Deer Cafe in Broxbourne

We have always been keen to support local hospitality venues, and have recently revisited Deer Cafe and the experience was good, first time second shocking bad.They have a great spot in town with a reasonable number of tables outside. This makes it very popular when inside dining remains a hope for the future. However the position and its popularity means that the restaurant needs to be well staffed that can cover the passing traffic, on our first visit they managed it no problem, but on Saturday a dismal failure, We arrived at around 11.30 and left at 11.50, during that time a single member of staff came out had a cursory look around, failing to see that we had neither menus or used crockery, and wondered off, our attempt at attracting their attention failing.After a little while we left without even seeing the menu, as we passed the front door we saw the note waiter required - enough said!There are other places to eat in town, even in the current environment, that do have staff and can cope with the demand, such a pity, but we will not return.

Had a meal here with my family and parents and thoroughly enjoyed it. The waitress was so friendly, interacting with our children and making them laugh. Everything was very well organised and food arrived hot and no delays.Food was delicious, we will definitely go again!! This is now our new favourite place to eat in town

We really enjoyed our lunch at the Deer Cafe, even though they were very busy the service was great by Emma. I had the Lamb Kofte Wrap which was wonderful and my Mum had the Carbonara (if you don’t like black pepper make sure to ask for it not to be used).

Well, went to wetherspoons but kitchen closed. Spotted table for 4 outside Deer cafe so went for it. Our first time evening dining. What can I say. So so pleased we couldnt get in Wetherspoons. Absolutely love Deer Cafe. We sat outside and it was like being on holiday. Fantastic staff and the food was plentiful and piping hot. Could not fault it at all. A wonderful evening was had by all and I would definately go back. Thank you Deer cafe for the best night.

Cannot fault the Deer Cafe, beautifully decorated with comfortable seating, a great menu reasonably priced, and friendly, welcoming staff.The last meal was superb. The complimentary appitisers were delicious. The special, chicken supreme, beautifully presented and tasted wonderful. The lamb was cooked to perfection as was the chicken escalope. Even the coffee was superb. A big thank you to all, we will certainly return.

Service ok, but totally not impressed with the tiny portions and the extravagant pricing! Wouldn't mind if was worth it but certainly wasn't, was gob smacked at the bill we got, certainly do not recommend & definitely will not be returning!

This is a fantastic little place that caters for everyone. The food is good, the portions are generous whilst it’s reasonably price. Staff were friendly & helpful. Would definitely recommend a visit & can see why it’s become such a popular place.

When our friends told us they had had a romantic fun night out enjoying a meal at Deer Cafe we were a little confused. We thought it was a cafe. Not true. Apparently the new owners have been making improvements in the Deer Cafe for many months and this has resulted in an excellent but not expensive restaurant. The menu is English / Greek combination and the plates of food are huge but very well presented....I struggled to eat my adana kofte it was just soooo big................. but lovely food.The meals are reasonably priced and the drinks are priced as per any other restaurant. Ozzie and his team made us feel like we were family and in fact the layout of this place enhanced the feeling of an intimate friendly atmosphere. We hadn't noticed much but whilst we were eating there was some background easy listening music being played and sung live by a live singer. These sounds had sat nicely in the background but as the evening went on and as the drinks flowed the music got louder and more fun was had culminating in a decent singalong session of some old favourites ...Delilah...amore!!! and others . By the end of the evening we were struggling to recall any other venues where you can enjoy a meal while having a very nice meal. It was a brilliant night out and we will almost certainly take friends with us when we next visit Deer Cafe !!!Excellent !!! Thanks Ozzie !!

Just popped in for a late breakfast and once seated we were told the table was reserved so we moved to another table. Given the menus and that was that ,unable to place our order as waitress was on her phone and the other member of staff was on a tablet so we left.

We needed a meal and popped in for a roast lamb dinner. We had a shared starter which was really big and enjoyable then mains arrived wow what a plate beautifully cooked and we really enjoyed it We will be back very soon £ 7 for a roast dinner is so good Highly recommend

We have been here a dozen or so times for breakfast and they have always been great with really friendly service. They do illy coffee too which is fantastic.

