The Canteen

Great arts, live music space. You can also get food and there is a full bar. Beers looked crafty, lots of spirit choices.
The space really is like a canteen but with a lot more atmosphere and vibe. And the things that you can eat are a thousand times better. The are lots of large tables and a fair few smaller ones too, a couch area and the front has lot of casual outdoor seating.
Food wise, it’s another great ‘support local’, ever changing depending on whats in season type menu. Vegetarians and vegans are very much looked after and there is a huge amount of colour all through the menu because of all the great veggies used. Even the meat dishes sound really wholesome but satisfying. There are also fries.
There is wifi and a couple of power points scattered around so if you’re there during the day to work it’s quite a nice environment.
Staff are happy, high energied which is infectious.

Chilled out and home-​made. Chilled out atmosphere with music that doesn’t drown out conversations, with home-​made and very good value food and wine. We had a tarka dhaal, cuttlefish, queen of puddings and you get a soup & bread with every main course!

Great vibe, great crowd, really captures the essence of what Bristol is all about.
I’ve been to the canteen every time I go to Bristol, either playing with bands or just somewhere to start a night out. Always full of happy faces and the food is great too! Staff are cool and smiley :-)
Gets a but stuffy when it’s full but that’s like any other venue really. Also the sound when playing has never been great but I guess that isn’t really a problem with the venue itself.
All in all, a great place!

I have been here on a number of nights, always a good crowd and mixture of music. Great staff and nice out side area even if it is close to the road :)

Great live music and delicious food! We came here for dinner and to watch the live jazz band that was playing. When we walked in the place was packed but we were lucky to find an empty table right in front of the stage. The food here is all locally sourced and organic, the day’s menu is written on a chalkboard and when they run out of certain items they cross them out. I ordered the steak with chimichurri sauce and chips. The steak was seasoned well and cooked medium rare just like I like it, the chips were crispy and delicious! I also tried my friend’s fries and they were amazing! If you’re looking for a fun night with great music and tasty food this is definitely a great option.

I come here with a friend of mine to work from once a week or so. Absolutely perfect atmosphere for it and always happy spending Lunch and Dinner here all day! Hot drinks are great and good selection of local beers. One issue we do have is that the menu is very very vegan and for us meat eaters we are always left a little empty. There are some rather strange choices available a lot of the time but will suit the quirkier customer! Very happy to continue coming back here weekly though! Thanks guys

Lets start with the positives: one star for the nice healthy food and another star for the Barstaff, lovely… and thats it…
Booze selection isnt the best and a little pricey for a place that looks like its been furnished by taking one item from every charity shop in bristol.
Encapsulates all that i hate about the new regeneration of stokes croft, its not the area, or the venues, its the people. its always full of trust fund hippycrites who dress down to try and be cool & studenty hipster types that replace personality with a well trimmed beard. I just feel out of place for just being myself.
Last time i went in there was the worlds worse band, talking anti war messages over poorly played punk. Was like a badly acted cliché.
This place tries waaaaay to hard to be different and ‘cool’ and for that reason when im in the area, il choose the full moon every time !!!

I’ve been to the Canteen during the day, evening and late at night. I’ve been for events, gigs, drinks in the summer and also just to sit with my laptop and work for a few hours. I’ve been there loads of times, so it’s safe to say that I’m well placed to review it — and I’m a big fan!
It isn’t, however, somewhere I go a lot or often. I think it’s because there are better places to go if you’re looking for a coffee, better places to go if you want to hang out with mates in the summer, and there’s better places to catch a gig. But that said, there isn’t many better places that do it all, and I think that’s why it’s so popular!
The food they serve is really good. It’s always seasonal and always fresh and has a definite hippy theme to it. Drinks wise they have a pretty standard bar, 5 – 7 draught ales, lagers and ciders and a decent top shelf.
The Canteen is a great all-​round day and night venue and one that I’m sure will be around for s long time.

Wow, what a place this is. My Mother used to work in the building where the Canteen is located, and as a general rule, I tend to avoid anything and anywhere that my Mother tells me about.
However, my Californian girlfriend had heard about the Canteen and insisted on going there. Firstly though, it’s in the extremely Bohemian part of Bristol called Stoke’s Croft (google/​wiki it). Just walking around that area is a fix in itself. Banksy even has some stuff there.
As well as the restaurant, there’d music every night, and noticeboards full of interesting adverts.
It’s only a matter of a few hundred yards to Bristol City Centre.

