Dobbies Garden Center in King's Lynn and West Norfolk

Lunch was horrendously expensive £14.00 for a Shepherds pie which turned out to be not only bland and tasteless but also cold. On complaining to a member of staff I was told that I was being unreasonable! A frozen shepherds pie from the freezer section in adjoining Tesco would have been warmer. Totally unrealistic and rip off. I have been very happy with service and prices in the past but not today! Could not recommend, very poor.

I can't believe this place is still running. I hadn't been in for over 5 years because it was so bad and the only reason I did was because I get free drinks with my Debbies Garden Centre membership. Even free it isn't worth it. I observed a woman behind the counter placing salad leaves onto plates with her fingers. Tongs have been invented! No wonder there are so many empty tables every time I pass by when using the garden centre.

How disappointing this was, met our daughter here for lunch, No Salad Bar as advertised, No muffin, staff member didn’t seem to know what a muffin was, ordered Caesar Salad which instead of fresh chicken was served with awful processed diced chicken, disgusting. Their website advertised a Salad Bar which was the reason for us going there.

Almost certainly the worst breakfast we’ve ever had! From my wife’s scrambled egg on toast she just ate the toast - think the opposite of fluffy eggs and you get the picture. My veggie breakfast included rock hard sausages and one large dried up mushroom, one piece of dried up hash brown and an ok egg. I have to say my mocha was very nice though. i’m amazed that whoever cooked this was happy to let the plates go - they should be ashamed of themselves.

We were of the first to be served breakfast on a Sunday 10am. It took an insanely long time to plate. The long line of customers building up behind us didn’t seem to make the lady go any faster. It then took another 10 minutes to get the drinks and pay. We had two full English breakfasts- both were stone cold, cooked probably 2 hours before, dry and tasteless. The beans were over cooked, bacon hard as rock, cold chewy toast, rubbery pale scrambled egg and poor quality ingredients. The fried egg was the best bit (although our friends were solid and over cooked) ! We couldn’t eat it all even though we were hungry. A bonus is that they are doing kids eat free- however my child refused to eat it too. I wouldn’t even serve it to my dog if I’m honest. We paid extra to go in the tiny play area for children- dirty tables and cold. One positive- At least the tea was hot and came in individual tea pots. I will not be returning!

Enjoyed the afternoon tea - what there was of it. The cost of £16 was not good value for money. When we booked, the price was £13.50 and we were advised of the increase in price when we arrived. However, the staff were friendly and efficient but we won’t be going again. .

This is no joke, the management need to review thier establishment! The enviromental health/food safety need to look at the food. It was too long on the ban marie and therefore dry, also a breeding ground for microbes. It was uneadable. Don't let the huge que fool you, it's just poor service. Also they have a 'bleeping' system for when the food is ready, I asked 'what do i do with this' the assistant replied 'I could tell you' and laughed. I wouldn't let a dog eat here!

Well what shock!, went to order a brie, bacon & cranberrie panini and looked twice at the price !!!!£ 9 something ! I coukd not believe it , well me and my family couldnt, ..bloody disgusting ! Over rated and a rip off !

Have eaten here since they opened, today was the last visit. The service has been going downhill for a while but hit rock bottom today. We both ordered the traditional breakfast. They had not had delivery of sausages or mushrooms so we were already down 2 items. We were first in the queue but other people who obviously knew how bad the service was separated so one ordered and one went to pay, we slipped up we stayed together. We were offered one extra piece of bacon as a substitute for the missing sausage and mushrooms! When we went to order coffee and pay it was the usual 20 minute wait for other coffees to be made then ours. It is pathetic that they use machines which take longer to make a latte than it does to make a toasted panini from scratch. We won't bother going back anymore, it's depressing and a waste of time. There appears to be no management, lack of interest and the slowest drinks section in the history of man. And if you think they will be kind and recognise the fact it's not even a full breakfast forget it, one rasher of bacon is all you might get not even a £1 discount.

