Dobbies Garden Centre Restaurant in Cotswold

Poor service, ordered kids meal,never materialised, Service very slow,when enquired where the meal was the answer was no available. Avoid

Rude and grumpy staff who could not be bothered to serve, Uncleaned tables. All chairs and sofas covered in stains but already having paid for coffee without realising how bad it was needed somewhere to sit. Overall unpleasant experience will not return.

Popped in for coffee and found the counter unattended, so wandered off to the second counter. We were informed they don't serve coffee at that counter, but they could if we had cake with it (!?) We were directed back to the first counter which was now manned. The operative was singing along to 'Merry Christmas Everybody' and changed the words ' everybody is having fun, unless you work at Dobbies'. Maybe it was meant to be funny. It wasn't. Anyway, the coffee area is filthy, every seat is splattered with food and drink stains, tables were uncleared and those that had been looked like they'd received a cursory wipe at best. It's pretty revolting and the whole area is overdue a deep clean. I imagine a visit from a health inspector would not go well. We will not be hurrying back.

Awful service. Been several times but it’s always the same. Spent ages queuing for the cafe. Spent ages waiting for order to be taken. Took ages for food to come. An hour later we still hadn’t received our sandwiches.

Lovely cafe with a reasonable Gluten Free selection. Light and airy with comfortable seats. Very good coffee and a lovely place to shop.

I stopped eating here a few years ago as the food was consistently terrible I couldn’t eat it, on quite a few occasions but my friend wanted to eat there with me, even though I warned her it was not good, unfortunately after our lunch she agreed it was awful!! I do not usually leave a bad review but the person in charge is not listening to anyone and needs to wake up and give the customers who spend good money there good food, good quality, and above a memorable experience for the right reasons

No lunch queue so thought great! Young man came over quickly and showed us to a table that hadn't been cleaned, we had to ask a member if the 4 staff standing around doing nothing at all. Looked at the menu and then waited ages to order. Lady next to us had been there waiting a while before us and said the last time she came, she had to ask for water because her order hadn't been taken and she was thirsty. My husband and zi decided to leave. A member of the 4 staff standing together doing nothing, said in a loud voice " has table 45 paid?"it seems the staff are happy with dirty tables hanging around not taking any orders, but they're on it if they think that customers are walking out without paying for nothing. My husband put her straight and she just said "oh". No sorry for the wait or anything. I can only assume that staff training isn't a thing or the management are incompetent too. Never again

Visited Dobbie's Coffe Shop on Saturday for a sandwich and cup of tea with my mum... Whilst the tea was great, the sub roll of Tuna/Cucumber left a lot to be desired. As they didn't have what I wanted on the menu (ham and cheese croissant) out of the options in the cabinet this was the one that looked the most edible. The roll was very dry/stale and tasteless, certainly not worth the £4- £5 I paid for it. I was also there the previous Saturday and had a toasted sandwich, that was pretty tasteless and uninspiring too. Needless to say I won't be ordering anything to eat from the Coffee Shop on my next visit.

Very happy with the service and the food, but availability of items on the main always seems to be an issue.I like to have the lasagna but in my last 8 visits it has only been available twice. On our last visit the two main courses we ordered were not available.

Well presented cafe; large indoor and outdoor areas. Outdoor area overlooks a lovely little playground so you can safely watch your little one and have a coffee. Coffee and cakes were excellent. My little girl fell over and the staff could not have been any kinder; they were a real credit to Dobbies. We won’t hesitate to return; it’ll be a go-to in the summer holidays.

Nothing wrong with coffee or cake BUT,,, they seem to have a policy of not wiping down the tables when clearing. I’ve witnessed this now for several months and lots of different staff members. So difficult to find a clean table in the cafeteria area. Also, why not have wipeable chairs, so much better than sitting on badly stained cushion pads.

Was shown to a table.waited and waited to give our order.had to keep asking would someone take our oder please.it was eventually taken.then had to keep asking when order would arrive.1 hour later it came.then took 10 minutes to pay someone.distgusting service.

Awful service from the restaurant. Waited 10 minutes to be seated by a young person who pointed at the table, didn't take us to it and said someone would be over to take our order. Waited and waited over 25 minutes. No one came so we left. A few members of staff around doing nothing. Other people were waiting too. Not a very good way to run a well known restaurant in a garden centre!

Decided to pop in for lunch on the way back to our hotel. Waited 10 minutes to be seated. A young chap very sloppy pointed to a table, did not show us to it. Told us someone would be along for our order . Over 25 minutes we waited , no one came to our table or even acknowledged us. Staff standing around doing nothing There were several other people waiting. We gave up in the end and left. Very bad customer service. No stars!

