Terra Nova Bar and Kitchen

Terra Nova is by far the most memorable eatery I dined at during my last trip to Cardiff. Its location is ideal, as it’s right by the bay. The place is enormous and is absolutely beautiful — the design is inspired by the actual Terra Nova, a whaler and polar expedition ship. You can especially see this when viewing the exterior of the place, which includes what looks like a ship bow and mast. As for the interior, I believe there are 3 separate levels to this place, each filled with woodwork, tables and colorful couches designed to give pub goers lots of seating options. Unfortunately my travel buddy and I arrived a bit too late to get outdoor seating, but we did manage to sit by windows and doors on the lower level — so we still had a pretty good view during our time here.
I may as well get the one complaint I had out of the way now: while I was here the staff tossed cups and plates around behind the bar (which we were sitting next to) pretty constantly. I definitely wish it had been a bit quieter in that regard. But seriously: that’s my only complaint. Otherwise my travel buddy and I were thrilled to stop here. We had no problems ordering drinks and food alike, and when it arrived I devoured steak and ale pie and chips while my travel buddy pulled apart full prawns complete with shells. I admit, the meat in the pie could have been a little more tender, but for the most part, my dish tasted great, so I can’t really complain. My travel buddy was quite satisfied with her prawns, too.
I’ve heard since I came home from my trip that Terra Nova is closed at the moment for renovations — I hope the place doesn’t change too much, because it was really quite a delightful looking pub. I definitely appreciated their many many food options, great assortment of drinks, and the fact that they had best location possible for a dining establishment in the bay area. I’d give them 4.5 stars if I could, and hopefully, they’ll still be here when I return to Wales during future trips overseas.

Well, it looks like this place is not as good as it used to be before.
Yes, the location and the interior are still great, however, everything else is equal to the middle range café, not restaraunt class.
The tea plate served to me was dirty and the service overall was not impressive. The food was at least ok, though.

we had breakfast there the other day, was really nice, unfortunately the table was really sticky and wobbly which is rather annoying

I LOVE this place! I wish we had one where I live:)
I stopped here for a coffee in the afternoon in my one (and only) day in Cardiff and was SO glad I came! The coffee was excellent and the place itself was the kind of pub you want to hang out in allllll day! It had several levels with very welcoming and fun décor and big comfy couches to lounge in. The location is fantastic on Mermaid Quay, you can see the Bay from the windows and on a sunny day you never want to leave. The service was very good too.
I wish I had one next door to where I live so I could hang out there all the time. Love it!

This place is great. If you like a hip hap hoppin place with good beer n food, come out here. It has a great atmosphere and a great fish and chips.

I actually wasn’t blown away by Terra Nova, drinks were ridiculously expensive and there was lots of birds mess on some of the outside areas (not to be helped by its bayside location, I guess!).
That said, it’s a huge and impressive place, and you can sit on the balcony and look over the bay. Just take a cardie, as the outdoor seating doesn’t get any sunlight.

I know this is going to sound like BS but it’s totally true: I had the best fish & chips in my entire life right here. PLUS, they serve Kozel beer, I never thought I’d see it outside of Prague and it was just as yummy as I remember it being. Staff was very friendly and of course the place is so pretty.
Do yourself a favor :)

Terra Nova is my main port of call whenever I head down the Bay. It’s pretty much in the middle of everything and is somewhere we mainly head to whilst waiting for the nearby comedy club (the Glee Club) to open.
It’s really busy over the weekend and you may not be able to get a seat. This isn’t too much of a problem though as most people simply line up on the railings outside and overlook the water.
It’s got an extensive, varied menu which is fairly priced and, for what you get a heck of a lot better value for money than other places in the Bay. Drinks are generally pricier than the centre, as you’d expect, but still reasonable for the Bay.
It’s quite dark inside — in a good, atmospheric way –and it’s got a kind of olde-​worlde feel about which adds to the vibe of the place.
It’s really great here when it’s not absolutely heaving but that’s only because it’s a great bar/​restaurant. On a sunny day I can’t think of a better place in Cardiff to be.

I do like this incredibly funky bar sitting by the water of Cardiff bay, Terra Nova looks from the outside like it is going to be thoroughly modern and stylish, oh how wrong you are at thinking this. Inside Terra Nova, it takes an almost medieval twist as the décor is that of grand chairs, red curtains and just generally looks like the inside of a castle. Now that I think about this, that is quite weird being amongst the other high priced stylish establishments of Cardiff bay, but I like it — a lot.
The price of drinks is moderate here and they do a nice menu, consisting of burgers and other pub fare. I had one of their desserts in here before, the sponge pudding with custard and it was gorgeous, but I am rather the dessert lover, so may be slightly biased on this.
I like the atmosphere, I have rarely seen it that busy nor rowdy and I think they even rent out upstairs for events. This is a really nice pub to go to down the bay if you want to watch the water lapping as you drink. Beautiful.

