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The Shack

3.0 (1 review)

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4 years ago

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The William Morris Tea Room - The William Morris Tea Room Bibury

The William Morris Tea Room

3.8(5 reviews)
26.8 mi
£

I'll be honest, I am actually quite shocked that there aren't more tea rooms in Bibury, considering…read morehow popular it is with tourists. Don't worry, I'm already looking into it :) Anyway, after a slightly disappointing lunch and walking about Bibury and a bit into the country, we decided to have a cream tea. Along the main road, you'll find a souvenir shop, The William Morris Inn, and their Tea Room. The door was open and we could see the cakes on the table (well played!) so we walked... actually ducked in. All six tables were occupied with someone paying at the till. We looked around and one of the staff said that they would have a table in about 5 minutes. As we were waiting we were taking in the sights... two fires burning (it wasn't cold at all), various cakes on the table (Chocolate, Coffee & Walnut, Lemon Drizzle, Victoria Sponge, Blackcurrent, Shortbread, Bibury Bark, and a few others), lots of random china, and thank you cards placed throughout the room. They also sell ice cream, in cups, but not sure what flavors. After they cleaned the table, we headed to the table in the corner, next to the fire and to a display cabinet with lots of breakable teapots! As we were looking at the menu, we noticed a couple of things... 1) there were 5 staff and 6 tables, 2) the guy who was handling money was also handling the utensils and cups... but not by the handles, and 3) it seemed quite unorganized. You would think that with 5 staff to 6 tables, it would be very organized and smooth, but it wasn't. It wasn't the worst I have seen, but it could have been running a bit smoother. The other thing I noticed was that maybe they could have made better use of the space. I kind of think that 6 4-seat tables limits business... for example the man that came in to have lunch by himself, while the group of four that came left after being told the wait might be about 20-30 minutes. Maybe a combination of different table sizes might help, but as I was telling this to Mr. Snarky he mentioned that maybe the 6 tables is all they can handle. Fair point. One of the staff came around and took our order: two scones with jam and clotted cream, one tea (English Breakfast), and one hot chocolate with marshmallows and whipped cream. On the tables they have laminated pictures of Bibury with recipes from the area on the back. They do sell them, but not sure for how much. Great idea as I did want some of the recipes, however, it occurred to me that some people might just write the recipes down or take pictures with their phones. I did no such thing, but I thought about it. I was taking another look at the table of cakes, when I saw the staff making Mr. Snarky's hot chocolate. A tin was opened and a scoop of hot chocolate mix was dropped into a tartan cup. I was a bit worried that Mr. Snarky's snarkiness level would hit another high after lunch earlier. Tea and hot chocolate arrived at the table. I let my tea steep a bit further, but Mr. Snarky went in for the first sip. He described it as warm water with a hint of chocolate... and by the looks of it, it was just a very, very light brown colour. If you're going to use a pre-made chocolate powder, at least use enough to make it worth drinking. The scones were hot when they came out, which was a nice touch and also made it a bit easier to warm up the clotted cream for easier spreading. That part was good, not my favourite cream tea, but still good. I did notice the large bowls of Minestrone Soup and plates of a large salad with lots of different veg that looked quite nice. So it is another lunch option, much more affordable than The Swan down the road. I think they could do with a few improvements, but then again as the only tea room in Bibury, they can afford not to.

We were really disappointed with this tea room. They took us in though they knew we had three kids…read more(aged 4, 3, and 1) with us. We sat down and our kids were excited and were a little loud. As parents we were trying to get them to keep quiet. However, just literally 2- 3 mins into our visit there, one of the owners told me "Can you get your kids to be quiet? We have other people in the place". I found it rude and explained to him that we are trying and it's not that easy to negotiate with young kids. Also, told him that if they are unable to tolerate it they should have a clear "No young children" policy. For that the reply I got from was beyond shocking "Other people have control over their kids and you guys don't have!" Seriously, who are these people to offer free parenting advice to customers? Our kids were just talking loud and NOT throwing a tantrum or causing any damage. We felt un-welcomed and decided to leave. We said "We are leaving. This is disappointing service and they need to work on that" and for that we got a "Off you go.. off you go... please leave now"!! Shocking and unbelievable bad. If you have young children don't waste your time going here. They have zero sense of customer service. I would highly recommend they have a no young children policy upfront to save parents the pain of listening to their parental advice. Most parents would respect that if restaurants have such policies.

