Cowshed at Tewinbury in Welwyn Hatfield

Booked afternoon tea at the Cowshed with family and friends for a special anniversary. The staff were brilliant but the afternoon tea was extremely disappointing and not good value for money. The teas were so weak that they were like dishwater. We asked for some more tea to be added to the pot full of water. The photographs on websites are deceptive. They give the impression that the cakes are a reasonable size but it was like a selection of petit fours. The savoury was described as salt baked beetroot tartlet with bloody Mary sauce. They were like tiny crostini that were dry with a few tiny bits of beetroot on. Certainly nothing like the size of other savouries in photographs. As other reviews have mentioned, the sandwiches were 3 small fingers. The scones were alright. We have had afternoon in other places and this doesn't compare. All in all a big disappointment and not good value for money.

We went to the Beatles Tribute Band night. Absolutely brilliant. Food excellent. Freshly made pizza’s. Interesting barn type outdoor venue. Will be looking out for the next one. So much going on at Tewinbury. Really worth a visit

Slightly disappointed with the afternoon tea for two served today. Welcome on arrival was pleasant. Food was nice although rather minimal sandwiches served. 3 small strips of sandwich each. Good selection of teas offered but no additional hot water of replenishment tea offered. No offer of upgrading with a Prosecco either! In fact no one checked in on us or even spoke to us again until I asked for the bill. Overall overpriced afternoon tea and to top it off a service charge added when there was no service!! Would not return in a hurry!

Delicious dinner. Had availability to seat me at short notice. Enjoyable experience and comfortable

Very average afternoon tea for the price, service was very good but the sandwiches which were 3 small finger sandwiches were very disappointing, one of which was dry on one side! Scones were average, a bit dry and certainly not enough jam to put in 4 scones (one tiny pot of jam between 2 of us) the pot of tea was decent quality though but could of been a bit hotter, had to ask for some sugar/sweetner though, could of been a bit more savouries and less sweet treats in my opinion. We ordered a bottle of rose sparkling wine which was nice but at £42.75 a bottle it should be. Overall overpriced afternoon tea in my opinion for what you get.

Loved Cowshed restaurant, we live locally and haven't been for a few years. We expected the venue to be under new management but it's not! They've really upped their game, my wife is a vegetarian who had a fantastic cauliflower dish - I had the beef from their local butchers and veg grown on the farm. Will be back soon!

After many previous visits came in for coffee and a light breakfast. Waited ages to be served, thought we were invisible. Eventually asked if we wanted tea or coffee but a girl with limited personality, told kitchen us closed fir refurbishment...nothing noted at entrance that I could see..however all hotel guests seem to have access to a full English, so there must have been a kitchen open. Experience clearly leads me to believe the establishment isn't at all interested..

Options for vegetarian food limited in mains to two and overpriced . The desserts were good . The staff were attentive . My tip would be give more options for vegetarians . We still go out with omnivores. The world is changing and more people are turning to this life choice, also vegetarians are aware that recipes without meat or fish still tastes good .

Had afternoon tea there with my friends and was very dissappointed having come back due to a great experience before. The table was set for the wrong number of people, the alternative afternoon tea for someone with allergies was just bought over and they didn’t know what what the replacements were. No milk for the tea, no forks, someone’s order came out much later than the rest of us, sandwiches were chewy and stale, batternberg which I usually love was bitter, had to ask for more tea, no extra sandwiches were offered which would be standard at this type of price. When we asked for more tea they only took 2 peoples order then walked off ( this wasn’t a large table only 4). We then went for a wander around and a drink at the bar and the sinks took ages to come, when they did the lady clearly had no idea what the drinks were and was just guessing . Would not recommend this place has gone downhill

Ingredients farm-sourced is good to know. Beef in beef pie was delish - but all fat should be removed. Generous fresh veg eg cabbage. Impersonal but efficient service. Impressive restoration job. Well worthwhile.

Love Alex in the cafe, she makes the best Cappuchinos. Can she teach the others how too please?

Absolutely amazing place, but Wi-Fi and mobile phone signal wasn't great....

Perfect for my daughter's wedding.

I spent the last two days on a course with work in the Riverview rooms. Great facilities in beautiful surroundings. Enjoyed my stay.

