China Blue in South Hams

Only go here for food .Always there market day for lunch

Decided to go as a family (3 of us) to paint Hallowen things. After discovering the prices, only our little one did sone painting. Worse was yet to come. At the till an extra hidden charge for "firing" the ceramics was added on.

Always nice to visit if only to puck up ideas.

Great source of quality gifts in widest range of prices! Neat Cafeteria, too. Finest Kind.

Nice shop, great place to visit

An astounding range of hobby goods, crafting goods and crafting accessories. A paradise for children, withnloads of activity workshops (check what's on before you book your trip). Great for Christmas gifts from October 1s onwards

Friendly and helpful staff there is lots to look at and buy with good offers at times and things for children to do so popular with families

Love coming to this shop always something different. Never leave empty handed and the staff are brilliant friendly and helpful

Booked myself in for a one hour pottery session today. I've always fancied having a go at throwing a pot and never done it. Delightful young lady taught me, very patiently, how to go about it, and with her help I made four small pots which I've left there to be fired and glazed. It was such a pleasure, messing about with clay and the wheel and being creative. Highly recommended. So sorry I can't remember my mentor's name, but she was lovely!

often visit here, nice shopping and have light meal here. Recommend poke bowl, but a white stuff in veggie burrito is a bit salty and no other favor, avacado was list first on menu, but it came out quite small amount of it. I would not try this next time.

Great place to look around easy parking and free.

Had a wonderfully nutritious mixed salad bowl. The out side eating area was most pleasant. Parking was on site and easy. Will come back again.

We are down visiting area like we do every year on our SUMMER holidays very early September to find confronted at the door by Christmas stuff everywhere it’s September for g— sake not November December what planet does this company come from. So we all walked out and tried to recover from the depressive state we had just encountered and went to find a normal shop to by gifts and items from our summer holidays.

Very nice atmosphere great coffee

Loved it, will return, everything is first class, in and outside space, service, selection of food and coffee.

Always fun to visit and make a mess 🤪

Took my girlfriend for her birthday, absolute blast! Was very lovely, and showed how bad I am at painting!

Breakfast here awful Overpriced £14 /small amount /cold Do not waste your money They need to stick to Coffee and cake

We do have chips there know and then but I must say that they need to buy better chips maybe a bit thicker as they tend to be only work sometime and go cold very quick I post this in the hope they will look into this

Fantastic experience and Debbie in the painting section is so helpful and friendly.

Love this place. Always find something to buy plus have a coffee and cake.

Worth a visit but more for cafe than shop not what I was expecting and a bit pricey

Very disappointing. Went for breakfast. Ordered halloumi, tomatoes, roesti and mushrooms. Halloumi and toms were fine. Roesti was near-inedible. I wasn't expecting Swiss standard, but this tasty grated potato fried patti is not tricky to make. What I received was like last Sunday's cold roast potatoes, crushed and rebaked to the point where a hard crust surrounded the edge; and the potatoes tasted of nothing. The avocado also tasted of nothing much - cold mashed potato would be the nearest description, was probably tinned, packet or similar and quite unpleasant. I ate the lot as I was hungry and due to catch a train, but for £14 this eas overpriced, substandard food that should be an embarrassment to what looked like an interesting shop/pottery.

We had a breakfast yesterday Monday 24th June 2024 at China Blue in Totnes. It Was the best breakfast we've had in a long time. Staff happy helpful & friendly. Dog friendly too. The menu for the day looked really good. Will be back to sample your lunch. A mooch in the shop then a walk along the river . Lovely day out Thank you.everyone.

I visited with my granddaughter who loved carefully painting an item for Father's day, unfortunately she knocked the item off the table and broke it. She was extremely upset, however the staff were fantastic, taking the pieces away to repair and bringing her some clay to create anything she liked. We were so grateful and would like to say a special thank you to Debbie, who saved the day!

Great gift ideas and great coffee and cake

Excellent. Fun, reasonable prices and lots of pieces to choose from in the PYO. My daughter enjoyed it (2 year old) it would be super useful to have the colours on each table rather than a station - especially when taking children but it certainly wasn’t a problem more ‘an even better if’. Lovely customer service upon picking up my daughter’s final piece.

Lovely cafe & garden but very disappointed that the toilets are now unisex which I don’t like at all

A lovely meal with friends. Clean, lovely food, with a good choice.

Nice for a coffee before you get the train also an amazing shop

Well stocked gifts and household wares. Many local independent providers wares sold from here. Lovely little cafe within and a super pottery painting shop too! Which has an enormous stock of choices fro creating either a little something to an enormous horse head or in between size vases etc. Lovely place. Staff are always warm and friendly too.