The food was OK. Nearly £9 for a sandwich seems a lot with just a pinch of salad. The organisation was chaotic. There were huge queues at coffee time and even huger ones at midday partly caused by it being totally unclear where to order hot food from. So the queue for cake and coffee blocked the hot food queue. People were not happy to reach the till then be sent back to order food. Bizarrely one of the two tills was closed at this time. It would be so easy to solve with two queues, some signposts and a manager in evidence. The cafe area is huge and soulless and a bit cold would definitely not choose to eat here again.

Disgusting cold uncooked food. We went for breakfast early Saturday morning. The place was cold to start. The £9.99 breakfast is just awful. The meal was first of all cold. The sausages were not cooked and were raw where they were not ready and much cheap meat. Went away to never return to this place. How we have not been ill from the cold, uncooked food is beyond me. They are making a lot of money out of this breakfast. never ever again. All of it is cheap ingredients and disgusting and cold. Lady serving pleasant but not using gloves to do toast. Honestly, this is the worst overpriced breakfast ever. Avoid

Absolutely shocking a 25 minute wait to buy drinks, breakfast had finished and cleared away and lunch not yet out so the queue is mainly made up of people wanting hot drinks and cake, two girls trying their best to make drinks and take payment all the other staff appear to be doing not a lot. Surely at times like this they could open the drink station opposite

We did go on a Saturday, and they were short staffed, but things seemed a bit chaotic. Food was ordered and either you were given a buzzer to collect food or you proceeded on to the hot drinks and till. If you didn't have a buzzer your food was served out when there was a gap in orders which meant that some were sitting out for a few minutes getting cold before the person at the till had to go and get it as you got there to pay. Ours wasn't as warm as it could have been. We use several Dobbies, so know what to expect. We had macaroni cheese. I did think the food portions were smaller than our local and the bread wasn't very crispy. Not great value compared to other visits. Plenty of seating in the cafe and car parking is shared with Tesco. Didn't really use the garden centre, but it seemed smaller than our local.

Not very pleased today. Second time we’ve been to be told my staff there’s no food left, bare in mind this was 1:30pm! She said they don’t replenish food on Sundays so hard hardly anything left! Was ignored for the first five minutes standing there! My son was upset as he wanted to go to the soft play so we left and went elsewhere! Disappointed we didn’t get our roast!

Absolutely ridiculous prices was busy attending to children and hadn't looked very closely at prices , 2 cokes 4.50 cans 2 bowls of frozen chips around 15 chips in each 5.98 3 slices of millionaire 9.75 1 children tube yogurt, sandwich, mini milkshake, and chorale covered marshmallow 5.99 Will never return this is a rip off wouldn't have mind if the quality was good but all items were cheap amd certainly not worth the value. Children meal was not a full box and had picked single items .

Long queue with just one lady on her own doing tea and coffee and taking money.By the time I got my coffee,teacake was cold and hard ,no proper butter.Cups were chipped and had lipstick stains.No point joining long queue again to complain.Felt sorry for the poor lady doing coffees and till,it was not her fault .

Called in for a breakfast, didn't realise you have to do that at the food counter as I had never visited before, queued for ages at the till area where they do the tea/ coffee etc , was like watching paint dry , one person dealing with it , when I finally got to the till I was told I needed to order my breakfast at the food counter so had to go back , got that sorted but really think they need to look at the system they have in place , especially the amount of staff on show , toast was like a brick when I tried to eat it , but other than that food was ok , staff friendly, but doubt I will return

Sublime jacket potato with baked beans and grated cheese, accompanied with a side salad and coleslaw. Cheerful and friendly service, nothing to much trouble. Will definitely be going back next week. Thank you Ladies

Went yesterday for lunch @ 2pm - No Sandwiches. No Jacket Potato’s. No Panini’s. No Soup. No Hot Food. No 2/1 Cream Scones. But Did have Extremely Rude Staff. No wonder the queue in front of me were just turning around and leaving. What a Shambles - We, as like others won’t be returning!!

Afternoon tea thanks Lesley you where great and very entertaining had a great time we will be back

Just had leek / chicken pie , new potatoes, carrots, peas. All served warm!! Waiting times are ridiculous. Why do management of these restaurants just observe what is going on?? Won’t be returning.