Once again we went in for Sunday Lunch. There was no one in when we arrived but full when we left. The staff are so friendly and the food is just great, never had a bad meal since we started going in. Them chicken laturka is gorgeous chicken in mushroom sauce. Moussaka just lovely. Glad we got in before the crowd. Cant fault them they try so hard to please you. Highly recommend. I believe they now have live entertainment on a Sat but not been there for that yet.

4th visit lunch time.. lovely in the summer to sit outside and people watch. inside this time, cant fault a thing, friendly staff, food really lovely, good portion size and delicious, goes without saying will def return and highly recommend

A great atmosphere with superb staff. The food portions are very generous and are lovely presented. I’ve eaten lunch here a couple of times now and will definitely be coming back.

Evening and until late only us in there until a couple came in which left the ambience a little cool. They do try hard to please but service a little iffy. Food was on the whole very nice indeed and home made but chips a bit like cardboard. Not so sure it’s wise to have their young, albeit good and quiet children on view playing on computers by the window. This I fear could turn people off from just wandering in. Probably destroys the romantic vision I will go again but think it may be a better daytime venue. Ido recommend it though.

Sunday lunch at The Deer Cafe in Hoddesdon today was amazing. My partner had Moussaka and I had Chicken with asparagus in a mushroom sauce. Oh my they were both really beautiful. The staff are lovely and friendly and we didnt have t wait long for the meal. We have eaten in here before and always enjoyed it but today was just really nice. The portions were quite large and we struggled to finish but didnt want to leave any lol would highly recommend. Excellent value for money. Its more than a cafe more like a bistro. Children friendly, couples and families

Always lovely staff. Beautiful decor. Great food and really reasonable prices. A firm favourite in our town

We came for a family meal, a birthday, wanted to try something different in the area, had previously enjoyed coffee there. We were there for around 2 hours, around 7.30-9.30ish, there wasn’t one other customer in this time, just what we assumed were the owner/staff’s children and people in pretty much PJs walking in and out of the “bistro/cafe”. The food was very average, plenty of choice. Menu pages hole punched and held together with string. Meze was ok, cold in places and very dry with just small amounts of hummus under the falafel. Fish for main was nicely cooked, lots of bones but I’m not phased by that, just no seasoning whatsoever. Prosecco was served in a wine glass and a 330ml bottle of peroni was just under £4. This has potential, but lacks in so many areas. (Sorry for not taking photos, having 6-ish staff in the restaurant and only us being a group of 3, it felt almost weird to take a picture of my very average meal.)

My partner and I went to have some late lunch and I can say the food was amazing. The staff were welcoming and the place is nice and relaxing. Great prices too. Would definitely go back.

Don't go there.food was disgusting.Had the roast and you couldn't see the dinner for gravy. Told manager but he didn't want to know.

food is still ok here but each visit has become more of a chore for the staff and the quality of the coffee is now hit and miss sometimes with crema or without not consistent staff turnover high and now with the new waitress prices have now gone up within 2 weeks over a pound each week..my business will go elsewhere

Dropped in by chance during a Rainstorm. Decor is nice, staff are friendly. Menu had a great range of food from sandwiches/paninis to jackets or burgers. We had baguettes & a burger. Food came reasonably quickly & was delicious. Would definitely recommend!

This meal was very nice served on a brioche bun. I highly recommend this venue for lunch. The iced coffee complemented the meal very nicely and the prices were reasonable.

Friendly staff and tasty home made food.. great atmosphere great for people watching if you get the seats by the window.. Great Americano coffee . Second time eating here and not disappointed.. Large portions. value for money

Sitting on a corner of the Clock Square you could easily miss this place in favour of Wetherspoon's or Costa but thank goodness I decided to give the big chains a miss. A lady with a friendly dog and I were the only customers early in the morning. The proprietor bead lovely. I drink a lot of tea and ordered tea for two but for one. He didn't bat an eyelid. Ordered set breakfast number 4. It was so nicely presented I didn't want to mess up the plate. Not sure why there are bad reviews in here. As a supporter of local business no matter where I am I'll take this eaterie over Costa any day.

Never been before but thought we would try it out and have to say the food was superb! Ordered the hot and cold meze and enjoyed everything ! We presented and great service,will definitely be going back !

