The best restaurants serving British food in St. Mary Powys Mid Wales

IT WAS NOT TERRIBLE BUT . . . . . . having checked their website before leaving Cheltenham to check that the café was open that day and driven 50+ miles it was very annoying and disappointing to find it was CLOSED. The gentleman mowing the front lawn (possibly the owner or manager) replied to my disappointment saying "Oh, yes, I must get around to changing it (the website)".

I had a flat white and an espresso here, both of which I found a bit underwhelming. Firstly, the espresso had absolutely no crema. It seems like they were using very old beans. It tasted extremely bitter to the point of being undrinkable. Sadly, the flat white was not far behind. Too much air was added to the milk, leaving big bubbles in it as opposed to microfoam. I don't think the barista had much training on using the machine (though, hopefully, she will improve over time!)

It was great to revisit the Castle. For many years it reigned supreme in the area but sadly it had slipped badly and wasn't worth visiting. The whole building has revamped and is light, airy and interestingly decorated - if you were with boring company there is certainly plenty to distract you! The staff are friendly, welcoming and efficient and it is especially nice to see some familiar faces still working there. We all opted for vegetarian dishes as there is an interesting selection on the menu and we weren't disappointed. I felt that the wording on the menu failed to make any of the dishes really stand out which was a shame. This became more obvious when I saw what people at other tables had ordered but from the menu read as if the dish was similar to every other restaurant or pub around. Our table was in the window and there is a lovely view across to Pen y Fan. Recommended and a restaurant we will return to.

Very basic. Confused about its identity. No contact tracing being carried out, first place we’ve encountered this issue so far. Didn’t have faith in the cleanliness. Things go downhill when you go downstairs. Graffiti everywhere and general feeling of grubbiness. Staff member pleasant enough but will not be returning.

Being made aware that our food might take longer due to staff shortages, we were impressed with the excellent service and delicious food.