Bar 44 Cardiff image

Bar 44 Cardiff

Restaurant Bar Cocktail bar Tapas bar Spanish restaurant Tapas restaurant

😠 Overpriced for what you get. I had been walking past this place a lot and wanted to go in for a while. Went there today for lunch and wasn't satisfied like I should've been. We ordered the iberico croquetas, which were more filled with a creamy substance, no actual pork pieces in them, just slight f... People often mention tapas, good, service, staff, restaurant, Spanish, menu, atmosphere, amazing, nice,


Address

15-23 Westgate St, Cardiff CF10 1DD, United Kingdom

Website

grupo44.co.uk

Contact

+44 333 344 4049

Price rating

$$ $$

Rating on Google Maps

4.60 (786 reviews)

Open on Google Maps

Working Hours

  • Friday: 12 pm to 12 am
  • Saturday: 12 pm to 12 am
  • Sunday: 12 to 5 pm
  • Monday: Closed
  • Tuesday: Closed
  • Wednesday: 4:30 to 11 pm
  • Thursday: 12 to 11 pm

Featured Reviews


Frequently mentioned in reviews: tapas (19) good (11) service (10) staff (10) restaurant (9) Spanish (9) menu (8) atmosphere (8) amazing (8) nice (8)
Reviews are sorted by relevance, prioritizing the most helpful and insightful feedback at the top for easier reference.
  • 5/5 Justin W. 2 years ago on Google • 69 reviews
    Recommended this place by a friend. Easy online table booking. Great customer service. Ordered a good variety of food. Enjoyed every dish served. Will definitely recommend to friends and family,will also be returning..
    3 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 1/5 Jackson B. 1 year ago on Google
    Overpriced for what you get. I had been walking past this place a lot and wanted to go in for a while. Went there today for lunch and wasn't satisfied like I should've been. We ordered the iberico croquetas, which were more filled with a creamy substance, no actual pork pieces in them, just slight flavour of pork that only my partner could taste you get 4. Had tomate bread which was ok, just bread with tomato on it, you get 1 slice for £3. Had patatas bravas, which i would say was the best thing we had, which is sad because its just potato so not hard to do, they dont cover the potato in sauce, they lay the potato on top of a smear of sauce on the plate which was pretty cheap, about £5 they were. There was a seasonal tapa we had, tartare tuna and dill with some sauce on a cracker, but they literally just give you 1 cracker, had to cut it in half to share with my partner, for £3.25, that was a joke really, tapas are for sharing. Had the chicken in sherry with hazelnut, chicken was nicely cooked but quite a bland flavour, even though it was covered in sauce. Then last and definitely worst value for money were the chilli prawns, they ask you to pay £8.80 for this, when it arrived, there were 3, normal sized prawns, not even king, in the oil with chillis on it, when we ate it, there wasn't a hint of spice at all, no flavour, and the prawn was grainy and had a sandy crunch in your teeth like it hadn't been washed properly, was very disappointed with that. Got our money back on that one thankfully. Service was also relatively slow, no offer on second drinks and left empty plates on our table until the time we picked up the bill. Wouldn't recommend.
    3 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 4/5 David G. 10 months ago on Google • 551 reviews
    Nice tapas restaurant opposite the Principality Stadium. Small menu but tapas is well prepared and presented. Staff professional and decent atmosphere.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Peter 1 year ago on Google • 27 reviews
    First time I visited Bar 44 and I was bowled over by how good it was. A huge selection of drinks including good quality wine and soft drinks. The food was simply superb. A standout was patatas bravas, which as a kind of simple dish, I’d hard to make special but they pulled it off! As a seafood lover, the gambas were also a highlight.
    2 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 MJ G. 4 years ago on Google • 299 reviews
    Thoroughly enjoyed the tapas! We were quite a large group and probably ordered most things on the menu, can't fault any of the dishes. Pleasantly surprised by the bread. Really good atmosphere too.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Simon V. 5 months ago on Google • 447 reviews
    Sobresaliente! Lovely tapas at a fair price for Cardiff. Love the sangria and layout of the place muy español 🇪🇸 🍹

  • 5/5 Lee D. 1 year ago on Google • 96 reviews
    Food was amazing. Staff were nice, very friendly and helpful. The cocktails were really good too. Will definitely be back soon!
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Frederik 10 months ago on Google • 429 reviews
    Lovely place with amazing staff and absolutely delicious food! If you like Spanish tapas, this is a great place to get the classics and a few of the originals with a twist.

