The Waterside Bistro

Dissappointed, poor selection on menu, lots of meals not available on the day, hardly any selection for vegetarian guests, value for money, very poor, will not be back.

We visited the Waterside on the strength of their steak every Thursday. The bar was friendly and welcoming and we enjoyed a pre dinner drink before heading through to the main restaurant. So far, so good. After this, however, things went gradually downhill. The steak we ordered was of very poor quality, with more gristle and fat than meat. When we mentioned this to the server she acknowledged our complaint and promised to feed our comments back to the kitchen. We waited for the server to come back to our table with either a discretionary drink or money off our bill, however we were to be disappointed again. There was no offer of any compensation nor were any further orders for drinks or dessert taken. While other tables around us were brought the bill, we had to pay at the bar. When mentioning our compliant to the owner we were informed that 20% had been taken off our bill. Great! But no one had had the courtesy to inform us of this. Had we known this we would have possibly ordered more drinks, so they effectively did themselves out of additional sales. In conclusion The Watersise Bistro is a pleasant enough place to go for a drink however I'd give the food a miss in future and wouldn't recommend the service.

great food, excellent service, would highly recommend, thursday night is steak night, ( steak, chips, drink) for £10 so also great value for money too

Food was even better than the last time we were there and the service was excellent. As always, lovely atmosphere and a pub dog in the bar makes it perfect for after meal drinks!

Good service in a first class location, with brilliant views across the river. Not expensive, either. One of the best situated restaurants in Scotland. Recommended.

Beautiful location near the river in Haddington. Bistro has a lovely ambience which adds to the dining experience. Great food. Steak night is brilliant. Love the selection of beers.

Very slow service, rubber band in soup and ended up being charged for free children's meals. Great location and food was very good despite this

The food was quite a disappointment - cold overcooked steaks, burgers without the relishes and accompaniments as stated on the menu. There was no wine list and the quality of the wines that were available were very poor. I wouldn't go back.

Lovely place. Great location - easy to get to, even by bus. Well priced and delicious wine. Tempting menu - could have chosen any starter. Perfect bistro experience.

Nothing too much effort. Very pleasant staff who made us feel very welcome. Will be back and intend to try the steak night. Recommend to try it.

Unfortunately the head chef was away and both food and service suffered in consequence. I gather from friends that the Waterside is usually very good.

The Waterside Bistro continues to please with its friendly welcoming and efficient service, well chosen drinks offering and simple unpretentious food, all at a an affordable price. Dropped a point for a number of first choice menu/drinks options not being available on the last two times I have been there, but the alternatives were more than acceptable, and yes that is a bit mean of me! Confidently and thoroughly recommended. Every time I go whether with family or friends I think I should do it more often.

Very nice place but difficult to park staff very helpful but food very salty which took away the enjoyment but service was good and friendly

We have been to the Waterside several times before, each time the food/service was good. This time unfortunately, there was a staffing issue in the kitchen, the food wasn't good, too ages to arrive and was cold. very disappointing for them and us.

Food was excellent, although there were a few things that were unavailable on the festive set menu, which just happened to be what a chose. Bad luck I suppose. The selection of local decent beers was really good and there is a huge selection of gins. Will be back.

My mum and I both had an upset stomach just after we'd eaten here. The service was poor as was the general ambience. Won't be going back.

Tried "Steak Night" for first time and wasn't disappointed. Food delicious and even paying extra for some side dishes it was definitely great value for your money.

Second visit to this bistros and once again food and service was excellent. only downside was we were sitting next to old fireplace and there was a draught

Lovely night and good food. Considering the manager was under staffed we were never left waiting and were well looked after all evening. It was also nice not to be rushed and we even took a drink in the bar before our meal.

Where do we start....the restaurant was freezing,so was our starter. The wine glass was shockingly dirty, moreover the waiter brought it in holding it by its rim! Service was OK, but rather impersonal. The mains were alright. Unlikely to rush back...

We did not enjoy our lunch and would not return. It was very basic for the price and was not impressed with the presentation. I was not asked if enjoyed meal when paying the bill and there is service charge taken off for tables of over six, which i would definitely not have paid.

Lovely place to eat, not too busy for a wednesday night. Very friendly attentive staff. There was a great menu with plenty of choices, we went for a tapas/meze type selection - the food was delicious!

Went on steak night. Steak was fine. Disappointed with frozen thin chips, expected real potato chips from this venue. No veg served with this only as an extra for over £3 per item ( small dish of curly kale, house salad smothered in vinegar). Waitress was polite but dressed in ripped jeans?! Bit of a let down all round from the reports that made us choose this venue.

Food quality poor. Meat in steak pie not tender and stock not very appealing. Only people dining table beside toilet and strong smell disinfectant. Little atmosphere. Expected much higher standard due to reviews

I enjoyed my meal - made my own board. My husband really enjoyed the cullen skink for a starter. Unfortunately , they forgot that he had ordered a main course as well. We had to ask for it and then wait for it to arrive. Having eaten there before, I was disappointed with the service.

