Temperance in Warwick

It's really nice going to a restaurant knowing you can eat anything there. We are vegetarian and it can be a pain having to constantly ask for adjustments to menus or having the same menu choices. This place has a small but tasty menu and anyone can find something tasty to eat here. I enjoyed a sausage sandwich with mushrooms and spinach and my husband had the same but with apple sauce. Great value and the cakes are tasty too. The choices of cold soft drinks was limited on our visit but the fruit teas are delicious. The venue does have gigs and we hadn't realised we turned up midway through Razorlight playing. We just saw a big screen in the main area and thought they were replaying a gig but it was live and being played downstairs. We did think it was pretty loud and glad we didn't comment. They were really good! The decor reminded me a bit of Central Perk, missmatched furniture, older decor with charm and a relaxed place for go for a coffee. Above the main section there is a little section where we sat which had a lot of students there. There are also some seats outside. We sat on a big communal table and so be prepared for this but we didn't mind. Our chairs didn't quite fit under the table comfortably as they were a little high/table a little low. Overall, great value, lovely staff, tasty food and a good atmosphere.

Review is based on experience for evening gigs only! I absolutely applaud this venue for bringing some fantastic musical acts to Leamington spa. There's not many places in the country where you can see decent original acts in a room full of just 50 people! Prices are also very reasonable. It's venues like Temperance that are helping to keep the music industry afloat and they are crucial for giving bands and solo artists with smaller followings a chance to air their music. The sound quality is great here and it's all very informal - even the performers don't get a dressing room. so you'll often find them just arrive in their coats with a shopping bag and place them in the corner whilst they take to the stage! For balance though, whilst I adore small venues, this place is very very cramped and I wouldn't recommend it for people who are even the slightest bit claustrophobic. There is no elbow room, so you need to get very friendly with your fellow gig goers! I'd love to see the owners move to a slightly bigger premises and have a bar that sells draught ales etc rather than just bottles out of a fridge. I think a venue that could hold 100 would be great. Oh, and one other thing that is less than perfect is that they seem to sell more tickets than the room the have available, so I've noticed some people having to sit upstairs watching the gig on a television. If I was one of those people I'd be mighty miffed at that and ask for my money back. Watching a TV is not the same as watching a gig!

What a delightful find!!! I love this place and will definitely be returning. Food is delicious, ambience amazing and friendly staff. We were just shopping and came across it for breakfast and I was very sad not to have time to come back for lunch as the mushroom stroganoff sounded delicious but we were on a tight schedule. But I shall be returning to Leamington Spa just to visit here again.

Apologies for the review title - it's not a reference to a Bucks Fizz tribute band playing at the venue, but rather some friendly advice on my part for the establishment. I went here for some evening drinks with a group of friends a few months back. I'd wanted to come for ages and loved the idea of an arts bar/cafe in the south Leamington area. Unfortunately our experience wasn't positive. We were told on arrival that we could sit and have drinks in the bar area but would need to keep our voices down because the evening performance (solo guy doing an acoustic set who, to be fair, sounded very good) was about to start. Struck me straightaway as a bit strange...the upstairs bar is separate from the basement performance room, and if you're going to keep the bar open for customers who aren't there to watch the gig, surely you can't expect them to be silent? As we discovered, this was indeed the expectation. We sat at a table as far from the basement as we could, and we're most definitely not a noisy bunch - three of us have young kids so the rare opportunity to talk quietly without inane interruptions is as much as we ask for! Despite this, we were asked a couple of times to keep our voices down and after about half an hour, decided that it would probably be preferable for all parties if we left. I don't know anything about some of the other recent reviews, but have to say that based on my experience, it doesn't surprise me to hear that others have found the owner to be a tad dictatorial. So...making your mind up! I wonder if Temperance wants to be an evening performance venue, or a bar for friends to have a chat? It doesn't seem willing or able to do both, and I think the clarity would be appreciated by customers.

My wife and i attended a music concert here at the weekend. We had no idea what to expect but thoroughly enjoyed our evening. The music was downstairs in an intimate basement which really added to the atmosphere. It was rather a warm night but not uncomfortably so. The bar was open upstairs and people could buy refreshments all evening. the staff were extremely polite and friendly and overall it was a wonderful evening.

wow what a gem, a great retreat after busy day, great vibe, excellent choice of teas and cakes, friendly staff… wish we could have stayed for live music, but were on way to train station, fab decor too.. so many coffee shops in L Spa and this was tops

The Temperance is a fantastic cafe/pub and most importantly small music venue. It’s very friendly and if you get a chance to go and see a band there, I would highly recommend you do. The basement music venue delivers a great atmosphere and many bands I have seen there say it’s like playing to an audience in your front room. Tickets prices are very reasonable too. The cafe/pub upstairs does a range of teas coffee and cakes as well as local brewery beers (in cans).