  • 5/5 Alex S. 2 years ago on Google
    Wonderful Tapas restaurant. The staff were friendly and engaging and knew their menu well. The food was excellent, and although not all traditional tapas items certainly were worth the price. On top of this, the drinks selection was incredible. All cocktails were very well made and the range of beers, some of which are very uncommon in the UK, were the final touches to the experience. The venue is on the upper end of pricing, but in my view is worth every penny. Definitely worth a visit if you're in Cardiff.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Done K. 4 years ago on Google
    A lovely bar/restaurant in Cardiff - we especially recommend the carrots and croquette. Staff are super friendly. Its a drinking venue but it’s still nice and not too loud (not your local pub!). Perfect for a Friday dinner or weekday lunch (they do an even cheaper tapas set for weekdays).
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Phillip R. 1 year ago on Google
    Wow, first came here 4 years ago when we were in Cardiff for the Rolling Stones and had a fabulous afternoon. Revisited yesterday and took 2 friends along. What can you say but WOW, fabulous food fabulous service and great ambience. Had a fabulous meal,great drinks, the team are truly incredible and totally put you at ease. Congratulations and thank you for a wonderful afternoon. We couldn't totally over indulge as we had booked to have dinner at Asador that evening. It so nice when you can say a business is superbly run by such a good team and made our visit so enjoyable.👏👏👏👏👏
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Tom Y. 1 year ago on Google
    Honestly some of the best tapas I have ever had. A bunch of old favourites and a bunch of new favourites too! We were really impressed at the quality of everything we ordered.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 3/5 Matt G. 2 years ago on Google
    It's OK. Fantastic food very tasty. Service is a tad lacking, tables and chairs wobbly. Cocktails that are £8.50 are literally the premixed funkin ones out of a pouch. Feels like the place has lost its touch. Used to feel like a high end establishment and now you feel short changed
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Sara D. 1 year ago on Google
    Booked Sunday lunch for my parents this afternoon as a belated Christmas present. We had a lovely table and the service was excellent - the waiting staff were attentive and quick to address any questions we had. The meal was wonderful - we had the pork and beef platter to share between four which was more than enough food! The veg was cooked to perfection and the Spanish twist on a classic Sunday Dinner was fantastic. Cannot thank the staff enough for the atmosphere they create and for making the meal so enjoyable - we’ll be back again! Thank you
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 K L. 1 year ago on Google • 30 reviews
    £13 each thur / Fri lunch menu Really good quality and good price Love this Spanish restaurant Definitely I will come again :)

  • 5/5 Chris H. 2 years ago on Google
    Went with a work colleague for an evening meal as they were staying in Cardiff. Not my first time here and always happy to come back to this place. Great selection of really tasty food and they were happy to accommodate slight changes to one of the menu items. The staff were attentive and overall we had a nice evening. Highly recommended

  • 5/5 Mair B. 11 months ago on Google
    This has to be the best tapas restaurant in Wales! The food, service and ambience is superb from start to finish. We can't wait to return. We asked to meet the Head Chef who has worked there for many years. What a lovely humble guy he is too.

  • 5/5 Michael E. 1 year ago on Google
    Been to this restaurant multiple times and have never had a bad experience. Great selection of Spanish cuisine, sherry, and sangria. Their chorizo is amazing! Service is always quick and prices are fair. Will continue to come back!

  • 5/5 Helen Ward T. 2 years ago on Google
    This place will always have a place in my heart. I've never tasted such authentic tasting food! If you don't visit, you WILL be missing out! And I WILL be coming back for more!

  • 4/5 Adam J. 1 year ago on Google
    Came here to try the specials menu for their 20th anniversary and was nothing short of amazing from a food perspective. We had all 3 tapas on there and also claimed the lunch offer, too and had an additional 3 dishes each (9 dishes between us) - my favourite being the meatballs and lamb. Only reason I haven’t given a 4 star is that even though we had 4.5 dishes, I wasn’t exactly full but I think that was reflected in the slightly discounted prices but that’s just something to note. The other thing is the is the service charge that’s apparently discretionary but is automatically added on. I get it, you’d like to reward your staff for good service but you can never guarantee that’s it’s consistently good enough to add it on automatically. Maybe add the optional button to the card machine and not the receipt? Just feel like it’s a little too far gone for you to ask for it to be taken off. Highly recommend, food was outstanding, fresh, hot and came quickly. The venue itself is great, too.