The food here is amazing . Lovely and fresh and the portions are quite large. The staff were so friendly . I would recommend this cafe to anyone.

I met a friend here for breakfast and it was lovely. Plenty of choice on the menu and I had a lovely eggs Florentine and coffee was lovely. The music was a little loud and we had to leave earlier than planned as a family with young children sat beside us whereby the kids started to throw food - if that was my café I would have had a quiet word with the parents but there you are. Definitely will be visiting again.

Breakfast was pretty good as was coffee and it was very reasonably priced.I would have said great place to go for breakfast or lunch but the place let’s itself down by allowing dogs into the restaurant.I cannot recall any restaurant that I have visited for many years that allows dogs.Been to many pubs that allow dogs in the bar, but never in the actual restaurant.It was not as if they were desperate for trade, the place was really busy at midday on a Saturday.Shame, but we will not be back, as we are not willing to take the risk of having to share an eating space with dogs.

I Have eaten in the deer café on a few occasions and I’ve had no bad experiences the food has been great the waiting time has been reasonable and the prices are fantastic considering you’re in the town centre.Proportionately you get absolute value for money and you can go to another Mediterranean café not too far away and pay £5 more for the same meal!I have tried the Hoddesdon omelette and a lamb dish which name escapes me.I have seen there has been some criticism on waiting times it may be that the place was busy in which case you’d expect a small wait?All in all Foods good, pleasant staff, good value!Mike

... nearly good. Long wait for food. Then orders wrong. Poached eggs v good. Big prob was tomato sauce.... in a HEINZ btl but obviously NOT HEINZ. Owner had no argument with this comment. If it'd been Aldi or Lidl own brand, we wouldn't have noticed but this was cheapest of cheap - cash & carry own brand?? Sausages not the best; all in all, would I return......NO.... too many other places to try.

This is my second time having lunch here. Both times the food was outstanding and always presented very nicely. However both times I have been the poor waitress looks so rushed off her feet. She does a great job in getting to your table but you can see that if there would be one more person to help things would run so much smoother. Seeing its a fairly new cafe/restaurant I suppose they still need to figure out what works best for them! I hope to come back again soon to eat the yummy food but not wait 30min for my lunch.

Been here 3 times now and love it.Its priced similar to the other cafes in the area - maybe a little cheaper but the quality of the food, setting and service is a step above.Its got a great selection of food. Breakfasts are great - in fact everything I've seen people eat has got positive comments.In answer to another review - yes it takes cards.

Very nice cafe usued to go for breakfast at the star opposite but tried this place once a few months ago very nice restaurant breakfast is lovely friendly staff and reasonably priced have been there about eight times now and will definitely keep going back well worth a visit

My friend suggested going there for a change as we always go to spoons so we went when it first opened up so was quiet. Was really lovely and not too expensive and had a nice variety of food. Had steak with salad and was a nice size steak. I then went again with my mum for brunch and even myMum was impressed, which is hard to do. This time had the light breakfast. Was delicious and a nice alternative. Downside they didn’t have card payments. Not sure if they do yet

We went to grab some lunch before we went food shopping, but unfortunately the food wasn’t very good. It was extreme greasy (they must use very poor quality mince)to the point that the fat when solidified turned into a nasty orange colour! It is safe to say we didn’t eat the food (although I did try it and it wasn’t at all nice) I really do not recommend the chilli! The staff were friendly, and when asked if we enjoyed our meals they did apologies for the poor food, but did not offer a discount!

Visited on a Saturday evening four other people in there empty restaurant equals no atmosphere. Food was ok quite overpriced for what it was. The owners children were running around not what you want when you go out for dinner. Won't be returning.

Great service. Great food .... just happy tummies. Child friendly but not noisy. Good price. Really great place for a bite to eat of family occasion.

Visited for a quick bite with my husband. Service was very slow, but there is an advert in the window for staff so they seem to have that in hand. The staff were lovely and friendly - nothing was too much trouble. We both had paninis - very good. Coffee was very nice and the orange juice freshly squeezed. The atmosphere in the cafe was very chilled with good music playing - not too loud so as you could still have a conversation.Only negatives: poor quality sweeteners for coffee, slow service (in hand - advertising for staff) and PLASTIC straw with the orange juice. PLEASE - in this era of trying to reduce the plastic waste, why do we still see plastic straws everywhere?!?!?!

