Badger Bar

Great location for a mid walk pint & decent chips.
This place is mid way along a walk some friends and I like to take on our annual trip to the lakes. It’s a really lovely building with lots of nice rooms to sit in. The bar is small but has some good drinks to offer. They do decent pub grub including some excellent chips. I spotted a millionaires shortbread on the bar that looked homemade and delicious but I somehow resisted.
They let dogs in and it’s full of walkers as well as other guests. There’s a proper dining area if you fancy sitting a bit more formally. If you don’t want to walk then they have a car park there too. Add this to your walk, it’s a great place to stop and rest for a while. Or cheat and take the bus, the nearest stop is a few hundred yards from the door!

Thank God for the Badger Bar! After hiking from Ambleside over Loughrigg and getting a bit lost… you need a pint! I know it isn’t a particularly difficult walk compared to other ones we could have done, but it was the first one I did ‘on my own’ (my students actually ran into me at one point and decided to tag along because they wanted to see the caves).
We ponied up to the bar and I offered a round on me since they are uni students… I ordered, but of course the students had no clue what to do, but I could tell they wanted to try a local ale rather than sticking with the stock lager. I suggested to them that if they were unsure of any of the ales, they could 1) try the ale or 2) they could order a half pint rather than a full. They chose to try them instead. The lady behind the counter seemed slightly annoyed at first, but seemed to be less annoyed as I was helping the students and they were trying so hard to experience something very British rather than being the ugly American.
I also noticed that they had a specials board and they were doing an offer for a £5.00 lunch. I checked out all of the menus (specials board, regular menu, and £5 menu) and decided on the Roast Pork, stuffing, and apple sauce sandwich with crisps and a salad for £6.75. The lady was also very nice about letting the students eat their packed lunch at our table. They did order chili to share between them, but just did not have the money to order lunch. When my sandwich came out, I was so excited… I love roast pork! The most disappointing sandwich… it was COLD! Everything… the pork, the apple sauce, and yes… the stuffing were all cold. By cold, I mean it must have come out of the refrigerator! I thought the pork and the stuffing would be hot! The stuffing, because it was cold, was like a gelatinous slice on bread! I ate it because I was hungry, but it was not good.
I did like the ale I had though and the students really enjoyed their chili. I would recommend at least a drink here if it is along your chosen route. P. S. I left my walking stick (a natural walking stick) outside the entrance. Please feel free to use it and get the same amount of smugness from it that I did!