We keep hoping the cafe will improve but it is not - dirty, unwashed crockery & bad service just for starters. Sorry we have no milk jugs, I'll put your milk in a cup!! The standards are so bad we will not visit again even though we paid for a Dobbies card which gives us free tea or coffee each month. Whoever thinks they are running this place get off your backside, smell the coffee, train your staff, improve your standards & get a grip of the place. Your staff must be the most unhappy, most unhelpful staff I've come across.

We prebooked a table, at 08:30 for Breakfast with the Easter Bunny, 4 adults x 2 5 yr olds. We were met at the entrance, taken through the store to our table, everywhere was clean and decorated to an Easter theme. Breakfast served immediately, traditional, all hot and well presented, drinks included (Tea, Coffee, Soft drinks). Lots of Families with children, atmosphere was good and fun. The Easter Bunny and his helpers were really friendly and entertaining, children were fully engaged in several games, treasure hunts for chocolate, dancing and they were engaged in planting wildflower seeds into boxes, to take home, which was great fun. A beautifully decorated bower was for families to have photos taken which were sent immediately to our phones. We all enjoyed our morning, nothing was hurried, the Staff who were there, who had organised this were patient, happy, they really got involved and did a fabulous job, would recommend for next Easter!

Nice and tidy restaurant but the sandwiches were below par and not good value for money. Cheese tasteless, fish fingers below average and side salads disappointing.

We go every week for a breakfast, normally you can substitute 2 items, recently things have changed week to week, sometimes you can substitute 2 items, another week you’re told it’s only one. Today we asked for the 2 item substation to be told one only. We mentioned that it changes from week to week but went ahead with ordering. We had a wait for our breakfast quite a bit longer than normal. When it arrived the baked beans had a film on top, items were luke warm, bacon fat hadn’t been rendered, ends of sausages burnt. Now they have lost 3 loyal customers.

Popped for breakfast and ordered. Apparently the gas was broken so unable to do poached eggs but could still do scrambled or fried however when the breakfast came out all three were stone cold and came out incorrect we send them back and got new “fresh” breakfast and they still came out wrong and only. Touch warmer when we mentioned that they were still incorrect and then we decided just to sort the breakfast out our self’s (swapping items) and we were told it was too confusing by the staff I would like to clarify it was only a case who had fried or scrambled eggs. They did come back and check on us again but not until we had finished and we expressed were still not impressed. I would also like to explain that the waitress serving us had a very poor under enthusiastic and made us feel very much like it was our The manager was very professional and gave a full refund

We came today 2couples.no vegetarian soup available the person who took our order needs some customer service training.very disappointing experience.cannot recommend to friends as service was poor and vegetarian choice poor we visited 14 march 11.45 am

Popped in to the cafe yesterday after shopping in the garden centre. Had to wait over 10 minutes to get served. Coffee was weak and tasteless, staff grumpy. The furniture is very dirty, especially the chairs which are stained and very grubby. Won’t be returning.

Just visited Dobie's at Cirencester and I was disgusted with the cleanses of the restaurant. Although the overall place was clean the chairs were filthy. A majority of the fabric on the seats were heavily stained and not fit for purpose. I was unable to speak with the manager to voice my concern but many of the restaurant staff I spoke to did agree with me and they said they have informed the manager of the complaints about the dirty seats several on occasions but the management refused to replace the seats or have them professionally cleaned, instead the staff were informed to wipe them down and inform customers the seats are clean and the stains were of no concern. For me they are of concern and action must be taken as the appearance of the seats lets the restaurant down. FYI we also visit the Dobie's at Stratton and their seats are very clean.

Called in with a friend to buy some plants and have a cup of tea. Sat down, was told by 3 different members of staff that someone would be over to take our order. A number was put on our table and we asked again if we could order, someone would be with us . We waited 30 minutes and then left with 2 members of staff stood close by doing absolutely nothing!! Very poor, totally uninterested staff . Will not be back

The slowest experience I have ever had in my life just for a coffee! Queued up for 30 mins just to get a coffee. The staff didn't appear to be in a rush whatsoever. This is the second time it has happened to us. We won't be coming back

In December I visited Dobbies restaurant wiht two friends for a Christmas meal. I am coeliac and despite explaning this clearly both on the day and in advance I was given a main course and a dessert with gluten in. I was very disappointed and made a complaint. My complaint was dealt with quickly and courteously. I was offered a free meal in recompense. I visited today with the same friends and we had the courtesy lunch. We were welcomed and I was given a very helpful gluten free menu. Our meals arrived quickly and we each enjoyed a main course and dessert. The staff were extremely helpful and courteous throughout. It was very clear that significant changes had occurred since December. We had a very enjoyable time and I am now happy to recommend this restaurant to coeliacs in particular.