I came to Leamington Spa for the first time for a dental appointment. I was early so looking for somewhere for a coffee and saw someone drinking in here. I walked in not even knowing the name of the place. The ambience is fab ... great music playing, huge tables, plants and friendly people. I had a perfect latte and a slice of yummy gluten free polenta and sour cherry cake. I found out that they do events here too. A fab place to chill eat and drink.

Nice ambiance (even though I am not a fan of the oil paintings), lovely staff, super dog friendly. There is a really nice menu selection, the food tasted lovely and was served pretty promptly. Overall a great visit, good value for money and thoroughly enjoyed. A definite recommendation.

We went here for a small intimate gig on a Saturday evening. Had a tea and cofee and some lovely cake to get us started (we'd eaten earleir in the day). Thsi was followed by some great bottled beers and ciders to cool us down on a very warm September evening. Intimate gig was fantastic (Rebecca Downes - look her up!). Would love to visit again if were in the area again.

What a fantastic little quirky venue. Upstairs a quaint and unassuming cafe bar, but downstairs a wonderful and inviting live music venue, and wow what a cracker it was. There were the usual cafe style treats available along with a range of ales and wines that did very nicely. You have to see the music venue for yourself as to how great it is. Small and intimate but with great acoustics and you feel immersed in the performances. Really enjoyable night and we will be back.

Strange place. Tea served in a large pot and was well received, however tables were sticky. Washing up obviously done in small sink behind servery. Watched the barista pouring stuff in the sink and then drying up and putting away, then saw a customer empty his cup in same sink. The loo was the smallest loo I've ever been in and because a guy came out of the gents and left the door open, I couldn't get out of the ladies. Luckily someone else needed the loo and closed the door to the gents so I could open door to ladies!

By day a tea and cake shop, by night a live music bar. We had lovely tea and cake here prior to staying for the evening music session, with some nice bottled ales and ciders. Staff helpful and attentive. The music venue is small and intimate which makes for a great gig with like minded people. Situated in the town centre, this is a great place to chill out at. Can't recommend the Lemon Drizzle cake enough - yum!

Had a delicious early Sunday brunch. The staff were all attentive, polite and helpful. The falafel and burrito were good value and tasty, although always wish for more gluten-free grains as an option. The espresso choc tart was sooo good.

I’m glad that Temperance exists because Leamington isn’t exactly packed full of choice when it comes to independent vegan food. The food was great - I really enjoyed the soup of the day which was new potato, onion & garlic. They also have a curry and stew of the day too. My partner enjoyed the sweet potato falafel sandwich and we both felt the quality of the food was fresh, well prepared and affordable. There were a range of desserts available (mostly vegetarian and only a couple of vegan options) - my partner tried the lemon meringue but felt it was a little burnt. But overall the sentiment is that the choice and food quality is decent. The decor is quirky and offers both a very well lit ground/upper floor and a dark basement depending on what you want. However, the place is ultimately quite cramped & in busy periods (weekends etc) and can feel claustrophobic with people and servers whizzing around you. This makes the place feel a bit chaotic between being a artsy nuanced coffee house and a frenzy. I felt that the place had quite a lot of dust as well (under the servers bar was particularly bad), there are cobwebs on the light fixtures & the sides/paintings could do with a bit of sprucing. The fan was particularly dusty and will need a good clean before summer. The service was quite poor from the servers. Cold & a little uncaring which goes against its brand and aesthetic - again creating a clash in personality. We weren’t asked if we enjoyed our food or needed anything. I think this area can definitely improve. Temperance could do with a spring clean from the service, cleanliness & some rearrangement of furniture & it could elevate this place to being easily one of the better places to go in Leam. We will be back - just hope that it can continue to progress as a vegan place. We appreciate the effort already there - just needs a little less clash of personality.

