Cafe Zara

Where do I start 🤔 we sat there waiting to order food for a while as they only had one person to take orders but about three people taking drink orders and when someone could be bothered to take our order something that resembles food arrived kids chicken nuggets and chips cheap and nasty ! Bacon and eggs on toast cooked in dirty oil and cold ! My dad ordered cod and chips and they brought him fish fingers and chips but after complaining they brought cod and chips that looked like a cheap white fish ( economy battered fish from Iceland) with overcooked cheap chips! And now my order a gourmet type burger and chips ??? Cheap thin nasty tasting beef burgers sitting on lettuce, onion and overcooked chips on the side.
They didn't even bring us cutlery or condiments we had to ask for them after they walked off and don't even have vinegar for fish and chips! The lucky people sitting opposite us saw they food quality and swiftly left to go elsewhere.
I'm sure it's OK for the tourist trade but we will never go back and would find better quality food at mcdonalds 😉 👎👎 AVOID!!!!!!

So we picked up some takeout this morning…. Having waited ages while the staff went for a smoke just up the road I finally got our takeout.
A coronation chicken baguette… this was actually a dry panini and no chicken whatsoever in the the coronation, which was like an oil slick. I also got chicken nuggets and chips for the kids. These were absolutely dripping in the dirty oil they had been cremated in, kids say yuk! Then the best was the fresh motzorella, tomato and basil pesto panini, this was actually the same dry panini as the chicken less oil slick with some old tomatoes, something that was not motzorella and instead of basil pesto there was a sprinkle of mixed italian herbs. See photo. Had I have checked in the containers befor driving on I would have wanted a refund. Needless to say this place needs a chef that can cook, and a menu that reflects what they serve. 25 pounds badly spend. Disappointed and will not return. Terrible!

I’m not usually one to leave a review without making contact first but can’t seem to find a way to email and no answer on the phone.

Visited for lunch today for the first time, walked in and all members of staff were behind the counter talking, then looked at us without a hello, which felt uncomfortable but we found a table and decided what to eat. I think one of the waitress’ must have overheard me questioning how we ordered and she came over and was very friendly saying we ordered at the counter, which I did. An older lady with glasses and lots of jewellery took my order and I do have to agree with other reviews, that a smile wouldn’t go amiss but it was fine.

I ordered 3 panini’s, a bottle of water, an apple juice (which was in a small glass and clearly poured from a cartoon) and a Diet Coke. This food was made and brought to us quickly. The waitress was polite and asked if everything was okay which it was at this point.

Later I went to pay and decided to get a slice of caramel cake to take away at the same time. The total was £28.45 which in all honesty was not worth it at all.

I’ve just got home and gone to eat the cake (£4.95) and it’s dry and stale to the point it is genuinely inedible- I hate to think how long it’s been sitting there. Overall the experience wasn’t the best and I wish I’d read the reviews before going in. Unfortunately, I won’t be returning.

Visited to Rye and looked for places to eat. Food was very poor! Ordered a burger with chips and the chips were a small portion! There was an old lady who worked there who didn’t even attempt to smile at customers, just kept a straight face all round which made us uncomfortable. Other staff were friendly though. Food way too overpriced for a cafe and won’t be returning.

One of the worst restaurant experiences of my life. The main waiter (who I believe might be the owner too) seems like an extremely friendly man until you have a complaint, at which point he becomes very defensive and rude.

We ordered a jacket potato with chilli con carne and cheese, however when it came it was just tomato sauce with some onion and peppers in and cheese on top.

At first I thought it was veggie chilli con carne but it was weird that it didn’t say anything on the menu, especially when other vegetarian menu items were labelled as such. We asked the waiter to come over and asked him if this was a veggie chilli con carne because there is no meat in, yet it is being priced on the menu higher than a lot of other meat items.

He said there is beef in it, to which we replied that there isn’t. He kept insisting there was meat and when we kept insisting there wasn’t, he said he would show us the jar.

He then came out of the kitchen and produced a Dolmio’s chilli con carne sauce jar and said see it says chill con carne. I honestly thought it was a joke at that point, and said that you are meant to add beef to the sauce, like it says clearly on the jar, and that this sauce is just tomato.

I really felt like I was getting absolutely no where with the conversation as he kept insisting there was meat in the sauce, despite the jar having a big veggie symbol on it and it saying in the instructions to add beef.

Eventually, he conceded that there was no meat in the jar and very sarcastically said “Okay then what would you like me to do about it? Go to the butchers and get you some meat?” I was honestly lost for words at how rude he was being, after basically admitting that what he had served and what we had paid for was not chill con carne. He then added “99.9% of customers are happy with this” which I find highly doubtful having skim read a handful of the other google reviews, before turning his back on us and walking away.

Whatever you do in Rye, make sure to stay clear of Cafe Zara. Even a meal deal would be miles better than paying £8 for a potato with some tomato sauce on.

Great little family owned Cafe. Delicious, feel good soul food. Tracey, our waitressing staff was very good and made us feel comfortable. The place was completely full and buzzing with energy. The owners made sure they didn't return hungry customers and very kindly made space for us even though we had not booked a table beforehand. All in all, very happy and lucky that we stumbled upon such a good dinner treat! Highly recommended.

Quite possibly the worst breakfast I have ever had! The grease dripping off all of the food was a sign it wasn’t meant to be eaten. Staff more intrested in moaning about having no change and a member not turning up on time!

Avoid at all costs

We popped in after a long drive into Rye, it was late afternoon. We were seated straight away and our order was taken within a few minutes.
We ordered coronation chicken baguettes and eggs Benedict.
The staff were friendly and service was good, the food was nice however the eggs were overcooked.
Right on the high street this cafe is a good little place to refuel.