With its unmistakable exterior, which sees the balcony stretch out in the shape of an old ship’s deck, the Terra Nova instantly provides something of a fairly unique setting. Inside, the interior is classily chosen, with a smart, yet fairly traditional style of décor. The rich mahogany bar stretches across the length of one wall with a huge selection of drinks, including some high quality beers, lagers and ales on tap. With plenty of seating areas, as well bar stools and space for casual drinking, the Terra Nova caters for both diners and drinkers.
The food is of a good quality, with largely traditional pub fare found of the fairly good menu. The standard of food is also matched with a good quality of customer service, which makes the experience all the more enjoyable. A vibrant and enjoyable ambience makes the Terra Nova particularly suitable for young couples and mates, as well as the slightly older generations.

The Terra Nova Bar and Kitchen is a different looking and a unique bar and restaurant that offers a good price in drinks and some excellent food. You can go there for a nice relaxing lunch or spend an evening with your friends to have a memorable night out assuming you don’t drink that much!
This bar has a variety of choice when it comes to alcohol. From beers to spirits and from wines to champagne you have everything for your liver to enjoy. What struck me most about this bar is the number of floors they have. It is quite deceiving in how many floors there actually are in this building. To be honest, I’m not sure myself but I will stick to my guns and say it’s two floors although those spiral staircases are devious things.
When I last went it was with family and we had a few drinks whilst nibbling over some wedges we ordered at the bar. When I say nibble, I actually mean dislocate my jaw to eat. They were gigantic wedges that just looked like they were whole potatoes trimmed to the shape of a wedge. I’m not saying they weren’t tasty, just very large! I must admit though the wedges weren’t our first choice because we wanted some nachos but they had ran out and the staff didn’t seem very apologetic. This to me was a big let down so they have been marked down a star. Mind you I dread to think what the tortilla chips would of looked like if the wedges were massive. The mind boggles!
Overall this is a pleasant bar and kitchen with good prices particularly on the quality of food. There is plenty of space and lots of outdoor seating. If you ever visited Cardiff Bay and fancied a drink with a decent meal this is one I would recommend.

Found on the Corner of the busy Mermaid Quay, Terra Nova is one of the more popular areas to go for a night out down the bay.
Sitting opposite its main rival, Salt Bar, Terra Nova offers good food and a full bar. The staff are both chatty and friendly, but the drinks they serve inevitably come with a Cardiff Bay-​sized price tag.
Drinks and meals are never cheap down the Bay, but this bar/​restaurant is unique in the fact that it tends to have a more down-​to-​earth feel to it than most places in the area. While you will find the odd suited businessman typing boastfully on his laptop while talking at an annoyingly loud volume down his state of the art mobile headset, you will also find a great deal of casual people there to enjoy the food and have a decent pint.
Not the best place to get food in Cardiff Bay, but if you’re looking to avoid the Bay’s resident pretentious fat cats, a nice little spot to grab lunch or an evening meal.

This Bar should be given a gold medal for the best pub in the bay. If i go out in the bay its to Terra Nova because of the atmosphere and the cool maze of rooms that lead on to more novel seating places to talk with friends. As you’d expect from any other Pub its a fully stocked bar and reasonably priced compared to other establishments. This bar rocks on the weekend and so expect to wait to be served, so get in the round while your mate finds a decent seating area.
The coolest feature of this bar is the unusual design of the interior, theres vaulted ceilings and a curious wooden interior, moving up to the second floor is a quiet area with multiple rooms that are all individual and finding a place is usually no problem, but come the weekend its standing room only, well not that bad but you get the picture.
Outside is a café styled smoking seating area that is all metal furniture and only an option in the summer.

Terra Nova is a must to visit in Cardiff Bay. It is set upon three floors consisting of two bars. Indoor and outdoor seating areas, the outdoor looking out over the beautiful bay the indoor looking out over the beautiful beverage options.
It serves hot traditional pub grub all at a very reasonable price.
Weekdays this bar is sociable but quiet, weekends this bar is wild!
I visited this bar for a meeting and management made us feel very welcome by ensuring there was a table near a power socket big enough to seat us all.
The only negative I have is that the toilets are dismal! Everytime I have been there it seems they are getting worse. Obviously the evenings are worse and I suspect they have a cleaner in only once a day. Toilets are usually blocked and never have I seen any loo roll in the dispenser.
Apart from the very poor toilets I am a big fan of this bar.

