Amazing! Lovely dark academia/ alchemy atmosphere. The food is the best I've had in Wales! Not to…read moremention the super cool interactive alchemist /molecular style drinks. Love this vibe and delicious food.

A great stop for some amazingly unique drinks! The atmosphere was fabulous, and the super friendly…read more staff took their time to recommend some great choices! A must stop if you enjoy a good cocktail, or two!

10 Feet Tall is a cooky and eccentric vintage looking bar sister to buffalo bar and Mr Smith's that…read moreserves so great meals with wonderful drinks. As if that wasn't enough it hosts live music certain nights and quiz nights. It once hosted a Doctor Who themed quiz night. If that's not enough to please you then I don't know what will! I was luckily enough to go to a staff party in their function room upstairs with a full bar. The whole mood and atmosphere is very relaxed and we all had an excellent time there. They even supplied us with their food. They food looks unique and tastes incredible. Although I was confused to deciding whether what I was eating was a roasted parsnip or a well cooked French fry. To this day I still don't know what it was. This bar is a great place to hang out in groups. It's a friendly place that offers a variety of cocktails and it has a happy hour. The only thing that brings it down slightly is the prices like it's sisters Buffalo and Mr Smith's. So prepare to dig a little deeper in your wallet. 10 Feet Tall is a wonderful bar where you can enjoy a lunch or have great night out with all the events that they host. Just be warned you may spend a little much. I would go after pay day!

I'm a real fan of this place, even if they have no idea what a Cosmopolitan is. They've never got…read moreit right, but the resulting drinks are always drinkable, at least. This bar opened just before I went away to New Zealand and it has been a very pleasant rediscovery on my part. Great nights have been had here, and as I'm not really a fan of just getting too drunk, this is a wonderful place to get tipsy and chat about the Enlightenment. Atmosphere really is the thing that sets this bar apart from others in the surrounding area. And atmosphere is the one thing that keeps bringing me and my cohorts back time and time again. It's classy and funky without seeming snobbish in the slightest. Which is quite an achievement, I think. An excellent place for a night out, or the beginning of a night, if you're that way inclined. Best to get there a little earlier to claim the seats and fill up on tapas.

The North Star is a vast pub cum restaurant and music venue occupying a prominent position on North…read moreRoad in the Maindy / Gabalfa area of Cardiff. It is an incredibly inspiring and important addition to the cultural wealth of the city. Opened in October last year, it is already the home to a cosmopolitan mix of locals, business people and students, as well as regular visitors from all over the city and beyond. When you walk into The North Star you can appreciate why it has such a draw. The old Victorian mansion-sized building has been lovingly refurbished with impressive style. The modern look, embellished with antique flourishes and an eclectic use of period furniture, has been created by Tim Rice, one of Cardiff's most successful designers, leading The North Star to be shortlisted for 'The Best Bar and Restaurant Design Awards' within months of its unveiling. It also scooped up another accolade when it was voted the fifth best 'cheap eat' in the UK by The Guardian. There's more to say about The North Star than I've got space here on Yelp. It's a multi-faceted business that offers a lot, to many. Managed by a brother and sister team, with Alex taking care of front of house, and her brother conjuring up epicurean delights in the kitchen. The food, organic and locally sourced wherever possible, is extensive in range and all homemade from scratch, including the relishes, dough's and even the Yorkshire puds! Dishes are predominantly Italian, but the menu frequently includes Welsh favourites like cockles and lava bread, Monmouthshire lamb and potted pig. With deals like '2 for 1' operating from Monday to Friday, customers are visibly increasing on a weekly basis. Specialty dishes are changed regularly, usually prompted by the advice of their local butcher, J T Morgan, who tips them the wink about all the best seasonal cuts on offer. Established in 1861, J T Morgan Butchers have occupied a position of importance at the indoor market, in central Cardiff, for more years than anyone can remember. A family butchers that have moved with the times, they are presently one of the most recognized purveyors of free range and organic meat and poultry in South Wales. Not surprisingly, The North Star makes the most of a good thing. As well as fantastic Sunday lunches, boasting the most succulent roasts in town, they're also hosting BBQ's on Friday and Sundays over the warmer months. Live music is on offer most days of the week, kicking off on Wednesdays with the Open Mic Night hosted by Rowan Liggett, who is also Co-Director of The Miniature Music Press, a really well produced A5 music magazine and 'What's On', that you can pick up for free at a whole host of places around the city. The North Star also has a sister pub worth mentioning; The Vulcan in Cathays on Wyvern Road, another haunt of the ubiquitous Rowan Liggett, who runs the Open Mic nights here as well. Frequented mainly by students, this is a cool live music pub, also designed by Tim Rice, that is equally well worth checking out. www.theminiaturemusicpress.com/

So the North Star has recently undergone a big renovation which is probably why I got some discount…read morevouchers to go and test it out. Its in a bit of an odd place really and right on the middle of the student area which is why I guess I had never been tempted to go there sooner. Went for an early dinner, the food was nice but not outstanding. I liked the relaxed atmosphere of the place and all the comfy looking leather sofa's. It would be a lovely Sunday place hangout I think. Prices are probably aimed at the students so its fairly cheap and there seems to be lots of events going on. Just wish parking was easier round there.

I want to write poems about this place…read more Live Lounge is the last chance saloon for the rest of Cardiff. Open until 4am, it is the stopping off place for the most hardcore patrons of every other bar in Cardiff, so chances are by about half 3, you're going to know at least three different groups of people in there. The cocktails are delicious, and made with consummate skill. One bartender in particular knows the ins-and-outs of his bar, and it shows. Every member of the barstaff in fact are cheerful, energetic and entertaining. Drinks are preposterously cheap, which is always a nice bonus (£5 for a bottle of wine quickly sends any female friends down the slippery slope of happy alcoholism). With live music performed by a selection of the top local Cardiff bands every lunchtime and evening, the club certainly earns its name. And, whilst it is always packed, and can sometimes get a little hairy in there, it is always fun and rarely an annoyance to end up there at the end of the night.

