Downham Garden Store in King's Lynn and West Norfolk

Great place! A lot of range of products and in an easy to access location. I really recommend checking this place out.

Good to see downham garden centre restaurant open. Good menu choices and friendly staff willing to help in difficult times.

I cannot comment on the food because we did not manage to get access to the Restaurant.Two members of staff stared at us but that was it. After waiting several minutes we departed,I do not like being ignored.In the end we had a very pleasant meal at the garden center restaurant just down the road.

Garden Centre is lovely, but don’t bother with the cafe! Thought we’d spend some time and money in the garden centre then decided to pop into the cafe before we left. We waited as directed at the entrance to the cafe waiting to be seated. Both the lady behind the counter and also the young girl serving noticed that we were stood at the entrance but neither of them acknowledged us. Waited over 5 minutes for someone to either acknowledge us or invite us in to the cafe but we were just ignored. The cafe wasn’t particularly busy, so I cannot understand why we were treated this way. Finally gave up waiting and took our business elsewhere. If we had to wait that long just to get in, God knows how long it would have taken to actually get served! My advice, don’t bother with the cafe, just rude staff!

Stopped off for some food travelling home from Norfolk. The service was fabulous, with helpful, patient and professional staff. The cakes were amazing and I had to try the Biscuit cake was divine! The food was great and at a very reasonable price, and the menu catered for all tastes. It was lovely and clean and a great experience. As I say the staff there are wonderful. I recommend it! Head to Downham!

Absolutely spot on. Downham Home & Garden Store Cafe are smashing it! I was very very impressed with their menu. Could not fault it one bit. Would highly recommend to everyone and anyone with dietary needs. Gluten free options & Vegan options available. Well done :)

I arrived at Downham Market home and garden today and everything was going well. I usually eat in the cafe regularly and my experiences have been very pleasant... until this day. I ordered my food with the safety of social distancing at the counter and went to my seat away from others. Instantly, I could see that things were not the same as previously. The whole atmosphere was different. I was handed my food by a nice young lady who gave me excellent customer service. It was only when I was half way through my breakfast that I could hear the manager talking to this young lady in a demanding tone. She demanded that the trays “need to be taken into the back”. She then proceeded to tell the young lady to do things that could clearly be done by others nearer to the area/activity in demand. The way that everything planned out, I decided to just get up and leave. Complementing the customer service of the younger lady in front of who I presume was either her manager or supervisor. Upon doing this I was waved off with the dirtiest look I have ever been given.Overall everything was good as usual but, this experience was not of the norm. I had spoken to friends who have gone for a meal there and the same thing has happened to them recently.

Went into Restaraunt lunch time toqday.I am disabled physically and hidden disabilities too. I am face mask except which seemed to annoy the young assistant on the till. I was wearing my lanyard with excempt written all over it and cards attached stating exemption from wearing a face mask and hidden disability and asking for kindness.The assistant made a comment about i had to step back keep my distance from her so she could keep safe. Between us there was a huge work top but she stepped back ad if i had a plague. I said i have a card and did not need to wear a face mask and in the restaurant i said you did not need to wear one. She was very rude and very loud and made her feelings about me and my Husband very clear to all. We ordered and sat down but i was shocked and upset. Our food arrived by a very nice assistant whom had helped me before as i can't carry anything. The food wad delicious . We ate and left. However we noticed a man with his elderly Mother both mask less. She made no comment to them. Also an elderly man too mask less again no comment.She was young 16/19 however she was rude and needs repremanding for the way we. me were treated.We eat in the Restaurant weekly and buy plants and sundries too.We will not go back again.

Restaurant was very busy as expected Meals were all delicious , friendly and helpful staff will definitely visit again

Rude till person, better service at baytree at Hilgay. Just come out of lockdown and personel obnoxious

Rang this afternoon with list of bulky items...delivered couple of hours later. Might not always be so lucky but service was Brilliant. Thank you.

i had steak and ale pie a great friendly atmosphere restaurant was very busy for the time of day a great selection of food

We visited on a Saturday afternoon, it wasn't busy but there were tables that needed clearing and food all over the floor. We had two pots of tea and scones and the pot of tea was so tiny we couldn't even get a full cup from it, we took the pot back up to be refilled and they gave us another pot of hot water without even questioning it so perhaps they are used to people asking for more hot water to get at least one cup of tea from the pot. The scones were a little dry and small for the price.The garden centre itself is very nice and if they could get the restaurant right it would be a nice garden centre to visit on a regular basis.

