The Apiary at Castle Donington — Restaurant in North West Leicestershire

Well just when I thought that Derby was a culinary wasteland, I experience Apiary. There's hope yet.

Simply fantastic, the most excellently prepared, professionally made and nicely seasoned and aromatic food for 5 miles around by far. I Often leave restaurants after paying £20+ a little bitter and having to delude myself that what I experienced was good food and a good time... With Apiary you don't have to fool yourself to enjoy the food, it's just that good naturally. Many places would do well to take note. It puts into perspective the rubbish I often pay for out and about, that pretends to be like this place, but just fail as they don't have the skill. if the chefs in this place aren't authentically trained or home cook thai chefs then I'll eat a bee.

Bistro prices of £12 - £15 a meal, however you actually receive bistro quality for that price and not an imitation. Feeling like it's worth the money, which on food in Derby is hard to find, however I didn't once question that it was worth paying the little extra to experience something professional made and food better than I could make at home. That's very important.

Tangy, spicy, well seasoned lovely food, which was hard to resist finishing even if I wanted to. The difference between food being professional made, and the many terrible restaurants that exist around derby, that just accept average quality. I had the pad thai, and it's the zestiest and most aromatic pad thai I've ever had, you know it's good when you cant stop eating, probably the way it's meant to taste in the first place. The amount of people around me voicing similar expressions, such as "Nicest chips I've ever tasted" or "Wow that's epic" was echoed across the room, You can't force or manufacture that positivity.

Another thing, portion sizes are great, another testimony to the value of the food. Don't be afraid that you're going to get tiny, pompous, al la carte portion sizes and leave unsatisfied and hungry, there's so much that you can even share meals around after your fill so everyone can have a taste, they obviously know the importance of portion size in the east midlands, well worth the money. Its real food, for real people who want a treat, nothing pretentious.

Lovely, Vibrant, Quirky and Unique decoration and building, it feels as if you've walked into someone's home whom is a fan of Victorian oddity and reenactments, rather than a Restaurant.

One thing to improve. Better chairs, those chairs have seen better days, I know its meant to have an authentic 20th Century style etc, however get new chairs that are designed to look old or something, not actual chairs that are 60 years old, very uncomfortable. Also the tables are far too low for legs to fit under if...

I attended a wedding recently. I personally felt some areas were simply too small to accommodate our party. Take the eating area. Each table contained 10 people on a rectangular table. These were squished into an area that was barred or half walled in. This meant we were packed like sardines. Anyone wished to get up it involved others getting up to allow them out. The backs of our chairs were touching the person on the table behind us. If you were larger in size, maybe size 18 plus or 38 inch waist it was incredibly uncomfortable. Felt as though you were the problem not the layout. Keeping items such as the original feeding trough, although astitically pleasing, it offered no practicality. Just was another obstacle that got in the way of people sitting at the table comfortably. This is the first time I've ever attended a wedding and had to continually get up to allow others access. It also made serving food increasing difficult for staff. When dining, I appreciate the menu is a fixed menu for weddings etc, but when our table requested some more rolls, we were ignored. This meant some people ended up with none. There was no selection of coffees. Simply filtered. So if you require decafe or prefer a cappuccino, you couldn't have one. The outside space was a great overflow area, which enabled guests to mingle and enjoy some air. Be prepared for planes though! As directly in the flight path, which couldn't be helped. The items of historical significance on display were interesting and looked wonderful, adding to the overall ambience. Also, parking was plentiful and they offered a few charging docks to charge your EV if needed. We didn't see the rooms or experience the...

Looked like an interesting place. The kind Lord Byron or Noel Coward would visit in the Times of the Hellfire Clubs. The decor is a curious mix of Turkish and Middle Eastern which could have easily gone the way of kitsch, yet The Apiary does successfully create its own mysterious atmosphere. Music, whilst I tend to not like music in such places, was well chosen and widely varied.

I took my mum to visit the town and thought The Apiary would be worth a visit. It certainly was. The staff were friendly and dealt with our orders promptly and with a smile and a bit of banter. Only there for coffee and cake but I certainly would like to visit again to try more substantial items. My Americano was not overbrewed to the point of burning unlike certain large coffee chains. The star though was the sticky toffee pudding. I find too many places make this dessert overly dense and sweet. This was light, moist and the butterscotch sauce added a lovely salt sweetness. Since I don't remember another pudding being the best, I name The Apiary's as the best I've had. What else can I say? Not much but given we were only there for coffee and cake, the experience was well worth another visit next time I'm...