Barter Books Reviews Summary

Book Selection and Availability

Pros:

• "Absolutely incredible shop, so big and filled with masses of second hand books."
• "There are so many shelves filled with amazing books."
• "A fantastic place to visit with so many books from new releases to first editions and a selection of classic comics to boot."
• "Unique atmosphere. Vast selection of books."
• "Brilliant place to discover second hand books first edition books."
• "All books clear and visible for everybody to look around."
• "Thousands of titles are on the shop floor with many more hidden in the back too."

Cons:

• "Practically zero horror or fantasy, I couldn't find many interesting genre paperbacks."
• "The only issue is that some books are way over priced, (compared to buying online), and despite the shops name, they will not barter."
• "Books can be a little pricey compared to Abebooks online, but quality is good."
• "Though their pricing is usually too high."
• "Some of the books were priced quite high to say they are second hand."
• "I was a little disappointed with the books if I'm honest. They didn't have what I was looking for."
• "Very disappointed. Books were overpriced, shelves were being restocked all the time so that it was difficult and sometimes impossible to get to said shelves to see the books."

Cafe and Food

Pros:

• "The cafe makes simple and delicious food, although you’ll probably need to queue for a few minutes before they find a space for you."
• "The cafe inside has kids meals as well. If you like gravy you can try the beef sandwich."
• "Also the cafe is exceptional with a menu to suit all tastes… an absolute must visit place."
• "The food was fantastic, locally sourced, huge portions and good value for money."
• "The cafe is lush and if the fire is on you won’t want to leave."
• "Cafe serves great coffee and food."
• "The cafe serves a great range of food."

Cons:

• "Prices rather high but probably justified in view of the slow stock turn of some subjects."
• "The only issue is that some books are way over priced, (compared to buying online), and despite the shops name, they will not barter."
• "Place gets crowded so you might not find a table."
• "Fairly busy so the queue for a table to order food was large."
• "The cafe was, okay. Food arrived well before our hot drinks, and we eventually had to ask them to be put in takeaway cups as we'd finished eating and they still hadn't arrived."
• "The cafe, not so much - half hour wait for four overpriced breakfasts."
• "Too busy for lunch as my Mum is too disabled to wait in a queue."

Atmosphere and Environment

Pros:

• "The building is a tad leaky (we visited on a rainy day) but the overall feel is cosy."
• "This place has energy, with staff milling around and the smell of coffee as soon as you enter."
• "What's better than a gorgeous old railway station? One that's packed full of lovely precious beautiful BOOKS!!!"
• "Great place to lose yourself for several hours. Dog friendly, lovely food and a nice relaxing atmosphere."
• "The old railway building gives the place a unique vintage feel and the dogs loved exploring. We love that it's dog friendly."
• "It's amazingly dog friendly with treats available. Good disabled access."
• "The atmosphere makes you feel like you're stepping back in time."

Cons:

• "Parking is limited which is clearly stated on website so we parked nearby."
• "Parking can be a challenge at busy times, with the driveway being narrow."
• "Parking is free but very difficult. Not enough toilets."
• "Car parking is there but limited spaces and driving in and out isn’t easy with how the old station was laid out."
• "Only bad thing was the parking!"
• "One thing to consider is parking. We visited on the first wet day of the summer holidays and it was very busy so parking at the book shop was crazy."
• "Parking is tight, but spaces always seemed to be available."

Staff and Customer Service

Pros:

• "Lovely and passionate team members too who are happy to chat or help in any way."
• "The staff were very helpful. Highly recommended even if you don't have books to trade in."
• "Great atmosphere and pleasant and helpful staff."
• "Fantastic and enthusiastic staff."
• "The staff are all great and always very happy to help you with any queries you might have."
• "The staff are incredibly helpful too and were more than happy to get books down I couldn't reach etc."
• "Pleasant and helpful staff in the bookshop and the cafe."

Cons:

• "The staff seemed just so annoyed to be working and ruined a trip we had been looking forward to."
• "However this individual had zero customer service skills, and after being humiliated by her, we just quietly put our jackets back on and went to leave."
• "Just left Barter Books. It was the place we were so looking forward to visiting but the staff just left a sour taste!"
• "It was more like a doggy day care, you couldn't move for dogs, I was made to feel really uncomfortable and unwelcome."
• "On holiday, and went in to have a late lunch. Found an empty table and sat down. In under a minute, one of the serving staff arrived at the table and announced to the room that 'You two obviously didn't bother to queue, AND you have a dog!'"
• "Enjoyed this place times before but not again as it felt like being in a kennels, wet smelly dogs all over the place."
• "Felt overcrowded, books were pricey and a member of the catering staff barged into me."