Browns Cambridge

United Kingdom England CambridgeBrowns Cambridge

Learn more insights from Wanderboat AI

Plan your stay

hotel

Pet-friendly Hotels in Cambridge

Find a cozy hotel nearby and make it a full experience.

hotel

Affordable Hotels in Cambridge

Find a cozy hotel nearby and make it a full experience.

hotel

The Coolest Hotels You Haven't Heard Of (Yet)

Find a cozy hotel nearby and make it a full experience.

hotel

Trending Stays Worth the Hype in Cambridge

Find a cozy hotel nearby and make it a full experience.

Posts

Get more from Wanderboat AI

Nearby Attractions Of Browns Cambridge

St Bene’t’s Church

St Bene’t’s Church

4.7

(45)

Click for details

The Round Church

The Round Church

4.4

(298)

Click for details

Museum of Classical Archaeology

Museum of Classical Archaeology

4.6

(60)

Click for details

The Polar Museum

The Polar Museum

4.6

(331)

Click for details

Nearby Restaurants Of Browns Cambridge

The Grill Peri Peri

The Grill Peri Peri

4.8

(163)

Click for details

5 Blends Coffee House

5 Blends Coffee House

4.7

(164)

Click for details

The Red Bull Newnham

The Red Bull Newnham

4.2

(287)

Click for details

@72 China

@72 China

3.9

(260)

Click for details

Learn more insights from Wanderboat AI

Address

23 Trumpington St, Cambridge CB2 1QA, United Kingdom

Map

Phone

+44 1223 461655

Call

Website

browns-restaurants.co.uk

Visit

Overview

Description

All-day British chain brasserie & bar with lobster nights & afternoon tea in a grand cafe setting.

Myself and three friends visited Brown's Cambridge branch on a Sunday lunchtime. It's not the first time we have been to Brown's; previously, we enjoyed a brunch and, on another occasion, dined on the terrace. We were a bit perturbed as the table we were given was rather small and every chair had a mixture of crumbs and goodness knows what on it. Staff did not offer assistance when we swapped chairs for those of a neighbouring table. I was also put off by the toilet facilities, as there were bloody tissues around the sink... Our waitress was attentive and polite, giving us time to peruse the menu. All orders were brought out in good time. We never felt rushed or ignored. We began with scallops and baked camembert shared between us. The scallops, though minute in size, were packed with flavour. The camembert served with sourdough and apple slices was both salty and sweet with the honey topping. We did, however, feel restricted by the table: despite only ordering two starters between us, they both barely fit on the tiny table. For main, I had pork belly Sunday roast. The meat was generously proportioned, packed with flavour and well cooked. The vegetables (sorry to say) were abysmal: the root veg had no flavour/seasoning while the peas were bitter. Everything was served swimming in a jus, which added flavour but was overly salty. Sitting in the jus, the would-be crisp potatoes went soggy. It would have been better to receive the jus in a pot on the side, so that one could choose how much to pour. A friend had the chicken version of the Sunday roast and shared some of the meat with me, which was very pleasant, and a pig in blanket, which was ok. His was also served swimming in a salty jus and agreed that a side pot would have been more appropriate. Another friend had the fish (cod) and chips, and was satisfied. Hers came with a side of some sort of cabbage (which was not listed on the menu and which did not seem to be added to the bill...) which was dry as heck. For afters, I had a chocolate brownie which was rich and dark; it should have come with a scoop of honeycomb ice cream on top, though in face I was given what was most certainly a rather less exciting vanilla ice cream. The ice cream was enclosed beneath a half-sphere chocolate shell. Another friend had the same but his shell was broken and partial by the time it arrived; a replacement was not offered by staff. The profiteroles enjoyed by another friend were light and creamy while the pineapple and cream (a sort of pina collada idea) garnered positive reviews from the final member of our table. Drinks. I thoroughly enjoyed the old fashioned, made using Woodford Reserve. The Big Drop low alcohol IPA (0.5%) was nice, too - very floral. The negroni was horrible - badly balanced, far too bitter, horrid aftertaste. We would have liked to have been offered tap water with more regularity (especially given the saltiness of the mains). One aspect of our visit we loathed was the noise. The interior is very tall, but is filled with noise: all the time, they have either a pianist playing at a mini grand or music on. Seated just three tables from the piano, you can imagine that we needed to shout at each other just to be heard. All in all, happy with the starters and the desserts; some of the drinks were good; the mains could be good, but were let down by the vegetable cookery and the salty jus which one does not currently have an option of eating or not; really appreciated the wait staff; facilities - including bathrooms, seat cleanliness and level of noise - needs work. Prices. 2x starters, 3x mains, 1x side, 2x soft drinks, 2x low alcohol drinks, 1x beer, 2x cocktails = £168.