Tea Shop By the Canal - Outside seating by the side of the Kennet & Avon canal, dog friendly, afternoon teas, homemade cakes

Tea Shop By the Canal

4.6(8 reviews)
59.7 mi

We had planned to have an afternoon tea at this lovely little café while visiting Newbury. We…read moredecided to go for a quick lunch, a couple days before the planned afternoon tea. Well, it was a good thing we did, since we didn't get to go back for afternoon tea... Just as the name suggests, it is located right by the canal. It was very picturesque, peaceful and relaxing. They also have seating upstairs, and had histories on the canal, with photos posted all around the wall. Their cakes looked amazing, but I decided not to order any dessert on this day. Yes I know, a big mistake! Our friend ordered Heavenly Hot Chocolate, and it looked so pretty! We went with Teashop House Blend Tea, and Earl Grey. The young boy who brought the teas (I hear this is a family-run business) was trying to very careful not to mix them up. But the funny thing was, he totally mixed the tea up! LOL. We didn't realize until half way through... I thought the House Blend tea tasted so much like Earl Grey. For lunch, we had Ham, Cheese & Chutney Sandwich and Eggs Benedict. They were both tasty, nice portion, and filling. Our friend went with something healthier, and ordered one of their vegan sandwiches. It is nice to have that option if you want or need vegan dish. We had a nice quick lunch here. It was adorable and cozy. The food was good, not amazing, but good. I think the sweets might be better than the actual food...I will never know, unless I go back! Lesson learned: don't never expect your plan to go just the way you planned them...and have your dessert first!

I love this cafe It's a wonderful location; you can sit along the canal watching the swans, the…read morebaked goodies are delicious, the staff friendly and the cafe itself is quaint with beautiful painted china dotted around

Photos
Tea Shop By the Canal
Tea Shop By the Canal
Tea Shop By the Canal

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Olive Branch - Street view of the Olive Branch

Olive Branch

4.5(4 reviews)
29.8 mi

Loved this place...it was such a lucky find while walking around Ludlow city centre. We'd been…read morestopping over here in Ludlow on our way to Snowdonia in Norther Wales and my radar for low-key, no-fuss, down-to-earth food was triggered when I saw the Olive Branch from the outside. Seriously, it's not a stylish restaurant, but the concept, the food and the overall atmosphere is absolutely lovely. I loved ordering at the counter cafeteria-style and then taking your trays to one of the wooden cubicles. The food was just as I expected: wholesomely tasty! We took some cheese scones for the ride and had them later for tea when we arrived at our cottage! Definitely recommend this place!

Where do I start? OK... go to Ludlow on a Saturday evening and plan to eat out without booking…read moreahead and you'll spend ages finding a restaurant. This is what happened to us. We eventually managed to find The Olive Branch and even though they were very busy and had lots of reserved tables we managed to get a table "laid up" for us. This place has lots of past Egon Roney awards and has a very laid back, Bohemian menu. The staff, if a little young, were very enthusiastic and full of energy. The menu wasn't extensive but there was a very good selection of dishes all of which were cooked wonderfully and the portion control was perfect. Amongst the four covers (Chicken stuffed with Shropshire blue cheese and wrapped in smoked bacon, Lamb and Apricot pie and Vegetable tarts) we were served a selection of salads (bean, fruit and nut and traditional green leaf) as well as a selection of stir fried vegetables. This was very novel and ensured we could pick and choose our accompaniments. The wine selection was also very nice - the Pinot Grigo went down far too well and we managed to consume a couple bottled with ease. It would be too easy to over look The Olive Branch but if you're in town do yourself a favour and drop in as you'll be pleasantly surprised.

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Olive Branch - Yummy scones we had as part of our cream tea!

Yummy scones we had as part of our cream tea!

Olive Branch
Olive Branch

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The Shack - coffee - Updated May 2026

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