rubbish food,how can something so easy be made so bad? half cooked mushroom,scrambled egg looked like a chopped up omelette, tiny piece of bacon the size of a teaspoon, few beans and insipid toast all served lukewarm at best , its not hard to cook a breakfast is it ? not exactly cheap either

The food was very poor quality and overpriced. The Chicken BLT sandwich contained a scrap of bacon the size of a 2p piece and small cubes of chicken. The filling didn’t fill half a sandwich. The server, Martin, was a delightful young man though, very polite and efficient. Just a shame about the poor quality food.

Really poor experience. Worst breakfast I’ve had. Microwaved back, powdered scrambled eggs, like warm beans and bread that had been waved at the toaster. Just tea and americano to choose from or apple/orange juice. If you’re lucky and arrived later you’d get some fried eggs! The kids games (Santa says) was no more than what you’d find at a kids house party, played out in a half empty space in the restaurant. I would definitely avoid the Santa experience here. There’s much better venues near by and at a more reasonable price.

I saw that Dobbies had a special Santa visit for dogs and decided to take my 15 month old dachshund. In emails I was told on arrival to follow the signs to Santas Grotto where we would be met by an Elf. On arrival I couldn’t find any signs to Santas Grotto and had to ask a member of staff to point me in the right direction. Once at the entrance to the grotto, all I was met with was another group of (lovely) people waiting with their dogs. After waiting a while one of the group mentioned ‘checking in’ which I hadn’t done as there were no signs to say where to check in! A short while later the aforementioned Elf arrived at the entrance and invited us in…. we walked through the ‘magical forest’, had an opportunity to take a photo with my pup on the way around, and then arrived at Santa. Santa was absolutely lovely - he put my pup on the good list after asking a few questions about her and then she sat on his lap for photos. This part was actually really nice. She was given a gift and then we said goodbye to Santa and headed out. I paid for a photo of my pup with Santa, but the quality of the print was very poor for the money - I’m just glad I was able to take some shots on my phone. All in all a mixed experience with the only good part being Santa himself. I sadly won’t be booking again next year!

Had breakfast in the restaurant yesterday and it was great. I have seen some negative reviews recently about Dobbies but I could not fault it. Great service, warm welcome and food was great! Scrambled eggs cooked perfectly with hot toast and a bacon roll for mum. Need to shout out Lorraine for her customer service skills too!

We have been going to Dobbies for many years but recently it has gone downhill. The new layout has taken away all the cosy atmosphere and the prices have rocketed. The new Sainsbury’s addition needs to have separate tills as getting a food shop and then having to join the very long till queue is not practical. It is a great shame that the latest changes have mostly been negative. We will be going elsewhere until things change for the better.

Three of us stopped here for lunch on day 2 out of lockdown and were very pleasantly surprised. The staff (only two youngish chaps) were fantastic and working so hard to keep everything clean and sanitised, whilst also accepting customers, filling in track and trace details, waiting on tables, bringing food and drinks out and generally keeping customers fed and watered. A most enjoyable lunch!

No sorry, rude jobsworth staff is totally incorrect. It is more about Dobbies Customers not following Covid rules. Plus, and rather worryingly, failing to socially distance themselves from one another, yet alone from Dobbies staff, who all have jobs to do. Meeting friends when they aren't supposed to be, yet alone using Dobbies as a meet-up venue. Or incidentially, walking up to staff members, literally face-to-face, rather than maintaining the 2m social distancing rules.A bit of logic, better behaviour and following the guidelines would help all those using and working in Dobbies. Shop safely folks

Having left my very disabled daughter alone in the car I dashed in through the doors to get her a ‘secret’ present. (She had liked a scarf earlier. ) I was immediately shouted at from a checkpoint and told to leave as I had entered through the wrong door. I started to apologise and pointed out that there was no one in the vicinity but was still being shouted at to leave and go right round to the far entrance as they were counting customers. I did so therefore. There was no evidence of any counting of customers though. This was ‘jobs worth’behaviour at its best- or worst. I took her name but as it is a difficult time for us all, have decided not to use it. I do not appreciate being shouted at though when a quiet word would suffice and, in this instance, a modicum of common sense applied. There is no sign on the door saying no entry incidentally.

Had fish n chips from restaurant fish was over cooked too much chips was warm but staff done there best

Lunch for four was 2 meals of chilli with rice and 2 meals of ham egg and chips, food was tasty but cold! Total cost was £49 good hard earned money wasted!