I love this shop! They sell the cutest things ever!! Most of their products are supporting local businesses and there are natural products. Also, there's a coffee shop inside!

Had a fabulous afternoon at China Blue - Debbie and her staff couldn’t of been more helpful to create an afternoon to remember for our bride to be and her flower girl - afternoon tea was a treat from the fab sandwiches to delicious cakes washed down with bubbles - throughly recommend this as an activity for any hen or other party - look forward to next time

Good cafe and well stocked shop.

Nice shop but car parking can be a nightmare at busy times

Appalling waste of money. when for lunch before pottery painting spent £38 on the worst food iv ever been served. not only a wasted afternoon but a huge Disappointment for Totnes Visitors.

Great coffee and old fashioned excellent service lovely staff 4 years later excellent coffee polite and friendly staff.. my favourite

I love the shop. You can decorate your own pottery. Perfect activity for children.

This used to be a wonderful, quirky shopping experience with a certainty you would see lots of amazing goods - arty + practical. I always came away with something practical or exquisite, now nowhere near as good. Over 3/4 of the place is either pottery painting or restaurant. The food offerings are good quality produce however it is quite pricey.

I wouldn’t recommend this particular pottery painting experience. The pieces are expensive the staff just leave you to your own devices with no instruction or guidance and there is little care when glazing your product (mine had marks from their numbering) and too lazy to glaze the bottom of the item

An interesting shop and pottery centre. Good parking, easy to find, great gift selection. Didn't try the cafe.

Great for a coffee or food, lovely gift shop

The food was excellent but temporarily the place was under renovation so sadly the air conditioning unit was blowing cold air across a couple of tables

Great 2 hours to paint China wait 10 days for finish items has postal service. Good for kids and adults alike

6 of us turned up with no booking in case we could get in. The lady at the counter tried for a cancellation but being half term it was extremely busy. We browsed the items to paint (it takes a while as there’s so much choice) suddenly Debbie (the lady we had seen) beckoned us over and with a beaming smile booked us in. We had a lovely time. The girls painted, (4, 9 & 26!) We had wonderful coffee/tea/cake and spent a couple of hours family time there. It’s hard to explain why it’s such a great family place. It gives everyone the chance to express themselves and it is also amazing to just observe. We have visited many times, and have the Christmas plates, teddy bears, camper vans etc all cherished because of the happy memories made there. It’s clean, airy, calm, fun and every time is different. The staff who were there, Debbie and a guy whose name I didn’t catch were brilliant despite it being busy, a few words of praise for good clearing up goes a long way. It’s so easy to get caught up in the imagination, particularly with children, the colour, design, patterns and aesthetics. How the finished item will look. What will they use it for. How to correct or alter something if they change their mind halfway through. So much more than simply painting china. It’s a little half term haven. We will be back, and will book next time. Thanks Debbie for making our day.

I went to China Blue with my Mum and my two nieces aged 5 and 2 on Wednesday 14th February. We really enjoyed painting our pottery and the staff looked after us very well. Well worth the money 🙂

My daughter's aged 9 and 12 attended a clay dragon workshop this week. They loved Susan, the teacher, her guidance and encouragement were fantastic. The girls are really proud of their dragons and have been sharing the pics with family and friends. I really enjoyed watching the whole group who were so focused on their creations. Would definitely recommend this place and the lovely people.

Very interesting little shop with lovely knickers knacks to wade through 😁

Had a lovely time at China Blue today! Amazing selection of items to paint in a very relaxed atmosphere. Staff were really friendly and helpful. We enjoyed a gorgeous cream tea at the same time! Free parking too. Excited to go back at some point soon 😊

First time back after about 20 years.Wow, what a change.😃 Lots of unusual gifts, and WONDERFUL sticky toffee cake nomnomnom.with coffee. We'll be back 👍☕🍰😃

China Blue sells lovely things and I enjoy going there apart from the cafe. The chairs look awful and are very uncomfortable.

Had a lovely coffee here while I waited for a tyre change at the garage up the road. Staff were friendly and helpful. Nice atmosphere, good coffee, delicious cake!

This is a nice interesting experience with a shop full of “stuff”! Plenty to look at and a lovely cafe to finish off.

Great place for pottery painting with cafe and gift shop.

Okay food. Would not rush to go back

The family had a wonderful hour learning to use the pottery wheels. We've also painted ceramics there and enjoyed that. There's a cafe with delicious things. The whole thing is a bit too expensive, but still highly recommended.

Really good food and shopping. Very much enjoy painting pottery here too.

Oh dear spent loads again. Always do when we visit. Full of charming Xmas stuff and more. Great cafe. Friendly, helpful staff. Visit, you won't be disappointed.