  • 5/5 Angela M. 1 year ago on Google
    Fabulous Sunday Roast Bar 44 style Family birthday celebration and we are all very particular about our roast dinner. Staff were amazing and very accommodating to our particular needs. They do sharing platters only and we had an odd number of diners. Provided extra food for us all based on an even number when we explained at a minimal cost. Food was fab. Highly recommend 👍

  • 5/5 Alison P. 1 year ago on Google
    I've been in twice - once last Christmas to share a bottle of Cava with a friend, and yesterday for a tapas lunch. Both times the staff were friendly, welcoming, professional and very knowledgeable. Our table, the bar and loos were all very clean, so it was clear that an uncommon level of care is taken here. After my initial shock at the prices in the menu - almost £30 for that bottle of Cava! - and accepted that the final bill would be high, I relaxed into it, and thoroughly enjoyed both visits. We got excellent quality Spanish beer and wine, beautifully served at the perfect temperature, and delicious, authentic tapas in decent-sized portions, followed by a wonderful orange and cinnamon cake for dessert. I was also delighted to be able to order a cortado coffee - rarely on offer in the UK. Fab!

  • 5/5 Yasemin E. 1 year ago on Google
    Best tapas restaurant I've been to in the whole of the UK👍🏽🍷 All of the meals were extremely delicious, the employees were very polite and kind. I will definitely come again😍😍

  • 5/5 paul g. 2 years ago on Google
    Excellent all round. Food amazing, ate more than we should. Great service & atmosphere 👌

  • 5/5 Joshua W. 1 year ago on Google
    Great tapas bar with very friendly and helpful staff. The atmosphere is relaxing and there is a great choice of high quality food and drinks. A must visit.

  • 5/5 Jon Le N. 1 year ago on Google
    Excellent tapas selection with a great selection of Spanish drinks! The tasting flight of sherries is a brilliant idea! The service was very friendly and efficient. The cooking is beyond a simply copy of Spanish food and has a local slant. Ordered the owners’ book from Amazon!

  • 3/5 Tom B. 2 years ago on Google
    Food somewhat hit and miss, quite expensive and ok service. Is a shame as some nice produce on display and some good ideas. Common temperature problems: battered hake not hot suggesting not freshly fried, tuna tartare too fishy and warm i.e. not fresh enough, ox cheek also lukewarm so not as rich as should be. However, some great sauces e.g. the aioli, piquillo and the corn and bone marrow. If it was either ~15% cheaper or employed more attention to detail, I'd certainly be back and recommending it.

  • 5/5 Ellen H. 2 years ago on Google
    If you are in Cardiff and fancy tapas then this place is a must. Lovely atmosphere, friendly staff and amazing food. Can't recommend highly enough.

  • 2/5 Monika B. 2 years ago on Google
    The atmosphere in the restaurant was nice and the service was fine. It's very nice inside and I think it's a fun place to have a drink. However, I cannot recommend the food highly enough. The portions are too small for the high price. We ordered few position from the menu. Neither of them resembled a real dish cooked by a Spanish chef. Unfortunately the vegetarian dish served with pumpkin was not tasty and I did not feel very well after it. The Padron peppers looked not very fresh and wasn't salted enough and probably prepared with too much fat. I could say that bravas sauce was not even like real bravas one... We visit Spain very often (one of us is Spanish) and we like to eat well and we were expecting tasty cuisine. I am not convinced if the dishes are sufficiently pampered but.. definitely they are too expensive. Unfortunately we were disappointed. At the beginning, we wanted to eat dessert as well, but after what we got, we decided that we would change the place. Unfortunately we will not come back to the restaurant.

  • 5/5 Scott P. 2 years ago on Google
    Best place for tapas in Cardiff. Cocktails are fantastic, atmosphere really nice and staff bend over backwards to help you. Highly recommended!!

  • 5/5 Cor 2 years ago on Google
    The tapas is amazing, great dishes every time I go


Call +44 333 344 4049 Open on Google Maps

Amenities


  • Payments
    • ✓️ Debit cards
    • ✓️ Credit cards
    • ✓️ NFC mobile payments
  • Offerings
    • ✓️ Beer
    • ✓️ Food
    • ✓️ Wine
    • ✓️ Coffee
    • ✓️ Alcohol
    • ✓️ Spirits
    • ✓️ Cocktails
    • ✓️ Small plates
    • ✓️ Healthy options
    • ✓️ Late-night food
    • ✓️ Vegetarian options
  • Accessibility
    • ✗ Wheelchair-accessible car park
    • ✗ Wheelchair-accessible entrance
  • Dining options
    • ✓️ Lunch
    • ✓️ Brunch
    • ✓️ Dinner
    • ✓️ Dessert
    • ✓️ Seating
    • ✓️ Catering
    • ✓️ Outside food allowed
  • Service options
    • ✓️ Dine-in
    • ✗ Delivery
    • ✗ Takeaway

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