Overview

Overall this is a great Costa Coffee cafe it's excellent food and drink as always, and I've visited personally many times on my own and with friends in wheelchairs, with speech impairments and who use BSL to communicate - and never had an issue with staff, crowding or the toilets.

Transport & Parking

As the venue is inside the Intu Eldon Square shopping centre - parking and transport are great. There are two large Bus Stations (Haymarket and Eldon Square) with regular accessible bus links around the North East. Both stations have accessible routes to the venue. Smaller more local bus stops for local bus services are also nearby and are again accessible and near easy access points to the shopping centre. Parking is available throughout the City Centre with disabled bays being prominently displayed. The closest parking would be in Eldon Gardens which has 15+ Disabled Parking Bays and is also home to ShopMobility.

Access

Access to the venue is excellent as there are no doors or glass walls to manoeuvre around - it's simply an opening (as seen in pictures). The entrance is kept free of any obstacles as the tables are set away to the sides. The fridge and counter are easy to access with limited mobility or from a seating position. A portable loop is available (and working at the time of this review) at the counter. Seating is varied, and some of the wooden seats are not suitable for limited mobility or long term use - I would recommend the soft seating when possible! Signage could be improved. - as is the case in most chain Coffee Shops but the staff are helpful and know the menu well.

Toilets

The Accessible Toilet is unfortunately not a Changing Places toilet or a Radar key. It is usually well kept, clean, bright, a red cord is available and goes to the floor, and there are a lot of grab rails for support and stability. As seen in the photo the toilet handle is not a paddle handle and may cause issues for some people. There is space for a manual chair - but powerchairs may struggle to move around especially with a carer present.

Staff

The staff here are fantastic always welcoming and have offered help at every step - from picking out sandwiches to always offering to take orders to your table - grabbing additional napkins and sugars etc. on the way to you. Can't praise the staff here enough!

Photos