Right, here is the break down of the rating I've given Live Lounge:…read more 1* - It is open until 5 in the morning every day of the week. Now, I feel like this is how late most clubs should stay open but most of the places here shut at 2 or 3. As a result, there is always a surge towards Live Lounge when the clubs let out. 2* - And, to be honest, 3*s as well, for the prices of the drinks which are quite ridiculously cheap. They are also really good and the cocktails are delicious. The bar can get pretty busy so I wouldn't recommend having the cocktails at night but at lunchtime or in the evening, they're a must. 4* - The music caters to a lot of tastes. A standard night will see people dancing to 90s cheese, club classics, a little bit of indie and some RnB. If you're looking for more specialised music they also have a lot of live bands playing. 5* - The building in general. The dance floor is big, it's located near a cash point (and near fastfood for those who've had too much). It's near the main clubs. It's near the union. It's near the taxi rank.

Gord and I had a beer on the patio of The Cottage Pub Tuesday evening. It's one of Cardiff's oldest…read morepubs, with origins dating to around 1750. The current frontage is a striking Victorian design dating from about 1895. It's apparently one of the last genuinely old pubs on St Mary Street. Cheers!

Lively bar located on Queen Street. Its has changed a lot over the year's , but is still a favorite…read more place to visit, no food was being served on the days we were there but the service was as good as it always was. Great 80's music being played over the speakers.

The waitress was very nice, seats and musics were great. The 2 for 12 drinks are really bogos for…read morethe same drink not mix and match. They were really good but made light on the alcohol. Both drinks 9/10.

Mill Lane, or the 'Cafe Quarter' as Cardiff seems to slowly be rebranding the area, is full of bars…read moreand restaurants (very few cafes, actually). This is the kind of place that will become packed any day after work when the sun is shining. Each place has tables and chairs on the pavement in a very European-feeling setting with trees and waiters and glasses of rose wine dotted about. Mocka Lounge is one of these places, and, very much in its favour, is one of the few places that remains a happening and well visited place during the entire day and not just coming alive in the evening like many of the others. This is a great place for a sophisticated drink and bite to eat at lunch time and late afternoon, and then stay sitting and watch the nightlife awaken around you as the sun goes down. One of the most attractive and friendly places along Mill Lane, this place is certainly worth checking out. Lovely.

Huge menu and open late. Went late and ordered dinner &…read moredrinks at the bar, for the family. All was fine until a short blonde female server from upstairs came downstairs and inserted herself into our situation as I was retrieving our drinks from the bar. I only asked if my sons' drinks were sugar free and her response was suddenly asking for ID and then telling us to leave (after paying) bc I said my 18 year old did not have his id (ended up that he actually did have it). The policy is fine but was not clearly stated. However, her handling of the incident was bizarre, abrupt and rude. I think she is anti Tourist or maybe has a Napoleon complex to conduct herself as she did - especially when the restaurant was so empty and we had already paid. customers beware of the short blonde. Everyone else working there was friendly. Food was fine. Will not return due to unbecoming behavior of short blonde female employee.

The service was slow. Very touristy. Never wiped the tables between seatings. Gum on the glass…read more Very dirty. Empty cans rolling on the ground nobody bothered to pick up. We were going to eat here but decided against it.

YARD Bar & Kitchen is a concept brasserie, with more ideas than they know what to do with. The…read moreexterior is modern, minimally adorned in dark hues with the name embellished in a dominant red lettering, suggesting no frills, and expensive wine by the glass. When you enter you're greeted with something remarkably different in tone. The first area, in this rather large establishment, can only be described as old style pub, quite appropriately named the 'Albert Bar'. This leads into a much more contemporary area know as the 'Loading Bay', occupying a hefty space to the rear. Upstairs there's the loft-style, industrial looking 'Racking Room', which in turn leads into the stately looking 'Board Room'. As well as a well stocked bar, where cocktails and top notch coffee are made to compliment the array of draft beers and bottled drinks available, there's an extensive menu catering for everybody's tastes and budgets. Food is served all day as well as in the evenings with everything from bacon butties to Stir Fries, Welsh steaks and Brains Beer battered fish & chips. As with everywhere in Cardiff the Welsh theme is firmly represented! There's also the Fire & Sticks barbecue, in an open ground floor kitchen, to flame grill the home-grown meats. Service is informal throughout, apart from in the 'Board Room' where table service is available. Prices are generally reasonable for food, but the drinks can be pricey. YARD is the Welsh brewers, Brain's, Flag-ship bar and was once the old Brain's brewery pub and shop, The Albert.

As the previous reviews seem to mirror, I've personally had some very contrasting experiences in…read morethis place. A couple of years ago I waited an hour and a half for chips. A while before that I felt that the staff were very rude. But, Yard appear to have pulled themselves around. Once I would have said that the interior of this pub in Cardiff city centre was cold and uninviting; as though they just wanted furniture which was easy to clean and fitted the most people in around it. Nowadays though, the decor and features in certain sections reminds me more of a coffee shop or Starbucks than anything else. They've gone more for the cosy, welcoming feel of a living room, and I think this works so much better. This building used to be part of the Brains (Welsh local beer) brewery, and so it retains a lot of that old charm and slightly industrial feel. In short, they have already what Zero Degrees, the microbrewery a 5 minute walk away, is trying so hard to emulate. This is a relaxed a spacious place to go for drinks any time.