The Apiary Cafe Bar in North West Leicestershire

Stumbled into here by accident, and stayed for quite a few hours, service and atmosphere was absolutely fantastic. Only real let down, was the beer selection was a bit pants... Maybe worth getting a few real ales in on tap?

Always a great atmosphere for a drink.

Great service Called on way to airport and was seated quickly and the Sunday roast was lovely Would recommend and certainly call again if I’m in the area

Visited the Apiary recently with my family for breakfast to start my birthday celebrations. Service here was excellent, right through from first booking over the phone. Food was great; the first time I have ever wanted to try the black pudding and it was lovely. We pre-ordered which meant we were served very promptly after choosing our egg options. We never felt rushed and nothing was too much trouble. Thank you for the birthday Buck’s Fizz! A great start to the day!

What a good find. Great food and excellent service. Will definitely recommend it and be going back

Wonderful find from google. Excellent service with a smile and a great Sunday roast at a reasonable price. Nice pint of Timothy Taylors to wash it down.

Called in for Sunday lunch from off the A50. Found using Google maps. Excellent quirky restaurant, delicious food and excellent service. Highly recommend

Absolutely amazing as always, great staff, good drinks and excellent vibes

Great food and service from staff. Very cosy atmosphere

Popped in on a Saturday night. They had a great young lady singing. She had a great voice! The place is superbly furnished with much thought gone into it. My only gripe is that they have around 5 draught lager/IPAs on but not one draught cider? There are a lot of people around who drink cider.

Absolutely loved it landlady is lovely

We found ourselves in Castle Donington at lunch time and wandered into The Apiary on spec, but weren't disappointed. It is cosy and clean; service was excellent- friendly and quick. Good choice of lunch options. I had the daily special of cod, sautéed potatoes and green beans in Parsley sauce. Portion size was just right for me and I thought it good value. I wish I had been there on a Sunday - the Sunday roast options looked reasonably priced and I'm sure would be delicious.

Solo traveller, but felt very welcome and comfortable having lunch here, very friendly and helpful staff. I had Bacon, Brie and Cranberry toasted Panini, served with a side salad. It was all delicious.

Wonderful place for live music. Fantastic atmosphere.

We love this place and meet up with an old friend whenever we can - usually for Sunday lunch, which is very good value. The staff are friendly and the decor quaint! Definitely recommend...

Very disappointed with Sunday lunch last week. Waiting staff were lovely though.

Had lunch here twice this week - each time delicious. Fantastic staff and a beautiful place eat. Fabulous. Can’t wait to return.

Lovely meal (pie night!) Nice atmosphere, very friendly. Hadn't heard of it before so really good discovery, would go again if in the area.👍

Staff super friendly, however did forget one of our drinks and didn't return to ask. Unfortunately unsuitable for prams/pushchairs (can get in there with a squeeze) but also no room for disabled access. Also no baby change. This was very difficult - changing my baby on my lap on the toilet seat was a challenge. There is plenty of room in the loos for a fold down baby change. The food was incredible can't fault that. Music was a tad too loud so couldn't hear conversation but the music itself was good. Great choice of food for veggies but not vegans.

Love this place staff amazing 👌😘

Whenever we meet up in Castle Donnington this is the pub we go to, great selection of beers and vibrant yet relaxed atmosphere.

Love The apiary came here recently for pie night, and it did not disappoint.

We've had dinner at the Apiary in the past and were pleased. Nice surroundings. However we visited last week and were very disappointed. After ordering, the main course appeared literally in seconds. This suggests it was already plated up - maybe demonstrated by the gravy being fully soaked into the pie. Another jug of gravy was provided. The food was only lukewarm. How does a restaurant hope to get away with that? The chips were soggy and not freshly cooked. There was no desert menu - only a few cakes under glass on the bar. Another eatery gone down hill. What do the owners do?

Popped in to have a drink, and had a great time. Staff were lovely and really helpful, drinks were perfect (I had a non-alcoholic beer as I was driving and my wife had a lovely merlot) and the decor was cool. Cracking atmosphere and will definitely be back for the Sunday lunch and live music. Edit: Went back for Sunday dinner and drinks. The food was outstanding, the band very entertaining and the atmosphere reflected that. Thoroughly recommended.

Had an lovely Sunday lunch, only thing missing in my opinion was cauliflower cheese, even did a wonderful takeaway for my partner who couldn't be there due to a chest infection.

Went in on a Sunday night for a couple of drinks after arriving for a work trip. Nice friendly bar staff. The bar area is very cosy. Was nice to sit and relax for a while before heading back to my hotel.

Lovely little find! I booked myself and two friends in for lunch, was disappointed that there was no salad but the roast chicken was very tasty and the Yorkshire pudding was huge! The atmosphere is lovely could do with the music turning down a notch.

Popped in on a Sunday without booking after a day of travel. Quickly given a table by a very friendly lady. Food arrived in good time. Pork and beef were very tasty. Yorkshire puddings were great. Couldn’t fault food or service.

