I've been here twice - once about 3 years ago and just last week. The good news is that it was just…read moreas good as I remember and I'll hopefully be going back again sooner than the 3 year break I had. Basically it looks a lot cooler from outside with the indoor a bit 'average caf' like although the fact that you can see everything being cooked in front of you is a really novel and cool way to showcase that this place is all about good quality food. Although they do some tasty cafe items like burgers, sandwiches and snacks they're also a place where you can enjoy coffee and cake - and the cake selection is pretty epic! Our merry bunch of eaters all looked like the strangest, most eclectic 'orderers' ever with my wife and sister in law mainly enjoying cake and myself just going for a "light snack" of the ham hock terrine for £4.95. For this price I was expecting a little tiny bite, really not much to it but I was surprised to get a giant plate of ham hock, fresh bread, salads, pasta and loads more. It was so fresh and so tasty too - definitely something I'll go out of my way to have again if I'm up this way (I just won't have lunch plans afterwards too...) Friendly staff and seating for about 15 outdoors - with only 5 mins walk to Buxton train station. A really good spot and a place I'd recommend checking out.

No idea why people are raving about this place. The service is painfully slow and the food no…read morebetter than a road side cafe, but twice the price. To top it off, we were sat at the stable doors and it stunk of drains. Never again.

08/19/17 We found The Hydro while looking for a place in…read moreBuxton and were not disappointed. Pros: Great selection on the menu - for non vegetarians and vegetarians (important as we were a mixed group) Good food - we had a vegetable quiche (daily special not on menu), lamb shank, and garden burger and all were happy with their dishes. Lovely service. Polite servers even with the restaurant being busy. Cons: Not really an issue for us, but mentioning just in case: since it was busy it took a while to get service. At the end of the meal after waiting for a bit we tried to ask another server for a coffee and the check, but didn't get either until our original server came by. The entire meal took about 1 1/2 hours - including a delay on our part to put in our orders so it wasn't that much of an issue.

Our experiences of the Hydro weren't dampened down…read more.... We stumbled across this place whilst on a day trip to Buxton. Located in the town's main street. There was plenty of seating and the decor was 50s themed. The menu had the usual snacks and staple mains you'd see in any cafe/restaurant in the UK. However it has a number of Indian dishes (based on the new management that have just acquired the restaurant. The food was nice. I had a cold sliced beef and red onion sandwich on granary bread and my girlfriend had a jacket potato with no butter and beans. The server was very friendly and was very accommodating to my girlfriends request for no butter. The drinks and food was reasonably priced. The service was fairly quick and everything was freshly prepared. I would recommend and go there again, if I was visiting Buxton.

VERY RUDE STAFF! painting while i was trying to eat my dinner? Also the tea tasted like nats piss.read more

RUDE STAFF DIRTY TABLES My husband and I went into this…read morecoffee shop and the only member of staff available barely acknowledged our 'hello' and seemed very reluctant to serve us. She proceeded to be very rude when we asked what some of the different cakes etc were. The tables and the floor were filthy and the waitress did not take kindly to us politely asking if she would clean our table. When she brought the coffee and cakes over she banged the cups on the table with a real 'attitude', spilling the coffee and then she stomped off again. Unimpressed. The cakes were stale and unappetising. Avoid!!

this place is lovely if you manage to get in, its very busy and the roof is stained glass so worht…read moresitting there in summer as its boiling! food and drinks lovely and seems reasonably priced! tourists love it as its near the thermal baths attraction

Only been here at lunchtime and the food is fantastic. Reasonable prices and most of the staff are…read morefriendly. A different and warm atmosphere. Wide selection of food.

Decent coffee served by super nice staff. I had a hot chocolate that could have been a lot hotter…read moreand a bit less sweet. Prices are average. This is a good location in the center of town just below the Slopes.

This is actually quite a noisy coffee house so if you are looking for quiet relaxation choose your…read moretime carefully. Apart from that you can expect a decent cup of coffee as is the norm for a Cafe Nero. Were it not fir the noisy atmosphere I would have marked it 4 stars