We moved to Darlington in January, and we have been on a mission to go to a new place everytime we…read morego for something to eat in town. I would happily break that rule to come back to Cafe 85 The food was AMAZING! Make sure you catch Early Bird on a Friday, and also get your hands on a Pims. Bar staff are great, the manager was friendly and chatty and helped us with choices. The seating is different too. Booths at the front, with funky seating in the middle and more traditional at the back

There's only one word for this place AMAZING!!! We walked passed one night not even having planned…read moreeating out but the food sounded so delicious and the early bird offer was such good value we just couldn't resist and we were not disappointed! We opted for starters and mains and decided to share as they all sounded so yummy! We finally settled on the Thai fish cakes and pitta with dips to start with and the pork belly and venison sausages for our mains Both were unbelievably good and that is high praise coming from a girl who is all about her food! Can't wait to go back and will be recommending it to all our friends!

This place has been in and out of ownership over the past few years, with extended periods of…read moreclosure. My previous visits faired from middling to poor but I am pleased to say that it now seems to have some uniformity about it. New owners with their chef Gareth being said owner. This bodes well as almost without fail, when I have been to an establishment where the owner is the chef the quality tends to be higher. You see owners who don't cook in their own place may begin with a very good chef, someone with talent and flair but often that chef will move on, called by higher wages and a new challenge. So; the owner brings in a new chef but he or she does not live up to the standards of chef numero uno. Reputation drops and there-on-after things become difficult. So it was nice when the Manager introduced me to Gareth and told me a little about him. This was lunch time so I cannot divulge on their alcoholic drinks menu but I did notice that the lunch menu, although not small was concise. There were choices of lighter bights, no doubt to induce the working lunch folk and then a menu of larger meals and that is exactly what I and my better half went for. As our soft drinks arrived so too did the obligatory basket of bread and butter. Of the choices masterfully put in-front of us by the Manager we both decided upon the Pork Terrine. this arrived in timely fashion beautifully presented on a long slender white porcelain plate. To the left were leaves of beet, rocket and others with a light dressing then moving right we had a decent sized slice of the pork terrine itself and then a slice of toast propped carefully against a small jar of chunky apple sauce from which was protruding a teaspoon. This looked good. Trying the dish in it's various connotations I can say it was good although for my personal taste a little more oomph was required in the terrine, perhaps more seasoning? That said we did have salt and pepper on the table if we desired it but having tried it with the apple, I was in no hurry to adjust it. The only other point I would make is that with the amount of terrine on the plate another slice of delicate Danish toast wouldn't have gone amiss. This course was cleared away and soon afterwards our main lunch meals arrived. Between the two of us we had chosen North East Cod with Pancetta and Kale and Calf's Liver with an Onion Marmalade and Peppery Mash. Again neither of us were disappointed and both were displayed beautifully. The cod was perfectly cooked and for lunch was probably the choice to make, not too heavy, not to little. The iron/bitter tasting kale was crunchy and the pancetta set it away nicely, whilst the liver I had was cooked to perfection. I hate overcooked liver but when it is done properly I prefer it to Venison. This was set on a roundel of the onion marmalade and creamy mash, which rather than being peppery seemed to have mustard grains running through it. It was served with a teeny jug of Jus (reduced meat gravy in this case) and both were accompanied by a bowl of fresh steamed veg. I must admit that looking at the dishes, despite previous experiences I thought there would not be enough. I was wrong as by this point I was thinking of coffee not desert but the Manager once again came over to see that we were happy bunnies and persuaded us to share a desert. This was bakewell tart, probably the best presented desert I have ever seen. To the left of the rectangular plate was a small shot glass containing Creme Anglais (a custard to you and I), then moving right again was a square of bakewell tart and then a scoop of good, possibly homemade, ice cream. Overlying it were a sprig of young cranberries and a long tapering sugar strand at the base of which was lying a hazelnut. In my opinion the combination was perfect. we had our coffees, paid our bill of less than £30 and left after being introduced to the Gareth through his hells kitchen style hatch. I cannot wait to try the evening menu.

I have been here twice in the last year with a party of 8-9 family both times. Food and drinks…read morechoice is good. Nice quality menu and craft ales. Good kids menu. Place has an inviting, new, trendy, farmy feel. Staff are polite, friendly and knowledgeable. Service is quick and efficient. Whoever took over this place is doing a great job. Very clean and tidy. I will definitely return and recommend to others. Well done guys.

Came here for a birthday celebration on a Saturday. Service…read morewas impeccable, attentive and lovely waiters who were very accommodating and were always very courteous. Unfortunately almost everything else lets the place down. The actual restaurant was not too bad, everything was nicely decorated in the front although the dining tables had no table sheets and seating wasn't very comfortable which lead to a very pub-like feel. Actually, a pub is slightly better. The food was also under-average. Satay chicken was standard fried affair (grilling would have been better) and the curries were underwhelming (over-cooked duck and not very authentic tasting). The fried rice was a little too 'wet' and could have done with a higher frying temperature. The papaya salad was overpoweringly spicy and fish cakes were thin, chewy and lacking life. If it were not for the service this would have been a 2 star review.

We love this restaurant, the food is just amazing, and you don't have to have it spicy if you don't…read morewant to. We highly recommend the seafood platter for two, we have it every time it costs around £56 but you get crab claw soup with massive crab claws in them, also a whole sea bass, plus lots of other bits. The staff are always polite and helpful.

The Beefeater was a lovely place to eat but the wait for food was way to long, but when the food…read morearrived it was to my satisfaction and I really enjoyed it just wasn't happy about the long wait.

I have eaten here several times as I was staying at the hotel next door. The breakfast was great,…read morewith an all you can eat menu. An English Breakfast and choices of cereal, pastries, fruit and such. The Dinner menu was equally as good. Food was tasty and service was good and staff was friendly.

I came in for dinner, tried a selection of the Greek dishes. Food and service was good. Comfortable…read moreatmosphere. Would recommend and would come again.

The Blue Lagoon is a well established family run restaurant in Darlington. Staff are extremely…read morefriendly and make you feel very welcome. There is a wide range of food, including english, italian and greek dishes and this makes it easy for groups to find something everyone is happy with. The Blue Lagoon is certainly not contemporary or swanky but if you are looking for good service, relaible quality food in the town centre then it's a good option.

Had take-out from this place once about three years ago. It was not good food. The place always…read morelooks as though it needs a jet wash, both inside and out. They seriously need to invest in the appearance of the place, and employ a cleaner. The pavement directly outside, and litter bins also need regular servicing as they are particularly dirty. Until these things change I would not go back. If the management are happy for the outside to be so dirty, I'm not sure what this says about their hygiene standards.

Not sure what the other reviewer is talking about. Maybe things have changed since 2014. I ate here…read morein the summer of 2016 and it's still the benchmark for me for the best fish and chips I've had during recent trips to the UK. I dream about it regularly. Very fresh fish with fries that were thick slabs of potato and the mushy peas were spot on. So salty and so damn good.

The cheesy chips with garlic and spring onion are to die for! It can seem a little more pricey than…read morethe other cafes nearby. however, it is nice food there.

Great food all the waiters are very friendly…read more We come from London for the weekend and it's always worth eating here