Long wait while they cleaned the tables service slow and dozy needs to speed up and show willing . Load os empty tables because they are too slow !

Shocking restaraunt visit. An age to order an age to receive food. Coffee cold chips cold cheeseburgers supplied with no cheese.

Lunch was nice (that’s why I’ve awarded 3 stars not 2!), however it’s not good service when the hot food is served before the cold drinks. Also the atmosphere in the cafe is awful due to the poor service, and staff all over the place. Many tables around us were waiting a very long time to order and the customers were getting irate (rightly so!!) but it does bring the atmosphere down and it’s not nice to listen too. Things need to change ASAP in the cafe and to start with they need at least double the amount of staff working to run more efficiently. I probably won’t return in a hurry.

If you are coming here for food then DON’T. Although the food and drinks are very nice the queues will make you lose there will to live and the service is amateur at best. More people queuing than sat at tables although plenty of tables free ( all socially distanced ). Could be much quicker if staff collected and cleaned tables as they passed them without going back and forth empty handed. Robbie’s need to employ about 6 more staff to have it working properly. All in all a poor experience and won’t be doing it again

We came for a wander around and decided to have a drink as the baby was unsettled. We had to queue which we fully understood. We were not informed that we could order a drink and a cake which would have been more than acceptable. We were seated and give a menu. It was then nearly 40 minutes before someone came to take our order and that was only after we had asked. There were several other tables with the same issue and lots of tables with dirty plates on them. When the food came out the chips were barely warm and the sandwiches very bland. The baby needed changing so my daughter asked if she could go out the way we had come in rather than follow the one way system as it was quicker and he was very wet. She was told she had to follow the one way system and did so. Whilst waiting for her at least 4 people / groups went out the wrong way and were not challenged by any staff. One man even asked which way he needed to go and then took no notice and went out the wrong way too. It took 15 minutes before someone came to take payment and when we mentioned this to him he didn’t seem bothered. What is the point of having someone seating people who could also manage the direction of people and having a one way system if it is not being enforced. We have booked to bring our grandson to see Santa on Christmas Eve and were planning to have lunch their too. We will not be doing so now and it will be a long time before we visit the store again after Christmas.

We had a fantastic waitress her name was Chloe. Nothing was to much trouble .The food was very good we had a great time.we will certainly use the restaurant again and hopefully we shall see Chloe again.

She was incredible, made us feel so welcome and safe in this awful time. She cleaned other tables twice before seating other customers, she made our meal so comfortable and was a bubbly happy lady and just was a lovely experience in this pandemic to go out was a worry but she made us feel so at ease I def recommend going here especially when she is working thank you Louise

I found my trip here fantastic. The service I received from Louise was superb, she checked back with myself and my boyfriend during our meals, to see if we needed anything and check the food was alright. Service was prompt and efficient, but felt very personal too! Her service with a smile made our day, even with a mask on!

Visited for lunch today. Haven’t been to Dobbies for a while. I was very impressed with the service and food. My waitress was called Chloe. Nothing was too much trouble, she was helpful, polite and very informative. The food arrived quickly and hot. Would definitely recommend.

Hi ‍♀️ Hubby & I Love ❤️ Dobbies Garden Centre @ Cirencester we DONT live local but make the hour drive to here as it is a LOVELY Centre plus the Restaurant Food Is second to none VERY GOOD Value For Money PLUS All The Staff In The Restaurant are so Very Polite, Helpful & can’t do enough to make your lunch enjoyable. Daisy was our waitress she is so very nice bubbly friendly & very helpful we visited on Sunday 18-10-20Mr & Mrs Mathieson

Couldn’t opt for lunch due to 1 hr plus wait. Service beyond poor. Disorganised, long queues . Staff have no idea what us available . Waiting 20 mins for 2 cups of tea and only get one! Avoid like the plague!

There was plenty of space in the restaurant, all well organised and covid safe. Our food arrived promptly, with special care for our grandson who was with us. Altogether a thoroughly comfortable experience.

Excellent food , very polite staff, extremely Covid safe. Young lady serving the coffees Daisy was extremely friendly and courteous

My wife and I visited Dobbies for afternoon lunch, We waited a considerable time to receive our lunch. We had to state that we thought our order might have been forgotten and could they chase it up. Our food then arrived and the food was tepid, We were fed up at that stage, but after speaking with Sophie, she managed to change the whole experience around, She was professional, very polite, offered us a complimentary drink in the meantime and food arrive shortly after piping hot. Well done Sophie (Acting manageress).

Chips were cold, lettuce brown, cucumber slimy, main course dried up. Spoke to waitress all she said was ok I'll tell some one. None came back us. Expensive for what it was. On the plus side a good hot cup of coffee.