Quoi de mieux pour commencer l’aventure Unilocalesque à Bristol que d’écrire un avis sur cette «Cantine», qui me semble être un des repères «must have» de la ville !
Et il y a de quoi: l’endroit est spacieux, cosy, et l’ambiance y est chaleureuse ! Je n’ai pas encore goûter les plats mais ils ont tous l’air absolument succulents, j’y reviendrais donc vite.
En attendant, la bière y est délicieuse et le fait que The Canteen met à disposition de nombreuses choses (canapé, exposition, petit concert), le place certainement permis les top 5 de ma liste pour le moment !

I have visited the Canteen a number of times over the years and I always enjoy the relaxed atmosphere and fun live music they have playing for free every night of the week!
I had never tried the food before but my work booked a table for our Christmas party and I was really looking forward to trying it out. I had always heard good things about their food, that it was seasonal, rustic, good portion sizes and tasty, and I wasn’t disappointed. We had meat and vegetarian sharing platters for the starter and they were great, accompanied by some good quality bread, the ham hock and cranberry terrine was a particular high point. The way they had organised their Christmas menu this year was to design it as a communal banquet, essentially this meant that there we a number of different meat choices which would be served to the table as a whole joint, with a minimum of 10 people sharing. As there were only 7 of us eating, and 3 vegetarians in the group, this left us at a bit of a disadvantage choice wise, so we all ended up choosing the vegetarian option, Puy lentil, apricot and pumpkin wellington, as we thought that was the only option we could really go for. We ended up being served individual portions of these anyway — rather than sharing it banquet style. I think that the idea of a communal banquet is really nice, but it did mean we didn’t have any choice and couldn’t have any of the meat options. However, the food was enjoyable and all the extra veg was delicious and well cooked. We were totally stuffed, with no room for dessert so £17.50 for two courses was a good price. I would happily go back again and sample some things from the daily menu!
As it got a bit later they had a great live band on and we all stayed till the early hours enjoying the music and great drink selection!

I have been in the canteen many times for drinks but never eaten in there. I went for lunch with some work colleagues and it was really good. All main meals come with free soup and bread to start which I think is a lovely touch, the soup was cauliflower and cumin and it was really yummy. I then had a smoked mackerel bruschetta, it was very tasty and there was plenty of it, the food all came out really quickly, the staff were very pleasant and efficient and for £6.50 it was a real bargain. I’ve always loved the relaxed atmosphere in this place and I will definitely be back for lunch again!

Great for a little daytime work… coffee and wifi… plus plug sockets incase you need extra power.
I love visiting this place during the daytime. Based in Stokes Croft, you can purchase a coffee (reasonably priced), and set up your laptop on one of the tables. The staff are always friendly, the music always good, and a little outdoor sun trap in case you feel the need for a little sun. You can even purchase CD from one of the many local bands that perform there, as they adorn the wall on the stage and are a fiver each.
In the evening, it is much busier, with live music and DJs. Come prepared though if it’s sunny, as it can be a bit on the hot side — well more like a sweatbox, so short sleeved tops are a must. On weekends, it’s best to get there early, as you could end up queuing outside as this is a popular venue, especially when the students are about.

A limited menu but always delicious home cooked food and incredible value. Tables fill and food sells out reducing choice further so get in early.
Fine ales and plenty of live music –great. It’s not everyone’s taste though…

Awesome locale. Delish (cheap!) food, friendly bar staff and proper ales. The place gets pretty crazy on Saturday night as it transitions to a live music /​dance venue, but it’s all in good fun. Just don’t expect to have much conversation after 10pm!
The menu rotates daily, with mains costing between £6−10. I had mussels with chorizo that were fantastic. Plus, all meals include soup and bread.
Menu Super Bonus: You can get a bowl of jelly beans with your pint!

Has a really lovely, friendly atmosphere and the staff are really nice.
The décor inside is great to look at — really artistic/​creative.
Day and night it’s family friendly and a nice place to relax and have a few drinks! The food’s great which is nicely priced as well (had beetroot soup and a cauliflower cheese bake once which was really yummy!)
First night I went was my 18^th and they had a really great reggae/​ska band playing (called the Resonators) for free!
They have access for wheelchairs and bike lock facilities right in front of the decking which is great.
Only thing I can think of that could be a bit better is if the dance space was a bit bigger but apart from that it’s a great place, one of my favourite bars in Bristol!