The beds & pillows must have been the originals. Definitely overdue for replacement. Being charged twice for the room just added to the experience.

Great hotel staff were great made me feel very welcome

Stayed in Shepherds Hut which was so pretty and really well appointed,beautiful views of the lake too. Really clean, lovely shower, my only gripes would be the mattress really needs replacing as it's very saggy where people sit on it and hang a bigger mirror! There's one tiny one that I couldn't see in as I'm short! But it was very cute, would stay again.

One night stay for work Excellent food Excellent roommate

Been to Tewinbury on a few occasions but this has to be the worst. Popped in for coffee/cake on way home from garden center visit. Was greeted by a lovely young lady who told us it was table service and someone would come over to take our order. We sat and sat and sat, I even got up to look at what cakes were on offer and the person behind the bar did not offer to serve me. Several people had left so waitress was clearing their tables, still no service for us. In the end we gave up, walked outwent to Tesco brought a cake and had tea at home. We did speak to someone on the way out to say we'd such bad service. If they were busy I could understand but they weren't . Pity as a nice place to go but service let it down.

We came as a couple on a Monday night , so expected it would be very quiet, but were pleased to see that it had quite a few tables occupied. The service was good, menu had good options. Found the food very good, the asparagus starter was nice , as was the burger, and creme brulle pudding. Nice local spot for dinner

Excellent evening meal despite arriving 10 minutes before the kitchen officially closed. Salmon fillet with greens, apple crumble and a nice glass of white wine were just the ticket. Service was good and ambience also good as there were several people dining when I arrived.

We had a great overnight stay in one of the Lake Huts at Tewin Bury Farm hotel. The setting was so pretty and felt very secluded with views over the lake. The accommodation was lovely, and a good size with a sitting area, kitchenette, separate bed area and a bathroom - plus the private outdoor (but covered) hot tub as an added bonus. It was a short (5min?) walk to the main hotel site from the hut. No phone service but strong wifi. My only suggestion for the accommodation would be that, as nice and well-appointed as the kitchen area was, it would probably be more useful to use some of that space for a wardrobe, for example, rather than an oven etc, which I can't imagine very many people use during a short stay. We were only there one night so it didn't really matter, but there wasn't anywhere to store our things apart from some hooks on the wall and some small baskets under the bed, so a cupboard would have been useful! The food and drink options were varied and good quality, with lovely service in the restaurants and bar (and at reception as well). We had a nice cocktail in the stable bar in the late afternoon, a very good value 3 course Sunday roast evening meal in the Cowshed, and enjoyed the buffet breakfast in The Granary in the morning. We also had a short walk after breakfast on one of the suggested routes, and there was lots more we could have explored with more time. All in all we had a great stay and it was the perfect way to unwind for a rare child-free day and night! We will definitely be back - thank you.

Amazing place! Absolutely wonderful and staff so welcoming and friendly. Absolutely first class! Thank you so much.

We had a very nice time having an afternoon tea. The food was excellent. Tea was very tasty. The only thing we thought that could be improved was there was only a small jar of jam! More jam would have improved the experience!

Delicious meal tonight in the cowshed served by Fiona

We stayed in the woodland hut. A perfect night away to relax and chill. Thank you Tewinbury Farm for a lovely stay.

My 3rd visit to Tewinbury this week. Twice for lunch which was consistently good, Giant Cous Cous dish is amazing!! You still need to work on the perfect Flat White. Service was very good. And then on Friday evening had drinks at The Stables, fantastic cocktails surrounded by great art and once again, great service. Plenty of parking space. Word needs to spread this a must place to spend an evening!!

Stayed at Tewinbury a few times before, usually stay at the riverside lodge, beautiful! This time the lodge was unavailable so booked Lincoln Red. I dread to say that I was really disappointed, the hot tub took over 6 hours to heat to a temperature it could be used at, web page said 2-4 hours. Did request for it to be heated prior to arrival but this wasn’t granted on this occasion (which I understand) . This left such little time to use the hot tub or any other facilities. Feel like it was really disappointing, especially for the money. However, Tewinbury is still a beautiful place , with lovely facilities. I just wish we had payed for a normal room rather than Lincoln Red as the lodge wasn’t available.

Came to watch The Dirty half Hundred, they were fantastic, food was great. Not so keen on online menu which is a challenge to navigate.

