Stopping to eat on the A1

[rasingram2]

Driving home from Yorkshire yesterday, we decided to stop for dinner. After driving past a few services, thinking we didn't really want a McDonalds or similar, we stopped, checked Google, and pulled off to North Muskham, to The Muskham Ferry pub. While it was OK food, and very reasonably priced, I got to thinking there should be a thread on here about the best places to eat on the long North/South journeys, so everyone could find somewhere nice, however far they have got at dinner (or lunch) time.

[Conekicker]

I recommend this small chain. Reasonable prices and a good selection. The free refill on soft drinks and coffee is good.

https://okdiners.com/

Edit: Also kids eat free.

[rasingram2]

I recommend this small chain. Reasonable prices and a good selection. The free refill on soft drinks and coffee is good.

https://okdiners.com/

I saw a few of them, first on the wrong side of the road, then after dinner. Thought I might try one next time. Although free refills might not be a good idea on a long drive.

[nowster]

Their coffee cups are on the small side, making a refill necessary.

Getting their 15% "OK Rocks Club" discount card in return for signing up to their email newsletter (infrequent) is handy.

I used to go for their burgers, but now find the "All The Way Sandwich" fills the gaps nicely. Everything is cooked to order, you can ask for slight variations (eg. swap the egg for a hash brown), and you can see them cooking everything.

[Rob590]

While it's a fairly basic site, Off Motorway has a good list of options.

In all honesty I think a single meaningful list is difficult to maintain because people want such different things from stops: cafes v pubs, outdoor v indoor, opportunity for a longer break v pit-stop for food, space for kids to play v absence of kids, etc etc etc. Some people are willing to add 15 minutes to a journey, others would find it a hassle to add more than 5.

So a few general rules that I've found:
[*]Morrison's are often good - their cafes are cheap and while not gourmet food, it's not bad. Perhaps unsurprisingly Yorkshire's good for them
[*]If you're a National Trust member then their sites can be great, though some do require very long drives even though the entrances are just off major roads.
[*]With kids the chain pubs that have soft plays can be great
[*]OS Maps can be good for identifying country parks that may have cafes, or country pubs. While I wouldn't otherwise use Bing Maps, its OS Map option allows you to scroll up and down a motorway junction

In terms of the A1 specifically, a few examples that I've used before or would recommend, from north to south:
[*] Haswell Homer Hill farm shop at J62 Durham
[*] Pubs in Sedegield village at J60 (Hardwick Park is nice too but does have a parking charge)
[*] Shoulder of Mutton at Middleton Tyas (Scotch Corner)
[*] Morrison's in Boroughbridge or Wetherby
[*] Hungry Horse at Darrington (near J33 Ferrybridge services)
[*] South Elmsall and Ardwick-le-Street both have greasy spoon/cheap cafes (J38)
[*] Not technically A1, but if any route involving the M18 between the A1/M1, J1 of the M18 is your friend - there's a Morrisons, a Greene King pub, and a soft-play (Treasure Island)
[*] Clumber Park is great off the A1/A57/A614 but you need the time as the drive from entrance to facilities is a good 10 mins.
[*] Rutland Water car park at Normanton has a cafe
[*] Stamford has plenty of choice and is relatively easy to drive into

But this list is very personal and reflects the journeys I've made on the A1 - as I say I think it depends too much on what you need and of course your journey to confidently recommend any one place.

[Simon_GNR]

I've used Morrisons in Boroughbridge as a de facto service station several times. It's got good facilities and is very close to the A1(M). The cafe is good value and decent quality too. And you can get fuel at supermarket prices - generally considerably cheaper than at official service stations like Wetherby or Scotch Corner.

[rhyds]

A big part of the problem when it comes to lists like these of "just off motorway" places is that having such a list is fine if you've got a passenger, not so good if you're driving alone. What would be handy would be a handy POI list to add to a satnav, or some kind of waze/google maps add-on.

[roadtester]

One good stop in the Grantham area is the combined Boundary Mills outlet centre/Downtown department store site (Downton/Oldrid is a small but very nice family-owned Lincolnshire regional department store chain).

This is just off Gonerby, one of the modern GSJs built as part of the Blyth/Peterborough GSJing campaign of a few years ago. There’s a Moto services there as well, but Boundary/Downtown is only slightly further from the junction. You can’t miss it - it’s huge!

Both Boundary and Downtown have great cafeterias which are pretty decent for just a coffee stop/snack or a full meal. Probably cheaper than and vastly superior in quality to an MSA. The two operations share a building that is split between the two. It’s a slightly odd arrangement but Boundary’s cafe is on the ground floor and Downton’s is upstairs.

For middle-aged people like me who aren’t particularly fashion based when it comes to clothes buying, there is the added bonus that you might find some bargain apparel in Boundary Mills as well.

