Bar eS Keswick — Restaurant in England

We booked this restaurant as we were visiting the area with friends and booked due to the glowing reviews.

Unfortunately our experience did not match the recommendations and as such I cannot give this place more than two stars.

The outdoor seating at first looks quaint and cosy as it is situated in a alleyway next to the restaurant with a canopy covering the tables however they don't appear to have a smoking policy as the entire table next to us were smoking throughout the meal which was an unpleasant experience especially with two young children.

The service was mediocre at best, it took an age to get anything we had ordered delivered. They had a young lad delivering food who didn't know what dish exactly he was delivering and as such it was hard to determine which was vegan. He practically threw the plates down with a mumble every time. I would say we had a very brief but pleasant encounter with a young waitress who first seated us but unfortunately she must have finished her shift as she did not serve for the remainder of the meal.

We ordered around 10 dishes as per the waitresses recommendation and every single item was so full of chilli that three out of our party couldn't eat them. The patatas bravas was essentially fried potato with the faintest drizzle of a tomato sauce that was more like pure sciracha. It would be helpful if they could have a warning on how hot certain dishes are as we would have ordered differently had we known.

They also missed two dishes off our order and didn't realise until we asked about half way through the meal, when they would be coming? This was slightly confusing as they have a system whereby you tick the items you want to order on a sheet...would seem a fool proof way to stop exactly this issue. We also ordered an elderflower drink which didn't arrive until after we had finished and asked for the bill so they had to take it back.

Overall I would not recommend and don't plan on returning...

29/07/23 Disappointed. Food was OK although the guacamole seemed distinctly shop bought rather than made to order/on the premises. The nachos were average at best as the beef was very dry. Portions were reasonable - lots of chorizo, but mean sized nachos - but our overall feeling was that it was more like chain pub food but with higher prices.

Plus points: The Mescalito cocktail was lovely apparently and the Estrella didn’t disappoint. The staff were friendly and helpful so no issues there.

Biggest issue for me was the fact that they forgot our chorizo order, which turned up c.20 minutes after the rest of our food. We needed some bread to eat it with (we’d eaten the nachos and the tortilla chips) and they took ages to bring this. I thought the least they could do was provide the bread for free but no, that was charged full price. A poor experience overall and we felt we’d had be very average pub food rather than specialist Mexican tapas. Perhaps good for a drink but much better options elsewhere in my opinion: for Nachos and better tapas, go to the Square Orange (but be prepared to wait; for better atmosphere and higher quality food,...

Posted this review and TripAdvisor deleted it as it "doesn't meet review guidelines".

This is the original post.

"I left my details on the contact form asking to book a reservation for two, specifying date and time. I received a reply a day later stating they don't take bookings for less than 6 people, which is fair enough. So me and my partner drove to Keswick specially, parked and paid for parking. We were tired from the walk we took earlier, and yearning for a nice meal, but just to find out the restaurant is actually closed for a week for renovation! We had to head back to Windermere for dinner as we don't really fancy any other restaurants in the area. So the person who replied my booking attempt didn't even bother to read my message properly and dismissed it by saying they don't take bookings. Anyone who is planning to visit there, make sure to give them a call and check if they are open as they wouldn't tell you otherwise!"

Don't believe the raving reviews they have because they might have got the one star...