Visited Monday night to see Dom Martin. He was brilliant but very undecided on the venue. Cosy,intimate atmosphere but hard uncomfortable benches,guess the best way of optimising the space.Shame all the beer is canned. We had been to a couple of pubs beforehand and had lovely fresh draught Guiness.Only canned here and round was very expensive. Felt a bit trapped too.May return but unlikely.

The staff are awfully rude and dont care about customer service at all. Their job is to rinse people for all their money. Have a group of people and JUST ONE doesnt buy something? Get kicked out. I once saw a member of staff kick out a table next to us because they bought in a bottle containing lucozade. Manager nearly started a fight. He may well as nearly gone violent. Do not be tempted to go.

The manager will scream at you and get in your face for the slightest little thing! Throw something in bin without asking, or not ordering enough food for your big group. If you want to feel safe and relaxed never risk it here. Far nicer cafe's elsewhere

Went to get coffee, cake & something savour, we were told the kitchen was closed now at 2.40 pm so could only choose from cakes. We sat and waited for coffees to arrive. Ten minutes later they took the menu from the table we were sat at to give to a customer to choose savoury food. It was rather unpleasant to realise that whilst one of us was refused savour food from the menu, other customers arriving after us were allowed this privilege. Bizarre experience, as our one coffee still hadn’t arrived, we asked for a refund & left.

Visited here & saw a music gig. Comfy seating throughout stairs not to steep. Good choice of food - try the chocolate orange cake. Would definitely visit here again.

Pleasant bar with a period theme and with friendly staff. We had come to see a gig by the Cinelli Brothers. This took place in a fairly small room in the basement with very uncomfortable benches, but the band was superb and the acoustics excellent. No food available that evening but the staff arranged pizza deliveries from nearby, and the lager on offer was excellent. Was told that this place is very popular at lunchtimes.

We've now been here twice and there hasn't been any improvement since the first time. As a quirky place to go for lunch in Leamington that serves vegan options, it's OK, but the food / presentation could so easily be improved. I opted yesterday for the "sausage, cheese and apple sauce sandwich".. you'll see from the accompanying photo that they couldn't be bothered to put any dairy-free spread on my sandwich and there was a notable lack of cheese. My wife ordered the "steak, cheese, peppers and onion" option, which lacked any onion, too, so seemingly a common failure with attention to detail. It looks like they advertise their vegan breakfast as 'all day' on the door (could be wrong, didn't check), but was abruptly advised by the man at the counter that they didn't offer breakfasts in the (early) afternoon. Perhaps a trip to 'charm school' would be a good idea. Having looked on Happy Cow, they classed themselves as 'completely vegan', which they really aren't. Offering more 'veggie' options of cake than vegan and then having 50% of the milk options as being dairy milks really shows that they're lacking on their ability to classify themselves. I read in another review that there was an issue before with trailing wire cables,.. the same applied with our recent visit, but this was dealt with by a member of staff, so that failing appears to have been taken on board.

I've been past here a few times, but never had the chance to go in. I needed somewhere near Leamington station to have lunch between my train times. This has a lovely cosy atmosphere with some delicious looking homemade cakes on display. I opted for a patè sandwich and salad with a peppermint tea. The food and drink arrived very fast and the waitress popped downstairs to check on me too. Really yummy healthy food and lovely, friendly service. I'll definitely be back... next time I'll try the homemade cake.

The menu was very limited, it took forever to get a sandwich, the food was bland and poorly presented, just a panini on a plate, the other customers were creating a safety issue with trailing power cable across access to table, the toilet bun was over flowing, the glasses were dirty, the windows were properly filthy, there’s were lumps of dust and dead flies in the window, the doorstep tiles were missing and a trip hazard, and there was what looked decidedly like a junkie sitting by the door. Not fit to eat in. Expect health and safety soon!

Enjoyed this quirky cafe bar although sadly they didn’t serve cocktails when we were there but the cakes looked home made and tasted perfect. Not a place to stay in all evening as seating not terribly comfy but I liked it’s originality

Stumbled across this little gem on my first visit to lovely leamington spa. Very welcoming staff, nice tea and coffee and very cosy atmosphere. Poetry performances were a bonus!

Great cafe, the chocolate cake is to die for Even when it’s busy, they acknowledge the customers and make you feel welcome

I visit temperance at all different times of day I'm always made welcome the staff are lovely are really friendly and accommodating the coffee and variety of teas plus cakes vegatarian and also vegan food I'm not vegan but the food is stiil amazing all...