Nice enough food and lovely staff but a little slow on service, despite it not being that busy, after sitting for 10mins or so after plates cleared no one asked would we like the pudding it lost a sale as we were going to order but gave up

Lovely pub, lovely pint with a ham salad crusty cob which was excellent. Friendly and efficient staff and service. We will be back for live music in the future.

Kooky place which a nice selection of beer. Food options very limited... But then they never claimed they weren't so can't really complain. Seemed really popular.

Would recommend this unique place, food, drink and hospitality great.

Only went for a couple of drinks Decor was beautiful Literally the best pub I have ever been in and I have been in a few !

Now that there is a fridge of canned craft beer, this pub has the best selection of craft beer, ipas & sours in Castle Donington. The venue often has live music and the food is really good, both in the evening and earlier in the day. There are seats outside on the High Street and a secret garden area round the back.

We are here before a flight. The food was home cooked and delicious. Lovely, quirky decor and friendly service. Don’t eat at the airport when you have options like this.

Was hoping for a comfortable early evening meal for the family on Saturday. Could not book an Apriary table because "it was a themed Caribbean night". Never mind, let's go! 3 things spoilt it: virtually no seating left, incredibly noisy – due to music and density of people, and took absolutely ages – 50 minutes – to order then get food! But my "airline" mutton and rice was tasty; staff were friendly. Unlikely to return.

Cosy place with excellent service!

Stopped here for a drink one afternoon and we were incredibly impressed. What a lovely place, plenty of choice and wonderful staff. We are going to come back to try the food but it does look good.

Always lovely food and staff been many times will keep going back xx

Called in for lunch. Wonderful décoré and a really nice vibe. The lady who looked after us was great. Seated us quickly even though it was busy. Caters for everything, coffee and cake. Drinks, lunch and Sunday Roast. We had a great Chicken Teriyaki bowl. Enjoyed it so much, we went back the next day for coffee and cake then in the evening for the live music and a few beers. Well worth a visit.

Unfortunately there was a very long wait and the food was 'nice enough'.

Waited an hour for food to arrive told the kitchen was busy. We all had burgers they were tasteless and dry chips over cooked . Disappointing as the surroundings are fabulous.

We sat outside as we had a dog Unfortunately we had to wait 15/20 mins for our drinks . We didn't have food . I had a hot chocolate and it wasn't very tasty . The coffee was good and tea was good Love the decor and the menu looks good .

Superb, atmospheric cafe/bar. Dark and cool inside. Great swing music over the speakers. Baroque, shabby chic.

Delightful, quirky atmospheric cafe/bar. Sinatra and other swing music playing in the background. Dark, moody interior with floral covered chairs. Very baroque. Fantastic.

Lovely little place which has rooms you just keep finding! The gin choices are fantastic too. Love the feel of the place. Definitely will return ♥️

Beautiful Decor, lovely staff and great drinks. Look forward to trying the food soon

Can't fault this place. The staff were welcoming and delightful. The Sunday roast was cooked to perfection. Veg wasn't overdone, lovely buttery mash, meat was great quality, the gravy was very very tasty. They have a chef who cares about food. Thank you!!

Good local bar with a good selection of beers and good food

We went to muncaster castle on 5 th may 2023 shameen was so lovely on the tickets very nice girl will definitely come again

Great place, good selection of food & drink. Excellent service. Definitely recommend.

Lovely atmosphere, great music, love the place

Great evening with fantastic music. Warm welcome, lovely atmosphere. Quick service and reasonable prices. Quirky decor which I loved. Didn't have a meal but hear the food is great. Highly recommend

Cute place with great food, few cocktail choices and more cider options would be a nice addition

Went in for Mother's Day lunch. Very popular on a normal Sunday and more so today. Food was very good (we wouldn't keep going back if it wasn't...!!), and the staff were their usual polite and efficient selves. Good lunch recommended and we will be back again without hesitation.

Love this place all good, but limited menu so deducted star

Lovely atmosphere and the service was great - will be going back

We loved this quirky cosy restaurant, the staff are super friendly and welcoming. The food was delicious, fresh and homemade. As a vegetarian I struggle to find a decent Sunday dinner, this place nailed it. Yorkshire pud, roasties and good mash…yum! Will definitely be going back.

Great food, great staff and lovely quirky building. Definitely recommend 👍

Wonderful place highly recommended

Good food at a fair price. Sunday lunch main course fo £11.95. Not bad at all.

Great little place.. amazing staff and awesome food 👍

Never open and terrible parking even when it was open.

Been wanting to try the Apiary for sometime time , went for Saturday lunch , lovely cosy place with a good atmosphere the food & service was excellent will definitely go again

Going to try the Sunday Roast Excellent bar service. Second to none.