Canteen is the über-​cool bar café that opened up on Stokes Croft, where it meets Jamaica Street, about a year ago. With regular music nights, great food, and a huge terrace, its got all of the ingredients it needs to complete a winning recipe. Upstairs they have rented out studio and workshop space to some of Bristol’s cutting edge artists and musicians. With about five floors of rooms, there’s plenty of creative energy surging through the place.
Since Canteen has opened there has been a shift in emphasis on the Croft. Leftbank seems to have suffered a little bit (probably owing to the fact that it doesn’t have an outside terrace), and The Full Moon and Attic Bar has taken a severe nose-​dive. I walked past the other day, and there was no-​one in the Full Moon courtyard, even though it was sunny. Conversely, Canteen was brimming over with people.
We Are The Nynes recently took full advantage of the ready-​made audience on the Canteen terrace when it played a spontaneous gig on Turbo Island opposite. So many people flooded the area that traffic came to a standstill and the police were called. The Nynes were able to play a full set before order was returned to this regularly chaotic quarter. They are a class act, and I hope that the publicit5y has served them well.

The Canteen is an amazing hub for art and music and really encapsulates the community of Stokes Croft.
I think I prefer going down there for a cappuccino during the day, there’s huge outside seating area or if it’s too cold for any of that, one of the walls inside is basically a window from floor to ceiling, so it lets in loads of natural light.
I thought I drank all the rum there is around but the bar staff introduced me to Green Island rum, which was delicious and it’s always pretty great when a bar can recommend and introduce you to something new, and tasty.
I went on a night out there last week with a mate I hadn’t seen for a while, don’t go to catch up with an old mate while there’s a band playing, you won’t hear each other talking. But definitely go to watch some live music.
This is a really cool space and they have done some really fantastic things with it. Check out the graffiti art in the toilets (slightly more advanced than the usual stuff).
If you get the chance to take part in some of the amazing work coexist (that’s who lives above the canteen) are doing for the local community, you really should. They are basically doing what the local council should be; talented taking responsibility for their local community, the people in it and the environment and getting valuable things done.

Once the hang-​out of choice for Stokes Croft’s considerable homeless population, Hamilton House has been recently redeveloped into the latest and (arguably) greatest addition to Bristol nightlife. On Friday and Saturday nights queues down the block are almost inevitable beyond a certain time, as The Canteen fills up with bohemian types in search of good music, cheap drinks and a laid-​back atmosphere.
There’s also cheap eats on offer, with a regularly changing menu. Food runs out quickly and by the end of the night usually only a few dishes remain on offer. For the price, the meals are fine, if nothing special, and all are preceded by a complimentary (and occasionally dubious) soup.
More than anything really this is a great place to get a drink, watch a concert (the weekly programme is chalked up on a blackboard) or soak up the distinctive atmosphere.

This place has confused me for a long time…
Firstly I just thought it was a big disused office building where the drunk, jobless people would hang out at all hours of the day.
Then they put massive amounts of scaffolding up (carefully avoiding Banksy’s ‘Mild, Mild West’ piece) but yet again, more people would congregate outside it with pints of beer and glass of wine in hand.
Then the scaffolding came down, but apart from a new graffiti piece on the side wall I couldn’t see any difference.
I must visit I thought to myself. I was pleasantly surprised (and slightly ashamed that I thought it was a communal area for the homeless). It’s a large bar area with enough seats to hang with your mates and put the world at rest, yet small enough to retain a good atmosphere. There are some comfy sofas if you fancy a coffee and weirdly (in what is essentially a pub) a bookcase with second hand books and magazines.
It’s a bit of everything but it works. I am not exaggerating when I say that everyday it is packed to the brim so they are obviously doing something right!

Over the last few years Stokes Croft has seen a very pleasant emergence of cool, colourful and downright delicious eateries. The old crowd of Turbo Island hangouts are moving out and making way for a very exciting artistic movement. The Canteen @ Hamilton House is the latest in the series and quite possibly, the front runner.
Nestled amongst Banksy — esque street art and a wall of interesting books, antique sofas and a grand piano open onto an inviting restaurant, coffee shop, art space. Students, families and business meetings jostle for tables in this warm, friendly atmosphere. Live music (almost!) every night, a long colourful bar and a superb kitchen sourcing local ingredients and bashing out incredible meals for a fiver — this place is onto something very good indeed.