I was there meeting a friend of mine last Friday (7/4/23) we got our usual Scones then noticed that there was no butter only Margarine,I then asked the assistant please can you get some more butter and she explained to me there was no butter at all as this from what she tells me had been stolen and they were not getting a delivery until the next day which would be the Saturday I find this hard top believe or was it you had not kept a check on the stock. also for two weeks running there was no serviettes only this jumbo roll .again do you not check the stocks of important items or is this down to lack of staff. Please can you tell me why there is only I till open everybody gets confused they want to pay but are held up by people ordering the hot food could you not open the other side for people who have got there food and only wishes to pay.

This isn't one of our favourite Dobbie's cafes, it never has much food available, and the queue for drinks is always long as they only have one person serving the drinks and one person on the till who just watches the other staff member struggle, I don't understand why both can't help each other and do both as their is always a queue. The cafe is quite cold and there is no atmosphere, we do enjoy visiting Dobbies and the garden centre here is nice but the cafe lets it down.

Just met up with friends and had the upgraded afternoon tea, couldn't fault it, great value ,tasty and extra requests done and we were looked after by a very helpful and friendly lady called Leslie, a mist enjoyable visit .

Used to be a very nice place I ate at twice a day three days a week, as I worked nearby. I have seen it go downhill. Now there is rarely more than a couple of stressed staff trying to run the entire food offering,...

Ghastly experience, two young girls serving making coffee more interested in talking to their friend in the massive queue then serving efficiently, obviously didn’t want to work & don’t get me started on the ghastly scones! We now go to Waitrose !

We've just had a really lovely festive afternoon tea with the extra savoury plate. Everything very fresh and moreish. Plenty to drink. Had doggy box to bring some home too. Very nice friendly and helpful staff. Many thanks and Happy New Year to you all

This is the second time I've been here. On both occasions there's been a long wait but today I was 20 minutes with no-one in front of me. One poor woman was doing everything, making the orders,sweeping the floor and apparently has to do dishes...

Fantastic place to visit, particularly around this time of the year. The Christmas displays were magical. Had lunch there too from the restaurant. Ordered cheese and ham toasties which came with salad. Very reasonably priced too. Will definitely go back and really look forward to...

Dreadful experience. Went for the christmas dinner which itself was awful. Waited nearly 40 minutes in the queue and the staff were rude and abrupt. When my food arrived it was barely edible. Will definitely not return

Lukewarm/stone cold breakfast, unfriendly staff. Certainly not worth spending £26 on, the only hot thing served us was the coffee. Hardly ate the breakfast

I'm used to the Dobbies chain, but have never used this centre before. Even though I'd used Google Earth and Sat Nav to locate it, I didn't realise it was on the same footprint as Tesco, so as a visitor to the area it wasn't...

This place has certainly gone downhill from a couple of years ago. Dirty, not much choice. It’s advertises itself as dog friendly! While I appreciate you may have to sit outside with dogs (as you do with many cafes/restaurants) they don’t it make easy for...

To food order then waited ages to pay for food and drinks food was ready before getting to till which had 3 people in front of us . Servers were miserable and kept changing from till to serving drinks . Food was not as hot...

It's not my favourite garden centre but it's still quite a big store which has lots of variety it has to offer. The staff are helpful and I'm quite content with the wide range they have to choose from especially when it comes to gardening...

Ideal place to stop for a nice drink whilst trying to decide what plants to purchase for the garden. Good selection of food available.

Lovely breakfast, we didn’t want black pudding or mushrooms so they kindly obliged to give extra in place of these items, something that doesn’t happen in other places these days. Slight queue for hot drinks and to pay but that didn’t bother us. Slightly higher...

Visited for breakfast with family. Considered McDonald’s, Sainsburys, Frankie@Benny’s but looking on the Dobbies website, breakfast looked really nice with plenty of options. Upon arrival, really friendly staff but it was more like a service station affair. Breakfast items were all under a hot lamp...

18/04/22. 10:10 Food is average, hard hash browns and cold eggs. The tables were dirty and not sanitised after previous customers. When we asked the cleaner to clean them she seemed reluctant to do it. When she’d finished she complained about us to her colleague....

