Sheila's Cottage

A very cosy cottage serving delicious hearty food. Slightly more expensive than other establishments, however the quality of food was good. Staff were friendly and the establishment filled up quickly so would recommend booking a table!

Sheila’s Cottage in Ambleside was a lovely last-minute find, offering a cosy atmosphere and friendly, welcoming service. The pork belly starter was both tasty and generously portioned, while the lamb chump that followed was cooked nicely and paired with well-prepared vegetables. I would have preferred a sauce with a bit more depth and thickness to really bring the dish together. It is a little on the pricier side, but given the quality of the food and the warm setting, it’s definitely worth a visit if you’re in the area.

Stopped in for lunch. The food was good. The side salad with beets and the thick cut chips were especially delish. The thick cut chips I had here have been the best I have had since I have been in England.

We were glad to see this place was dog friendly and we tried it out. The menu looked a few pounds more than other places & the wine too : the latter proving a disappointment and certainly for £29.50! I had the pie & I gather they buy them in put some gravy round it, a few carrots / I chose chips over mash. But, £20 a tad steep. The booking process on line was a faff & Credit Card details taken! We couldn’t be bothered checking out the over priced puds : again cheaper elsewhere! Slightly sour faced waitress when we said no to puds! Then in asking for the bill, we were told they automatically added a 10% tip! I never like this as we may have wanted to give more! We were told they could take it off : but, could you imagine the face! On balance out of all the restaurants we have eaten tried in Ambleside this delivered poor value for monies spent. I doubt very much we will return. Especially, when we enjoyed our other meals elsewhere so much.

For everything but the price, this is a really nice restaurant. The service was very good, the food was nice, nothing wrong with anything except that to charge £13 for a sandwich, and £9.25 for a dessert just seems a little steep. But, it is the middle of the lake district and there are plenty of people about who are wiling to pay these prices.

Service by the Scottish lady was very good. At same time we were thinking...where is our food? she came over and said, you have been waiting quite a while I will check with the kitchen. Food still took a while to arrive and we were disappointed when it did come. Maybe it's what we chose, but the bought in pie, frozen chips and a boiled carrot, didn't do it for me, and my husbands burger, frozen chips and what tasted like cold tinned tomato (salsa?) wasn't better. Relish was served in the Heinz squeezing bottle. Could they do better? When paying the bill, we were asked did you enjoy?.. I was honest that the service was good but food was basic, we were offered a free pudding, but declined as we were no longer hungry Kitchen let this place down.

What a great little place this is. We had the Steak and Ale pie and it was utterly delicious, One of the best I have ever eaten. My friend is a Chef & we both agreed that we definitely would come back the next time we are up in the area. The serving staff were lovely, efficient and always smiling. Top Tip!.. Book a table in advance, it's always busy which is the sign of a good restaurant.

THE SERVICE!!! Never laughed so hard. The food is also very good, had the tagine and the pie and finished it off with the best sticky toffee pudding. A nice and cosy spot after a day climbing the wainwrights.

Myself and my husband were looking for somewhere nice to eat in Ambleside. We were sure what we wanted and stumbled across Sheila's Cottage. We hadn't booked prior as we just thought we would see what we could find. The staff were lovely and happy to seat us. The interior was decorated really nice and had that homely feeling. The food was brilliant! Loved it all. I ordered the butternut squash risotto for mains and sticky toffee pudding both were lovely I would recommend these!

Great food, in a town without a lot of great choices. We ate here after a long day of hiking - our original plan was to have dinner at a pub but none of the pub options in Ambleside looked remotely appealing and Sheila's Cottage did. It was a great decision. The lamb was the best I've had in a long time (be aware it takes the kitchen about 35 minutes to prepare), and my partner's risotto was excellent too, if almost too creamy. Someone else in our group had the penne pasta entree, which I didn't try, but they were happy with it as well. Service was friendly too.

We stumbled on this place after being turned down from other restaurants (8pm saturday night); We were so lucky! I had spaghetti and haddock in a creamy sauce for starter and shoulder of lamb for main. It was possibly the best meal I've ever had. It seems like they have gone for the approach of perfecting a small menu and providing a pleasant environment allowing you to spend a whole evening there, slowly getting drunk on their selection of wines. The other half very much enjoyed this!

Wonderful food - great value. Sought non-touristy from locals and this name came up several times. Eclectic menu leans toward Italian plus features sophisticated starters. Service personnel warm and accommodating. Family friendly. A little difficult to find but worth the effort.

This visit was not an accident! Two friends were having birthday and we were looking for some place to have a nice dinner and I suggested Sheila's Cottage. While shopping, we stopped in and made a reservation. The food is good and it is a nice atmosphere, but unlike some places in Ambleside that will charge you every limb and your first child for very nice food, Sheila's doesn't. It isn't extremely cheap, but I find the price reasonable for the quality and amount of food you get. I ordered the soup of the day to start with: broccoli, bacon, and thyme with some bread. It was good, minus the bits of thyme I was chewing on. Other starters ordered were the Goat's Cheese Tart (delicious according to the person who consumed it), and the Westmorland ramequin with mushrooms and a cream sauce (also delicious according to those that consumed it). For the main, I had the haddock with an herb crust, creamed leeks, and lemon and ginger roasted potatoes. The haddock was lovely, but I could've used with less crust, in fact I thought it was a bit much and scraped some of it off. The creamed leeks were nice and the lemon ginger roasted potatoes were heavenly. Wished there had been more of the potatoes. In addition to your main, they bring out large portions of veg and some braised red cabbage. Other mains ordered: salmon with cous cous (again delicious), Cumberland sausage and mash (plate was squeaky clean), and spaghetti with flakes of smoked haddock and cream and parmesan (too much to eat). Then it was time for dessert. Really I don't know if any of us had room for dessert, but it was happening. I wasn't sure if I could handle a stodgy pud, so I went with the soft baked meringue with homemade Rocky Road ice cream. I love soft meringue! There were a few bits of it that were a bit overdone to be sold as soft baked, but it was still good. And I'm used to a chocolate ice cream base for Rocky Road and no cherries, but it was still good. Other puds ordered: sticky toffee pudding (a classic), baked American cheesecake with sultanas, vanilla, and lemon (no complaints there), and a Raspberry crème brulee with an Eccles cake finger (apparently the Eccles cake finger was rather weird as it was not very sweet and just kind of fell apart). Overall dinner was really good and everyone seemed to enjoy! Minus a couple bits here and there and I think it is safe to say it is still one of the top places I like to dine at while in Ambleside!

Very good, attentive waiter, quiet position, potatoes from Somerset as we are. From Somerset that is, not potatoes