Orka Artisan Cafe & Bistro Ballater — Restaurant in Scotland

We stopped in past here on the way to Braemar and were very impressed with the quality of food and especially the customer service. Our waitress could not have been more polite and made us and our wee dog immediately welcome. She even had a dog treat for her which was so nice. We initially sat outside but we’re offered a table indoors so nice to see another dog friendly place to eat and drink. Our coffees were some of the best we’ve tasted and both our meals were divine. I went for the Brie, bacon and jam baguette and my husband had a falafel burger which was more his taste than mine but he said it was really tasty and in fairness did look amazing. Cafe had a lovely modern feel but we really were impressed with the customer service. It’s rare to find excellent customer service that is genuine and not put on. The menu is not huge but plenty of choice for everyone’s taste. We will...

This used to be a lovely little cafe and was always our choice in Ballater. However, today when we went in I actually nearly turned round and left. The front doorway really needed hovered and cleaned. Just full of debris, there is no need for this. Then went to use the facilities- corridor leading to them was overfilled with supplies, all over the place, it needs to be tidied up. Saw outside to the outside garden, which is not in use and is covered with broken wood/signs/debris and boxes of empty bottles. The toilet is disgusting and needs a thorough clean, including skirting boards and the floor looked like it hadn’t been done in weeks. The owners need to take a proper look round and ask what impression this gives to their potential customers. It’s sad that this has gone downhill so much. May have a look in next month when we go up, but if it doesn’t look any cleaner will...

This is not a review about the food as we never got that far. We had been on an 8 mile walk with our dog and came to this Cafe as it was dog friendly. We were shown to a seat and sat and waited to be served, 5 minutes later another couple came in and were shown a seat. 17 minutes passed, no one came near us, but the couple who came in after us were served. We did note there were at least 3 members of staff that we saw. We felt ignored and had no option to walk out. A Shame as the decor was very nice and the cakes looked very good. We went to another cafe and had our food there....