Apparently there is a thing as more staff than sense… So we popped in for a coffee and cake and little did we know… we would have been able to bake the cake in the same time that it took to get served… Scones were...

Absolutely dreadful visit Sunday 20th March. Queued back to the entrance due to poor service at the till. Food (roast chicken) was bearly edible. When we finally got to the till 3 people were serving. They were rude, slow, and didn't even know which buttons...

The till was just past the drinks so if you ordered you food you couldn't pay for it because you had to queue behind everyone choosing their drinks. Food was actually fairly decent. They had run out of egg mayo so had tuna mayo with...

Ordered a cheese and red onion panini, it came with fries and coleslaw It was barely warm, hardly any cheese and the onion was just huge chunks of undercooked onion. The fries were also not properly cooked and luke warm. I assume the Paninis are...

I’m shocked that it’s this bad. Huge slow moving queue not enough staff. Hardly any drinks on offer not even still bottled water. Tables not cleaned and cleared. Used to be a huge selection but it’s really gone down hill which is a shame. Won’t...

What a lovely afternoon thank you so much Lee was amazing and so attentive and helpful thank you so much

Terribly slow service and wasn't even that busy, extremely poor quality of food and was all dry and cold when arrived dirty crockery and over priced very disappointed as been a few times in the past and always had a good experience up untill now...

There was one poor girl serving behind the counter rushed off her feet whilst 4 other members of staff held a staff meeting at one of the tables in the cafe in full view of customers. Not one of them jumped on to help her...

Second dining experience here and it's got no better. After the school dinner with tray queuing bit and the very limited menu (why? It's not Russia, yet), we ( me and my elderly mother, who strangely has a soft spot for this place, God only...

Using covid as an excuse to offer all food in plastic - non-ecological plastic containers unnecessarily. If the vitrines are covered, I do not see the need for such a waste. And when I asked if I could have my cake in the plate (which...

My friends and I went to Dobbies restaurant today for afternoon tea and was looked after by a young gentleman called Lee he treated us extremely well and the food was excellent.

Visited here today and was so disappointed. Ordered lunch for myself and my daughter and young grandchildren. 2 adults fish n chips and 2 children. Waited 25 minutes in the queue, one person in the till , so not a good start. Then to be...

The coffee and service is good but it's the small things like the cups not fitting in the saucers that change your impression on a place.

Worst experience I've ever had. Ordered 2 'Cheese and Pickle Ploughman sandwiches at £5.25 each and when the lad brought them out and said, 'enjoy', I said, 'I shall try......' 2 dry slices of bread with literally half a slice of cheap, processed cheese in....

We stopped here for a light lunch and decided on the ' to go 'area as the main cafe had a queue. We had a toasted sandwich, a coffee and cake and everything was delicious. Light and airy with socially distanced tables, we were looked...

Paid £5.90 for two flat whites on Sunday at 2pm. It was the worst poorest coffees we have ever had. No taste at all. Thje milk i guess was not at the correct temperature as it was barely warm, it hardly tasted of any coffee...

Could have been a lot better but left with happy children which is what matters. Found the event disorganised and overpriced. Santa was enthusiastic however, no attempts were made to ask the children what they would like for Christmas - yes COVID restrictions but surely...

Attended with my husband and elderly mother for lunch after a wander round the garden centre. After waiting half an hour for two toasties when they arrived the edges were curled and the salad served with them was extremely dry and the lettuce was brown...

My 86 year old mother is always banging on about this place. God only knows why. First visit with her we both had fish and chips and they had no salt, yes you read that correctly, they had no salt. Bearing in mind this is...

What an absolute muddle, waited in the queue to pay for 2 cheese scones and to order hot drinks for what must have been 15minutes, really tasteless cheese scones, tasted like a mouthful of flour, where was the cheese.? won’t be going back for any...

Booked afternoon tea for my Mum Birthday 1st September. Unfortunately could not get there on the day due to mobility. My daughter and I turned up as planned and explained. The staff were amazing and went off to the catering department to pack up the...

