The Grotto

We booked as a special night for our 39th wedding anniversary and were not disappointed. When we arrived, we asked about the parking as the car park had a pay and display machine. The barman told us to only pay the cheapest tariff and then give them our reg, and this would cover us for our stay. We arrived too early to book in, so I just told the lovely staff that we would be back later and booked a table in the restaurant for 8pm.we caught a bus into south shields for the day and had a lovely afternoon. We returned by taxi at 6 pm. Our room was number 5, the sandpiper and it was lovely. Very clean, nice and roomy and a comfortable bed. The only gripe was the shower head was too low, so hubby had to crouch down under it, but this no way spoilt our stay. There was lots of hot water, fluffy white towels, tea and coffee stuff, and the view was fantastic. Overlooking a stony beach and Marsden rock, I could have sat and watched the sea and the birds forever. We had a nice stroll on the beach, then had our meal in the cave restaurant. We both had the Jack Blaster burger and it was very nice. It's a nice experience with a bit of a spooky atmosphere and we loved it. We were surprised the next morning as there was a nice breakfast included that we didn't know about. Cereals, toast, muffins, tea, coffee and fruit juices. Very nice. Overall we enjoyed our stay and will hopefully return next year and would recommend

We went for lunch on a Saturday. I had left a message booking a table on the website but didn’t hear back so called - no bookings for lunch taken - first come first served, so we aimed to get there at 12. They have a simple system, find a table and note the number, order at the bar and food will be delivered to your table. We had a table in the Grotto bit which also had a view out to the sea view - great spot. Son’s burger was deemed to be good. Wife’s mussels were delicious. My scampi was very ordinary. The fries/chips were absolutely fantastic. The view outside is wonderful - a poor mans 12 Apostles view (in Australia). Staff all very pleasant. Can’t remember the cost - about £25 a head which I thought was ok value for the location.

ROOM WAS OK AND HAD A NICE VIEW, EVERYTHING EXPENSIVE, BOOKED FOR OUR ANNIVERSARY, GOT THERE FRIDAY, UPON ARRIVAL I TRIED TO PRE ORDER A LOBSTER FOR OUR ANNIVERSARY ON THE SATURDAY BUT WAS TOLD YOU CAN NOT PRE ORDER AS IT IS FIRST COME FIRST SERVED, WE WOULD ALSO HAVE LIKED TABLE SERVICE BUT THAT DOESN'T START UNTIL 6 O'CLOCK SO BY THAT TIME CHANCES OF GETTING A LOBSTER DIDN'T LOOK GOOD, OUTSIDE SEATING AREA WAS FILTHY, TABLES LEFT WITH EMPTY GLASSES AND CUPS AND NEVER WIPED CLEAN. COULD BE RAN A LOT BETTER