Brean Down Cafe in Sedgemoor

Awful ! Overpriced ... poor service ! No meals except pastries .... a sausage roll was £6.95 ! I know it's a National Trust and we are members I agree they do a great deal of good. However, with such a prime seaside spot .... loads of families on the beach ...they should offer normal seaside food and priced! We had a coffee and a slice of cake and it came to £20 for 2 of us. Families are struggling at the moment. I can't understand why they don't offer traditional seaside food like a bag of chips, ice creams, lollies,milk shakes etc. They have a prime spot with a captive audience as its the only cafe at Brean down. Felt very dissapointed it could be so much improved !.... prices are Ridiculous !!!!! Service is bad you order then go to another partcto collect , no please or thank you ! I think they love dogs more than people !

RIP off coffee. Large cup was only medium sized and Luke warm. The man serving can’t add up and overcharged us (perhaps he should stop playing with his mobile phone!). Disappearing as we are long standing National Trust members and expect better than this!

Nice little cafe on the seafront at Brean Down Very reasonably priced, nice location, toilet facilities on site,friendly staff.

Asked a question about motorcycle parking and was answered staff was friendly

Visited today, had a hot chocolate which was watery, and 2 ice creams which were fine. Can’t complain too much about food/service. However the toilets were abysmal. Filthy. The sanitary bins were overflowing, the floor was covered in tampons/pads and toilet roll. There was however, no toilet roll in any of the cubicles. There was no soap left and the hand dryer didn’t work! Seriously needs addressing! Wouldn’t be visiting again.

£5-40 for two cups of tea that was undrinkable the worst cup of tea I have ever had I'll never go back

We went for a walk on the beach with our five dogs and called in at the cafe when we came off, we only had tea and a scone and sat outside but it was pleasant enough, it was the National Trust cafe.

Service and staff first class and friendly it’s a pity that food was very poor. Cost is irrelevant as you can’t moan if you’re happy to pay what ever price is,but you do expect decent quality and it cooked how you requested. Asked for Bacon Roll with Hard well done egg… Received Bacon roll with cheap Streaky Bacon that was more fat than meat. Egg was runny and pouring out the sides with the butter and fat. Think we all know a bacon sandwich isn’t the healthiest option but a naughty treat if that’s what you fancy … But hey for £5 please provide some Bacon that’s not a bundle of chewy fat , sure there are better options that still provide you a profit margin and are a nicer Breakfast treat after a good walk along the Beach. Doubt many people would use that at home so wouldn’t expect fatty streaky Bacon at such a nice Cafe…

Good because we could take our dogs in

Fabulous National Trust cafe right by the beach. Don't be put off by the outside, it's lovely inside especially upstairs where there's comfy seats, a second hand book shop, drawing and stuff for little ones. Toilets outside are an asset too.

Great coffee, good views, pleasant place to take a break. Only problem is the car park which is rubbish and costs a ridiculous £6 if you're not an NT member.

Just a very welcome hot drink on a cold day, after a bracing walk up and along Brean Down. Perfect

Great National Trust cafe right on the beach with a big car park (free for members) at the far north end of Brean Sands. It has a sea wall terrace and cosy upstairs lounge where you can watch the sea. Freindly staff with lovely cakes including vegan and pre packed gluten free. Lovely cream tea and coffee. Good menu plus drinks and ice cream.

We didn't actually dine here because we wanted to go upstairs where there was seating with sea views but were told this wasn't possible!

Came here due to glowing review regarding ‘dog friendly’, plated breakfasts even doggy breakfast…BOY were we disappointed! 😒 Take away service only, no flexibility on the breakfast ‘baps’ and if we had a sausage for the dog we had to have 3 @ £3! 🤷🏼‍♀️ It was heaving with walkers at 11am; they’re really missing a trick to cater to the masses here. Even the adjacent National Trust cafe had run out of sausages by 11am but they at least were happy to combine ingredients to create a proper ‘breakfast’ bap AND we were able to take our dog into the cafe despite suggestions to the contrary on reviews we’d read on the way.