I booked a pot throwing workshop for myself and my mum. We had a fantastic time under the expert guidance of Josh throwing and finished with 3 pots each. We then had to wait for them to be fired and went back today to paint them. We treated ourselves to an amazing Turkey sandwich (which comes with gravy!) in the cafe beforehand and now can’t wait to see how our finished pots turn out! We would throughly recommend booking in, it was great fun 😃

I enjoyed the experience of painting my mug and blending the colours and looked forward to the mug arriving in the post after being glazed and refired. Sadly it was poorly glazed and rough to the touch. I was so disappointed. The glaze only reached half way down the outside of the mug and you can see the fired but unglazed area at the bottom of the mug.

We were very limited on time, but look forward to going back. Very busy in the cafe area and carpark full.

Ideal place to visit/meet. Lovely cafe and shop and paint your own pottery. Central location too.

Very popular, but not for me. There are lots of nick nack type products, but none that are unusual and all at premium prices. For those that are interested, there are pottery classes and painting sessions. There is a carpark with very small marked spaces. The store is wheelchair accessible.

Disappointing experience here to say the least. We visited with our baby and toddler for my husbands birthday. I’d previously enquired on Instagram a few days earlier as to whether we could get help to do handprints for our children and they advised they could and that we’d just need to ask when we got there, and they told me the prices and how to book, which I did. Upon arrival we were shown to an upstairs table and I explained we wanted to do the children’s handprints and asked for some assistance. The staff member was very rude and said she was too busy and couldn’t assist with this and went off downstairs. We later asked if they had the purple paint we could see on the colour tile we were given and were told no they’d discontinued this one and to make the colour ourself, which we did. We struggled to do the babies handprint and it didn’t look right. We asked the staff member if we could wipe it off and try again and she said it was because of the colour we’d used and that it is hard to do handprints. My husband asked if she could help us again, and she said they usually charge to do this and then she made a sarcastic remark about us using baby wipes on the mug (which we hadn’t we’d just used them on the kids hands to get the paint off). We did eventually manage to do it ourselves and hopefully the pieces we bought will come out ok. But it really wasn’t a very nice experience at all to be honest and we left feeling very disappointed- particularly as it was supposed to be a fun activity for my husbands birthday and it just ended up being quite miserable and stressful. We spent over £40 on two items and to not get any help at all for those sort of prices is a real shame, particularly when I was told beforehand it would be no problem.

I went here to do a pottery painting session and arrived 2 hours early for food because there wasn't anywhere near-by. Due to me being vegetarian and having allergies the only thing I could eat was a cheese tomato and honey flatbread. Whilst my family got their food despite the long wait (wich they said was mediocre) they got my order wrong twice and In the end I went hungry. Despite this the pottery was fun and I would recommend for that only.

Just went for a browse and a coffee! Lovely.

Always worth a visit, lots of unusual things to see and buy

We visit regularly.....something different and strictly local produce and goods

Love this shop. Always find something unique.

Didn’t realise how Totnes I was until a friend corrected me that China Blue is not in fact present in every town 😥

Enjoyed an excellent cream tea here today. Nice selection of fresh sandwiches. Fresh scones, good array of cakes all delicious. Service was very good. We were asked a couple of times if we wanted more tea. All for a reasonable price.

Plenty of things to choose from nice tea room to sit and relax

A good place to buy gift for friends and have a quick drink and a bite to eat

This is for the pottery painting within China Blue - each and every time I have been, there is no one at the front desk. You press the button and I've stood waiting over 20 minutes for someone. If you're collecting, expect to stand there for at least 20 minutes. The glazing is shocking - every piece I've ever done has come back partially unglazed, even food ware doesn't get glazed properly, and it's rough to touch and often chipped too. They have paintbrushes and sponges to decorate with - and that's it. No tools, stencils, drop and draw bottles - nothing. The choice of colours is extremely small. The only positive I can offer is that they have a huge choice of bisque, and they have tonnes of seating and you can bring in food from the nearby cafe. But, these plus points are not worth the downsides by far. They need to up their skills in glazing, and customer service.

Came here for a nice breakfast and was not disappointed. Friendly staff and gift shop on site too. Easy enough parking.

Selling my book of Dartmoor poems has been made so easy by the amazing retail staff and the accounts department.They are .simply the best to deal with and I am so delighted they chose to stock my book .A truly first class company with top class people. Nick Wotton Thank you so much.

Nice place, easy parking and good coffee.

visited for the first time the other day and couldn’t of been more impressed! the studio is lovely, everything is laid out perfectly. staff are so incredibly friendly from the second you talk to someone, very professional and helpful. could not recommend china blue more, would give 100/5 stars if i could!!!

