Shears Yard

Loved everything about this place. Food is incredible and food portion sizes too. Good variety on a small seasonal menu so everyone found something they really enjoyed. Service was impeccable and really friendly. Atmosphere was relaxed yet classy without being pretentious. Will definitely visit again.

This was a great dining experience. The food is gourmet style, yet reasonably priced. The table service is excellent and the atmosphere is calm , welcoming and professional. I'd definitely eat here again as the menu has some very delicious sounding dishes.

A great experience from start to finish. We came for the tasting menu. Me and my partner have a few intolerances, but both management and the kitchen had no problems swapping stuff out for us. The food was amazing, as were the drinks pairings. The service was perfect, very casual but nothing was too much of an ask. Can’t wait to return!

We had an absolutely amazing night at Shears Yard last night. What a little gem this restaurant is from entering the restaurant we were made to feel very welcome from Ben and the ambiance was so nice and relaxing. We booked a tasting menu for 2 with wine pairing. We can’t recommend this enough it was absolutely delicious. The presentation and quality of the food was first class we savoured every mouthful it was absolutely delicious. We were excited for each dish that followed as Ben explained in absolute detail each course and Alex was very knowledgeable on each of the wines that paired superbly. The service received from Ben and Alex was first class it felt more like a private dining experience they were so attentive and knowledgeable. Also a big shout out to the chef and thank you for the amazing food you prepared for us. We will definitely be back and will continue to recommend this fabulous place!

Ahhh I was quite disappointed unfortunately. I booked ahead and asked for a quiet table in a corner and mentioned it was a special occasion but we were seated in the middle of the room despite it being quiet as we were only allowed on the 2 person tables despite there being another couple on a 4 person table and it not been full the entire time. Nothing for special occasions which is fine but wasn’t mentioned they couldn’t do anything so wasn’t sure. Our server was fine but we felt a bit like he didn’t want to be there and we felt a bit uncomfortable and judged throughout. The atmosphere was strange - felt more like a gallery cafe. Food was mixed. Didn’t feel particularly gourmet. My husband enjoyed his pork roast but both my choices were disappointing- the terrine was just like having some sandwich meat without much flavour. Overall it just felt a bit like they didn’t know what they were. It wasn’t fine dining and it wasn’t a relaxed place to dine. Just a confusing experience overall. Maybe my misunderstanding, who knows. I’m just disappointed as we don’t get out often and it was supposed to be special. Maybe we caught it on an off- day. They add a 12% service charge your bill and it seems they think they’re entitled to that regardless. We would normally tip, but we do that based on our experience and choose an amount we feel reflects the experience.

It’s hard to find a really good Sunday lunch sometimes when you are looking at new towns and cites. My grandson found this little gem for us to go out for a little meal when we visited him at his uni digs. And wow it did not fail to please. We had a starter of seared smoked salmon and then a beef or pork Sunday lunch each and they were delicious. The staff were just amazing also. The star of the day the bread and butter well we had never tasted such superb bread with butter. Its most certainly baked on prem and what a baker who makes it. You could live off it and i have added it to my to ten list of favourite foods now. I cant recall the exact details but it was black garlic with grape and a few other ingredients between the butter and bread i felt like Oliver and wanted to shout please sir could i have some more.

Very chilled ambiance at shears. I was suprised by the lunch menu cost 2 courses for £20 or 3 courses for £25. At that price (let's be honest was in this day and age a steal, but I was dubious). I was indeed wrong. The quality and presentation of the food was divine. We decided on trying the bread, the butter that day was mixed with timothy taylor beer. Not to my taste, but the forcaccia bread...oh my the bread. The crust was definately to my taste if you lean on the salty side of cuisine it was worth the price! The fish tasted fresh and delicate. My lamb was cooked perfectly. The kimchi potatoes were drier than expected...however, I l2t it go after the chocolate brownie. I shared this with my husband. It was rich with flavour from tart cherries to the silky ganache. I forget our waiters name, but he was chipper and friendly. Gave his opinion on some the dishes which was useful. Was definately a warm welcome coming through the door. I would love to come back for an evening meal.

Visited last night to try out the tasting menu. The place itself is lovely inside, really nice atmosphere and music. We ordered the tasting menu with the wine pairing, which was matched beautifully. We really enjoyed the food itself. However, we felt so rushed between courses. We weren't given enough time to finish our drink before our next drink and course was being given to us. I had to ask to have a break between courses because we hadn't been given one. We felt the waiting staff weren’t interested in providing an experience and didn’t give us any extra information about the tasting menu itself. It was a shame considering how much we paid for the experience. Unfortunately, I don't think I would visit again as the customer service spoiled the whole experience.

