The UK’s best super-dog-friendly cafés

There are lots of dog-friendly cafés up and down the country that are happy to welcome our four-legged best friends in principle, but sometimes – when you’ve sat down, ordered a coffee and are trying to relax – you discover your pup is only tolerated at best. 

At Canine Cottages, we are all about welcoming your furry friends with open paws, so, for this list, we’re not simply talking about coffee shops or cafés that allow dogs, but businesses that cater especially for our four-legged best friends. Think dedicated doggy menus, puppaccinos and pawsecco, and even in-house pup pampering!

We’ve sniffed out some of the UK’s best dog-friendly cafés, plus some great dog-friendly cottages nearby, all guaranteed to roll out the red carpet for doggy diners.

Fetch cafés from:

• Scotland
• The North
• Midlands
• The South
• Wales

Super dog-friendly cafés in Scotland

The Long Dog Café, Aberdeen

With 'all dogs welcome as long as they are accompanied by a well-behaved owner', this Aberdeen pet-friendly café is one of the best eateries in Scotland to enjoy a dog-friendly brunch. 

The Long Dog was inspired by the original long dog – Big Gav the dachshund – who didn’t like sitting outside in Aberdeen’s notoriously wet and windy weather, and so, the doggy haven of The Long Dog Café was born! Big Gav has since been joined by Linda, who has the team wrapped around her tiny paws.

Stay nearby: The Gordon Suite, Aberdeenshire | sleeps 2 dogs + 4 humans

The Tea Garden, Mallaig

Overlooking the picturesque harbour in Mallaig, on the west coast of the Scottish Highlands, this is one of the best dog-friendly cafes for a pick-me-up after an epic dog walk along the waterfront. 

Dogs are warmly welcomed at The Tea Garden (there is a large sign at the front of the café stating this, if you were in any doubt!) and there’s a small section of the mouth-watering menu that’s just for four-legged diners. If your pup’s been a good boy (when hasn’t he?!), he can choose a treat from behind the counter, made at the Barking Bakery in Blackpool.

Stay nearby: The Cabin, Fort William | sleeps 1 dog + 5 humans

The Real Food Café, Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park

This super-sustainable café on the northern edge of Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park has loads to shout about on top of its impressive dog-friendly credentials. 

The Real Food Café is fully licensed, has baby-changing facilities and disabled access, places a strong emphasis on sourcing Scottish ingredients, caters for a range of dietary requirements including gluten-free and vegan diets, and you can even charge your electric car there! For our four-legged friends, the café provides a dog washing station and, once they’re squeaky clean, they are welcome inside too.

Stay nearby: Riverview - Strathyre | sleeps 2 dogs + 2 humans

Super dog-friendly cafés in the North

Salami & Co, Otley

Waiting outside a café in the cold with your pup seems to be a universal experience for dachshund owners; this café came into existence after the owners of sausage dogs Salami and Bagel were fed up of just that! In the charming Yorkshire town of Otley – just outside Leeds – Salami & Co has a reputation for being one of the best dog-friendly coffee shops around. 

Pups can choose items off the café’s Hound Menu, including puppaccinos, dog teas, pupcakes, doughnuts, biscuits and venison sausages. Humans are spoilt too, with a bespoke blend of single-origin coffee and a mouth-watering brunch menu to tuck into.

Stay nearby: Ivy Cottage, Lindley | sleeps 2 dogs + 4 humans

Bijou of Lytham, Lytham Saint Annes

Just 2 miles south of Blackpool is this lovely dog café where your pup can enjoy a dog-friendly breakfast, with a special menu dedicated to doggy diners. We can’t think of many dogs who would turn down a bowl of black pudding while their humans tuck into a hearty fry-up! 

As a bonus, Bijou of Lytham's coastal location means you can work up an appetite for breakfast along the Lancashire Coastal Way, which runs metres from the café.

Stay nearby: Laurel Cottage - Lytham | sleeps 3 dogs + 2 humans

The Wagging Tail Café, Southport

There’s something about Lancashire and its dog-friendly cafés – just a short hop across the Ribble Estuary is The Wagging Tail Café. It’s one of the few pet-friendly cafés in the country where your pup can enjoy a Birthday Pawty, with a homemade birthday cake and a celebration for your birthday good-boy. 

Even if it’s not a special occasion, four-legged diners can enjoy pupcakes, dog ice cream or something from the pawtisserie, washed down with doggy beer or a puppaccino. There are even comfy beds for them to recline on while you tuck into a light meal or homemade cake and admire the quirky décor.

Stay nearby: The Old Piggery - Barton | sleeps 2 dogs + 4 humans 

Super dog-friendly cafés in the Midlands

Doghouse, Bradford-on-Avon      

Combining a dog-friendly café, a pet shop and a dog groomer in the lovely Cotswolds town of Bradford-upon-Avon, Doghouse is definitely one to visit with your four-legged best friend. 

Your pup can get a fresh trim, some new accessories and enjoy a puppaccino and pupcake all under one roof, while you sip a delicious coffee and munch on some homemade cake. It’s a special and indulgent experience that you can share together.

