Probably the most expensive espresso machiatto of your life + charges paying by card in Covid times. Bill for 2 espresso machiatto: £6.90. I've ordered two espresso machiatto which ended up costing more than the most expensive hot drink on the menu! At this cafe, a normal espresso is priced at £2.30, or £2.60 for a double. That's fine. But how much does an espresso machiatto cost? Based on my experience shops cafes do not charge extra for the tea spoon sized milk foam that goes on top of an espresso to make a machiatto. Others, normally charge from 0.10 to 0.30 extra... ok that's fine. But at the Old Town Cafe you'll be charged £3.20! That's right, a bit of milk foam on your espresso costs 0.60! Can you believe that? £3.20 for a machiatto?That's more expensive than their most expensive hot drink, mocha at £3.00. On top of that, if you choose to pay by card, you'll be charged £0.50. I cannot think of a time when I was charged at a shop for using my card... maybe in the 1980s? But certainly not in 2021, especially in Covid-19 pandemic times. Yes, it's an independent cafe, but I only go to independent cafes and I have never been charged for paying by card (let alone a £3.20 espresso machiatto). Apart from that charge, they do not take cards payments for bills under £5.00. Again, this is 2021... If I had been told of those hidden charges beforehand, I'd certainly have gone somewhere else. On the rare occasion a cafe or corner shop had especial rules for card payments, I was made aware by large signs on the windows or the waiter(-ress) would tell me in advance. That's fair and honest... then it's up to me to decide. But now at the Old Town Cafe, so be aware. Recommended? Certainly NOT. There are plenty of other options on the same street or on the parallel road... for example, Cafe Pompei on King Street (2min walk) - honest pricing, authentic good italian coffee and no hidden charges. In fact, card payments are preferred for everyone's safety. Of course there are plenty of other cafes, but I've been to this one so that's an example, only. Support independent business, but support those who are honest and do not have an hostile attitude towards criticism (just have a look at the cafe's response for another couple of reviews here "If you don't like it, do not come" or "It's my cafe, I close the kitchen when I want" haha, seriously. There are better ways of addressing an unsatisfactory customer experience

Delicious food and drinks in a welcoming and comfortable setting. We discovered this cafe on our 3rd day of a 4-day stay in Stirling and managed to eat here twice as it was so good. It's definitely on the list for next time!

Amazing little cafe super calming environment great food and drinking 100% would recommend even just on your way to or from Stirling castle worth a stop has more than just cakes also had breakfast and lunch foods

Sweet little coffee shop that does light bites and larger meals too. There is a fire inside, so lovely for a cold day! Staff super friendly and helpful. A nice gem in Stirling. I had a tomato, mozzarella and pesto toastie and my partner had banana and caramel waffle. Both were great! If I had a sweet tooth, I would have had the waffle, it looked amazing!

A little wait, but a very nice traditional Scottish breakfast, also very nice coffee.

I'm so glad I didn't have time for breakfast at my hotel in Edinburgh before catching the train to Stirling. I stopped here on my way to the castle, and I had the best breakfast in my 4 weeks in Scotland.

Melt in your mouth desserts. The latte, sandwich, and tea tasted delicious too. Great food and the cutest decor!!

Brilliant place for lunch. Missed not going due to COVID. Will be back again. Home made cakes and food.

so cute and cozy. staff were helpful and friendly and the french toast was incredible. we showed up 15 minutes before they opened and they still greeted us and gave us menus to look at. it is a perfect place to sit and have breakfast

For reasons I cannot explain, finding breakfast in Scotland is difficult. So when we stumbled on the Old Town Coffee House in Stirling, we practically ran inside. Here we found a small quaint eatery with an excellent menu...including breakfast. My sister chose some delicious looking chocolate crepes with ice cream and my brother had the full Scottish breakfast (includings fried eggs, bacon, baked beans, haggis, broiled tomato, sausage, mushrooms and toast), I had a simple bowl of porridge with red, sweet (though unsweetened) strawberries with warmed cream and what is probably the best cup of coffee in Scotland. After all, no one makes better porridge than the Scots and these were excellent. The staff was friendly and didn't flinch when I asked for more strawberries (after all, they were among the best I've had lately and I eat them often). You might have to look to find the Old Town Coffee House, but it is worth the search.

Have been there on a slow Monday afternoon for Tea. We ordered afternoon tea and some waffles and were more than surprised with our food 😅. Check the pictures for details. 5/5 quality and quantity. A little warning, the portion was huge by all means. Overall a nice place to stay when climbing up to Stirling Castle or on the way back to town. The stuff is friendly and funny. Definitely a recommendation from my side!

Such a lovely cafe with a very friendly owner. Great food. Also dog friendly. I highly recommend :)

Everything was very satisfactory. The food, service and place, all pleasant and good price too. Can't recommend enough! 👏👏👏👏👏

I back with family from our trip today. We found so nice and cute cafe. Food was so nice and fresh. Reasonable price££££. Somebody make a good job in the kitchen 👏 100% recommended.

A cute, charming little place adorned with flowers boasting a nice homely menu. Highly recommend the omelette with haggis and mushrooms (toppings can be added)!

Ordered haggis and cheese panini and what arrived was a bland mix of orange lentils and black beans and the cheese wasn’t even melted. Went in to ask what I have been served and the lady began persuading me that this was a haggis. A slightly embarrassed man came from the back a min later to explain that this is the only haggis they serve- vegetarian haggis. Great stuff but was not described on the menu and I didn’t appreciate the deceitful behaviour- will not be going back.

The guy working there is quite rude. First I asked for a receipt (the usual one, not a special one for VAT. Any legal business should be able to provide a normal-looking receipt unless they are illegal) but he didn’t want to give me any, which is very strange. Then I sat on a table but the plugs next to me weren’t working, so I moved to another table so I could charge my phone, but he said (quite harshly) that I couldn’t sit there cause that table was for 3 people (the cafe was completely empty at the time). Coffee was okay, nothing special. Atmosphere would be nice under different circumstances.

Really like the french toast here, the taste somehow resemble the Hong Kong style one, although it's very different. The Scottish breakfast here is better than the Edinburgh Larder's in my opinion, and they got the hash brown with it.

The member of staff that served us was quite blunt, stand off-ish and snapped at us while taking our order. Made us feel unwelcome and put a bit of a dampener on our visit. The food was okay, but only okay because it was a bit on the cold side by the time it got to the table.