Thoroughly awesome food! That's the first thing. Utterly beautiful interior. That's the second. And then it gets worse. The shiraz I had was totally flat and light, whilst sitting in their 'heavy' section of wine... so a little disappointed. And then service was a combination of great and rubbish - in the right proportion I guess (generally great) - I ordered the two course lunch, my friend ordered off the standard menu, just one course .... EVERYTHING came at once. The young ladies who served us seemed completely none fussed, and I'm not sure I even heard the word sorry. Again though, the food was AMAZING.

Fabulous restaurant - great food and atmosphere! Lots of vegetarian options which was great. 2 course dinner menu was £16.50 so good value (Mon to Thurs only and we ate at 8pm Thurs night) I had onion & thyme soup which was delicious and Goats cheese arancini. Quite romantic in evening with bare bulbs & exposed brick walls. Would definitely come again!

I wish I'd enjoyed this place more than I did. I was fully prepared to adore it, being a fan of Arts Cafe and indie biz, but there was just something missing. The building itself has been decked out rather beautifully, with simple romantic lighting inside and interesting features. It's sort of separated into two areas: a bar style area of seating and then a restaurant area that's sectioned by the bar area. When I went we were seated in the bar type area with our backs to the restaurant bit. Given the bare walls noise travels easily, which meant we could easily hear the noise of a few parties present at the time -- we had a few tables of patrons that were on the rowdy side, including one lady next to us who seemed to know everyone and wasn't afraid to squeal over people's tables to show it. Not Shears Yard's fault, but not enjoyable! The food is, undeniably, good quality and presented beautifully. You can tell that the chefs take pride in their work and use top notch ingredients, but each dish just seemed to miss the mark for me. I'm no connoisseur, so I'm fully willing to admit that it could be my lack of refined tastes, but it just seemed like more fuss than substance somehow. I had the pressed ham hock starter, which was like a super posh version of corned beef (I think) and the duo of lamb for the main. Both certainly exploded with flavour and complexity, but it's possible that I chose the wrong restaurant for the mood I was in -- I was starving so perhaps didn't get to appreciate the intricacies. I inhaled the first course and couldn't finish the second as the flavours seemed to get a bit too rich half way through. Basically, I love the concept, I think the food is of amazing quality, and I perhaps need to come back in the right mood to give it another try. To be updated!

Big case of style over content. Lovely setting, amazing service but unfortunately, disappointing food. Odd menu combinations. Struggled to find anything on the menu I wanted to eat. Food was beautifully presented but not particularly tasty. Shame

Atmosphere is #1 here. Beautiful looking restaurant and bar. Don't know why the've received negative comments on the food. Had a three course meal and enjoyed every part of it. Only con was the grilled calamari we tried as a side...otherwise it's a great restaurant worthy of your attention. Service was also top notch.

My friend and I have eaten here three times at lunchtime. The building is a refurbished sail making yard which, given its proximity to the canal and river, makes sense. The walls have been stripped back to the original brick and some features left. It doesn't exactly give a cosy ambience. The lunchtime menu on the first occasion was ok, and the prices reasonable. The second time the menu had changed and were mainly boards - meat, fish and veggie. Although the boeuf bourgignon was still available and this was tasty and plentiful with home-made bread (I'm pretty sure it wasn't, but it had been warmed). There were very few people in the first time, second time there was a raucous table of 'suits'. (Anyone who has read my previous reviews will see I have an abhorrence of these noisy and loud individuals who seem oblivious to other diners). The noise they made echoed round the otherwise empty restaurants making it difficult to have a conversation. However, we gave it a third go. This time the menu had got even smaller, no boeuf bourgignon and mainly boards - yet again, what is this obsession with boards? I suspect it is because pre-prepared food can simply be doled out and takes no effort. I had carrot and coriander soup, again with 'home-made' bread (definitely not home- made this time) but it was hot and plentiful, though not what I would have chosen given more choice. My friend had a meat board which she said was ok but nothing on it was freshly made. I asked the waitress why the menu had been so reduced but she said 'it was quiet' - I could see that for myself. Perhaps this place is much busier in the evening but if they can't be bothered to put on a reasonable effort at lunchtime they should not open. We shall definitely not be going again. Oh, one more thing - ladies, especially small ladies, should be careful when visiting the lavatories. For some reason the actual loo is VERY high - they are more like what you get in an orthopaedic ward in hospital (i speak from experience). I could have done with a small buffet - or a 'leg up' at least!