There are two cafes at Brean Down. Neither of them have obvious names which causes confusion. Some reviews here are wrong as people have mixed them up. The one set back from the sea with a cheaper car park does great home made icecream. Not sure about the food, we didn't try it. The other one is NT Cove cafe on the sea front, but no sign saying so. We had fish and chips which was nice but a very small over priced portion. The beach views from the upstairs seating makes up for it though.

Very unfriendly welcome. More worried about parking than service. The owner kept putting on his high vis top every time a car went by and rushed out to see what they were up to. Would have been nice to have had a friendly welcome. Not much choice and was extremely expensive for what they did have. Tip here is to avoid and take a short stroll to the more friendly cafe just a stone throw away.

Ordered what was described as beef brisket burger Came out a clearly frozen cheap plain burger no sauce scraps of lettuce and a small portion of fries not chips This was an adult meal at £9+ Disgusting and was told that it said beef brisket on the box !! Taking advantage of their location and lack of other options

I didn't taste the food, but the coffee is delicious. The man in the store was very friendly, I was glad to hear useful advice) thank you

Nice location for a cafe. Food was of good quality, however be wary they may not have hot food available every time. I think drinks would be the best recommendation for this place, I had a very nice hot chocolate.

A member of staff was rude. If they are going to run customers down try doing it not in front of other customers. The young guy in the shop part was nice but the one in the cafe part wasn’t very nice. A bit nasty running down customers. He didn’t see us behind him.

Delicious coffee, lovely atmosphere

After a busy day on beach we were looking forward to chips but sadly food here wasn't the best, chips had weird taste and we're far too salty. We only ate a few and binned them. Wouldn't visit again

Great little place to refuel after a walk/fun time on the beach. A fair choice of food and drinks available with seating inside and out. Very dog friendly with bowls of water available. The toilets were clean and well maintained. The outdoor seating overlooking the beach was great for unwinding and watching the world go by. There was ample parking at a reasonable price. Also lots of activities for chn/families in the holidays. The beach itself is lovely and sandy.

Nice beach side location. Easy parking. Toilets public so not great but ok.

Lovely place to visit on a sunny day.

We was delighted to see some where to eat but left disappointed. The food was quite costly and of poor quality. The chips was very over cooked and hollow inside. The brisket burger sounded good and that as far as it went. I would unfortunately not recommend this cafe unless the food quality improved. (Location amazing and staff were helpful)....

This is the first time we've visited Brean Down Cafe since the before the pandemic! It was great to be back! Cafe is very nicely refurbished. There's a book sale downstairs and when we went upstairs there were more books! Gorgeous views! Lovely cafe, friendly staff!

Visited on a windy Winters day & enjoyed a lovely hot chocolate & welcome from the lady serving who was very dog friendly. No dogs upstairs but stunning view and funky place to chill

Visited here whilst staying in Somerset for a week. We had a walk Brean Beach (too windy to climb the head on this visit) Decided to pop into Nation Trust cafe for a drink & snack. Whilst everything was ok, this cafe is not up to the usual standard of a NT trust cafe. The interior is very bleak & unwelcoming. Not particularly clear where you order or get food & drinks from. We had sausage roll/scone and a coffee & walnut cake. All ok but not up to usual standards. Big mention to one of the staff members though who turned out to be very helpful & chatty. Just really need a good freshen up inside & out.

Clean cafe with very friendly staff. Drinks are HUGE. A babyccino was the size of a normal adults drink and only 50p. The butterscotch steamer is so nice! Prices are reasonable and there are also second hand books for sale with proceeds going to The National Trust.

Great NT Cafe. Not the cheapest but not expensive, always nice food and drinks, also National Trust shop with nice selection of gifts and useful clothing accessories. Cafe has a large area next to beach to sit that includes several NT wooden circular tables seats up to 10 people on each with sparrows on tap for cake and pasty crumbs, also has a small courtyard with tables and a small seating area inside downstairs, large seating area Inside upstairs, great for all the family and dogs, right next to Brean down for hilly adventures, 7.5miles of golden sand including Berrow and Burnham. Spaces for locking up cyles. Several WC's including 1 for the less able of us. Recommend the Pasties and nice Coffee.