Food very good just let down at the end of meal by bad internet service when paying bill

Fantastic place, lakeside lodge with hot tub was faultless. Food amazing and staff were all top class. Would heartily recommend to anyone.

Tewinbury is a fantastic wedding venue with amazing food, staff and locations for photos. If you're after a rustic barn feel then you needn't look any further than Tewin; definitely check out this Hertfordshire gem! You'll definitely be well taken care of by the attentive wedding team on your big day. The couples I've worked with attest to this, and they are fabulous to wedding suppliers as well. Highly recommend - I love working here!

Had a really enjoyable 3 days in a beautiful location, friendly staff and some lovely food.Many thanks.

We really enjoy coming to stay again, although the room wasn’t as comfortable as our last room and we didn’t get a great nights sleep due to noise above erc however the food, service and standards are as good as ever, thank you for looking after us and we look forward to coming back again.

Attended a wedding in Hythe barn. Venue was fantastic, service was outstanding and the food was delicious.

Had a one night stay here for a family wedding. Lovely venue. Rooms were well appointed and reasonably priced and the breakfast was excellent, with plenty of choice and variety, also well stocked.

Very good service (wasn’t there for a holiday only a meal)

Great service in a comfortable cafe

Visited for afternoon tea. Such a nice experience. Service and food are excellent.

We had the most amazing stay over the Christmas period, the staff were incredibly accommodating & helpful. We took our dog and young baby and the room was perfect for us, will definitely be coming back

The location is fantastic and there are lots of small tracks to explore if you are keen on walking. We had a lovely lunch and we went out and about for a nice stroll in the lovely British weather.

Thank you for the good service, one of my favourite places I really had a good night at this place

amazing attention to all details that made our Christmas weekend fantastic

lovely clean room (Badger) Food was 1st class. Xmas dinner along with venue it was served in and the atmosphere was 100% staff and service was the best. Highly recommended.

I dropped into have a cooked breakfast after driving from Surrey on Christmas Eve after not having any breakfast as wanted to not hit the heavy traffic. The quality and flavour would have satisfied Friar tuck. Venue ,service and furnishing were top notch. Came out feeling for filled and totally relaxed. Will Vigus

Amazing place. Food is great, rooms are fantastic and staff are friendly. Came for afternoon tea today and it was amazing.

Visited for our Xmas Dinner and party and had a brilliant time would highly recommend the venue

Alfresco hot tub with detached shepherds hut (lake hut) and own 'pier' to the lake. The hot tub was a round wooden tub with self heating water. The lid was 3 part which was quite heavy to lift. I've stayed before in their other hot tub lake huts but those are interior with concertina patio doors rather than curtains and those huts are semi detached and not noise proof. But the hot tubs are better as the larger ones with moulded plastic seats much more comfy and a lighter cover made of vinyl not heavy wood planks. Unfortunately the alfresco element did not work in 50 mile an hour ish winds as the curtains made a noise and kept opening in the middle and it was really windy and cold. They needed to be less baggy and have a centre closure. Otherwise the cabin was lovely as was the top class service and the well stocked fridge was a nice touch. There was a cocktail shaker and measure and ice but no spirits miniatures sadly just prosecco and beer. The pod coffee machine worked well but only 3 caffeinated coffee pods not 4 so one of us had to have the decaffeinated which was not liked. Likewise only one hot chocolate sachet it seemed a little stingy for a 250 pound a night stay. I think I would stay in this alfresco hot tub cabin again rather than the older semi detached ones as it was lovely not having a shared wall. Last time we came earlier in the year there were some crazy drug heads next door making our stay non relaxing to say the least. But again the top class service here was in evidence and we were offered the exchange to another place on site. It has no hot tub but luckily we had already used the one the noisy cabin had several times so just wanted a quiet rest of evening and night. The site is just so gorgeous it's the best hot tub related staying place I've been to when you don't want to be in a spa place with other people and just want your own private hot tub paradise. These people have a really lovely sure which has other things to enjoy from the breakfast place the cowshed, to the takeaway coffee horse box to the bar area the stables and loads of walks. You can stay in many properties with your dogs too if wanted. We don't have dogs but saw plenty of people and dogs around. There are also electric car charging ports on site for use by guests.

