Blackfriars Restaurant Reviews Summary

Setting & Atmosphere

Pros:

• "The setting is rustic and beautiful, in the heart of the city."
• "Didn't notice that much in terms of service, except that it was a bit dark, which added to the medieval atmosphere."
• "Really unique setting right in the heart of Newcastle."
• "Surroundings are steeped in almost 700 years of history and kings have dined in this eating place to give a special atmosphere."
• "The setting is absolutely beautiful and steeped in history all available on the website it's a beautiful old building."
• "Felt like an ecstatic experience to dine at one of UK's oldest dining hall, now converted to this restaurant and a banquet hall."
• "Wonderful ambience in a beautiful building."

Cons:

• "Visit slightly marred by absolutely foul language from adjacent table."
• "Sadly it's in the centre of Newcastle which makes for difficult parking."
• "A nice building but very strange lighting. Each table had a strong spotlight shining down on it."
• "The main room was quite dark and airless."
• "The room was stuffy and smelt of cooking."
• "Eeek! Although the food was great, when we left the restaurant the courtyard was flooded with rats!!"
• "The only drawback is parking! It’s a nightmare to get anywhere close by."

Service

Pros:

• "Service was very good and they asked if it was a special occasion beforehand."
• "Staff were fantastic and at that time of night had time to talk to you before it got busy."
• "The service was good, the food was average, expensive, and very small portions."
• "The staff were as friendly as the summer and we had a very festive fayre."
• "We had a very friendly welcome and shown to our table straight away."
• "Service was amazing, beautiful restaurant and really reasonably priced considering the high standard!"
• "Very friendly, professional service."

Cons:

• "We weren't asked if we'd like a drink when we sat down."
• "Service was a little slow, they had just reopened after covid but the staff seemed to struggle despite not being full."
• "Service was chaotic and very unpolished; leaning across one of us to serve a coffee."
• "Took us a while to get our bill at the end but that's probably more my anxiety than anything, service was otherwise great."
• "Drinks orders took forever to arrive."
• "Unfortunately, the service was very poor."
• "Service was rather slow."

Food Quality

Pros:

• "The food was excellent and the service was even better."
• "The food was well cooked and tasty."
• "Offers a great menu with varied choices, very reasonably priced."
• "The food is absolutely exquisite, perfectly cooked."
• "All our proteins were cooked to perfection and accompanied by very tasty and well balanced sauces."
• "Food throughout the whole day was impeccable, massive variety and superb quality."
• "The food was absolutely amazing along with great customer service and atmosphere at a great location."

Cons:

• "The Black Pudding Sausage was rather tangy and tough (sausage skin)."
• "The main was roast pork belly, however there was no crunch or crisp of the skin."
• "You paid top dollar prices for smallest portions possible!"
• "For £24 for a 2 course set menu, we were really disappointed with the quality of the meat particularly."
• "Value for money was terrible and the meal in total must have cost around £5 each tops to prepare."
• "The nut roast was dry and tasteless, the sprouts overcooked."
• "3 of the party had the vegan main which all of us thought was of a poor standard."

Value for Money

Pros:

• "Prices are on the higher side but is worth it as you get what you pay for."
• "Service was amazing, beautiful restaurant and really reasonably priced considering the high standard!"
• "Offers a great menu with varied choices, very reasonably priced."
• "Early bird special set menus are good value for money."
• "Atmosphere was relaxing and it was excellent value for money."
• "It was excellent value for money."
• "The Sunday lunch 3 course set was incredible value for money."

Cons:

• "You paid top dollar prices for smallest portions possible!"
• "Value for money was terrible and the meal in total must have cost around £5 each tops to prepare."
• "A slight niggle for me is when there are set menus but some courses require a supplement and it felt like there were quite a lot of them to keep the headline price down."
• "Can be a little on the expensive side."
• "Food we had was all nice but it is expensive."
• "The steak I ordered was delicious. Though it was a bit small for £36."
• "But I was told that the place is quite pricy."