I've been here many times and this place has gone down massively. Used to have a nice gift shop but that's gone. The food and drink is expensive. Nearly £4 for just a single sausage roll. The toilets are very smelly and dirty. The national trust are clearly more interested in profit. I won't be wasting my time with this place anymore.

Called here today for breakfast. All that was on offer was a sausage or an egg bap. Six members of staff and that was it I left the sausages as they smelt soar. I wasn’t sure if they were off or uncooked Two baps and two hot drinks were almost £16 This is National Trust and really failed. Bring your own I say

Really disappointed on my first & what will be my last visit today. Ordered a pot of tea to be given a tiny drop of milk in what appeared to be a lid of some sort, I asked if I may have some more, to be told, that is all we are allowed to give. It wasnt enough for one cup! The server then proceeded to try to pour the milk in my cup for me before I had chance to pour my tea in! I left, without the said pot of tea. Poor customer service!

National Trust cafe at Brean Down - avoid at all costs! Went there today (Wed 01.06.22 at 1.10pm). No food, as such, to choose from and selected chip butties from the very limited menu, with a tea and cappuccino. Wasn't expecting gourmet food, but what we received was inedible: extremely over cooked fries which were brittle and as hard as twigs. The bap tasted sweet, loaded with preservatives. The cappuccino was tasteless and flat, with little or no coffee in it. The tea was hot water, with a tea bag/milk and not that bad, hence the one star rating. Our dog, who absolutely eats anything, wouldn't touch it and husband, 2 hours later had a very bad stomach. Should have taken it back but just wasn't worth the effort. Not your typical National Trust fayre.

This is by far and away the most unwelcoming National Trust cafe I have ever been to. To understand why, I need first to mention that some National Trust cafes have stopped selling plastic bottles of water, which is fair enough. However, at something like £2.25 the "reusable" bottle you now get instead is very poor quality, particularly the lid which predictably hasn't lasted, rendering the bottle useless. But that's an issue I'll take up with the National Trust, rather than the cafe. What was very poor was that after selling this supposedly reusable bottle, the staff in the cafe refused to refill it, suggesting instead that we use the tap in the public toilet that had a sticker saying "not drinking water" on it. So after a long, hot walk, we had to find somewhere else to quench our thirst. Happily the other cafe next door we're happy to provide some tap water.

The service was very nice and the people were friendly as well will be going there again recommend it to anyone

Café ok small and simple reasonable range of hot & cold food dog friendly

Such a lovely little cafe and the staff wow so welcoming and amazing! I broke down and they really took care of me and my children! Made a bad situation much better for us ♥️ Thank you so much to the team here xx

Nice tea and cake café on the edge of a huge beach overlooked by Brean Down.

Service very slow. They lost our food order on a relatively quiet day.

Popped in for a snack affer walking on bean downs. Excellent cafe staff lovely and food good value. Very pleasant and they serve decaf too ☺️

Ok ,but no staff and therefore no cooking going on,cold food or cake only.This we were told is not normal,so will try again soon and see,very friendly staff. Toilets need some attention from a cleaner,we had to take our grandchildren in,they are pretty disgusting,the ladies too, which is unusual,maybe just a bad day all around.We have been here before, and it was fine, except for the toilets,watch this space.

Nice staff, good coffee and reasonable price

I just love going here sitting outside and relaxing all very pleasant people. Meals 're dealt nice to

We really enjoyed this little gem right by the beach. Fantastic retro original decor well maintained, clean toilets and lovely staff. We had chips, cheesy chips.. Two teas and two luxury hot chocs total around £14 all lovely tasting and very fresh. A little lunch for a family of 4 on a cold wet day.. Very much appreciated and enjoyed. Part of the National Trust who I wholly support!!

Had a long walk along the beach and were looking forward to something nice to eat. Being National Trust we were expecting interesting and tasty food, but it was just the usual fare. Even more disappointing was the fact that they had nothing gluten free apart from chips, which at 11am did not appeal. Perhaps they are still serving a restricted menu, but it was certainly busy considering it was out of school holidays. The staff were friendly and the toilets were clean but we were disappointed with our visit and will not be rushing back.