We waited to get our seat and when we sat down again we waited half a hour before we was asked what we would like.The staff are running around like people who have no idea and not their fault down to simple mis management of the restaurant.We have been before and everything was great but what has happened in fact they have lost another two customers, would i tell people to come here ,simple answer forget it

Contradictory, confusing and misleading information and signage outside the cafe/restaurant which the staff admitted were out of date. We followed the signs not knowing they were wrong and were shouted at and spoken to quite rudely. Another couple told us the same thing had happened to them. Consequently we changed our minds and took our goods to the till only to find a cashier having a melt down and shouting at customers because we had all followed the multiple queue signs and she said she couldn’t tell who was next although clearly the person directly in front of her checkout was!!! What a joke. Complete disorganisation. Best avoid!

We visited here for breakfast whilst on holiday, and was very impressed, we were guided to a table on our arrival with out any waiting time, the décor is really nice one of the best garden centre restaurants we have been too. Very calm and relaxing, very good menu choice. They had carefully thought about the social distance guidelines and rules, your order was taken at the table and then your food was bought to you. The tables were all spaced out, maximum seating is 6. Tables are cleaned after every guest leaves. The staff on duty were very professional and very friendly nothing was too much trouble. Highly recommend.

We had an ok trip here for coffee and cake, the scone I had was quite dry and my partners coffee wasn't very hot, think they had been waiting a while before we got them as not enough staff on to cope with the busy times. Offer wasn't honoured at the time of payment however was rectified eventually by 3 different people!

RESTAURANTUnable to post a review unless at least one star rating but ..Having experienced quite a few garden centre restaurants I have to rate Dobbies Cirencester -5 for food/drink/staff and afters.Abrupt staff .... Entrance girl was only polite one. No manners to waiting staff. Plates dumped at one place for us to pass round,our request for condiments was met with a tut. Condiments were then delivered "thrown" on table.Cold coffee .... I actually went and collected drinks myself as they were sat waiting to be collected for at least 10 minutes. Even the requested water was warmLuke warm breakfast .... At least the hash brown was warm,rest was nearer cold than warm.4 out 5 of us ate breakfast here and 3 of us now have upset tums.

came in for breakfast speed of service was brilliant! Food and drinks came very quick! Food was lovely! Very friendly staff! Highly recommended

On entering the Cafe area we were informed due to the virus "not so many staff due to the virus ". We sat a table and waited to have our order taken for some ten minutes in the end we ordered two basic breakfasts {buy one get one free } with two teas . We waited a good twenty minutes to half an hour before our food arrived . The food was ok could have been hotter only just warm .The real problem was there was never enough staff to tackle the work load , they had to wait on tables taking orders ,cleaning tables and delivering the food, management should be more aware of how many staff are needed to get through the day .

I went for coffee with my husband mid house move to escape the packing (5/8/20). The Restaurant was busy but managed superbly by Meena the manager. Everyone was spaced out, it was clean and airy. Despite being rushed off her feet she found us a table, out of the way and our coffees were with us super quick. It was a welcome calm from the chaos of moving house. Thank you.

Family lunch 2 adults and 1 child, and couldn’t fault in anyway. Everything clean and tidy and Covid 19 safe. The food was lovely come out quick and hot, will definitely be returning.

Looked really nice the inside and the furniture all looked great.However we had been told to order from the table and wait we had waited around 25 minutes, I then decided to ask again if we need to order and then a waitress finally after being prompted came to to take our order.The order had arrived within minutes which was fantastic!, however it was barely warm, and the bacon was solid, it was all pretty much dead.I used to love coming here for a good big breakfast that tasted great! but now, whatever that was.. I and my partner won't be coming back

Took grandson for a treat bank hoilday monday .afternoon tea .menu said veg sticks dips fruits chocolate muffin none of these items .were brought out.I booked for 2 x afternoon teas. One vigan and one traditional one child's lady said she had put child's on adults .nothing vegan on stand wouldnt go again .

Waited 20 minutes to be seated. Food and Drink order taken after 15 minutes. Told food would be half an hour....Drinks arrived after another 15 minutes. After waiting for an hour in total for food we were advised our order had not gone through !!! We were then told it would be another half hour for food !!! When we decided not to wait they still charged us for the drinks. Obviously we will not be returning !!

After queuing (our choice) to get into the restaurant, we then waited 40 minutes to be served and had to ask for a member of staff to take our order. People who entered the restaurant after us (4 tables to be precise) got served before us.Food was nice when we eventually received it.I would like to say thank you to a gentleman named Chris who had been helping out in the restaurant that day, (not his usual job), who helped to try and get our order taken for us.