Huge queue, too few staff behind the counter. My food was dry and cold by the time I got to the table. My mum's sandwich was accompanied by a salad which was wilted and which she described as 'warm'. Poor.

We started to queue at 12.30 on Tuesday 18th august. Very slow as only 1 till open. ordered at 12.50. Two fish and chips and peas. Given condiments as available, no salt at all, no tartar sauce. There is a tesco store 1 min walk...

Always love visiting this store, great customer service, good restaurant with a huge range of food to suit everyone, soft play for the kiddies, massive garden centre, never tire of walking round

food was fine, it served a purpose as the children played on the soft play. was a long wait to pay though so the food ended up being rather cold before we ate it.

Very poor service from a member of staff. They were asked for a tuna baguette and a coronation chicken baguette but we only got the tuna. The lady ignored me and spoke to my partner. Definitely won't be returning as she put me off.

Popped in for vegan breakfast and coffee - excellent neal and service - highly recommended and will visit again

Food was ok but lot's of bad tempered staff giving wrong information and then staff being a little intermate and touching one another behind the counter. But one member of staff at the restaurant check out saved the day.

Pre-booked afternoon tea for 3 adults & 1 child. Unfortunately, not worth the money paid. Was seen to our table, after our setting was moved as apparently too close to the people next to us. Strange but ok. Hot drinks were brought out & then...

Me and my friend has been distracted by tons of deserts in display whilst walking out from the shop..! Couldn’t resist and went into restaurant for cuppa and some cake. Cakes were delicious, coffee was served in different size cups for the same price (for...

They should be summons under the trade description act they have a sign up saying HOT FOOD we had three full breakfasts with a pot of tea for over 30 pounds and they were all cold and on cold plates ,totally disgusting .

Went today to a baby shower afternoon tea , it was excellent. Our sevice was second to none with friendly and efficient staff nothing was too much trouble . Thank you to you all for making my granddaughter: surprise tea so special .

When I pay John Lewis type prices for food and drinks I expect to sit somewhere that isn't filthy. The sofas were covered in stains and encrusted food, went to turn filthy sofa cushion over and found the inside of the sofa was just as filthy and full of crumbs. Relocated to a different table to find stains on the chairs and bits of food on the carpet, including a big bit if lettuce. Hardly anyone cleaning tables... what a rip off!

I often go here and it needs a new review the coffee and cakes are ver very good the staff are always pleasant and helpful

Popped in for a late breakfast and very nice too thank you - cooked fresh, nice and hot, very friendly staff - highly recommended

Dobbies have a lovely small childrens area where we went with the toddler and two babies. Booked a tasty afternoon tea, the staff were super friendly and helped us cater to the little ones needs. Will be visiting again soon.

Visited today for afternoon tea with family. The staff were all lovely and really friendly who served us. The cakes were delicious! The kids even had there own kids afternoon tea which included things like; chocolate marshmallows and flower shaped sandwiches. Will definitely be back.

Huge display of tempting looking cakes, but when asked which were suitable for Gluten Free, the staff hadn't a clue!

As we were passing on our way to the coast, we thought we would pop in here. The menu is expensive. We opted for two baguettes, a prawn mayonnaise and coronation chicken. Hardly any filling and tiny bit of salad. The seating area is nice and they offer free tap water.

As we returning from holiday we decided to call in the restaurant, I can understand why it was almost empty. The Sunday roast looked as if it had been out for several Sundays.

Went here for a late lunch, so there wasn't much variety of food available. We had a shepherds pie with chips and peas, quiche chips and peas, cold drink and coffee. The pastry on the quiche was hard and chips had seen better days, Was disapointed as we normally have good food here although at times it is very pricey. Staff were friendly but busy clearing tables and generally clearing lunch away.

Myself and a client regularly go to Dobbies restaurant (not the small coffee bar area) for our lunch. The food is always beautifully presented and the lovely young girl who regularly serves us is a delight. The foods always hot and there's a huge choice and the hot meals are always generous in portions. Nothing is ever too much trouble for the staff and they are so obliging to your needs. When I did have an issue with a meal the manager was just brilliant. I think it is a bit pricey for somethings but on the whole a lovely place to eat..there was one miserable grumpy older lady serving once who did need some customer service training but apart that five stars for lunch..

