This was a lovely and elegant cafe we came to for coffee while in the area…read more We got a couple of coffees to go, so we didn't stay long. The service was nice. We were greeted and taken care of pretty quickly. The coffee was fresh and delicious. A nice spot in the Arcade for a quick stop while you explore.

Eclectic coffee shop located in one of the many victorian arcade's in Cardiff. Ordered the…read moredoorstep bacon sandwich and a coffee, picked up the coffee and the sandwich was served by our attentive server. This location was busy but not overwhelming. Great place to watch the world go by.

I happen to go back and forth to Cardiff for various gigs. Whilst ambling through the Royal Arcade…read moreI had noticed this Vietnamese coffee house. So whilst up in the capital for my Stewart Francis comedy gig in St. David's Hall I decided to check it out. Having seen the posters and photos of the egg coffee (like coffee infused egg nog), I decided to try that. It was very sweet but with the bitterness of the Vietnamese coffee it was not too sickly I found. To accompany I had the matcha & raspberry gateaux which was moist and flavoursome - really intense flavours. I enjoyed my elevenses so much I returned the following day for a light lunch. This time opting for a meal deal consisting of banana and coffee smoothie (lush) and a spicy beef bahn my. The bahn my consisting of spicy beef, pork liber pate, asian salad and sweet chili sauce. It is basically a hot open baguette which was quite filling. The staff are friendly & helpful. The atmosphere & décor is an informal chilled out vibe, quite modern. Definitely worth a look for a quick snack or a quiet coffee/tea/smoothie.

This is the perfect little place for a breakfast or just for a coffee and a bit of escapism. Its…read moreone of Cardiff's hidden gems and is always busy around lunch time. Its a traditional looking cafe with a really warm welcome and good honest value food. The breakfasts are delicious and they use quality local produce and offer free coffee top ups, they are available all day too so perfect hangover haunt. Try the pancakes, you won't regret it.

Beautifully situated just after the entrance to the Duke Street Arcade, Garlands is in an ideal…read morespot to pick up customers who've been emptying their wallets all morning. There's very little coffee shops in the Cardiff arcades can do wrong, if they serve you and aren't offensive you still remain relatively happy because you're in such a nice spot. A nice selection of food rewards those stopping by for lunch; a good range of traditional Welsh fare is on offer. Lamb Broth, Welsh Rarebit and Leek, Goats Cheese and Hazelnut tart are just a hint at the tasty treats available. I do have one problem with Garlands; it's so dark. Seriously, just put the lights up a notch chaps. 'What are you eating?' 'I don't know, I can't see it. Hang on let me try it. Ah yes, soup.' 'That's my lunch' 'Oh I am sorry, would you like some of mine?' Please put up the lights, eating in the dark is just silly. Otherwise Garlands is lovely.

This was the Tea shop we visit in Cardiff. It's located in…read morethe Castle Arcade, in walking distance from the historic castle. The restaurant was beautiful. It had a lovely cozy feel with plush velvet seating and charming small tables. The service was nice. The guy who took care of us was also manning the bar. He was busy, but made sure to take care of us well. The tea service was very good. We picked our tea from the list and had a pot steeping while our sandwiches and pastries were being made. The sandwiches and pastries were lovely. A proper afternoon tea in the UK!

Would have loved to try this place but no idea how to get in. None of the doors seem to work nor do…read morethey have a sign anywhere saying how to get in. If you solve this mystery is the tea free? Good luck mate.

I'm a fan of Coffee #1 mainly because I like one of its other branches: the one near Cardiff…read moreCentral Station, which served me well during my days of commuting to and fro between Bristol and Cardiff - way before Starbucks appeared on nearby St Mary Street. This local Roath branch is good, too, with equally capable coffee baristas serving a rich, smooth blend of espresso. It's also one of the best spots for lunch along Albany Road, with huge focaccias and those great chunky chocolate chip shortbread biscuits. So while the city centre branch has served me well for take away lattes on the run, this laid-back Roath branch is a great place to while away an hour or so on the comfy sofas. It's also open for fairly long hours, from 7.30am - 7pm on weekdays - so you can grab takeaway before work if you live in the area and pass it en route to work.

The Albany Road outlet of Coffee #1 is one of the more well appointed cafes belonging to this…read moreCardiff originated chain... (owing to the fact that every other shop on this stretch of Albany Road is an estate agent, I feel obliged to use estate agency-speak... please forgive me!) Although not the first Coffee #1 outlet, (the original is up by the railway station at number 9 Wood Street, in the centre of town), this is one of the earlier branches, and remains much loved by the people of Roath. May be this is because of the lovely enclosed garden out the back, or the great coffee, or may be their well priced eminently edible food...? It's difficult to know. There's a lot to like about Coffee #1, and as yet, I haven't found a single thing that detracts from my unblemished opinion of all of their outlets to date.