I went with my elderly parents and sister to have lunch at Dobbies on Tuesday 18th. The whole process was appalling. Service was extremely slow, even after being seated at a table. Once food arrived by sandwich had stale bread and the chips were cold. The excuse that they were very busy is no excuse at all. Dobbies should have limited the number of people being seated if their kitchens could not cope with demand. This was possibly the worst dining experience I have ever had in the UK. Two and a half hours for such poor service needs to be addressed by Dobbie's management.

Excellent organisation with simple and straightforward explanation of their Covid rules. Plus breakfast and service very good

After waiting some time to get ta table, was told that is was table service, order and pay at table . After waiting for some time managed to get attention of waitress , whom finally took the order. and was told that staff shortage was a problem . When breakfast finally arrived , food was not hot only , luke warm and was not as per ordered. Toast was more like crisp bread also came with no butter on plate ,knife missing from cutlery which waitress had dropped on route and did not replace. VERY DISSAPPOINTING

My friends and I had such a lovely time when we visited the restaurant on Sunday. We had afternoon tea while a half price offer was available. It was that good we all agreed we would have paid the full price. Social distancing rules were adhered to at all times. We felt very well looked after and safe. I would highly recommend going.

We had the most wonderful Afternoon Tea. Cakes were amazing, felt very comfortable as social distancing has been set out very well in the store. The staff were very pleasant too.

We had a full English breakfast, a few hours later a cream tea, just delicious!! And best of all 50% of all good and drinks, Mon to Wed during August. We were all very impressed with the quality of food and service. Definitely would recommend. Let's help support the local businesses

We went to see what it was like since reopening and we were at first put off by the queue for coffee. You could queue up and choose your cakes/pastries or sit at a table and be served. It was much quicker to be served at a table, and we only waited about 15 minutes. The staff were so friendly and constantly cleaning the chairs and tables. Felt very safe and we certainly enjoyed our coffee and cake. Plan to go there at least once a week now.

So this was our first trip out after lockdown, the cleaning that the staff do is out of this world considering how busy they are! But in saying that nothing is too much trouble! We had lunch and the fish was stupendous! The manager also never left the floor the whole time we were ther which is rare! The young lady on the door explained everything perfectly, we felt perfectly safe and wil be returning!

Having visited Dobbies Restaurant two weeks running I want to say a huge thanks to Zoe who looked after us both times. So cheerful, helpful, nothing too much trouble. She made both visits such a pleasure and I look forward to seeing her in future visits. I hope Dobbies appreciate what a treasure she is.

We called in after the lockdown to have a meal at Dobbies ,it did not go very good . You sit down on a table with a wooden box on the table to show that it has been thoroughly cleaned, and wait for the waitress to take our order. With our order taken (two teas and a toasted sandwich and chilli jacket) . The teas arrived soon after ,but the meals never arrived ,people came after us and received their order ..We sat there still waiting ,I stopped the waitress who had taken our order .Asking "where are our meals ,its been ages " she went but never returned !!!. Another ten minutes went by and I stopped a Supervisor and explained our situation, she sent some one to chase up our meals ,which he came with after a few minutes . Starting to eat our meals we found the knives and forks were so hot ( as they were on the plates which had been kept warm for the last half an hour ) .We had to use the serviette to use the knife and fork as they were so hot , the coleslaw was also very warm.They had so many people cleaning tables instead of delivering the food, there were at least twelve empty tables ready to use when I counted .The whole visit was a disaster ,then it was hard to exit the building as you are in long queues to exit through the tills , but we had not purchased anything . We sadly will not be visiting again as we are usually very pleased with the food etc .

We all know things are different. But on the hottest day of the year, gasping for a drink and very hungry, after waiting for 15 minutes for someone to come and take our order, and after asking two members of staff, we gave up and walked out. I suggest they get enough staff in the restaurant to take a customers order or close the restaurant altogether.

I used to regularly go to dobbies, to get work done and sit and enjoy a coffee before lockdown. I was very hesitant to go since lockdown, however I was wonderfully surprised! The skinny flat white was excellent, the staff extremely helpful, especially Rachael who instructed me on how the restaurant had changed. I ordered a Mac and cheese toastie, it was delicious, I don’t know what has changed behind the scenes in the kitchen, but whatever you’re doing it’s marvellous! The staff all wore appropriate PPE and in the current climate I felt it was very professional and made me feel very safe. I also observed how well they have implemented the new government requirements for cleaning down tables. It was a real team effort, I even watched the manager, a lovely northern lady, work the floor with all the staff! All in all it was a lovely experience, one that I can’t wait to enjoy again!!

