I popped into the brand new Piccolo Lounge on the Ely market square this weekend to celebrate my sister’s birthday.

I have had a mixed experience with the Lounge chain in the past, with a dire burger experience at their Olmo Lounge in Huntingdon but also finding a real Malaysian gem at The Ivo Lounge. I was hoping my visit today would turn the tide towards a more favourable opinion of the chain. After all, there is nothing worse than a lacklustre restaurant taking up valuable space in our fine city.

Like with all Lounge restaurants, their interior is one of their strongest features. It is a mix of a traditional yet quirky theme that sets itself apart from anything I have seen on the High Street. Some may say it is a little dark and dreary but I find it quite fun and familiar. It has a unique style with a ton of character but most of all, it was comfortable.

The menu is massive. There is no other way of saying it. You get everything from English breakfasts, brunch, smashed avacado’s, tapas, international dishes, and burgers – you name it!

The gluten free menu was very robust. I didn’t get a good look at the vegan menu but it did have its own designated menu.

🐕 It was great to see lots of dogs in the restaurant with their own little doggie station at the door. This is a dog friendly pub.

The coke incident

I grabbed myself a “large coke” with ice and got this monstrosity. £3.40 for a medium sized glass of ice.

I removed the ice to see how much was left in the glass. It’s hard to be accurate due to the bottom of the glass being much smaller than the top but we were looking between a third to half the glass being empty.

This could all be forgiven if they had unlimited refills but nope… If you want another 10 sips then it’s another £3.40.

Conclusion: Ask for no ice. They will fill the glass to the top.

Mains

Despite it being nearly dinner time, I really fancied an English breakfast. Luckily, this is served around the clock at Piccolo Lounge.

I was genuinely impressed by what I was given. It was just over £15 but it came with everything you could want. Mushrooms, tomatoes, sausages, eggs, two slices of toast, bacon, hash browns, beans, black pudding.

It was a huge plate.  Nothing particularly stood out but everything was cooked well (with the exception of the black pudding that looked like dark cardboard). The English breakfast isn’t going to win any awards but it’s that big satisfying slab of breakfast that I often crave. I can see myself returning here in the future when I want a giant breakfast that ticks all the boxes.

The Piccolo Lounge English breakfast is the mirror opposite of the English breakfast at The Royal Standard, which is small but made from high quality locally sourced ingredients. It’s also good to know that the chain isn’t stepping on any other business’s toes in Ely but actually adding more choice to the area.

Conclusion

The Piccolo Lounge is a huge upgrade to the area from the ‘M & Co’ shop that sat here before. The shop always had a very niche appeal and since the Piccolo Lounge has such a wide and accessible menu, this feels like something everyone can enjoy…even with their dogs.

Despite my drama with the coke, I felt like the overall experience was very pleasant and the English breakfast was good enough to meet my standards. The staff were full of positive energy, there was disabled access and baby changing facilities, and it’s good to see decent gluten free and vegan options available.

It’s also worth noting that Ely still has free parking throughout the city. 👍

Thanks for reading