Thanks for the advice, Yelp! I found this cute place thanks to the app and I could not be happier…read more I was hoping to have breakfast in a local place and avoid the big coffee chains, so I was so happy when the app recommended me this coffee shop. Me and my friend sit on the first floor (there are two floor, but not too big of a place) and we were served by a person who, I suspect, went out and party-hard the night before. But, yeah, fair enough, it was Sunday morning. So we ordered two Flat Whites and some food (Greek Yogurt with fresh fruit and some eggs on toast). Everything was fine, food and coffee, but it took ages! I think our waiter was a little bit sleep and confused that morning. No big deal. We were on holidays after all. I highly recommend this place for brunch. It is located in a beautiful place, inside the old shopping mall with the little boutiques.

I enjoyed a late morning treat at The Plan Cafe. Great vibe inside Morgan Arcade in Cardiff City…read moreCentre. The eggs were done just right, firm not runny. The ham was tasty. I would have preferred it to be on a toasted English Muffin however. Service staff busy yet attentive.

My son and I stopped in the Norwegian Church on our way to the Doctor Who Experience. We were…read moretourists -- visitors from the US, and we absolutely loved the place. My son has Aspergers and is very picky about his food, so I was concerned that "Welsh Rarebit" would be way outside his comfort zone -- but the food was so amazing that he didn't even bat an eye. The view is really wonderful, and the quaint building adds to the unique charm of the entire experience. After two weeks in the UK and eating at some pretty up-scale places, it is strange that the memory I have of my most enjoyed meal was some welsh rarebit with my son in the Norwegian Church. If I went back to Cardiff, I'd go there again -- even though there are other places that are surely as worthy. That should get across how much I enjoyed the Norwegian Church.

The Norwegian church is an art centre, performance space, and cafe, located on the waterfront of…read moreCardiff Bay. The church was originally built as a place of Lutheran worship, and was consecrated in 1868. It was built to serve the large number of Norwegian sailors coming into Cardiff's port at the time. The Norwegian Seamens' Mission was located here, and provided, as well as a place of worship, a place to find support and community for sailors away from home. In time, it also became the centre of a permanent expatriate Norwegian community. Perhaps its most famous member was Roald Dahl was baptised here, and worshipped with his family as a child. Sadly, the church's fortunes reflected those of the port as trade decreased in the post-war period, and it was closed and deconsecrated in 1974. The church was rescued and restored when the former port area was redeveloped in the 1980s. A preservation trust was established, and the church was dismantled and relocated in 1987 (the original site is now occupied by the Wales Millenium Centre). It was re-erected on the current site in 1992 and now hosts art exhibitions, concerts, acts as a venue for weddings, and there is a small cafe. The cafe serves a limited selection of snacks, sandwiches, toasted sandwiches and a range of cakes - coffee and cake seems to be its forte. We went for lunch there before a walk around the Bay - there are lovely views from the window tables across the Bay. We found the menu a bit limited: the toasted paninis come with cheese, or cheese and chutney, or cheese and ham, or... well, you get the picture. None comes with salad or vegetables (not even cheese and tomato). So we opted for the 3 choices above, accompanied by an olive, houmous and toasted bread platter, and a bowl of skin-on fries. It was good value, but let down by having standard sliced white bread with the platter (great olives, but sourdough would have been so much nicer!), and the toasties could have benefited from some side salad. A white bread toastie with just cheese feels a bit underwhelming in 2022. Service was similarly a bit underwhelming: pleasant and efficient enough - but only once we had gone to the counter and asked for a menu so we could make a selection. (No menus on the tables or menu boards.) You get the feeling they would be better concentrating on cakes and patisserie, with coffee: if they going to serve savoury food, a bit more attention to the menu would make a big difference. So, 5/5 for the historic building and location, 3/5 for the cafe (or stick to coffee and cake).

Brilliant tea room specialising in loads of different teas. Very friendly and helpful staff and…read morerelaxed atmosphere. Also does great cakes and very nice breakfasts (but don't expect a big fry up). Well worth a visit.

Unfortunately, the one thing that I always remember about this place is that they forgot my…read moremarshmallows. I paid extra for marshmallows, and when my hot chocolate came it was without the little mountain of tiny marshmallows I was expecting. I was still fairly new to Cardiff at the time, and a little shy, so I sat quietly and hoped that perhaps they had sunk to the bottom and I'd find them as I started drinking. Sadly, however, no marshmallows were to be found, and then it was too late to do anything about it. This aside, Waterloo Gardens Teahouse is a lovely little shop, in the quiet area of Penylan with a nice selection of drinks and cakes, and comfy sofas. The coffee is fair-trade, there is a wide variety of tea, and they change the art on the walls regularly, exhibiting a different artist each month, which is a nice touch. Just make sure they give you the marshmallows you're paying for.