Wilf's Cafe ( since 1997) ( Licenced) — Restaurant in England

An update August 2024

After a visit to Wilf’s in 2023, I left an unfavourable review after a particularly bad experience there, which (I assume) the owner has only just seen and belatedly replied to. You can see their reply to my origional comments below.

In response to their most recent comments: unfortunately, IF you run a public establishment and are listed on Google, then customers and visitors WILL leave comments, remarks and criticisms or observations that you may not like or agree with if their experience isn’t favourable. But, as with my original review, providing there is nothing defamatory or offensive in the comments, then the writing remains, A REVIEW. Even if the owners or proprietors feel the feedback is harsh or negative!

That said, I always try to and feel that, any reviews I leave, should be balanced, give a fair summary of the goods and services in an unbiased and impartial way, based on my experiences using them. So here is my update, based on the last time I was there in March of 2024:

For context, I had not had a great experience in Wilf’s, but my friends wanted to visit, after walking near Stavley in March of 24.

Premises, Decor and Interior: Wilf’s is located in the builders yard in Stavley. The building is a classic Lakeland and quite attractive. As with my other visits, I felt that the interior, whilst functional, is very dated.

Food + Drinks: My friends had tea, which was fine and their son had a soda. I had a coffee which was, like the previous visits, over extracted and tasted bitter. Two of us had jacket potatoes with fillings which were unremarkable but ok. We also shared three cakes which were average in comparision to other places. The menu is very traditional and I prefer more adventurous and interesting dishes, but if you are just looking for something plain and simple, I guess it is ok.

Service: I had a bad experience with two of the staff here on a previous visit. However during the visit in March 24, the service was quick and efficient.

Value for Money: The portion size in relation to the cost was comparable to other cafes in the area.

In Comparison to the Competition: There is a lot of competition in Stavley and the wider Lake District. In my opinion, many of these places offer a wider choice, a more adventurous menu and more interesting options for a...

2 May 2025 - update.

Visit often. Continues to serve excellent food. Staff friendly and helpful. 👏 Cakes and scones are delicious. There's a good choice of main meals, baps,soups,salads, etc. for all. 😊 Highly recommend. It's worth taking a detour to visit Stavely and have breakfast, lunch, or snack. They even do doggie ice cream now.

Outside seating available. The rear area overlooks the river. Very pretty. Large indoor area on the ground and first floor. 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

There is now a charge for the car park (to access all the shops, etc, in that area). However, Wilf's Cafe will take the £3 off your bill. 😊

First post: It was great. Food excellent and hearty portions. Dog friendly and had treats for them, too. First visit, but it won't be...

I would leave no stars, i would.

30 mins free parking seems scandalous.

The lady serving us inferred that they had run out of gluten-free cakes, disappointed as I have coeliac disease. I continued with my order and then after paying said that there was plenty more cakes underneath the counter. I don’t know what it was that stopped her from reaching under the counter before placing my order anyway it’s safe to say it completely ruined the atmosphere for me and my partner and the ladies stood behind us who thought it was all very strange, being bullied out of the gluten-free cakes.

Tea loaf was god awful as a replacement for gluten-free cake.

To summarise poor service, poor atmosphere, poor cake, poor me as it wasn’t...