Take a good book .......and maybe a Pillow ........you'll need them to endure the prolonged wait for food .....45 minutes plus ......had we not paid, we would have walked out !!.When we ordered, we were advised of an "up to 30 minute wait" for food. We've had reasonable meals in the past, so okay, we'll wait.....hmm bad decision. When the meals arrived, one was overcooked and burnt, and the other was just about warm enough to eat....we ate them because we were hungry after the long wait. Its not the British thing to complain, but there were several other customers asking the waiting staff about their meals. This is a very popular place to eat, but it was sadly let down on this day by the Kitchens lack lustre and tardy delivery of meals. Whoever was cooking on that day needed a damm good kick up the backside, and be told to get their act together !!

A group of 7 of us booked a Christmas lunch at the garden centre for Monday 2nd December. We were asked to pre order our food, which we did. The soup ( tomato and basil) was lovely, prawn cocktails fine, I had the melon ( what can go wrong with 3 slices of melon?) The main course is where it all went wrong, and very wrong!! Two of us had salmon with hollandaise sauce, the sauce was the colour of custard and set like rubber on the top of the salmon, it had to be cut it was set so hard. The salmon was just warm as were the very over cooked vegetables. Sprouts and carrots turned to mush,. People who had ordered the turkey main course complained of:-Yorkshire puddings they couldn't get a knife through and sent them backStuffing balls the sameVery little turkey on the plateVegetables overcooked and not hotPlates were coldGravy that was very dark and tasted awfulOn the plus side the Christmas pudding was very nice.On asking for the bill we were presented with a piece of paper with a figure on it, nothing itemised eg cost of drinks etc. When I queried as to how this figure had been arrived at it turned out it included meals for 2 people who had cancelled!! I have to say that the food of diners who were eating off the main menu looked very nice, but was amazed at the poor quality of food that had been pre ordered, so to my mind there is no excuse for. Won't be booking for next year!!

Well there was 6 of us only one had a starter, which was a pathetic prawn cocktail without any sauce, the turkey dinners were not bad, stuffing was hard, some of the potatoes weren't cooked, but the meat was good, asked for cranberry sauce and mustard it turned up 10 minutes later in a silver dish no spoon, the Xmas pudding was very tasty, finished off with a frozen mince pie which was handed too us individually from the waitress with her bare hands not very hygienic way of presenting a mince pie, followed by a coffee each but no saucers, well they must of run out of them.So on the whole not a great meat edible but very splap dash service, shame as it could have been a superlunch, but unfortunately it wasn't. Will think twice about going back there too eat in future.

If there was a zero I would give it. The food is not fit for a plate. Overdone vegetables, and what did they put all over the salmon? There was zero nutritional value in this meal. I was looking forward to my dessert of cheesecake, I do not know what it was, but it definitely had no resemblance of taste to cheesecake. As for the free mince pies, where was the filling? I was disgusted with this meal... would never go back for food.

we decided to travel along the A134 towards Downham market, i was a little cloudy but dry.We stop for our lunch at the garden centre, Trevor chose the steak and kidney pudding, myself I chose the cod and chips, with a strawberry milkshake and a latte.After a short wait the food arrived Trevor's pie arrived with potato,peas and gravy.my fish came with garden peas. both meals where nice and hot Shame that the pie did not have more vegetables.there is access to a disabled toilet.We had a look around a found two cats we have adopted them(they a carved stone ones) and are living in the catto outside we named them Bertie and Bertron.

We took an elderly relative here for lunch. The lunch was tasty but the cake selection was amazing and included numerous vegan options too. We chose the Black Forest gateaux and the vegan carrot cake - both delicious.The staff were friendly and helpful and although we stayed chatting for a long time at no time did we feel we were being rushed to leave so we were all relaxed.There is a good variety of plants and other garden essentials. The shop also had a great range of greeting cards, preserves and jams, toys and a good range of gifts as well as garden ornaments, pet accessories etc. Wheelchairs are available to borrow to wheel less abled around the site. Ample parking was available too.

