The Grotto

We booked as a special night for our 39th wedding anniversary and were not disappointed. When we arrived, we asked about the parking as the car park had a pay and display machine. The barman told us to only pay the cheapest tariff and then give them our reg, and this would cover us for our stay. We arrived too early to book in, so I just told the lovely staff that we would be back later and booked a table in the restaurant for 8pm.we caught a bus into south shields for the day and had a lovely afternoon. We returned by taxi at 6 pm. Our room was number 5, the sandpiper and it was lovely. Very clean, nice and roomy and a comfortable bed. The only gripe was the shower head was too low, so hubby had to crouch down under it, but this no way spoilt our stay. There was lots of hot water, fluffy white towels, tea and coffee stuff, and the view was fantastic. Overlooking a stony beach and Marsden rock, I could have sat and watched the sea and the birds forever. We had a nice stroll on the beach, then had our meal in the cave restaurant. We both had the Jack Blaster burger and it was very nice. It's a nice experience with a bit of a spooky atmosphere and we loved it. We were surprised the next morning as there was a nice breakfast included that we didn't know about. Cereals, toast, muffins, tea, coffee and fruit juices. Very nice. Overall we enjoyed our stay and will hopefully return next year and would recommend

The whole place needs an overhaul. It was tired and dated, definitely deteriorated since previous visits. Food was overpriced, the bread served with it was stale and chips were undercooked. I think the car park charges should be waived for customers and Wi fi code should be made available. The best part was the fabulous views.

A unique and very special place - right on the beach with its sea stacks and a view right onto them. There's nowhere like it, lots of character. The small room and its bed are very small, exactly as in the photo, but everything is clean (nothing was smelly!) and the staff were friendly. The pub and restaurant were very quiet on a Tuesday night for August. We didn't eat in so can't comment on the food. We came here for the atmosphere, and it over delivered.