The best restaurants serving British food in Northumberland North East

An utterly bleak visit to Ponteland Dobbies which is in desperate need of either a full refurbishment, or bulldozing. Vast swathes of shelves were empty, the carpets were soiled and held together by duct tape. Even that duct tape was worn and held together by more duct tape. Light bulbs were out, seats were worn away, signage was wonky and torn. Many of the plants looked like they’d given up too. Staff looked just as worn out and tired. Yawns aplenty and chatting among themselves at the expense of any semblance of customer service. The cafe was a particular masterclass in disappointment. There was “no hot food available due to unforeseen circumstances outside of our control”. It felt like no circumstance was in their control. There was barely anything to eat, and the response when we dared to ask how to get a piece of cake from behind one of the counters, was just plain rude. At one point a member of staff, frustrated at a colleague on the tannoy, outwardly exclaimed “how long do you get for murder?”. It was funny, but not really what you expect to hear on a Saturday afternoon trip to fetch some begonias. Ironically all the chairs on the cafe terrace were taped off in a fashion resembling a crime scene. Maybe they did snap after all? If I had to look for positives I could say that the aquarium section looked in decent nick and the member of checkout staff we got was pleasant enough. The aforementioned slice of cake was actually pretty good too. But surely Dobbies, especially one located in middle to upper class heartland of Ponteland, should be doing a lot better than this?

Visited here as we just wanted a cup of tea and a piece of cake. Other establishments were shut or only served fish and chips! I try and be fair when leaving reviews and unfortunately this did not “hit the mark”. The waitress didn’t seem interested in her job with no welcome as we walked through the door. No table service and menus were poorly presented on the bare wooden tables. Tea was ok but both the cakes we had were pretty average. The cafe gave the impression that it was unloved and needed a lot of TLC. We won’t be back.

The smell of cooking oil just hits you when you open the door. Not an encouraging sign. Mediocre coffee and cakes. Seats dated and uncomfortable. Whole place looks untidy and unkempt Asked lady who was serving where the toilets were. Was directed round to the back of the building to a filthy muddy courtyard only to find there was a handwritten sign on the door saying toilet was closed. Thank goodness there are lovely public toilets just round the corner. What a shame that this seems to be the only cafe Rothbury has on what used to be a lovely Main Street but sadly like so many other towns is showing signs of decline. Will take a picnic and a flask the next time we visit Rothbury!

Me paré en el Angel Inn para algo de cenar después de un largo viaje en coche. Era fácil aparcar en el aparcamiento adecuado a la parte trasera de la posada y al entrar en el bar de la puerta de atrás a un miembro del personal fue rápido a la escolta a una mesa. La comida era buena y adecuada. Mi única observación es que el plato principal podría haber sido mucho más caliente. Lo mencioné cuando pregunté si todo estaba a mi satisfacción y calificaba mi respuesta, subrayando que no era una queja, simplemente una observación. Tengo la confianza de que yo tuve mala suerte y quizás mi plato había sentado por un tiempo antes de ser presentado. De lo contrario mi comida era buena y volveré. Sin embargo, mencionar que como mi tiempo de comida caliente al lado.

We came for a quick lunch and ordered a sandwich and a salad. After paying for this we were told there was no forks for the salad and there was nothing they could do. If we had know this we wouldn’t have ordered. The staff were very dismissive of the problem, offering no help or solution. Shocking from the manager on shift

Terrible experience here , I had attended a relatives wedding that I had traveled 200 miles for and was greeted at the bar by rude staff that seemed to not want to serve anyone and put a downer on the evening , my food was also not given as they had “ran out” even though I had ordered and payed for my meal weeks in advance but this was not clear to the catering company Would not reccomend this venue!

Not made very welcome and no one about when I left, especially to pass my issues onto. So as a woman in her 70s would not use it again I'm afraid. And very disappointed as such a beautiful area.