One person serving hot drinks on a cold day resulted in a long queue and quite a few frustrated looking customers. Although the young man serving was very pleasant, one person serving is not sufficient when the queue is long. Sadly will not be giving a 5 star review because of this.

A fellow visitor said that the brownie was the second best brownie that they had ever had. But they put the milk in the tea immediately so it can't brew.

They have a lovely outdoor area and on a fine day there were lots of customers. A great stopping off point before and after climbing Brean Down. A good cafe with lots of snacks and bits and bobs that you need at the seaside.

As on our previous visit, the front of the cafe was closed, but there was a little service hatch/window at the rear where tea, coffee, snacks and ice creams were being served. We plumped for the ice cream, Magnums actually, which were gorgeous. We had to sit in the care out of the keen wind blowing in from the sea. But what a lovely spot, and Brean Down was looking its best! Beautiful!

nice views but please do more vegan options then a curried pastie such as vegan hot dogs or vegan burger or vegqan cheese and chips something else would be better and dog treats to buy too

The front of the cafe was closed but the rear was open, the barista was serving tea and coffee through a small hatch. So we had their fabulous coffee. It was very welcome although there was nowhere to sit, so we leant on the rail admiring the wonderfully stunning panoramic views around Brean Down.

We were in Brean for a breath of fresh air and decided to have some refreshment at the Brean Down Cafe. The outside seating was set up (unlike the last time we came when it was all stacked) and so we were able to stay distanced and enjoy our tea and coffee in comfort. Then we decided to have ice creams! Good choice! Lovely cafe, nice staff.

Visiting Brean Down during a short break in the area, we needed some sustenance before attempting the climb up the cliff. It was lovely and sunny but the ravages of Covid was everywhere. Anyhow, we stopped at the National Trust cafe and although the selection was not huge, it was adequate and it was served with a smile! So thank you.

We went out knowing it was a cold day but decided to go to the beach anyway, found this treasure, Beautiful beach on view whilst enjoying a cream tea, would highly recommend

Well organised considering the current situation

After a fabulous walk on Bream down we were ready for a sandwich lunch. Wished we hadn’t. Supermarket white bread (no choice). Filled meagrely with a little bit of ham or processed cheese. No salad. Like a child’s sandwich. Automatically put milk in my tea and we’re rude when I asked for it black. Delivery van arrived and a man appeared from the kitchen absolutely filthy. Avoid.

We were disappointed by the very limited selection of food on offer, most things advertised on the limited had run out. Coffee was good though

This is an excellent national trust cafe, had a hot steak pasty and it was delicious and of high quality, good selection of hot drinks too. Would definitely recommend

Covid-19 was a bit annoying - the café had to be take away only and we had to eat outside in gale force winds, which was no fault of the café. Some previous reviewers would have reduced the score to 1/5 for this, however I have the intelligence to identify that this was not the fault of the National Trust so will not be blaming them. The staff were pleasant and friendly today, especially the guy serving the drinks. The hot drinks were very welcome to neutralise the wind chill and the fruit cake from a local Somerset bakery was very good too. This place has done very well considering the restrictions in place. Yummy Yummy Yummy in my tummy!

It goes to show its a team that makes a businesses work and one member of staff up front who has little to no interpersonal skills will ruin your day and your businesses.. l new from the moment I join the lunch time queue that Saturday was not going to-be as I planned . A customer two down was told in a voice that everyone could hear that it would be over half an hour for food this cut the queue in half but not the waiting time.that worked well for her work load.Once I got to the counter I thought it was an exercise in how to talk down to a customer from a comedy sketch from 1980’s but sadly it just got worse and stared touching on the patronising . Number two at the counter was everything that the other person wasn’t .once the coast was clear, There are staff here who give there hearts and minds and the gift shop is a pleasant surprise .

Horrible customer service, I asked for a bit of cold water in my coffee and the waitress showed up to be annoyed. Also tables were really messy.