Stay nearby: Bakery Cottage, Bradford-upon-Avon | sleeps 2 dogs + 3 humans

Frenchie Frenchie, Mansfield

North of Nottingham, in the market town of Mansfield, is perhaps the UK’s first permanent French bulldog café – but it’s not just the Gallic breed that is welcome here. Any kind of pup (and their humans, of course) is welcome at this incredibly dog-friendly venue, which is home to a pawsecco bar, a walk-in doggy bakery and a designated play area. 

At Frenchie Frenchie, your dog can make four-legged friends with other dogs in the ball pit before relaxing with a puppaccino or doggy hot chocolate and a doggy doughnut. For humans, there are coffees, milkshakes and other treats, but this place is really all about the dogs and we love it!

Stay nearby: Beauvale Priory – Abbey View, Newthorpe | sleeps 1 dog + 4 humans

Holkham Beach Café, Wells-next-the-Sea

This dog-friendly café enjoys an idyllic setting among pinewoods and is close to the sands of one of North Norfolk’s most popular beaches, Wells-next-the-Sea, which helpfully allows dogs all year round. Your four-legged beach bum can get as sandy as he likes, as Holkham Beach Café has a ‘Wash ‘n’ Wag’ dog wash with an enclosed booth to hose down salty fur and sandy paws. 

Then your pup can take a sip from one of the kegs at Bertie’s Bark-up Bar – a self-serve water point. And, if your dog fancies himself as a pin-up (or should we say, pin-pup), he can enter the café’s Dog of the Month competition!

Stay nearby: Flint Drift, Wells-next-the-Sea | sleeps 2 dogs + 6 humans

Super dog-friendly cafés in the South

Metrodeco, Brighton

This super-chic tea salon encapsulates the glamour and sophistication of the Jazz Age and will attract pups who like the finer things in life! As well as having a menu of gourmet treats for your foodie Fido, Metrodeco will also help your hound celebrate in style at one of its glitzy dog parties. 

As well as welcoming Brighton’s dogs through its doors with open paws, the team actively campaigns to make Brighton’s shops, food establishments and public spaces more dog friendly. We’ll drink to that!

Stay nearby: Starlings, Saltdean | sleeps 2 dogs + 5 humans

Café Alf Resco, Dartmouth

Just a shake of the tail from Dartmouth’s historic harbour, Café Alf Resco makes a perfect pit-stop after a lovely waterside walk, or even a day out on the river with your canine first mate! 

One of the best dog-friendly cafes in the UK, well-behaved dogs will get a special present of a sausage to gnaw on while humans can tuck into hearty breakfasts or platters of fresh local fish – just get there early as it’s extremely popular with Dartmouth doggies!

Stay nearby: Beach End, Dartmouth | sleeps 3 dogs + 12 humans

Super dog-friendly cafés in Wales

The Secret Garden Cafe, Cardiff 

Nestled amongst the greenery of Cardiff's Bute Park, otherwise known as the 'Green heart of the city', The Secret Garden Cafe is a delightful, dog-friendly spot to hit paws during your city break with Fido. With outdoor seating, including covered areas for when the rain falls, this is a splendid cafe known for its environmental values and locally sourced, organic ingredients. 

Humans can choose from a wide range of speciality coffees twinned with fresh sandwiches, ice creams and other yummy snacks. For our four-pawed pals, not only will they receive a warm welcome, but they're likely to find treats at the bar and water bowls dotted around – simply perfect for a post-city walk break!

Where to stay: Taff Penfro Cardiff Apartment, Cardiff | sleeps 1 dog + 6 humans

Coffi Lab, Cardiff, Monmouth, Abergavenny and Malborough

Named after a love of coffee and Labradors, Coffi Lab is one of the most renowned pet-friendly cafes in the UK. Coffee-loving customers and their canine companions can relax in this welcoming dog café, which now has several locations across Wales, and enjoy a variety of tasty treats, including vegan dog biscuits and ice cream for those with waggy tails. 

Best of all, the café is a corporate partner with Guide Dogs UK and does everything it can to support this important charity, such as puppy partnerships, fundraising challenge days and supporting local volunteers.

Where to stay: Sugar Loaf Farmhouse | sleeps 2 dogs + 6 humans

Scruffy Pups, Cardiff

Not only is Scruffy Pups in Cardiff one of the top dog-friendly cafes in South Wales, but it also provides a wealth of facilities for four-legged diners. After your tufty-pawed pals have had their fill of puppuccinos and doggy doughnuts, they can burn off those calories on the agility course or put their paws up and enjoy being pampered in the dog grooming parlour. 

And for human diners, it also serves up some of the tastiest food around, including Reuben and buttermilk chicken sandwiches, birria tacos, and churros!

Where to stay: Bwthyn Eglwys – Cowbridge | sleeps 1 dog + 4 humans

Dog-friendly holidays in the UK

Is your tummy rumbling and nose twitching for some delicious food and drink? Why not check out our guide to the UK’s best dog-friendly pubs too? Or take a look at our full collection of dog-friendly cottages and start planning a gastronomic tour of the UK with your foodie Fido!