Enjoyed lunch with friends and we all agreed that we'd definitely be back at the Waterside! I had been before and have always had a good meal there.

Staff were very helpful from booking( with several changes) through to the event itself. Staff also played along with surprise element to dinner. Whilst there were a few disruptions to the flow of service due to the boisterous nature of one or two of our guests the staff remained calm all the way through. Staff were also happy to play some of our own music played via an I Pod at the conclusion of the night. All went away happy and I would recommend it to all. The only downside was the unavailability of champagne on the night however that did not dampen our spirits.

A very good meal in very pleasant surroundings. Good service and substantial tasty portions. I would not hesitate to recommend The Waterside based on this experience.

Food Was not very impressive and service was excellent but what left a lot to be desired was the menu.s. A sheet of dirty marked A4. The young waitress knew very little about the food that was being served.

This is such an excellent place in a superb setting with a very hard working manageress. However the service varies considerably from visit to visit. Appreciate getting and training staff is not easy. We will still visit after a haphazard last visit and advice would be if you hit a poor night it is worth trying again.

Service was slow and inefficient. The food was disappointing to say the least. One of our guests ordered a whole crab which was not dressed in any way and was delivered without the necessary tools to be able to eat it. These had to be requested. The pheasant was dry and saved only by a well flavoured sauce.

Very pleasant ambience indoors as well as outdoors, wonderful setting by tranquil river and ancient church, good food, friendly staff. What more can one want?

Nice situated at the river Tyne. Friendly staff, excellent kitchen, cozy and warm atmosphere just a few minutes walk from city center. Best restaurant in Haddington? Probably!

Slow service, forgot about us several times, over two and half hours for one course However food lovely and worth waiting for. Will visit again but not if in a hurry!

Service was incredibly slow, I felt that one key lady had far too much to do and not enough support around her - more customers than staff able to serve quickly enough (30 mins before drinks arrived, order taken, and so on). Food was nice, shame spoilt by the lack of appropriate staffing.

Beautiful spot at the river Tyne. Excellent food, friendly staff and cosy atmosphere. Just a few minutes walk from Haddington city center. Best restaurant in Haddington? Probably!

Lovely situation and friendly staff. Very nice meal served quickly although restaurant was full with pre concert meals. Would certainly go again. Prices very reasonable.

What a fantastic place and great staff - they couldn't be more helpful or cheerful. Totally dog friendly and the food was amazing. We booked this place on the back of previous reviews, for my wife's birthday evening meal. Just in case we went the day before to check it out and on both occasions, we had a fabulous meal including 2 children's meals. The staff were even kind enough to agree to bring in a surprise birthday cake that we brought in - I didn't expect them all to turn up and sing happy birthday to her but they did and it made her day. Thanks to all the staff and we will be coming to see you again in the future. Cheers Simon

beautiful food, great service and value for money, we had the steak deal and that includes a steak, chips and a glass of wine for £10, what more could you ask for .

Lovely place in a great setting. The staff are very pleasant, helpful and friendly. Great choice of food at reasonable prices. Food very tasty. Would have given full score but my husbands pheasants for was slightly dry. This did not ,however, detract from the overall good exercise cue. We would definitely go back again.

The tables are too tightly packed in. The haggis burger sounded lovely but was a bit dry. However the two starters of Salmon and Pigeon were lovely. The service was excellent and would rate that as 100%.

Steak night is a bargain. They don't skimp on the portion and the wine. And as a gin lover it's also great as The Waterside has a large selection of Gins.

Staff friendly, food tasty, service excellent. I took a friend there and she wants to know how soon we are going back. Great night. Book in advance as it gets busy very quickly.

Restaurant was full. Too few serving staff meant very slow service. One guest ordered crab and was served an undressed crab without tools to tackle it. Eventually tools were supplied when requested. Pheasant was dry but partially saved by a tasty sauce. I guess every restaurant has an "off" night but this was disappointing and we will consider carefully if we visit this restaurant again

Good food espaccialy the small ones for a board - great blackpudding bonbons and great location to sit outside at the riverside. Friendly staff. Highly rcommanded.

Excellent all round on Saturday evening. Efficient and very friendly service, food nicely produced and delicious. No complaints. However standard seems very variable. Have been when service poor and food not good, this was midweek, so maybe all stops pulled out for a very busy Saturday. It was a very pleasant visit this time. Top marks and thank you to all staff

Great food, superb service. Well worth the drive from Edinburgh to get out of the city, enjoy an easy walk along the river and then retire to the pub/restaurant for a lovely lunch. We have been twice now and eacheck time it is fab.

The Waterside is an amazing place to eat.Fab food Excellent service. Good choice on menu and amazing choice of drinks especially if you like gin

The food here is very nice, and the setting is lovely. The staff were very attentive and service good. Altogether very nice and worth a visit.

Excellent choice on the lunch menu and wide range of drinks, especially Gin at the bar. Food was full of flavour, hot and served by friendly, helpful staff in a beautiful location, close to the centre of the town but far enough away to be peaceful and with a great view over the River Tyne. Couldn't fault it and happy to go back.