Our first, not last visit. We only had lite breakfasts (£5.50) - scrambled egg on two slices plus tomatoes, mushrooms and spinach. Not sure re need for spinach. Latte was nice and included in price. Service prompt, polite and friendly. Indoor and outdoor seating. Other meals seemed healthy proportions.

Tried set 4Was far too big for me to finishService was quick and staff all politeDefinitely be backJust one little negative, I'm a none smoker so sat inside, but because door was open the smoke was coming inside which did put me off a bit.Maybe non smoking on the outside tables immediately in front of shop.

The Deer Cafe & Bistro is in a pretty, historic building in the town centre - opposite the White Swan. I was in town to have a look around and was tempted by the A-Board outside advertising fantastic breakfasts. I went in, ordered the Light Breakfast and a black coffee and then went and sat outside to watch the world go by.My coffee was brought out almost straight away and breakfast not long after. The Light Breakfast consists of scrambled egg on toast; spinach, mushrooms & slices of tomato - absolutely delicious and filling. Freshly cooked, nicely presented and astonishing value at £5.50 (including the coffee).I discovered that dog owners are welcome to sit and eat outside - so will definitely be back - either with or without my dog!

Best Bacon Sandwiches and Coffee friendly staff and good service. Lovely clean place with nice atmosphere. Delicious cakes! Definitely my my 'meet up' place

very slow to take an order, very slow to bring up the order, then give you a bottle without removing the metal cap. Then serve three meals on one plate.

Discovered this little bistro today, we had breakfast food was lovely, had a look through the menu and will definitely be going back for an evening. Staff were friendly and attentive you can sit inside or outside. Lovely place.

Love this place and ended up here twice in one weekend as it is right outside the gym. Sat outside on Friday night and had hot mezze and Greek salad, and had a paninni on Saturday morning. Lovely staff and food.

Tried the cafe today, ordered Mega breakfast & 2 coffees The price should include toast & coffee. Staff slow to take drinks order.Very disappointing. At £7.50 it was neither Mega, or good quality. Everything tasted oily. Hash brown & mushrooms laden with oil, the sausage was cheap & totally tasteless, potato bubble was a soggy lump and laden with oil. The toast never arrived !!I feel the chef is using too much oil when cookingFresh coffee was nice though. Confusion at the till = realise I was charged for both coffees - one is included with the meal, charged £10.70 instead of 9.10

Visited at lunchtime and we ordered a light breakfast and a lamb burger, a smoothie and a coffee. No cutlery or sauces were provided and we had to ask the manager for them once the long wait for the food was over. The 'homemade' lamb burger was made of beef and I've seen thicker cigarette papers. The fry up was unseasoned, and despite asking for butter for the dry toast this did not materialize, along with the drinks. When reluctantly paying the bill, the drinks were added to it, although removed once queried. Rubbish

lovely Coffee, while sitting outside. Need to sort out payment options, Card payment would be so much easier.

We are keen to support local eateries, and we have been waiting on Deer Bistro opening, walking past it each time we go to town, we made a point of being there on their first day.The Bistro opened at 8 am for breakfast, we arrived a little after11, the place was empty, we considered sitting outside on their pavement tables but the breeze was too great, so we went inside and sat in the window. We were given menus, and ordered our drinks, fresh orange juice - great, latte not bad. We ordered, poached eggs on toast and a BLT, there was a language problem in ordering the former as the waitress had problems understanding English. We resorted to sign language. After a wait the BLT arrived, not one of the most generous ones that I have had, with at best only two rashers of bacon and Luke warm.After another wait the poached eggs arrived but were promptly returned as they were not cooked, another 5 minutes wait before they came back.During our time in the restaurant other people arrived one ordered a milk shake and a Caesar Salad, but left after 15 minutes and before the salad arrived, she had difficulty in explaining to the staff that it had taken too long, the language issue again.I do hope that they resolve their issues quickly or I am afraid that they will go the same way as other cafe/bistros in the town