Visited last week for coffee and cake. The restaurant was very clean and staff were very helpful and all working hard. Despite the current circumstances I felt very safe during my visit. Drinks and cakes were delivered quickly and efficiently. Will definitely return.

I visited the restaurant on a Sunday morning and found the whole experience very off putting. Firstly you have to join a long que to get in. This is despite the fact that even though the seating area is half closed, there were plenty of empty tables. Once you get to the front of the que where you receive a lecture on how to eat in the restaurant. When you eventually get to sit down a staff member turns up in ppe with face guard. Then you place your order and another staff member brings over the drinks and he practically jumped back after putting the drinks down. The whole experience made us feel very unwelcome and uncomfortable being there. The restaurant proudly displays that it is AA covid confident and the menagment may think that is all the customers care about and will come back in droves when they see the sign.To me, I wanted to be safe, but more than that I wanted to feel welcome and receive good customer service, neither of which I got.I wont go back there again.

Cold food!Ordered after 15 minutes wait at the table a coffee and a tea and 2 breakfasts, drinks were slapped on table by staff demanding we take them off the tray, 10 minutes later stone cold food came out, no sausages, 1 butter between the 2 of us! We asked where the sausage was, waitress didn’t know and then came back to tell us that they’d run out but put extra SMOKED bacon (not stated on menu it’s smoked!) which we both hate, they got the manager who offered us more drinks which we still had full drinks and offered to get us hot beans! By this time we’d given up!After 3 and a half months in lockdown the garden centre looks lovely just a shame that the food and service was disappointing!Definitely need to do some customer staff training as far too clinical!!

Ordered cheese burger chips coleslaw. Came out stone cold, sent it back. Waited 10 mins but at least it was hot. Wrong bun for burger, the sort you'd have with a bacon at home. Cheap horrible coleslaw. Never again!

Me and my wife would like to congratulate the staff on Friday the 5th of June,the afternoon staff were very helpful,we bought some much needed plants and followed all the instructions, excellent work people !!😀😀😇

Arthur Daily returns! Went browsing around today. Social distancing measures were good. The take away staff were very friendly & overall impressed with the new setup. Until we came to buying something that is. We found a parosal which would have been ideal for us. We asked an assistant if it came with a stand. Unfortunately it doesn't, you would need to buy one separately. Which was not an issue therefore, we enquired where they might be found. After a brief chat on the 2 way radio. The lady replied, we have one stand which we have been using on the shop floor and only the parasol which you see on the shop floor here. After examining the two items. We were still keen. So we asked if there would be some kind of on display discount. At which point enter the afore mentioned Arthur Daily- esque...no discount as only just come out of the box (by definition not in it's factory dervered & sealed box then!) Which we replied but that's true of most of the display items. The reply was "but we have to assemble those.!"Now a bit miffed we retorted... But both items have been on display (Shop dust etc) to which the 'dodgy 2nd hand car' person training came to the fore & with proud bravado she exclained "you don't HAVE to buy it"! Absolutely amazed by this remark I thanked her for highlighting the obvious and pointed out that in most reatilng enviroments once the packaging was broken and item was put on shop floor then often it would have a nominal discount offered as a matter of courtesy (obviously not a strong suit of Dobbies?The reply was a simle shrug of the shoulder. That's when I noticed that the base had some marks on it. To which (& to my complete surprise) she said "can wash it for you"!....what?? "That would make it the perfect definition of shop used".. we replied then walked away as clearly customer servive is not a priority for this manager. On the drive home I strated thinking why pick Dobbies as a job? Perhaps finding a unit in Love Lane and selling second hand furniture might better suit? Just a thought mind

Have not been to Dobbies for years and as it was pouring with rain decided to stop as we were passing and have a look around. We were astonished at the huge changes that had been made and how big it had become. We walked through the garden area found a great variety of plants and the quality was excellent and prices very reasonable. We went to the restaurant which is very large and attractive and plenty of room between tables. It was very busy even at 1.45 but we did not have long to wait for service. Our drinks arrived promptly and we had a wait for our meal only brcause we could not make up our mind what to choose. A good menu and we found the food very good and service friendly. Obviously it is a very popular venue for lunch now and we would not expect our order to be brought to us immediately. One slight annoyance someone who could have been in charge of staff in the restaurant kept speaking very loudly on his mobile and sat at a table near us meeting different staff. He seemed not to care for customers and it was disturbing. Will certainly go there again however. We bought a few things before we left and found the staff friendly and helpful.

What a lovely Garden Centre, the cafe was brilliant the food was excellent the service was good with very friendly staff and it was very busy as it was pensioners day ! Three of us ate had two courses plus drinks under £30. Will be going again!!

