cafe at the top of the hills but what a disappointment it was. Service was slow, the owner was rude to a mum because she had her own food to feed babies with?? When we asked for our money back, we was given £6 less and we only had 1 Coke and 1 water. We left in the end because it took to long and they was all over the place with service!! Do not bother!!

It's a great place to have a sit down on the open balcony, and have a nice beverage whilst looking down on Hastings old town & coast line. Just so relaxing enjoying the beautiful views.

Nothing pretentious about this place - it is a basic café, and there is nothing wrong with that. The coffee and cakes were fine. I had the cherry cake (loaf) - but not much cherry in the piece I had. If you are ordering food you need to order at the counter and they bring the food to your table. We only had drinks and cakes.

Great terrace overlooking the Old town

Both indoor and outdoor facilities, but would recommend the outside for the views. Food ok.

Went for breakfast on a Sunday morning got there at 10.20 just opening breakfast over price toast under done not very clean

Chilly, but nice cake and a cuppa

Ordered soup of the day, it was not of the day. It was microwaved!

The food is stuck in the 70’s and the cheapest possible quality with zero nutrition. White bread, very little filling in sandwiches and how they can charge nearly £5 for one is beyond me. Tuna and mayo is just some salad cream with few bits of tuna. Chips old and stale and such an expensive menu.

Lovley cup of coffee enjoying the views

We like this cafe very much. Friendly staff. Good food, especially breakfast! And amazing views from high on clifftop. B & S from Greatstone on Sea. Kent.

What can I say. One guy doing the counter . Cooking. And all the washing and clearing up. Not been in there for a few years and for a beautiful spot it could be so much better. It's very tired looking and could do with a good upgrade. I'm in the building game and there are so many better cafe's around. I imagine the tourists don't think much of it either

Always very pleasant, enjoy it a lot up there.

They appeared to be having problems keeping up with orders on the morning I visited. 15 minutes for two slices of toast and other customers even more held up. Also they don’t even know what the phrase ‘free range eggs’ means let alone serve them. I recommend you stick with drinks and pastries.

The presentation wasn’t amazing considering it was 6.95 for a burger! It was 3.95 for a burger alone and 6.95 for chips as well! The burger wasn’t amazing also! Lots of annoying seagulls that try to steal your food!

Fun and friendly cafe - the best bacon sandwich known to man. Incredible. Lovely cup of tea overlooking the sea front. You get what you pay for here, it's rough and ready but a charming place to dream away a couple of hours looking out to sea.

What a moment in time to treasure. The view is one of the most astonishing in the area.

Sadly poor food, poor service. Such a beautiful spot.

Been here lots of times with no problem but the guy behind the counter was really takin' the Mickey. Guys, please make sure you check your bills, guy at the counter was literally making up prices and caught him charging us £6 for a fried egg sandwich..... 2 pieces of cheap white bread, margarine (not butter) and a fried egg...... Unbelievable :-(

The food choice we chose was a simple bacon baguette. It was lovely. Soft and yummy! But the staff were a bit strange. The whole ordering process was very uncomfortable. I understand they were teaching someone, but there was no need to be so rude to the poor girl. (This was a year ago now). Manners are free!

The location and subsequently the views are unrivalled. A clifftop site overlooking Hastings Old Town, Hastings Country Park, the harbour and Stade with views right across The Channel.

Bonne cuisine simple et pas chère. Idéal pour une petite pause repas le midi. Lasagnes, Chili, omelettes de toutes sortes...

Nice Carrot cake, fabulous view.

Took the West Cliff railway up to the cafe. At the counter was a sign saying “Cash only - No card or cheque payments”. Sadly, all the cash machines were at the bottom. Would have helped to have a sign at the entrance to the railway to tell us this. Had to rob the kids for enough money to pay the bill.

Best views from a cafe and nice staff

This cafe is terrible! It's in such a prime position but they've made no effort with it. It's run down, the food is appalling quality and it's just not a pleasant experience. You're much better off enjoying the view then heading down to Old Town to get some food.

Visited on a Wednesday afternoon and ordered tea for two, one egg mayo baguette and a caramel shortbread thingy. The cost was £10.50. Cheap ingredients were used. I didn't encounter any rudeness and staff were polite to other customers as well.. The view from the outside terrace was amazing on a sunny day.