I have Visited Dobbies at Kings Lynn AGAIN today.excellent Sunday lunch was being served so , as it would have been silly to decline, yes I had my lunch in the restaurant.and very.good it was as well.Whilst I was endulging myself, the lovely Caroline ,in the garden centre, was making me a planter up for me to,put on my husband’s grave.This she does for me when I visit the garden centre every 6/weeks or so( saves buying flowers)

All got food was Luke warm, bacon had all white stuff over it, toast rock hard and cold, eggs were inedible and sausages tiny and undercooked.

I have written on separate occasions about the “ wait” with food getting cold, while the girls make fancy coffees for those wanting them.while folks stand there waiting with their dinners ending up with cold unappetising food.!!!! all I get in response is “ I will pass your remarks on to the manager.” Same thing happened yesterday.the first time I brought this to attention was January.

We used to go here often for a well-cooked and good value breakfast. However, what a change! Prices have risen substantially and breakfast items reduced in size considerably. Tiny little sausage, black pudding was thin and very dry, a slice of tomato instead of a whole one, small fried egg and cold toast. Everything was cold by the time we were able to order coffee and pay. I am sorry Dobbies, but this is the last time we will be having breakfast in your establishment.

It is disabled friendly for wheelchair n buggy. Enough room to park at the tables. The food was supurb and reasonably priced. Nice and airy to eat either before shopping or after shopping in tesco or the garden centre. I would definitely eat in there again. Lovely atmosphere.

We had a family gathering of afternoon tea today at Dobbies, we would highly recommend it. Table was ready for us when we got there, we were served by a lovely lady called Denise, who was so friendly and helpful. Food was incredibly good, ranging from sandwiches, 2 scones each, hot sausage rolls, crisps and huge selection of dessert/cakes. My daughter is vegetarian and had her own stand with selection just for her. Excellent value for money, we will be back!

Stopped late lunch. Shuffled along a queue of a few people like we were back at school. Ordered a couple of 'paninis'. The lady who served us was helpful. Shuffled along further, looking for guidance signage. Went to the only place showing "hot drinks". Pressed buttons allegedly for a cappuccino, got half a cup of coffee with odd coloured milk, no froth. Pressed button again, to fill to top. Awful! Then waited in a queue again, paninis getting cold...only to see someone making fresh coffee!? We explained what happened with the machine, could we have a fresh coffee, the answer was NO. The service was slow. We paid a ridiculously high price of nearly £20 for cold, inedible paninis and muddy, cold & disgusting coffee. Well done Dobbies, full 5 stars of dreadful-ness!

We was treated to this afternoon tea as an Easter present. Arrived and seated by a very friendly girl called Georgie. Afternoon tea was nicely presented with a lovely selection of fresh sandwiches, lovely soft scones jam and clotted cream and a selection of cakes/cheesecake. Very nice cappuccino coffee. Would thoroughly recommend and I am sure we will return soon.

Dobbies in Kings Lynn is a large beautiful garden centre with an equally impressive restaurant and of late they now have a side coffee type area. Having been to the new side cafe area twice before it was excellent staff lovely food fantastic jacket potatoes a must although they are the same in dobbies actual restaurant just cheaper in the cafe area. Having gone with a disabled client to the cafe area we stood waiting and were completely ignored by the young girl serving she was more interested in serving and chatting to the several staff that wanted their lunch. After a good while we walked out..disgusting service on this occasion. Shame as I could not rate this and the food or sing it's praises highly enough on my visits in the past..

My friend, her daughter and I visited yesterday to meet for breakfast. Our breakfast was a bit of a disaster for several reasons but the manager couldn’t have been more helpful. He refunded us and even offered us cakes as compensation. He dealt with it swiftly and efficiently and I would praise him for his excellent customer service.