Popped in here whilst waiting for a table at Arbuckles! Big and roomy garden centre with lots of choice. Lots of quirky things to buy for home and garden. Good pet section as well. Pricey so be aware as we brought a few pieces then saw them in a shop near where we live at least 40% cheaper. But still well worth a visit

Visited on a wet thursday afternoon. Cafe had a lovely selection of cakes and were offered an extra pot of hot water with tea. Cafe light and bright and shop sells an amazing range of goods

We called in for a midweek lunch, and even though a young girl was behind the counter, she chose to spend some time laughing and joking with one of her colleagues before taking our order (we thought this very rude).

Had a visit here today and whilst there, decided to have a coffee and a snack. The coffee was really good and lovely flavour. I had an Americano and my wife had the hot chocolate. She said this was very good to. We also had a Cornish pasty each. What a treat, lovely pastry without the really thick dry bets at the end, the pasty was absolutely stuffed with filling and was absolutely delicious. Best pasty we have had for years. We saw really lovely meals being taken out to cusomers. No wonder the place appears to be very popular. Will go again.

1/10 for both meals. Asked for separate Gravy on TURKEY GIANT YORKSHIRE it came out with Gravy poured over it. Told waitress this was wrong and was told they must have served it up wrong but left it for me to eat. Dreadful service. They don’t do well in busy periods. Also ordered fried breakfast and completely burnt and cold. We left the meal and was £20 out of pocket. I have been here at quieter times and with more experienced staff on tills and had a better service but this time was definitely a FAIL.

I have just had lunch at this establishment and must say having eaten here before! How disappointed I was with today's offering. I ordered steak and kidney pudding with vegetables well it came up with what looked like smash and peas no other veg at all. I also asked for the Raspberry & Peach crumble with custard well the only decent thing was the custard it seemed to be sponge with raspberry jam on top. It certainly wasn't crumble. On ordering my food I also ashed for a hot chocolate for which I was charged £2.75 yes on the board it said £1.50 on querying this after purchase I was told that's a different type of drink now I was never offered the cheaper one at the counter.

This is a great place to eat especially on Wednesday's special pensioner day. The food is usually very good, but the service can be slow and the food is not always as hot as it should be. However, the staff are usually friendly and helpful.

I found this establishment whilst driving on the A10 from Kings Lynn. A cafe attached to a garden center is usually a good bet for a reasonable lunch.

19 of us enjoyed a first class Christmas Lunch here yesterday. The food was excellent, hot, tasty and plentiful and a gluten free requirement for one of our members was no problem. The staff were smiling and helpful all the time, I can't praise them enough.

Have been here a few times but this time we were very disappointed. Ordered jacket potato with cheese, the potato did not look as if it had been freshly baked today and the cheese had virtually no taste, it did come with a small salad but this did not have any dressing. The Gardener's brunch clearly contained items left over from breakfast the bacon was dried out and hard, all other items were lukewarm the only hot item was the beans (microwaved) the meal was served on a cold plate.

Great place to shop. Authentic Norfolk products. Great staffers who are at hand to help. Wide range of products to choose from. Very knowledgeable staff. Can't praise the place enough:)

Bought my uncle in for a bowl of chips hes in a care home and we use to be regulars until the food went downhill but we thought we,d give it another go!The chips had so many black pieces in them he threw half away!Mine were just as bad!I also had a chicken fillet burger with coleslaw!Burger was ok but coleslaw was awful!The food use to be lovely here i dont know what has happened but we wont be returning!

Fifty friends joined us Monday afternoon for high tea to celebrate our Cats birthday

I have just had the Wednesday special lunch which for a two course roast lunch was excellent value. The only thing that let it down was the fact that one had to seek out a member of staff to get one's desert. They need to look at a better way of operating this as I don't go into a restaurant and expect to have to go and find someone to bring me my desert!

The lunch was excellent as usual - Mum wanted a ham salad, there was so much ham with her salad, she sneaked some into a serviette and put it into her handbag "to have for my tea with a poached egg" she said, furtively looking round to make sure no staff were watching ! Absolutely delicious, and served by charming and friendly staff !

We have had lunch here on a couple of occasions during our holiday and found the staff, food and service lovely

Initial visit chosen because they have comfortable seats! (I've got a bad back!) but pleasantly surprised. Service good and vegan cakes available.

My dad and I have been for breakfast on more than one occasion.We enjoy the atmosphere, staff are friendly and helpful.The food is good quality and good value.Look forward to returning soon.