Fully enjoyed the carribean night they do was recomended by a really kind and welcoming staff i think her name was keeley and the chef had some good jokes the food was 10/10 give these guys a try and sure you wont be disappointed! Top...

Go to temperance in leamington. Would give 9 stars if I could. Best cafe in leamington Spa. Fairly priced perfectly cooked food and incredible staff. Woman on the counter (her name is keeley and everyone should learn that) she was filling a quiet place with...

The best cafe I have been to in leamington. Amazing food and drinks and fabulous customer service, I was served by a lovely woman named keeley, highly professional and very attentive, sweet and friendly! Would recommend for anyone to go here!!

What a beautiful place! Had never been here before today-always wanted to because it looks so lovely from the outside but I've just never ventured in- and wow am I glad I did! First off, it's a beautiful cafe. So much art everywhere, amazing little...

Staff were appalling. Service was terrible. Food was cold, overpriced and days old - frankly it was pathetic. Wouldn’t advise eating here, ever.

This is a hidden gem of a cafe/restaurant/art gallery/music venue which I would really like to support. When I saw that their Spanish chef was cooking paella fresh I jumped at the chance. I live the correct side of Coventry so can get there within...

i have just been to pick up a takeaway from temperance for the first time and have to say sadly wasn’t impressed! firstly, whoever i spoke to on the phone to order had forgotten to actually write my order down so i wasn’t on their...

Super sympa pour prendre un café, les cakes sont délicieux!!! 3£ la part de cake, c’est raisonnable pour la quantité...

Came here a few times very good in the basement area for doing work as usually not a lot of people in there, only issue maybe the stairs above are loud when people walk but overall it’s forgivable as the place is immaculate and eclectic...

Really nice place nice atmosphere etc nice food. We were there at about 11ish and one other table and seemed like they couldn’t cope or were a bit flustered. Wasn’t bad just a bit slow and took a while. Music could do with being not...

Have been a couple of times now and each time its been great. Joined their Italian evening yesterday and it was brilliant - great food, atmosphere and wine. Will be back again.

Just got back from a brilliant night at Temperance in Leam. Lovely staff, great ambiance & some of the best dance tunes (deep house to drum & bass) I've heard in ages. Going to ache for a while.

A gem of a cafe/tiny arts centre. Lovely quirky surrounding, good coffee, clean loos and friendly staff.

A friend and I stumbled into this place on a whim, and were welcomed by warm wooden interiors and rich green walls, an air of the modern and the comfort of the homely. There’s an atmosphere on an old fashioned pub, where people bump into...

You'd think that with so much going on here, they wouldn't have time for good food but the Temperance has amazing dishes. Tonight we had vegan samosas with spicy chutney. They were hot, light and delicious. Also on offer were warming dishes like chick pea...

We stumbled across Temperance last weekend and all I can say is what a quirky little place! I had a beautiful chai tea which was loose leaf, and was served in a proper teapot with a china cup and an egg timer, so I knew...

Bought tickets to see the NT live stream of Fleabag. A simple process through Eventbrite. On arrival - a really warm welcome and very nice wine! The whole place was really quirky, welcoming and had a lovely atmosphere. Will definitely be back to watch another...

It was raining hard when we arrived in Leamington Spa. We were fortunate to find an invalid parking place close to a French restaurant. But the owner turned us away as it was five minutes to two (that would never happen in France!) We turned...

I live in Coventry and don’t really venture into the heart of Leamington but saw that the artist Mark Morris was playing in a coffee shop, so not to be disappointed I bought a ticket. I parked st Jephson Gardens and walked to what looked...

It was a pleasant place. I can imagine local people returning. I chose falafel with humous sandwich. I guess that was a lot of chick pea in a sandwich! It was a rather dry effect. Perhaps a little side salad would have moistened the food....

Temperance is by far one of my favourite places in Leamington. With so many theatre screenings, live music, comedy and poetry performances going on regularly, I almost feel like it's a second home! The cafe has a great community feel to it, the staff are...

What a great place! I brought my friend from America here as I’d seen the info about this place opening but hadn’t had the chance to visit. We were not disappointed. From the warm smiling welcome from the young female barista, to the funky decor...

apart from their friendly staff, i like the idea that they feature different talents and activities in their basement. From magic shows, to poetry reading, musicians, talks, even meditation! I particularly like the magic show by Dom Twose, it was so clever and entertaining!