Don’t bother no food ...no sandwiches no decent cake - one jacket potato left , nothing to offer a 93 year old mum..disgraceful on a bright sunny day where they should have been stickedup

Having had a bracing walk along the beach with our dog we were looking forward to calling in at this NT cafe for hot drinks and some bacon or sausage baps. We arrived to find that not only are dog owners left out in the cold on seats outside (despite us being the majority of visitors to the cafe on a cold February afternoon!) but that you can’t get a sausage or bacon bap after 12 noon. You can have chips between 12-3 but the only ‘warm sandwiches’ on offer were either a smoked cheddar and ham panini or a fish finger sandwich during these times. Why??!! Why when the kitchen is open and the menu restrictive can’t everything be on offer at all times? Most cafes offer an all day breakfast these days and bacon/sausage/veggie sausage baps! So the cafe had minimal trade from us and several other people in the queue I spoke to all hoping for the same. We just had a hot chocolate to take away. What a shame when if we could’ve brought our dogs in or the cafe at least offered a more covered area to protect us all better from the biting wind, and offered a warm bap or two we all would’ve spent much more money in the cafe!The staff were not particularly welcoming either which didn’t help matters sadly. They took my money without a please or thank you, didn’t offer a receipt and so consequently when waiting for my hot chocolate to be ready I had nothing to prove I’d paid for it and the person behind me had also requested hot chocolates was also then waiting and we had to discuss between us that mine would be coming first. The staff seemed more concerned with who was going off duty when and talking to each other than communicating with the clientele. Maybe they were having a challenging day but it wasn’t a particularly busy one from the number of people in the cafe! It’s a shame as a lot of cafes would be struggling for business this time of year. A Better choice of sweet items would be good ( along with a variety of ice cream flavours there was a boiled fruit cake, one piece of peanut butter flap jack and some biscuits in packets visible) but most of all, PLEASE- Make your breakfast items available at least until 3pm so that we can enjoy a sausage/bacon bap any time we visit!

As a teacher of a small class of SEN pupils I was pleasantly surprised how accommodating the staff (Sharon) in the cafe were when we visited. It made our Geography field trip a great success for pupils who usually find it challenging in busy public environments. The students really appreciated the use of the upstairs tables and the patience extended to them when ordering food. Thank you.

This place is open in winter, which is great. They do jacket potatoes, sandwiches and full English breakfast.

This was a welcome after a very hot walk on the Down. Nice ice cream and refreshing lemonade and welcome parasol

As per a previous reviewer we ordered a pot of tea only to be provided with a cup and when challenged we were then given an empty pot and expected to transfer the tea ourselves, when we would not the staff member threw the tea into the pot thereby losing half the contents and another trip back to the counter for us. We are locals and regular users so we can say this is not the first time!! I expect more from the National Trust

We live locally (Burnham ) and have used this Cafe a few times when we visit Brean beach. The staff who seem to change frequently are not the most helpful and many in our opinion seem to lack experience in dealing with the members of the public and could do with some basic lessons on how to improve their customer service skills On one occasion a few weeks ago, we asked for a pot of tea which was served to us in a disposable cup and when we politely reminded them that it was tea in a pot that we had asked requested all they did (in front of us) was to pour the tea from the cup into a teapot - that was just terrible customer service, especially from a National Trust facility. Yesterday (9th Aug) we went in at 11:45 am and asked for a Panini from their menu only to be told that they were still only serving from the Breakfast menu and the Panini would not be available until after 12:noon. Most other cafes start serving their lunch menu from 11:00am -11:30AM. Today we went in again at 3:15 pm and again we asked for a Panini only to be told that they were closing at 4:00pm and were no longer serving hot food !!! Their prices are not the cheapest either- £3.25 for a small slice of (carrot) cake is expensive and at least 50p more expensive than most other cafe in the area. This is a National Trust property that needs to seriously look at their customer service levels. They could do so much better to attract and serve the many holiday makers who stay in the holiday homes and caravan / motor homes within a short walk from this cafe. Overall this cafe needs pull their socks up and improve their service levels which imo fall far below acceptable levels.