[KeithW]

Here are a few I have used

The Crown at Wyboston - Nice pub that does good food
Stibbington Diner - Good old fashioned Truck Stop
The Muskham Ferry - Pub overlooking the River Trent just off the A1 at North Muskham also has a jetty for those arriving by boat
The Hungry Horse in Darrington
Ferrybridge Fisheries - chippie on Pontefract Road Ferrybridge - used to be good but havent been for years.

[Bertiebus]

A big part of the problem when it comes to lists like these of "just off motorway" places is that having such a list is fine if you've got a passenger, not so good if you're driving alone. What would be handy would be a handy POI list to add to a satnav, or some kind of waze/google maps add-on.

What's to stop a solo driver looking at a list before they set off and having a few options in mind? Surely the internet/satnav age hasn't made the memory / attention span of the average driver that short?

Or even, heaven forfend, adding a few moments to the journey by pulling off at a junction en route for a few moments to check?

[Berk]

Both of those things are exactly what I and my parents have done. It does not have to be so hard - unless you’re hard of thinking.

[Big Nick]

I've pulled in at Tuxford several times now. The Sun Inn didn't do lunchtime food (last December) but they said we could bring a sandwich in. Opposite them is Chillipetals shop and cafe, on the main road the Crusty Cob is an excellent sandwich shop that's open till mid afternoon.

Plus you get to drive the Great North Road as you leave northbound
Beware the southbound junction - it's a bit short and sharp.

[Bertiebus]

Both of those things are exactly what I and my parents have done. It does not have to be so hard - unless you’re hard of thinking.

Indeed. I'd say that a bigger 'part of the problem' nowadays is that many people have become too plain lazy to do the simplest task if there isn't some electronic convenience to do their thinking for them..

[A72]

The First & Last, in Burnmouth.

[AndyB]

We stopped at Busy Bee's Diner in 2015. Yes, it was a greasy spoon, but perfectly acceptable.

[stu531]

Another vote for OK diners - particularly their milk shakes!

There is definitely a gap in the market around the 'travelling alone - where its ok to eat' type guide. I do a fair bit of travel my own own - sometimes the A1 - and what isn't fun is arriving in a place where you feel a proper Normal No-mates! (Or Norma no-mates, of course...)

Lots of decent pubs scattered off of motorways though, and tend to find Indian & Chinese restaurants are pretty good for the lone traveller. If I've been London-bound, I tend to stop between Stamford and Newark area, given where I am. Newark in particular is alright as there are a few decent stops in the town, and it's quite easy to get to if you get off at the old A17 junction (Coddington exit).

In fact that's quite a good criteria - being able to get in and out of a town from the motorway/A1 without diverting too much from your trip.

[roadtester]

I’ve only been to OK Diners a few times but found them OK or better.

There’s a similar American diner experience available further south on the A1/A1(M) at Peterborough services, which has a branch of the Ed’s Easy Diner chain.

[Alderpoint]

In terms of the A1 specifically, a few examples that I've used before or would recommend:
[*] Morrison's in Boroughbridge

Stopped there yesterday afternoon on my way north. only to get some sandwiches and a drink for which it was fine.

But shocked at the price of Diesel: 134ppl - that's more motorway price than supermarket prices.

[ravenbluemoon]

In terms of the A1 specifically, a few examples that I've used before or would recommend:
[*] Morrison's in Boroughbridge

Stopped there yesterday afternoon on my way north. only to get some sandwiches and a drink for which it was fine.

But shocked at the price of Diesel: 134ppl - that's more motorway price than supermarket prices.

They do almost seem to be an unofficial services, given Wetherby can be a pain when busy, and Leeming Bar is a faff to get to. It's often our stop off if I'm heading to Wensleydale as I can grab some essentials that I've probably forgotten.

- Another vote for OK Diners, used the one at Stamford when my OH arrived on an early morning flight. Good portions, I finished mine, she didn't.
- Stibbington Diner is a regular stop for me, reasonable but basic fare as standard for a truck stop. Occasionally the coffee is a tad weak, but no complaints bar that.
- Tried the Blue Cow at South Witham (Rutland/Lincs border). It was a few years ago, but the food was good, and for the non-driver they had a micro brewery in the back shed that the piped straight into the bar...
- Heading north from me there's also an old trucker's cafe (Jayne's Place) if you turn off at Blyth Services and head towards Bawtry for a couple of minutes. Decent enough food and coffee.
- Similar to the last one, if you're heading towards Nottingham from the A1, take the A614 in, and stop at the Limes Cafe outside Bilsthorpe. Used to get breakfast there when I was seeing someone in the village.

[Big L]

In terms of the A1 specifically, a few examples that I've used before or would recommend:
[*] Morrison's in Boroughbridge

Stopped there yesterday afternoon on my way north. only to get some sandwiches and a drink for which it was fine.

But shocked at the price of Diesel: 134ppl - that's more motorway price than supermarket prices.

You're joking. I drove past Frankley on Thursday and fuel was 155.