The Lakeside Café

Breakfast runs until noon, with lunch taking over from midday. The Full English is the anchor of the morning menu — back bacon, pork sausage from Sykes House Farm, mushrooms, tomato, black pudding, baked beans, and eggs on toast. It is a generous, unfussy plate built around local suppliers, and the kind of breakfast that earns its following through consistency rather than reinvention. For something sweeter, the French toast comes with Greek yogurt, berry compote, fresh berries, and a dusting of cinnamon sugar.

The lunch specials lean hearty. A crispy chicken burger arrives stacked in a brioche bun with cheddar, bacon, garlic mayo, lettuce, and chunky chips — more of a proper sit-down meal than a quick bite. The homemade fish sandwich pairs soft white bread cake with tartar sauce and a lemon wedge, a dish that suits the lakeside setting perfectly.

A dedicated vegan menu runs alongside the main offering: avocado on sourdough with chilli and lemon, soup of the day, and toasted focaccia with vegan cheese and roasted peppers. Vegetarian dishes thread through both sittings too, from a grilled halloumi wrap with peppers and coleslaw to a veggie breakfast with smashed avocado, roast tomato, and flat mushroom on sourdough.

The cake counter deserves its own mention. Homemade scones with jam and cream, Victoria sponge, rocky road, flapjacks, and a rotating vegan cake of the day fill the display — all baked in-house and cited positively across reviews.

Coffee & Hot Drinks

The espresso menu covers all the staples — americano, cappuccino, flat white — with oat and soya milk available as alternatives. On colder days, the special hot chocolate comes loaded with whipped cream, marshmallows, and a chocolate flake, while Baileys and Terry’s Chocolate Orange variants add an indulgent twist.

Alcoholic

Peroni on draught, individual bottles of red, white, and rosé wine, and an Aperol Spritz cover the essentials for a lakeside afternoon drink.

Non-Alcoholic

Beyond coffee, there is freshly squeezed orange juice, Folkington’s juices, and a full range of soft drinks. The dedicated dog menu — puppuccino, doggy sausage, and Northern Bloc doggy ice cream — is a distinctive and well-loved touch.

The cafe occupies a two-storey building with an unusual history. The ground floor is the original 1902 boathouse; the upper floor was added in the 1980s. Downstairs, exposed stone and rendered masonry walls preserve the building’s age. Full-height glass folding doors open directly onto a lakeside terrace, blurring the line between indoors and out. Round tables sit on warm wood-effect flooring, with dark spindle-back chairs throughout.

Upstairs is the real surprise. A dramatic vaulted ceiling with exposed white-painted timber beams and trusses draws the eye immediately — the architectural centrepiece of the whole building. Floor-to-ceiling windows along both side walls frame unbroken views over Waterloo Lake and the surrounding parkland. Edison-style pendant lights hang between the beams, and a large drum lamp with a warm gold interior adds contrast against the white timber.

Outside, ornate black cast-iron railings — original to the 1902 structure — line the upper balcony. The ground-floor terrace is the spot for dog owners and anyone wanting to sit right by the water.

Roundhay Park sits about three miles north of Leeds city centre, in one of the city’s leafiest and most established suburbs. The park itself is one of the largest urban parks in Europe — over 700 acres of parkland, lakes, and woodland drawing joggers, dog walkers, and families year-round. The cafe overlooks Waterloo Lake from its southern shore, tucked into the treeline at the water’s edge.

The LS8 postcode places it in Roundhay proper, a residential area with regular bus services along Roundhay Road into the city centre. Street Lane, the nearest high street with independent shops and restaurants, is a short drive or a fifteen-minute walk to the east.

The most convenient option is Roundhay Park Lakeside Car Park, directly adjacent to the cafe. Roundhay Park Main Car Park on Princes Avenue offers additional spaces, and Mansion Lane Car Park is a short walk through the park grounds. Charges apply across all park car parks. Three disabled bays are available on Mansion Lane, and on-street parking along Mansion Lane is also an option. At weekends and bank holidays the lakeside car park fills quickly, so arriving before mid-morning is worth considering.

Monday: 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Tuesday: 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Wednesday: 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Thursday: 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Friday: 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Saturday: 9:30 AM – 5:00 PM
Sunday: 9:30 AM – 5:00 PM

After a lakeside lunch, a walk around Waterloo Lake takes about twenty minutes and loops right past the cafe’s front door. The wider park stretches north towards Tropical World and the Upper Lake, where the paths are quieter and the woodland thicker.

For something completely different, Hama Korean BBQ Buffet is about ten minutes away on Street Lane — an all-you-can-eat tabletop grill experience that makes a good contrast to the cafe’s daytime menu.