I’ve been to Terra Nova too many times to mention but i will never eat there again if I have an alternative.
On the last three occasions the people I have been eating with have either been given the wrong order or had cold food delivered to them. I complained and was offered a refund from an apologetic manager. Even though I had the right dish delivered to me at a reasonable temperature it wasn’t good enough to over look the above problems.
The pub itself is an interesting design (inspired by Captain Scott’s boat) with 3 different levels of dark wood and sailing accouterments almost lending a pirate feel to it. One of my favourite places to sit is on the 3^rd floor in the birds nest where you can hear other peoples conversations who are not sitting next to you thanks to the half globe shaped roof.
Its a nice enough character filled pub worth visiting if only to hang out on the balcony to look out over the bay but would think twice abut eating there again.

Named after the expedition ship that sailed from the area a century ago, Terra Nova is one of those homey bars where you can enjoy yourself whether you’re a human tumbleweed or shoulder-​to-​shoulder with evening revellers.
You can thank the imposing waters of Cardiff Bay, which offer spectacular views that complement good fare, good brew and good conversation.
For the most part, many locals know Terra Nova as Cardiff’s most bustling seaside bar — it’s nearly impossible to get a table on a Friday evening in the summer, but the lack of indoor and outdoor seating arrangements means a party-​like atmosphere outside.
If you’re looking for a bar that offers bit of privacy, this is it — its complex, sprawling layout means you can hole yourself up in a corner or, if you and your friends want to relay some scandalous gossip, you can retreat to one of the rooms upstairs.

Terra Nova is a contemporary pub-​style establishment with a prime spot in Mermaid Quay, the most bustling part of Cardiff Bay, home to most of the area’s trendiest restaurants and bars.
There is a long row of tables and chairs outside overlooking the water, making it a very popular drinking and eating spot on summer days.
It’s also huge inside, though, with several floors decked out with dark wooden floors and comfortable leather sofas in a warm, pub-​like environment, making it an equally pleasant wintertime drinking destination (if you can brave the freezing winds off the water to get there in the first place). If you head upstairs, you get some great views out over the water and long the Bay’s skyline.
Prices for food and drinks are about average for the Bay area, and while the food is not exceptional it’s also tasty enough and is served up in generous portions.

This is a very pleasant and cosy bar on Cardiff Bay waterfront, the perfect place to head into when the weather’s turned a bit sour.

Terra Nova, also known as the ‘Hobbits cave’ to my lovely and I. Not because it’s full of small hairy footed people, but due to it’s labyrinth like layout. There are several floors in the cosy/​metropolitan bar, with comfy couches sprawled over the homely, warm pub. It overlooks the Bay too and is a great view if you get a seat next to the window.
Prices are the usual city prices of £3+ a pint such as Carling, Stella etc. The food however is reasonably priced and is what makes me come back time after time. Great portions and I can’t recommend the Nachos here enough. The whole bowl is made of Nachos with the chili residing inside with all the trimmings. For some strange reason, we are always told that food is a 45 minute wait. That is if it’s a busy valentines day or a quiet Sunday with hardly anyone there. Strange as they’ve said this every time and it’s not cool when your stomach is growling at you and you are getting tipsy on your lager shandy…
As the summer is soon approaching (For the love of all things holy, please be soon) this place will defiantly be a great place to visit, check it out.

Cardiff Bay is fantastic during the summer because of the crowds, the buzz and the alfresco dining. Terra Nova provides a great venue in the heart of Mermaid Quay on the waterfront to watch the world go by with a cold beer. However, I think where this place really comes in to it’s own is during the colder months. The Bay is such a vibrant space during the summer but as soon as the temperature drops the crowds filter away and the usually bright pubs and restaurants are reduced to shells of their former selves. Terra Nova is a cosy haven decked out with rich dark wood and huge leather sofas perfect for stopping by to have a bourbon and a hushed conversation. It’s a very versatile place to say the least, the food is good, not great but good. Tasty and reasonably priced. I had a seafood pasta and had no complaints, it didn’t blow my socks off but if I was looking for fine dining I’d have hopped a few doors down. This is a place that serves classic pub food with a contemporary twist,
This summer, Terra Nova will burst back into life, the outdoor tables will be filled with happy punters and there will be infinite cold pints. Just do me a favor and promise not to forget it when winter rolls around.