Matthew Hurst

10

Visited the Cambridge restaurant during a weekday for their Afternoon Tea as a party of 5. The spread was very lovely and the earl grey tea was delicious. We did all think the service was lacking, unfortunately. Even though the restaurant was virtually empty with only a couple of tables of 2 there at the time, we found ourselves having to wait around for our waiter multiple times as no tea spoons were brought to table until after asking. When first ordering the waiter also asked if we wanted some water and we did ask for a table water for us but that was never brought to table at all. As there was 5 of us having the same earl grey tea, one big tea pot didn’t go a long way, however no refills were offered as we worked our way though, so again we found ourselves having to ask the waiter once our cups were empty for a long while. On refill though, the tea didn’t seem as strong as if poured over the same tea leaves. Having booked in advance, we were a bit disappointed with the service. We might have just been unlucky, as the food was really great.

Ausrine Dapnyte

00

Disgusting Toilets We arrived at about 12:20, when the restaurant just opened. I used the toilet as soon as the staff brought us to a table. The toilets were so dirty and disgusting. All three of them were blocked and overflowed! Dirty liquid all over the places. I am so shocked that the restaurant was just opened for business, how could the toilets were so dirty already? The scene was so disturbing that affect my appetite seriously. We ordered truffle chips, Shepard's pie and crab pasta. There was no truffle flavour in the chips. The shepherd's pie was so salty that the gravy in the mini jar become unnecessary. So salty that made me wondered what was I eating. Lamb, pork, beef or all of the above? And the broccoli was too hard. Could not feel any crab inside the paste either. And the bill was not cheap. It's the 1st time I went to Browns. I know that it's an old history chain restaurant but I am not sure about that, sorry.

pui ting Leung

00

A very cosy and comfortable restaurant with amazing food at affordable prices! We ordered 2 mains for dinner - a lamb steak with red wine sauce and a crab and prawn linguine with pesto sauce. I personally don't take lamb, but my husband commented that it was one of best he had. The linguine was nicely done with chunks of prawns and crab meat. The waiters were very friendly as well, making small chats with us and even took the initiative to offer a change of my pasta sauce from coriander to basil, knowing that many do not like the taste of coriander. We also had brownie with ice-cream for dessert and it was great too. the brownie was warm and moist, and the ice-cream had honey flavoured crispy bits sprinkled all over it which gives it a nice texture. An overall great experience! Follow up: went back to Browns another 2 times subsequently. Photos added!

Mabel

80

Everything was absolutely amazing and Alton’s service was the best!!! Perfect birthday lunch and fair price

Rebecca Barison

10

Lieu absolument charmant, serveurs tous extrêmement serviables et à l’écoute surtout le notre (Merci Ultan !! ). Un des meilleurs petit déjeuner que j’ai pu faire en Angleterre en 3 mois, la qualité de la cuisine est incroyable, les produits frais (smoothie incroyable) et le prix bien moindre comparé à des endroits bien moins méritant. Nous avons partagé nos plats à 2 pour pouvoir encore plus nous régaler 😃 On reviendra c’est certain !! Merci encore

Carla Thibaud

00