Nice little cafe with a good choice of menu. Sat outside had great views. Would recommend for a nice lunch

lovely place with lovely views..a great place to stop after a long walk around hastings castle or somewhere just to stop and enjoy the views..staff are friendly and the premises are kept clean and tidy.prices could be slightly better but over all a nice place

Very overpriced for very poor food, ordered "cottage pie" had to leave it, not heated through properly.... never seen one like it... It turned my stomach looking at it, only fit for a dog. AVOID FOOD AT ALL COSTS. Would have given zero stars if possible. Seagulls finished it off when we left

In a way this cafe has got worse since my review some years ago. Always over-priced and apparently run for the convenience of the owner and staff rather than the customers, at least they were polite. There is now a man serving food who is so hostile as to be intimidating. My friend returned to check the prices paid for 2 x egg on toast, 1 x chips and 3 diet pepsis was really nearly £25 (this is Hastings not London) and he was most agressive. I see from other posts that this isn't the first time when the service has been unpleasant. Get rid of him. I'll pay extra for the view, even for the very average food, but not to be intimidated by the staff!

Lovely views, had coffee outside on the terrace, staff pleasant, recommend.

Food was little expensive but the veiws were lovely and so was the delious cakes. Definatly worth a visit for coffee and cake.

I have visited this cafe with gorgeous views several times and although the guy serving at the till making tea and coffee is very rude!! to customers the owner and chef are helpful and the food is made promptly and is well cooked. Rather overpriced but great coffee and homemade cakes available. Lovely views on the outside terrace. Worth a visit.

Das “West Hill Café“ thront oben auf dem gleichnamigen Hügel vor den Ruinen von Hastings Castle. Vor oder nach dem Besuch der Burgruine oder der Gegend dort kann man dort durchaus für ein leckeres warmes Gericht oder ein traumhaftes Stück Kuchen einkehren.

Have not used the cafe, have just been on the hill for Jack in the Green event.

Having heard from my partners parents that this was a lovely spot to have tea and cake in the past we were very disappointed. At 11am I was told that they would not be serving 'half frozen cake' so I would have to wait for the privilege. The fizzy drinks were flat and after being spoken to in such a disrespectful way. I just wish I'd have checked the reviews before I had spent £7.50 on a muffin, bottle of fizzy drink and a sausage sandwich before we cut our losses and left. Take a picnic it is far nicer.

I would say I'm a fair reviewer, but when we arrived at the cafe it was shut and didn't open until 11am, so check your times as their is no other place to get a drink when your up there. The chairs were old and some were broken. The staff were moaning at each other about being short staffed ,apart from one lady that was serving(she smiled), which we don't need to hear when having a holiday! The food seemed to have been thrown on the plate and the tea was weak (I could have asked for another teabag I suppose). Apart from that,you cannot fault the views, shame the rest of it couldn't match the view as they have an ideal spot for a cafe. Come on staff cheer up.

Fajny widok na kanal LaManche, mimo tego ze lokal to pozny PRL

Visited here today. We thought it would be lovely to seat outside with the views and it being a lovely sunny day. There was a big queue which didn’t put us off. The staff seemed stressed and didn’t know whether they were coming or going. They had no change in there till so had to have the exact money which was a pain. We had 2 drinks, one of which was out of date. I went back up and the guy changed it no problem but said all the others were like it so opted for something else. It looks tired and run down. It’s a shame as it has a prime location looking over old Hastings, it could be amazing.

Nice to have a cup of tea or coffee and look down at the old town and the east hill .

Over priced for shocking food. The only saving grace was the view and the fact I felt sorry for the guy as he was on his own. Haven’t felt right since eating there. Stick to tea!

Popped in for the first time today, as the cliff railway was closed for maintenance so we thought we’d go here instead. Well I’ll never make that mistake again!

Poor service rude staff will never recommend terrible visit

This is a stunning location. So we went in thinking it would be half decent. It wasn't. The cake counter consisted of cakes that looked suspiciously as though someone had nipped to Tesco on the way to work- cookies, doughnuts, hot cross buns, chocolate cake etc. I paid '£5.40 for cup of tea (£1.80) , a doughnut (£1.80) and a cookie (£1.80). The chairs were all stacked up, maybe due to the time of year but if it's open, it's open and they should make it feel it's open. It was very overpriced for the environment and it felt as though it was falling down really and needs a good revamp. Next time is take a picnic and admire the view from the grass outside. Such a wasted opportunity. This place could be amazing but sadly completely misses the mark.

Nice views, shabby interior, rude staff and below average food.

Today with a group of friends and about 8 dogs we visited for a coffee and cake. We were made most welcome and we sat outside at the back of the cafe overlooking Hastings. We were told we could sit inside if we wanted but it was too nice.

Friendly staff but the stale old donut was way overpriced. Other cakes looked expensive too. It would have been a nice view if someone had bothered to put the chairs out on the terrace.