Although dogs are allowed in the actual garden centre, they aren't allowed in any area of the cafe, despite the fact it's quite large and a 'doggy corner' would be fine. We had to sit outside, it was drizzling, but luckily found the only 2 under cover tables. They got our order wrong, delivering 4 soups instead of 3 soups and a portion of chips. The waitress then went back for spoons but took so long that we went and fetched them ourselves. By then, the soup was lukewarm. No condiments on the tables and no offer of any. Such a shame.

Went for lunch, three of us. Omelette undercooked and running off the plate, chips verging on raw. Salmon with hollondaise sauce came swimming in the so called sauce that was foul tasting! Gave refund reluctantly.... and they apparently now have a chef? Seriously, have coffee here, but eat at your peril!

The cafe is lovely and the food is great. Great selection of gluten free dishes and vegetarian dishes.. I went in a couple of days ago with my husband and I ordered the pork belly with chips and the ham egg chips.. The ham was so thick the egg was lovely and the pork belly was amazing.... My main problem with the cafe is one of the servers...she didn't have a nametag on and wore a black cardigan she served my food and she had a strong scent of cigarettes smoke It was a bit off putting.... I will go back again just hope that the server standards have been raised and not smell of smoke.

Good value for money family run advice readily given and delivery to local homes best value are bedding plants in spring.

A great little garden centre, and restaurant, polite friendly staff and ample room to take a wheelchair around.

Dropped into Downham Home and garden centre today just on the off chance. Had a nice look round - lots on display, fairly priced and a lovely gift selection. We also had a drink and some cake at the restaurant. Very nice little garden centre. However I don’t think we will be visiting again - it’s a bit out of our way.

Took my parents yesterday (11th March) for the Mother's Day lunch. Drinks and food order taken fairly quickly and drinks and starters arrived in a reasonable time. Main courses took 75 mins to arrive, as some people had to wait two hours for their food we considered ourselves lucky (I asked 3 different members of staff where our food was in that time) two of us had the roast meal and one the lamb tagine. No problems with the tagine, the roast meals had something which I suspect was supposed to be a Yorkshire pudding but was completely inedible, green beans were raw. Another hour to get the dessert order taken, whilst waiting I attempted to speak to the supervisor about the issues we had, she wasn't interested and was dismissive, blaming a lack of staff. We were served by five different waiting staff and there were several others about.The waiting staff were mixing up orders and table numbers. A lot of customers simply walked out. A couple of the staff were in tears (having been shouted at by other staff members and irate customers). I was convinced this was the first time they had ever done a full on Sunday lunch but apparently they have done lots, I never would have guessed that! The desserts were below average. Some customers had free meals and others discounted, I had to pay. Mums were supposed to get a glass of wine and a gift, no sign of either of those. There are much better places to get a decent meal in the area.

we arrived at 12.10 we had a table booked was quick to get drinks bit then had to wait 1 hour to have food order taken ...when food arrived it was very nice however my mum had the Halibut and nearly choked on bones !!! the waitresses were minimal on a special mothers day they got a lot of orders mixed up they would have been better only opening 1 part of the restaurant

Called back in to purchase some driveway blocks which I had discovered were the cheapest around and decided to have some lunch in the busy but pleasant cafe. Welcomed in by the pleasant staff and found a table in the conservatory. The menu was varied...

Easy to walk around the centre. Outdoor area is well organised and staff all to happy to help out. Very...

Called in on a snowy Sunday, and the main option was a carvery. We stood by the carvery assuming we...

They make a fantastic caramel mocha and their Victoria Sponge cake is delicious. Always great customer service!

My husband and I went for lunch and we were both very impressed with the gluten free food and the...

Yep, been again for Sunday Lunch - just for review purposes of course! Still spot on. It seems to be...

Came in with my family for a last minute Sunday lunch, was so pleasantly surprised. Myself and my partner were a bit worried as the only two near available were beef and turkey (generally the drier ones) but they were both so moist, probably one of the best roasts we've had. The veg was lovely not over cooked, gravy was good too. We thought we'd go for the crumble just to finish, not really expecting much, but again it was brilliant. Home cooked not prepacked, good sizes of fruit in the crumble, lovely topping and some good quality ice cream.

Excellent, such a lot of choice for Gluten Free, both main courses, cakes, snacks etc. they even tell me that the fish is now done in gluten free batter.