As others have reported Dobbies have completely revamped their in store eating experience over the last year. It took a little while to sort out just where to order and what exactly was on offer but they have now got it right. A number of visits for tea/coffee and cakes over the past months have been good experiences. Cannot yet speak for their lunches but hope to rectify in due course. Staff hardworking and efficient.

Visited last Thursday. Half term, 20% off and raining so very very busy. With two grandchildren at their request. Had to walk around looking for someone leaving to get table. Order taken quite quickly BUT waited around 50 minutes for food and it was barely warm on arrival. Noticed that if you ordered drinks they arrived quickly but long wait for food generally. Mentioned to staff and offered two slices of cake.Really disappointing. Many issues to sort out particularly the kitchen. Need to anticipate volume of clientele better. This is apparently three weeks into new system.

I went in with a friend, for lunch. The restaurant was almost full and they had squeezed in as many tables as they could. Our order was taken fairly quickly, but after 40 minutes, no sign of any food. I asked a waitress where our food was and she said it would be out in less than 5 minutes.Another 15 minutes went by and I asked again, by which time we had been waiting an hour. We had only ordered toasties, nothing complicated. Eventually a waitress turned up with just one toastie, we had ordered 1 each. Not only that, but the food was cold and the toastie was tiny, they were obviously economising on bread!! We sent it back. Then another one turned up, it was also cold and economic on the bread, this one was also burnt! I asked to speak to the manager, who took 20 minutes to come over to us. We asked for our money back and left. Unless they sort themselves out, neither of us will be returning any time soon.

We visited is garden centre to go to Maidenhead Aquatics as we heard good things about them. When we arrived we were pleased to see there was a restaurant that looked very appealing. We sat at a table and we were approached by a very polite and cheerful waitress called Rachel. She was very attentive and advised that we were welcome to order a drink but we would have to wait until 12pm to order lunch which was absolutely fine. Rachel came back at 12pm prompt and we ordered our food which was of very good quality. Rachel was rushed off her feet but she was coping so well. I don’t very often leave reviews but felt that this young waitress deserves the recognition of such good service.

Very disappointed with the restaurant today. Service was slow. The food was disappointing. I had tuna melt toastie. The bread was very thin and there was very little tuna in there. The bottom of the sandwich was soggy.

The system is now table service which is fine if you can get a member of staff to make eye contact with you, they just seemed to be doing their best to avoid dealing with the customers. Eventually went to ask someone to take our order, the member of staff I tracked down was polite and the food order arrived in good time and was very nice. Then had to track down another member of staff to pay the bill. Not quite there yet!

Arrived and sat down by 11.55, friendly waitress eventually got to us after taking orders from 3 groups that arrived after us and attempted to take orders from a 4th who hadn’t even had time to take their coats off.

The Cafe at Dobbies has been overhauled and it is a great step in the right direction. A great improvement all round. Clean, nice furniture and now offering table service which is so much better

We visited Dobbies for breakfast on Thursday and I love the changes that have been made since the last time I went.

This was my first trip to a Dobbies and I was very pleasantly surprised at just how good it was. The staff were very helpful and pointed me in the right directions for items I was looking for. Lovely selection of food and a clean and tidy environment.

Visited for breakfast. New table service which was very efficient. The host, Lorraine was very friendly taking our order and the food arrived a few minutes later. Good food for the price and would go again. Well done

We went for breakfast for the first time there as it always looked nice when we had shopped in the garden centre and we were not disappointed! It has recently has a refit and now offers table service. We were warmly greeted by a staff member who informed us of the new layout. We chose a table and were well looked after by the staff, who were very pleasant and visible throughout. Between us we had the full English breakfast, a sausage and egg roll and porridge. We also had coffee whic was very good. Both the food and drinks were hot and delicious and served in good time. The staff were friendly and informative throughout our visit. It's not the Ritz, but if your looking for great food at an affordable price, you could do alot worse that visit here.

Came to this garden centre restaurant on 2 consecutive mornings for breakfast. They really have got it right here.

We took friends to Dobbies for lunch , having been recommended to go- and we were not disappointed. We were lucky to get a table- at 12.30 pm mainly because someone left as we arrived it was packed on a Friday. Waitress service and very good food and a reasonable price- whats not to like?

Ist day of new system. Find a table, peruse the menu. Ordered from table. Food delivered promptly and delicious. Will go again.

Good coffee (yay!) plus well presented porridge with honey and fruit compote, and some toast. Nice to see the cafe back to normality after the full-to-capacity (but with half the tables reserved) manic Christmas period.