Circle Cafe Bar

Set in a pleasant victorian arcade in central Carlisle this is a modern and popular cocktail / cafe bar serving food. It's very retro and brightly orange themed. Vegan options are decent in the form of a chunky vegetable kebab, a veg hoi sin oriental stir fry or 5 bean chilli all priced at £8.95. There are also vegan sandwiches and plenty of side dishes and snacks which can be vegan. The cocktails look good too. Sit in or find a perch outside in the covered arcade. That's where you would find me.

There's a good choice for vegetarians here, but the vegan options are very limited. However, you can request changes to the dishes to veganize them, which is what I did. I had the vegetable thai style salad, without the fish sauce. The chef was kind enough to add more vegetables to it to improve the flavour as I couldn't have the fish sauce and I'm not a fan of chilli. Overall, not amazing for vegans, but the staff are accommodating, and there's a nice vibe to the place. And on a side note, the cocktails and sorbet are really good!

Fantastic and enthusiastic service and food. Loads of vegetarian options (less vegan, but only had to ask staff and they did everything they could to help). visited with my friend who is vegan and celiac, she was also impressed with range offered to her. Cocktails are handmade in front of you, and are amazing! We enjoyed a cherry and tarragon champagne one, mmmm!

Have also been told they do a vegetarian taste night, will look out for that!

A reasonably upmarket place with nice toilets (up a steep flight of stairs). Main courses are not bad (curry, tagines, Mexican food etc) and they do have sorbet, which is nice because most mixed venues don't have any vegan desserts at all. However, the staff don't seem very clear on what veganism is; in the past we've asked for a vegan dish and it's arrived with dairy yoghurt on the top. Music is a variety of funk, soul, hip-hop etc, which caused some strain to the older members of my party. A final quibble is that I am 5'2" and the bar is too high for me to see the staff behind it!