The Ivy House — Restaurant in Sunderland

Was one of my favourite places before my leaving Sunderland for Alba in 2000! It was a real bouncing place and a must visit. Despite once beaten 6 -0 at pool there by Ed Hagen, (lucky Albion sod) but it was a great meeting place for students and academics for years! Although a bit let go in the decor, it mattered not as it had great atmosphere then. Many were the good days & nights there with characters by such as Darren Lloyd etc. Having revisited it since returning from Scotland in 2013, I was quite disappointed as it appeared to have changed quite radically. The decor has greatly improved and has gone upmarket with a good selection on the catering side. The layout has improved considerably but, in doing so, has lost a lot of its atmosphere - Guess we have to bring our own? Having said that however, the clientele themselves have probably moved up a notch. It has pleasant staff and the selection of drinks is large. Tends to be street parking but you have to be aware of certain streets around the place as have seen the peaked cap personnel with their notebooks - not to get the autographs of so-called 'influencers' - but to get your licence plate number - you have been warned! There are parking places around but you just have to give consideration for locals who live in essentially a residential area. On wheelchair suitability I cannot say whether it is suitable and would advise one to.cakl before visiting as it can be busy. On the child friendly front again I cannot say but calling the staff before would be again advisable as the place does get busy especially at weekends. Enjoy your visit! PS : Not sure it has a good selection of good single malt whiskies but that is l a...

Canny staff, delicious beer, and good rock playing on the stereo...but they cooked one of the worst lamb burgers I've ever eaten, to my sadness and not-insignificant financial pain, at £11.50 for the privilege. It was specifically the "ananya burger", but was so overcooked and dry that I have to assume any of their other burgers would meet a similar fate on their kitchen grill. This one was served smeared in what seemed like just a Patak's curry paste (which can be tasty, when used appropriately, but not in this case), with a few sprigs of cilantro and some jalapeño slices that kinda amassed into one green monolith due to the aforementioned paste. I wish I'd ordered the pizza instead, and judging by some of the rave reviews for them, I would've probably been happy. Again, the bar staff seemed canny, and I thoroughly enjoyed the pint I had, but I doubt I'll be eating here again. I gave an additional star for the potato wedges, which were OK, otherwise the burger was a 1-star deal, and you'd be bummed at spending a fiver on it, let...

You want food. They have you sorted. You want vegan or vegetarian food. Not a problem, the chef will veganise almost any dish on the menu. Go on, challenge them, I dare you. They are total food ninjas.

They’ve also got a load of guest beers on tap as well as your usual suspects, so basically, they’ve got you covered on every angle. Food, drink, shelter from the elements. Hell, simply take up residence at one of the tables and call it home.

Almost forgot, they are dog friendly too, so fetch the best lad down and make a day of it.

To sum up, if your animal, vegetable or mineral, then get yourself down because all the other places come a sad second best to these beautiful people. They get a big thumbs up from me. And I’m one of those whinging vegan types, so I’m usually impossible to please unless I’m hugging a tree, blockading a motorway or burning some sage in an incense burner.

Wow! This review has got to be worth a...