I love China Blue! Just everything about it, from the paint your own studio to the cafe and all the wonderful artistic ideas.

Excellent food and shop. Will be coming back for more soon.

This is a really special place. Wonderful food with lovely friendly staff. Paint ceramics studio, and a gift shop you could just live in.

Most of the family went to their evening with bar and food and ceramic painting. Good value, you were allowed a decent amount to spend on your item. We had a giggle whilst painting and the bar was relatively cheap. Antipasti boards came around, one between two, and the atmosphere was nice. Very different to a daytime with loads of kids, although there were kids there. We've all said we'd definitely do it all again. A warning though, there's a two week wait to have your piece glazed and popped in the kiln and, as there were 8 of us, we really should have called ahead to pick up to give them time to Search through the thousands made to find ours when we picked up. We've always loved china blue though. As kids and then as adults. My daughter had her hen do there and we all dressed up in 40s gear to go...great fun. She just celebrated her tenth wedding anniversary. Gulp! Highly recommended

Great place nice cafe. Lots of unique items. Dogs also welcome

We visited for a spot of pottery painting and we had a nice afternoon but it wasn't nearly as well organised as other ceramic painting places we've visited. There are a lot of tables squeezed in and all the paints are on one main table, rather than having some on each table. This meant that on a busy afternoon we had to queue to select our paints (and queue again each time we went back up as the palettes are tiny) and then people were constantly squeezing past our chairs as we painted. There's a 4 week wait for pieces to be posted or 2 weeks if you collect. I probably wouldn't visit again myself, but a good afternoon if you've got children to entertain and don't mind the hassle. And on the plus side, the staff were all lovely!

We turned up without booking and they fit us in for the children to do some painting and we had a nice coffee. Service was good.

Magical place, a few different businesses in the same building but they work together well and staff members are so lovely and helpful. I've been there first time with my nurse colleague and our disabled client and I felt this place put a spell on me 🤩 I've painted a china for my daughter and we collected it together and spent hours there by wondering around and had a look at the painting session, then we had nice lunch. I would recommend China Blue to everyone 🤩

Wonderful food. Excellent service. Highly recommended.

China Blue is a lovely place to browse and have a coffee and a meal/snack. We have been going there for the last 4 years. However, although a few lovely people who work there are happy to help and serve you, many times not only you stand in the queue, but also you have to wait to take your drink, cuttlery, water etc. I would like to suggest that better service should be in place as the very reason we go out, is to be served and get away from serving everybody at home, hence have a break and be treated for a day out. I know many places do not have good service, however it is the least a place of hospitality can do to please their customers. I believe that table service is a must and it gives a better standard. We should not even have to queue. It does not feel as if you are treating yourself to an outing. Again, I would like to thank the people who are lovely in China Blue ( a few of them) but some others they can be even rude when you ask them for something. Kind regards

All staff are really lovely, had a great evening recently pot throwing, when booking for the evening we had didn't realise one other family member wanted to come, I call ,there wasn't another space, a couple days later a member of staff called me and said she could open another day up for the five of us, this was brilliant as it was my daughters birthday, Thankyou so much China Blue...

Good for knick knacks and souvenirs

It's always lovely. It's a great place to meet up with a friend or two great café and a bit of shopping 🛍 😀

Always good,staff really friendly.

Visited with a group of 5 teenagers for a pottery painting session. There were loads of designs to choose from and whilst there are staff around if required you're very much left to get on with things. There was no pressure to rush so we spent an hour and a half planning, drawing the design and then painting the various cups, vases and plates. Everyone enjoyed themselves and we'll hopefully end up with so lovely items. It's not cheap, but considering the time and materials it's understandable. Overall good fun and recommended.

Much better than it was, worth a second look

Best variety of items to paint! The only down side is the time it takes to pay for the items & organise glazing etc. Both times has taken over 30 minutes just to pay for the items & give details to collect 2 weeks later.

Great fun and the staff were lovely. Really good value.

What a fun spot to paint some pottery! My friend brought me here as a birthday treat and we spent hours painting, chatting, and munching on food from the cafe. It was fun to come on a weekday when things weren’t busy and feel able to stay a while but I suspect it gets busy on weekends. I can’t wait to see my mug and my friend’s platter after they’ve been glazed and fired!

Lovely place to go to two and nice to eat

Prices are daylight robbery. The queue when arriving and to hand in pottery was a very long wait. Not easy with young hungry children and a handful of pottery. More staff needed. Not as friendly as I expected. Much better prices and experience at The Paint Hub in Dawlish.

Really nice way to spend a rainy morning with little ones. Nice cafe aswell. Recommended