On a recent trip to Manchester, my luvley wife, daughter and I went on a coach trip with a group of…read morefriends to Bowness-on-Windermere in the Lake District. Though it was a cloudy and breezy day, the temperature was quite reasonable for walking the hilly streets and popping in and out of all of the shops. Such a lovely town. With all of that walking, we quickly burned off our light early morning breakfast and stopped in at a patio bar on the main street for a couple of glasses of bubbles and a soda for our daughter while we decided what to do for lunch. I had done some research on the several chippies in town, looking to go beyond the normal fish and chips to scampi and chips. I read that the best scampi is had with full tail langoustine, and that some "scampi" actually contains fish pieces. I asked the bartender her opinion of the best shop in town, and right away she mentioned one that I had read about, Vinegar Jones. In fact, it was right up the street. We made a bee-line for the shop and so had a lot of others as the line snaked out the door. Wanting our fix bad enough, I got in line and ordered fish for the ladies and scampi for myself while my luvley wife and daughter headed upstairs to see if there was seating available, despite the sign on the counter that read "Upstairs Full". They found a table just in time so as I paid for our order, I was told it would be delivered upstairs shortly. The upstairs room is smallish, but had comfortable seating and a nice view out over the main street. Our orders arrived quickly, and the large pieces of fish were ever so gorgeous, piping hot and glistening on beds of chips. It tasted so fresh. But the star of my show was the scampi, full tail tasty nuggets of beauty. With little packets of tartar sauce and a full bottle of malt vinegar in hand, we were in chippy heaven. We had two other meals of fish and chips during our stay in Manchester, but none matched the quality and fresh taste of Vinegar Jones. Cheers!

Friendly, welcoming staff were more than happy to educate an American on the finer points of…read moreBritish chippie offerings. I was well fed and happy! No complaints. Definitely want to visit again next time I am in the Lake District!

They restaurants here fill up fast, and they all seemed very understaffed on the day we visited…read more Fortunately, this small, no-seating shop sells warm and flaky creations with fantastic fillings for an easy picnic or something to hold you over until you find a sit-down place. We tried the Scotch Egg and the Pork & Apple pasty, both of which had beautiful crusts a delicious fillings. They are substantial so best to share with friends.

Splendid bakery. Wide choice of pastry's including vegan, vegetarian and meat options. I don't know…read morewhat it was we ordered for a pastry but it was divine and I wish I had one now! Friendly staff

Well what can I say, I'm a fan, ok you got me I LOVE THIS PLACE!!!!…read moreThe food is excellent, the service is quick and you can watch your food being cooked :-) My brother in law is a bit of a Indian food connoisseur and he loves it too, whenever he's in town this is his take away of choice. I would recommend phoning your order in advance though as it can get busy (a victim of their own success I suppose) If your in town and fancy a nice n spicy take away I would highly recommend. Bonne appetite :-)

British Raj was good when it opened up a few years ago, but in my opinion it has gone down hill a…read morelot. I believe now they are cutting quality and costs and just interested in money....... The last few meals I have had haven't been good, one time I heard a employee ask the manager if he should use old food / leftovers also the amount of breast chicken meat has been replaced with mixed thigh meat not good, the sauces are not very good very watery and slimy. I used to spend £20 at least a month there but I make my own better curry at home now. Although its a open kitchen all the food is pre cooked and all they do is warm it up when you order, I have had the tandoori mixed grill twice that was dry as a bone and I suspect days old just heated up. The only thing cooked fresh in there are Nan bread's and King prawns, the rest of the entire menu is pre cooked in huge big tubs that they re heat, I have no problem with that, but when I got a week old chicken madras and a tandoori mixed grill that was dry and mouldy that's when I stopped going in.

