Coniston Water Food and Drink
Here is my personal guide to Food & Drink in the Coniston area
All the below pubs are dog & children friendly and in the order of distance from Nibthwaite
RED LION, LOWICK BRIDGE
Free House. You’re local and the nearest pub. Small pub with larger dining room.
Home-cooked pub food. Good beer garden. Wi-Fi. Very dog friendly.
15 minutes walk or 4 minutes drive. Best to check for current opening times.
MANOR HOUSE, OXEN PARK, LA12 8HG
Only 3 miles from Sawmill Cottage and Charcoal House.
Free House. The new favourite for many of our guests. This is our current favourite South Lakes pub and serves very good pub food and excellent, well-kept local ales. Fantastic fish & chips and Sunday roasts. Lovely south facing beer garden.
THE FARMERS ARMS, LOWICK GREEN – café, pub & community hub
1 of the oldest pubs in the Lake District. Renovated and run by the ‘Grizedale Arts Society’. Only open Thursday to Saturday, 12pm until 10pm.
Serving food all day from 12pm – 8:30pm.
Thursday night is pizza and homemade burgers night. Booking is recommend https://lakedistrictfarmersarms.com/
WILSONS ARMS, TORVER, LA21 8BB
The most popular pub locally for good pub food. 15 minutes drive north from Nibthwaite on the main road to Coniston village. Another Free house. Dog friendly. Booking advised or turn up and wait for a seat in the pub area. 015394 41237 http://www.thewilsonsarms.co.uk/
BRANTWOOD TERRACE COFFEE HOUSE & RESTAURANT – LA21 8AD
Highly recommended by other guests for great food including breakfasts and “stunning views”. Dog friendly. 5 miles drive north of Nibthwaite.
BLUEBIRD CAFÉ, CONISTON, LA21, 8AN
Situated on the shore of Coniston Water with lovely lake views and plenty of outdoor seating. On a sunny day there’s not many better places to be. Gets very busy when the weather is good. Dog friendly.
HEFT, HIGH NEWTON – LA11 6JH
Less than 20 minutes drive from Nibthwaite.
Michelin star. Excellent restaurant and pub that opened in Spring 2021.
Owned by chef Kevin Tickle and his wife Nicola. Kevin is a very respected and talented Cumbrian chef. indeed, Nicola and Kevin are Cumbrian born-and-bred and this is highlighted in Kevin’s imaginative cooking.
In addition to the restaurant, the pub itself is a lovely 17th century Lakeland pub serving great beer and wine etc. plus what they call ‘bar snacks’. These vary weekly from totally homemade sausage rolls (I’ve never had a better sausage roll in my life), cheese, and occasionally puddings or pies, all deliciously homemade of course!
Dogs and well-behaved children are allowed in the bar which is open Wednesday to Sunday.
Booking is essential for the restaurant. Check website for opening hours and to book online:- https://hefthighnewton.co.uk
BLACKSMITHS ARMS, BROUGHTON MILLS, LA20 6AX
A lovely 25 minutes drive west. 1 of the Lake District’s best traditional, old pubs. Who wouldn’t want to drive to a lovely old pub in the aptly named ‘Lickle Valley’?
Lovely views from the terrace in warmer months. Popular pub food. Dog friendly. Booking in the evenings is essential. Closed Monday lunchtimes.
GREAT PLACE FOR BREAKFAST/BRUNCH
BAKEHOUSE – BORN & BREAD, GREENODD
Widely regarded as the best breakfast in the South Lakes, you MUST pre-book for
breakfast and lunch by phone 01229 861265. 9am-2.30pm
ULVERSTON – Lovely Lake District market town!
Ulverston has lots of great cafes and several good restaurants too including Thai, Italian, French, tapas, fusion and of course British!
Ulverston also has a good street market every Thursday and Saturday and a good indoor market every day. We love Ulverston with its pastel coloured buildings, great shops, quirky shops and bags of atmosphere. Head for Market Street, park up and enjoy exploring this lovely, small market town. Irving’s butchers are excellent and there’s a great fishmonger opposite too.
BASE
Very popular bistro and café. Usually open Monday to Saturday 10am – 2pm and Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings too. Check current opening times and menus – https://www.baserestaurant.co.uk/
L’AL CHURRASCO
Spanish, Portuguese & Southern Mediterranean Tapas. Very popular, small but regularly changing menu. Booking is essential at all times of the year.
GREAT PLACES TO BUY LOCAL FOOD AND PRODUCE
We’re blessed with lots of farmers markets in the Lake District. You can see the current list here – https://www.visitlakedistrict.com/whats-on/markets
The nearest places for provisions are either Greenodd village shop or Coniston village. There’s also a small ‘Cumbrian deli’ at The Wilson’s Arms in Torver.
P. D. HUTCHINSON BUTCHERS, GREENODD
Excellent old-fashioned butchers at prices that will pleasantly surprise you. Don’t be put off that it’s rustic and basic, Peter Hutchinson has an excellent reputation for supplying great quality local meat and he supplies many of the local pubs. The prices are lower than supermarkets and quality is far better. Usually stocks a few pints of milk, vegetables and a few basic food provisions too. Closed Tuesday, Friday & Sunday
CARTMEL
Cartmel Valley has a wealth of great food producers, pubs, cafes, food shops and 5 shiny Michelin stars
L’ENCLUME, Cartmel
3 Michelin stars, 5 AA rosettes and lots more awards as well as being consistently rated as 1 of the top 10 restaurants in Britain. Owner/chef Simon Rogan is also rated as 1 of the world’s best chefs.
A lot of the food comes from their own organic farm 1 mile away.
You usually need to book several weeks or months ahead, literally.
The shorter lunch menu is a very popular choice and easier to get a booking for. Booking is essential
https://www.lenclume.co.uk/ Tel: 015395 36362
ROGAN & COMPANY, CARTMEL
Cartmel’s 2nd Michelin starred restaurant.
Owned by Simon Rogan (L’Enclume), with a very talented head chef at the helm.
Rogan & Co. has now become one of Cumbria’s best restaurants.
What might sound simple on the menu often ends up with a few pleasant, subtle additions on the plate.
Booking is essential. Check website for opening hours and to book online:- https://www.roganandco.co.uk/ or Tel:- 015395 535917
You can see our gorgeous Coniston holiday cottages here