Grandpa Greene’s Luxury Ice Cream is an award winning ice cream parlour and cafe tucked away alongside the Huddersfield canal in picturesque Diggle, Saddleworth. We stumbled across it quite by accident one sunny Friday afternoon when the Lockdown restrictions had started to ease – we joined a very long and slow queue for some delicious (and reasonably priced) ice creams and vowed we’d return for lunch next time we were without the kids.
Grandpa Greene’s are not currently taking bookings – but this is a good thing!
Grandpa Greene’s are not taking bookings at the moment which means, whilst you might be in for a bit of a wait, you should be able to get a table unlike tables at lots of other local venues which are like rocking horse poo! To reduce the length of time spent queuing, Grandpa Greenes have introduced a handy buzzer system – so once you’ve given your name and phone number to staff, they will give you a buzzer to take which means you can go for a bit of a walk around the nearby area.
We were lucky enough to grab a bench on the other side of the canal and watch the world go by for half an hour or so until our table was ready – a far more pleasant way to pass the time than standing in a queue and worrying about whether you are inadvertently standing too close to other customers!
I think we arrived at around midday and waited a good half hour or so for a table – but once we were seated, service was fairly relaxed (perhaps a little too relaxed at times) and we didn’t feel at all rushed. In fact we actually ended up staying for a couple of hours (not entirely through choice but it was lovely just the same).
Dining alfresco at Grandpa Greene’s
At Grandpa Greenes there is a mix of indoor and outdoor seating – of course the Manchester weather can be a little unpredictable so whilst it was lovely to sit outside yesterday, we were a little nervous about the threat of rain. Thankfully it was no more than a few spots and the staff at Grandpa Greene’s quickly handed out large umbrellas to customers seated outdoors. We commented that they could have done with a little stand for the umbrellas on the table as our food arrived whilst Dave had the umbrella up and it made eating quite tricky – luckily the shower passed quickly and was replaced by blazing sunshine for the rest of our visit! (Grandpa Greenes are currently working on modernising a third dining space and adding a retractable roof – which will certainly help to give them additional flexibility for when the weather doesn’t quite know what to do!)
Brunch and lunch menus
Arriving at lunch time meant we’d missed the rather delicious looking brunch menu (poached eggs and avocado – you know the score) but the lunch menu features a range of delicious sandwiches, all day breakfast muffins and a fairly spectacular platter which I’d totally missed on the menu but had full food envy when I saw it being delivered to other tables (definitely getting it next time!)
I had the chicken tikka sandwich and Dave went for steak – both were really tasty. I should also mention that from nosing at other tables, the salads looked pretty epic too!
Is Grandpa Greene’s dog friendly?
Grandpa Greene’s is so dog friendly that they actually have a specific menu of doggy treats! Poppy thoroughly enjoyed her pot of sausage and bacon (£1.90) and giving her a bit at a time through our meal encouraged her to be extra well behaved! (She’s new to eating out!) The girls sat at the table next to us loved Poppy so much they treated her to a Grandpa Greene’s dog ice cream – which was a big hit and we’d definitely order one for Poppy next time we visit!
Friendly staff
The staff at Grandpa Greene’s were all really lovely (in fact the girls sitting at the next table were employees who had come for lunch on their day off and we had a really lovely chat with them!). The lads serving were all friendly and helpful, but could have a been a little more attentive and on top of clearing plates away – sitting with dirty plates in front of me is a bit of a pet hate of mine so when one of the guys serving brought dessert menus (after we’d eventually caught his eye and asked for them) and then didn’t take our plates away, I was a bit miffed! It’s just a bit slack really. That said, I liked that we didn’t feel at all rushed even though there had been quite a queue of people waiting for tables. All the staff were wearing visors or face coverings and we saw them thoroughly cleaning tables between uses, encouraging customers to use hand sanitiser and enforcing the one way system through the venue.
Ice Cream is King
Of course at a luxury ice cream parlour, ice cream is king. There’s a range of ice cream sundaes on the menu as well as sweet treats (brownies, waffles etc) and milk shakes or you can order a simple cone / tub of your favourite Grandpa Greene’s ice cream flavour. Dave and I went in on the “Chocolate Overload Sundae” and instantly regretted getting one each – totally unnecessary and we should have shared! To be honest it was a bit of an overload and next time I think I’d go for a cone of something delicious from their collection of 30 award winning flavours!
Walking to Grandpa Greene’s
As I mentioned, Grandpa Greene’s is situated right on the side of the Huddersfield canal which makes it the perfect mid-walk destination. Dave and I parked the car at nearby Greenfield and walked about 2.5 miles down the side of the canal, had a long lunch, and walked a back again. (The walk back to the car was considerably quicker as it was all down hill!) I believe it also makes a good stopping point if you’re walking the Delph Donkey.
Click here for more of our favourite dog walks in the Greater Manchester area!
Why not read theses posts next:
The best places for ice cream in Manchester
Where to get the best hot chocolate in Manchester
Dog friendly pubs and cafes in Manchester
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