It started with a pre-dinner drink in the drawing room, a high ceilinged chamber with much dark…read morewood and leather furniture. With our drinks the waiter brought a plastic orange tree with actual berry sized oranges (sultanas) that were soaked in Grand Marnier and other magic potions to make them deliciously alcoholic. Soon after, a sommelier joined us in the drawing room to help us choose a wine for the evening. As you walk into the Orangery dining room, one immediately notices a glass skylight ceiling and views of the immaculately groomed grounds. Especially in the evening, the failing sunlight creates great atmosphere throughout the whole restaurant. Perfect ambiance for a fancy dinner. As with many high end restaurants there were pre-courses and courses. Before starters we had an amazing soup that I don't want to insult by getting it wrong, but reminded me of split pea soup. Then starters, all presented like art, followed by our entree. I had the best end of season lamb, and I definitely recommend it! For me, a place like this is as much about the experience as it is the food so I won't delay on just the food. Believe me, whatever you get is probably going to be amazing here! There was a pre-dessert course and it was like a less solid cheesecake with SPOILER ALERT pop rocks. Yes, pop rocks in a 5 star restaurant. Genius is the first word to come to mind. Hope I don't spoil the surprise for you. I liked that I still had another dessert course to go after I finished that! Service is big with me, and this is one of those places where your napkin is placed in your lap for you, so service was exactly the spoiling treatment you hope for at a place like this. So if you want to really splurge (really splurge) and have a truly fine dining adventure, I highly recommend the Orangery.

Kenny Atkinson at The Orangery was an incredible evening. From the moment you walk into Rockliffe…read moreHall you are treated like royalty and throughout our meal the service was outstanding, with very knowledgeable staff and a kitchen/dining system that works very well. They also allow the staff to show a bit of personality which is always endearing in such desirable places.

Great restaurant recommenced to us by facebook friend…read more Great little place with a simple menu, extensive wine & cocktail list We had the special early menu, 3 courses for £19 Fantastic presentation, great service from the staff, Food was of a very high quality. Highly recommenced and we will certainly be going back.

It is very good and I recommend people to go there and the food is really good and it is fantasticread more

A little bit off the beaten track from Darlington, the Otter and Fish is in a pleasant rural…read moresetting. The food's of a good standard, varied and good value. The staff are friendly and efficient. Not always a great atmosphere, the restaurant is rarely full and usually feels a little chilly. And the wine's a bit pricey. But worth a try.

They Keys inn Darlington is a really relaxed place by day slightly more crazy bar/club environment…read moreby night. I have only ever been in for Breakfast so I can't comment on what it is like on an evening. The breakfasts both times I have been have been great and really good value! I had scrambled eggs on wholemeal this time round with a side of beans all for £3.25, the presentation was great and the service pleasant. I am heading back here for afternoon tea for Mothers Day so I will update my review after that.

Love this place brilliant food good atmosphere and lovely position in the town. Have been here for…read moremy birthday meal and was a great celebration.

Mama Mia!! This small, unpretentious restaurant serves wonderful food. The menu changes everyday…read moreand is hand written on a blackboard which is brought to your table. I ordered baked scallops with a herby crust and samphire which came with delicious seasonal veg and, being a pig, I also ordered chips. The scallops were melt in your mouth perfection. A very generous portion! I polished off the delicious veg and yummy chips too. But thanks to my second, or if you will my 'dessert' stomach, there was still room for pud. I had the warm orange cake with morello cherries and creme fraiche... delicious, light and very satisfying. The bill came to less than £50; we both had 2 courses and red wine. Amazing value for money and wonderful service to boot. I'm sure you can see how Imperial Express earns 5 stars in my eyes!

The Imperial Express is a really nice small restaurant located in Darlington town centre. I have…read morebeen here for breakfast and lunch, but not an evening meal - although I've heard the food on an evening is excellent. The lunches are really nice with a good choice of sandwiches, salads, pasta dishes and paninis. It is not the cheapest place in town, but it is worth the money. It offers really good food & excellent service. I would definately recommend this restaurant if you're looking for something that bit more special.

I have to say, this place is a real gem shining in the otherwise mundane restaurant scene in…read moreDarlington. Having stayed there for two weeks where we had to eat out every night, we'd pretty much exhausted the usual Italian/ Indian/ Spanish round of eateries. This place is just a little bit special, and we liked it so much we came back twice. We did have a bit of bother trying to book a table for a Thursday night on the second visit, but that was due to there only being one staff member on duty when we called, and it was her first day so she just didn't answer the phone. When we eventually visited in person to make the booking, she was very apologetic and we had no trouble getting a table for 8 on the next evening. Despite our large party size, the staff were very friendly and attentive; the wine list had a couple of out of the ordinary specials on it that we were keen to sample, and everyone commented on the quality of the food. My favourite dish was the Moroccan fish tagine, really tasty. The prices are more than reasonable, and although with the quality of food you could be easily fooled into thinking you were in a more expensive restaurant, your wallet will thank you when you get the bill.

Just been back, after about 5 months, for Sunday Lunch & still things aren't up to scratch…read more I am only giving 1 star based on how good the food was. Everthing else let it down. Good: 1) Excellent food. 2) Size of portions. Huge !! Bad: 1) Had to wait over 30 minutes for a pre-booked table. Told to wait in the bar. It then took 10 minutes to get a drink. 2) Poor service. Very slow. Had to ask for serving spoons & condiments. 3) Crammed in like sardines. 5 of us on a table for 4. Not enough room on the table. Too many tables that are too close together. 4) Bistromathematics!! For the 3rd time we were overcharged. This time for the mains, previously for the desserts & wine. Their excuse was the till! 5) Background music was too loud & of the Heavy Metal variety. If I was 20 years younger, I might have started head banging !! Tarek - get rid of some of the tables, improve on your booking system, get some new tills and train & retain your staff. You will then have a restaurant that is capable of competing with Sardis.

Boxing Day meal undercooked veg. Went for a Boxing Day meal-…read more4 of us and all chose the Christmas dinner. The turkey was ok but came with green beans which were rock hard inedible to all four of us and half of the carrots were also hard as were the Brussels.ri but the waitress under her breath said something about al dente presume that means uncooked. Overall the meal was so so but certainly not worth the money. We also had sweets which were actually good. Still charged full price. I have previously been here a few times and found it pretty good but will not be coming back.

Ordered pizza and pasta - both were yummy! The portions were pretty big too. Certainly worth the…read moremoney.

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.

Denos has gone down the steep path of utterly disgusting fast food covered in grease and over…read morecooked food. When we first phoned up we asked for 2 x Steak Parmesan's of which some women told us im sorry we do not make them no one does in Darlington. In there shop they have them advertised on the back wall and allso the guy the owns the place also says they make them but they sell out quickly so the women on the phone is just plain stupid and useless. So we then placed a order 2 x Chicken Parmesan's with 2 x Chips extra. What we got Was two cardboard things and 2 sets of grease ridden floppy cold chips. Avoid at all costs or you ass may regret it in the morning.