What a lovely place loads of variety very impressed

Fantastic place to stay with a family or friends

My first visit at the farm and hotel as a business trip. I loved the location and rooms. For sure to come with family in summer.

The staff were amazing. I would like to mention the lovely man we met in the Tythe Barn who assisted us so much during the morning of 2nd Dec before everyone arrived for the wedding, he was truly amazing. Our only disappointment was at breakfast we asked for a high chair and we were told that none were available, only one being used at the time though in the Cow Shed, so not sure why, just too busy to accommodate this request maybe!

Went for festive afternoon tea good service and very nice place

Fantastic party night, great food, great service and a fantastic night !

Absolutely stunning setting. Room was amazing and very comfy bed. Food in the cowshed was incredible

We attended an event in the Farmyard - superb. Great setting, great service and so accommodating - especially of dietary needs. Lovely woodburners to keep you cosy and great atmosphere. Thank you Tewinbury - we will be back!

Went to the Christmas market today and had a brilliant day. Such a well organised event. Fantastic service from all the staff too, especially Giselle in the FarmYard who looked after our party wonderfully and ensured we were greeted and seated efficiently. Food was excellent, lovely and warm and a great atmosphere! Thank you!

A little confusing getting into the hotel by car/road but once in it is a beautiful place. It has lots of interesting buildings and quaint areas which I love … my room was fab with detailed bits and bobs. It was warm and comfortable and the bathroom was glorious with everything you need there. Big bath !! I had a drink in the bar but had to leave at 8 as it closed and so moved to the restaurant. Friendly and professional staff greeted me and I ate and had a glass of wine whilst I worked. Overall I was very impressed with everything and everyone I came across and I look forward to returning… thank you

A lovely place to stay. Very unusual and with an eye for quality. Just one point; the door close by our Fisherman Room marked as a fire exit on the plan was locked.

Drummer with Nashville nights who recently played in the ‘Farmyard’ . We are well looked after in this fanastic venue. My guests had a wonderful evening and said food and drink service was really good . We will be back

Lovely evening nice setting good food great country and western live music

Came here with seven work colleagues, using a meeting room in the main house during the day, dining in the evening, and staying overnight. An early November Thursday, with stormy wet weather, and a wedding taking place. The venue has many styles of accommodation, given that most of the rooms are repurposed from original outbuildings. I stayed in ‘Fox’, which I assume is one of the ‘cosy rooms’ advertised on the website, but it was really nicely appointed and big enough. Others stayed in rooms in the main house, saying that they were a little small. Two others stayed in much bigger rooms, but unfortunately next to the wedding reception venue, and were kept awake by inconsiderate revellers smoking and talking loudly outside their doors past midnight. My dinner in Cowshed was excellent, with my medium-rare bavette steak cooked to perfection. Other medium-rare steaks on our table were cooked less well. Overall though, the food and service were good. We all thought that breakfast in Cowshed was really good; despite being buffet-style, food quality was excellent, as was the service. We were unlucky with the awful weather, and to coincide with a Thursday wedding in November, but overall it was a good experience. I can imagine that the outdoor drinking/dining areas are glorious on a warm summers day.

We have just enjoyed a really delicious afternoon tea in the Cowshed. The service was warm and attentive. But the food was a other level. Beautifully matched filling with bread for the sandwiches; small savoury and sweet pastries with crisp pastry; and the freshest of fresh scones. A wide range of fine teas to wash it all down with. I can't fault it - especially when we were able to bring home what we couldn't finish in a box. We will go again. Highly recommended.

I visited the Cow Shed in the hope of enjoying the last of the summers evenings with my family. The service we received as a family was polite, professional and matched our expectations. I can not fault the young gentleman that served us. The food was at best average, and if I am completely honest, my daughters! £9 pizza was not edible! She is 4 and described it as 0 out of 10 and her school dinner 10 out of 10!! She had to dip it in a bowl of tomato sauce to try her best to stomach it. I felt so sorry for her after waiting 40 minutes!! But we had not option. My advice is to review the menu pricing for children, certainly the quality of food served and feel free to reach out to me to visit again and offer you some feedback. I have been frequenting the premises for many years, my advice is meant to help the management team understand adjust and improve Good luck