Roast pepper soup on a windy & rainy afternoon was just what the doctor ordered. Chicken caesar…read moresalad was nice too, yet they forgot anchovies. The service was rather rude. When our card was rejected, they acted as if we didn't have money and wanted to run away -- didn't like that attitude *at all*. Also, the atmosphere of the place is a bit confusing - it's new, and on the 1st floor they have glass walls looking out to the street - which looked fantastic, but I left feeling confused... is it a hip new place in Lake District, or is this an old place pretending to be hip?

The rules of a good service is not only to take your order and bring it out but also check on you…read moreafter your first bite, and to check on you in a middle of your meal to refill your drinks. This place lacks of all steps but the ordering and brining it out. When I wanted something I had to yell out the waitress who was busy chatting with other staff behind the counter. We were done with tea and nobody checked on us. I wanted Tabasco for my soup there were nobody to ask for it Same for the freshly ground pepper. Food is okay. Nothing special. If you are here for a quick pit stop this place is okay.

So, the name of the restaurant is Araya now, but it still shows up as Jintana on Yelp. We came here…read morefor dinner on our last night in Kendal and what a pleasant surprise! It turned out to be not just the best meal of our vacation so far, but honestly some of the best Thai food I've had in a long time. The inside of the restaurant was nice and intimate and did not match the front exterior at all. Statues and nice decor all around. Once we were seated, we started with prawn crackers, spring rolls, and fried prawns, then moved on to our mains: pad prik beef, chicken pad Thai, and a vegetable red curry with sides of jasmine rice. Everything was fresh, flavorful, and so satisfying. I only wished they had those tiny Thai chilis in vinegar, but they did have chili oil, which was good. Service was excellent; seemed like the owner (?), chef, servers, and hosts all pitched in and helped each other, which was nice to see. Overall, it was a wonderful dining experience and the perfect way to wrap up our trip to Kendal.

Almost perfect Thai resteraunt. Good selection of Thai…read morefood, tasted various curries and the rice was one of the best I have tried.., deserts could have been a little more creative perhaps.

A vegetarian Italian restaurant?! We were hesitant before going and then were so glad we did…read more Located in the lower level of a historic cinema, this glowingly-lit place was the perfect spot to meet up with friends. They gave us a giant round table that was super plush and cozy. My gin and elderflower tonic was delicious, as was the tagliatelle bolognese. I finished mine and almost my husband's too. The portion was the perfect size and the rest of our table enjoyed their meals and desserts too. They offer lots of appetizers (like specially-made bruschettas, etc), as well as pizzas, pastas, salads, and decadent desserts. Honestly didn't even notice that it was all vegetarian. Definitely go here!

Boy, does this place do a good Whiskey and Coke. As you can…read moretell I am extremely easily pleased. We went here last week with old family friends and was the perfect environment to catch up, enjoy great food and have a good drink. The menu is great and everyone left feeling extremely satisfied with what they ordered. I would 100% recommend if you are in the Ambleside area!

The appraisers were amazing in both taste presentation. Our main course looked amazing but was not…read morevery special in the flavor department. It wasn't bad, just okay. However when the server asked how it was and my wife said her meal was a little salty but okay the server lost her composure and totally went off about how dare we tell her that at the end of a meal. So if you go and the server asks how everything was just say it was amazing regardless of reality to avoid a scene. We won't go back.

Staff were friendly and swift to take our orders and serve us. Overall a nice atmosphere. The…read morestarters and mains we had were very nice. I am giving a four mainly because I thought the desserts where not that special, especially after having two wonderful dishes before that I was expecting something really amazing but it was still good! I would certainly go back if I am in the area.

This is a lovely restaurant in the Lake District. Great service and fine dining without anything…read morepretentious. The staff made us feel welcome and comfortable. They fit us in on a busy night with just an hour notice. The candlelight on the tables was very romantic for a night out with my husband. The prawn and chorizo starter was absolutely delicious. The lamb shank with fresh vegetables and mashed potatoes was excellent. I will definitely recommend this restaurant to anyone looking for a great dining experience in The Lakes.

Ambiance, service and food was excellent. How much effort Lucy and the team puts into the customer…read moreexperience really shows.