Enjoyed a wonderful afternoon tea today with two family members.Table was pre-booked and ready on arrival. We were asked which sandwich fillings we preferred and were provided a selection which also included a mixed salad selection. Also a plate of vol au vants which were fresh and flavoursome, fresh cream meringue with raspberry and blackberry, lime cheesecake, 2 scones each with clotted cream and jam and to top it a strawberry dipped in chocolate. So much of it, asked for and given a doggie bag.Served and looked after by lovely lad-excellent quality and service.

Not great, when booking on line it asks for your dietary requirements. It is a waste of time writing anything as when our sandwiches arrived they were not what we asked for, they changed them quite quickly but when the young girl came over she apologised and said they had looked at our booking and noticed that we didn’t order what had arrived and they didn’t get chance to look at the booking because they had a lot booked in that day, thankfully no on3 had any allergies but be warned if you do. Also when the ham sandwiches arrived a couple of them had a bit of onion in which spoilt it for my grandchildren. Some of the scones were like soft bread rolls. I did raise a complaint with customer services who got back to me within a couple days, they passed the complaint to the manager on 16th April and I am still waiting for an apology.

Generally have good cakes for afternoon tea but scones and cream are not what is expected with a doey bun for a scone and cream squirted from a can with a slight spread of jam- disappointing!

Could not believe the mess that was on nearly every table! Plates were stacked up on some of them. I had to clear our table so we could sit down and drink our cup of tea.

We visit Dobbies every week for lunch when we come to do our weekly shopping. However, the last couple of week the fillings in the sandwiches/baguettes have been very disappointing and not enjoyable at all. The prawn mayo filling used to be great nice fat prawns mixed in thick mayonnaise but only to notice now that this bought in already mixed the prawns very small and the mayonnaise really runny. This last week we thought we would try the tuna mayonnaise and notice that this is bought in already mixed. You can sure tell the difference as the bought in fillings are very disappointing not like home-made by far.

My friends and I met for a bite to eat at lunch and as my friend took a bite of her sandwich she looked at her plate to find a moth stuck in mayonnaise on her plate still kicking and breathing which was under the bread. We took the plate back to the till to politely make the staff aware of the situation and to speak to the manager for a refund. The manager came out of the kitchen and was clearly not made fully aware of the issue and said “so how big was the hair?” We had to tell him that it was a moth and not a simple hair. He wasn’t apologetic in the slightest and felt like he just had to keep justifying that these things happen in the industry. We both have worked in the catering and hospitality industry for a long time ourselves and still do! We understand things like this occur however it’s the way you handle the situation is how your customers leave satisfied. He was extremely patronising, rudely saying to my friend “so how long have you been the industry for? You’d certainly understand” it shouldn’t matter if we’re in the industry or not! He didn’t do anything to compensate for the complaint until my mother asked if he was going to do anything for us! All we were given was two lattes. The whole situation would have been forgotten if he dealt with it correctly. But shamefully all we come away with was two lattes and belittlement.

Never again. Such a disappointment. This cafe is such a wasted opportunity, it could be so much better. As it is, it serves a grossly over priced product very poorly. Customer service is poor, counter layout is poor, staff numbers are high, but few care about the customer. I intended to write a detailed review of our most recent visit but there was so much detail... so I decided to summarise instead. Just don't bother with this cafe, they don't bother about you.

I paid for an afternoon tea for 2 for my friends bday. We were seated to our table and immediately asked what drinks we’d like. We both had tea and they arrived quickly. The girl serving us was so sweet and attentive and I wished id of got her name to give her a mention. Our tea arrived quickly. Our cake stand then came but I was very disappointed with the selection or lack of selection of cakes. 2 scones each which I don’t eat. A cheesecake which I don’t eat a few grapes. Strawberry covered in chocolate, piece of brownie and a tiny Victoria sponge with fresh cream in which I didn’t eat either as I don’t like cream. I did mention this to the lovely girl serving us and she went off and got me a tray bake which was a really nice jesture. Would of been a total waste of money if I didn’t have that. I must say tho the sandwich selection was amazing and lots of different filings. Please bring the cake selection standard up to the sandwich selection and it’ll be perfect. Perhaps do a cake options menu instead.

I am writing this review and saying YET AGAIN! For goodness sake Dobbies, sort out the teas/ coffees and payments desk.