Really nice pub The roast was tasty without being amazing

Excellent food,-delicious breakfasts, amazing Sunday lunches, and friendly staff!! And the decor is amazing.😊

Absolutely love this place. Great atmosphere, great food, wines and beers. The only fault with the place is.... The music is played way to loud. It would be perfect other than that. It would be nice to be able to hear each other when talking 😔

A lovely atmosphere, beautiful decor throughout. Staff were welcoming and helpful. Me and my friends had breakfast - a great choice of traditional English breakfast, or eggs benedict, smashed avocados on sourbread toast etc and more. All beautifully presented. I'm looking forward to returning!!

I took the family out for a nice Sunday roast dinner. This venue is absolutely fantastic with the art deco. The Sunday roast is to die for absolutely perfect I didn’t have anything to complain about. There is also plenty of selections of gin and draft. I would highly recommend if you like good quality food.

Popped in on a Saturday morning for a coffee. Very very unfriendly lady serving.

Lovely venue set out really good, Independent family run business. Sunday roast to die for , I can’t recommend enough. Service on point, food good, beer good. Thanks.

Good food and very friendly team

I have NEVER eaton alfresco before.. your even on VIDEO how exciting NOT ! ! ! Then of course you have so called music blaring away..NOT IMPRESSIVE AT ALL rating minus 100%... Disabled access it has not got any..! ! ! ! Poor......

Spent a fantastic Sunday afternoon here. Sunday Lunch really nice and good value. Quality produce, well cooked and good size portions. (Extra jug of homemade gravy as standard on the side was a particularly nice touch). We got to keep the table in the main...

Just stopped in Castle Donington on our way up north. The Apiary! What a delightful find, cute, cozy, amazing decor! Lovely friendly service. Food was fab, too much to eat, but amazing pizza. Definitely worth a visit, if we're ever in the area again, we...

Lovely relaxed ambience good ales and bar

Real fun bar and interesting decor. Good atmosphere and nice drinks, always a stop off when in the arra

Small and pleasant Pub with cosy areas inside and pavement tables outside at the front ... good food and splendid cheese platter ..!

Nice looking place with a nice unique vibe. Very expensive though cost us £50 for 3 cokes, 2 shandys, 3 pre packaged sandwiches, a quiche and a panini.

The new “tapas” style food was very disappointing Patas Bravas were sliced, very oily and not crisp. Salad limp and not dressed. Bread stale and definitely not sour dough. No crackers with the cheese. All round very ordinary.

Castle Donington resident 28 years, supported the Apiary since it opened, recommended lots of friends to visit. 4 of us visited tonight for drinks, 2 of the Snake Eyes beer didn’t taste right, took the beers back to enquire if we could exchange or be...

Lovely, quaint and quirky. We sat outside at the back although limited by space it was certainly very pleasant.

Lovely service. Great roast and the best breakfast had here. New food looks amazing!

Nice place, lovely decor, great outside seating area at rear, friendly staff, good food and open for lunch

What a fabulous pub,staff really friendly,breakfast was delicious. Even let me change a keg of beer 😂😂. Will definitely be back. 👍👍

Lovely place. Great selection of beers

Greatvlittle pub. We called in for a lunch, yhe food was great and the service was excellent.

Oh Dear, The Apiary was somewhat of a disappointment for us. It had been recommended, but fell well short on quality of food. OK, it was on a Sunday Lunchtime Menu but the meats were cut too thickly and were dry, and the roast potatoes...

Friendly service, nice people, dog friendly, good selection of beers and wines.

Visited the Apiary last night with a friend and had such a lovely evening. We arrived early evening so we sat outside and enjoyed a bottle of fizz whilst the sun was shining. We decided to eat whilst we were there and the food was...

Great place for a coffee and a bite to eat, especially the pancakes

Eccentric, qwerty yet strangely enjoyable. Food and service were excellent. Visited midweek for lunch.

Just had a lovely breakfast. The staff are so friendly and efficient. The pub itself is quirky and cosy. Love it here. If your passing through it a place you must come for a refuel 🧚‍♀️🧚‍♀️

Brilliant place will be going again

Nice place lovely decoration and seating outside which looked lovely. However the decaf coffee was served when it clearly wasn't as it should be. So we had to ask for replacements which was disappointing as in my opinion it shouldn't have been served to us in the 1st place. Maybe the coffee machine needed topping up or something. Also although the lemon cake was lovely it was the smallest portion I've ever been served and its not the cheapest place. From what I Could see the lady serving looked run off her feet which may explain the coffee scenario perhaps they could consider another member of staff.

I just want to say thank you so much for making our visit so lovely yesterday. We sat outside in the beautiful garden and had tea and scones and they were amazing! Loved how they were served in the basket and the teapot was gorgeous!...

Visited the night before we was flying off on holiday the next morning had a lovely meal really tasty would highly recommend good wine and beer

Lovely place in town of Castle Donington. Had drinks outside watching the world go by. Food looked amazing so next time will definitely eat .

We decided on The Apiary as the location to meet up with family who were heading back to London from the North East. The food was excellent, I had the toad in the hole and my partner decided that she would try the lamb and...