Food was really good although simple options, but it is just a small cafe. Staff are very friendly and changing some options on your meal is no problem for them. It was clean and comfortable, would recommend

Ok for a drink but not much choice and service was very slow in this small cafe near to beach and Brean down walks.

Lovely food and friendly staff. All day breakfasts available. Dog friendly and even do a doggy breakfast.

We "found" this after escaping from the beach on an extremely hot day. It has a large covered outside area over the shade we were craving by now! I went to the bar and asked for large jug of tap water and loads of ice. & 6 glasses...no quibble or question! we then went back & ordered 6 plates of various food which was most enjoyable and none wasted! so good just the 2 of us went again the following day!

Enjoyed a fantastic ice cream here after walking on Brean Down, discovered this cute little place far too late as would have spent more time here. They even sell ice cream for doggies.

Friendly staff but a very limited menu for lunch. I had a jacket potato and although the menu indicates other toppings at additional prices you either have tuna mayo or cheese . I had the cheese and asked for onions. No! The potato was brown inside and not good. Quick service but cannot recommend.

Nice cafe close to the beach lovely large mugs of coffee and tea fantastic homemade cake lovely yogurt topped raspberry and apple flapjack bacon rolls looked good if honest disappointed in the fish finger sandwich bread good fishmongers not up to much but would not let this put me off the place

A good cafe for coffee, cake or lunch. The pasties are worth a try. Seating outside is pleasant in the sunshine . Gluten Free options are very limited.

After a quick run in on mother's day for a quick refill, we got in at 16.15 as it closes at 5. We asked if the scone could be warmed and were told abruptly "no. Kitchen closed", bearing in mind they don't close u til 5pm. We sat down and ate our cake and scone which due to being cold was heavy and stodgy. Whilst we were eating we overhead the woman serving telling the kitchen staff to prepare some chips for someone... The cook said he had cleaning to do but we were both very annoyed at this statement as we had to succumb to a very below average scone due to the kitchen being closed. I don't know if they've had a change of staff but the best member was the lady who let us out.

we enjoyed a good breakfast here.the staff are very friendly and helpful.good menu.nice place to visit.

Brilliant cafe with a good range of affordable options Great place for a snack after a walk on Brean Down

We attended this cafe to have a snack cup of tea and cake Then to walkin off upthe many steps Very tiring but we'll worth the walk

Today I fancied ham, egg and chips only to be told (rudely) it would be at least 30 mins wait - I don't think so! I opted for a sausage roll and a (very weak cup of sludge masquerading as coffee). Do not go here, it's a 70's time warp, decor and staff!

Breakfast is two bacon, two sausage beans n egg, toast ordered 3 lots with tea £30.20 oh and 1 orange juice, wont go again, got there as it was opening, toilets were disgusting.

It is a lovely cafe, will be going back on my next trip to Brean. They serve the usual drinks tea, coffee etc, and homemade cakes which are lovely, they also serve snacks if you want something a little more substantial, which are done fresh, The icing on the category me is cream tea.You have the choice to either sit outside and admire the downs or sitinside inside.

Oh dear. This café is superbly located, at the base of Brean Down, yet needs a thorough upgrade to drag it in from the 1970's. Staff pleasant, a decent choice of food, carpets bland, decor ...eek, toilets awful. And you have to pay to use the various local car parks. A wasted opportunity.

Lovely cafe on a beautiful beach, did a beach clean with Wayne Dixon who is litter picking the coast line 7000 miles! We picked loads of litter up but wondered if the cafe could reconsider there plastic coffee lids, not needed and littered the beach!

Staff are a little on the surly side... food average quality and slightly expensive.

Great place for a cup of tea and a bite to eat after a long walk on the downs.

not the best cafe in the world but ive been in worst, hope will get better when seasons in full swing.

I would say more a 2 1/2 star. The food was reasonably priced but it didn't look appetising. My young lad went off to use the toilets and came back and whispered that they were not very clean. The cafe itself is very dated and worn, the teapots heavily stained with old tea and chipped. Staff were friendly and helpful but thats about it.