Good selection, service quick & friendly, food was hot & plentiful.......what more could you ask for?! Oh yes - very reasonable prices!!

Stopped for lunch on a day out and was very disappointed

Hemos estado aquí un par de veces y ahora están bastante satisfechos con él.

Me gusta mucho este lugar. Es muy práctico, y poder sentarse en el área de invernadero y mirar las plantas es muy agradable en buen tiempo. La comida es bastante buena, bien presentada y a un precio razonable, y a mi marido le gustan los pasteles. Así que, ¿por qué no se me da más alabanza? He notado últimamente que las tazas, etc. no son tan limpias como podría ser, que es muy desagradable, y para ser honesto, el servicio no es tan bueno. Vamos en mucho, a veces 2 o 3 veces a la semana, a veces sólo para una taza de café, a veces comida, pero sólo hay una mujer joven en que nunca muestra ninguna señal de reconocimiento. Ella, que debe ser dicho, es realmente encantador. Hay otra chica muy joven que es obviamente solo tímida, así que está bien. El personal en general, no obstante, bastante miserable. Uno en particular. Nos son agradables, gente amable (honestamente! Y creo que la) personal realmente desprestigia, lo que es una pena.

I've not been here for a few months as I have been poorly so my friend recommended we go back as we usually ate here at least once a week. The food is not what I remember in February was tasty , hot and wholesome. Now it's cold, tasteless and dry. And whatever has happened to that lovely young man. I can see why standards have dropped. I'm doubtful if I will return. Very disappointed

Not good at all Hunters Chicken was dry, appears chicken had already been cooked, a slice of bacon and cheese on top which was then cooked leaving the chicken dry and not edible round the edges also bacon so over cooked and like leather. Have had Hunters Chicken numerous times before and this one should not even be allowed to be called Hunters Chicken. Also the pie pastry was so hard and dry only filling could be eaten. Chips wre ok. The reason for a visit to this garden centre and resturant was because it was advertised to us by a large advert posted through our letter box stating their new resturant etc etc...

Never thought I'd give a garden centre restaurant 5 stars but this one is excellent . Thought I'd have a cuppa and ended up having lunch. Brilliant staff, spotless tables and tasty food . Say no more. A must visit.

Not a great first visit. We visited about 1.30 on a Saturday afternoon with a queue nearly back to the door. Specials board had sausage roll, chips and beans, but when I went to order was told they didn't have any left. Saw pasty on the menu so asked if we could have pasty, chips and beans, but again was told they didn't have any left. Others in the group had cake which looked great and they said was tasty. The latte coffee was good. Does seem to be an older age group of customers. Will probably give it another try.

Had a very nice lunch today, top marks on price,quality and service.I would gladly eat there again.☺

I was a bit disappointed with the roast lunch here yesterday, the staff were all pleasant and helpful, but the food was a bit of a letdown the roast parsnip was not cooked through and the roast potatoes were not much better. There was little flavour in the meal so I wouldn't return for a meal but it's good for coffee and a cake .

I visit often with my friends or family. With great surroundings while you catch up over a delicious meal. This is my regular Sunday roast spot which is always perfect with lovelylasgings of home made gravy. A shame though that home made Yorkshire puddings are no longer as they was big and yummy. Staff are always pleasant and I don't think I've been to a place where a lovely young chef comes out and speaks to the customers and asks how they are and wants feed back about the food that's been cooked and even helping clear tables to help the waitresses. Keep that up it's a nice personal touch and staff like that are hard to find so keep hold of that one(michael)Keep up the great food it's why we come back week after week.

Lovely garden centre we thoroughly enjoyed a look roundWe bought several items but could have spent much more

Drove my mother to near Downham Market to try the Sunday Carvery which had come recommended. Once we had figured out the slightly odd order system all was good, helpful service especially as my elderly mother is a light eater and the staff member was quick to point out that there was a small portion option available. Reasonably quick service and very good meals all round, plentiful, hot and cooked to our satisfaction. The desserts all looked very appetising but we honestly were so full from the roasts that we went straight to coffee. Importantly, and anyone who eats regularly during the winter will appreciate this, the main dining room was insulated well from the elements so no occasional freezing gale force wind sweeping in whenever the door was opened! Decent value for money, excellent friendly and customer-focused service and good quality fare.Garden Centre is well-stocked and mainly garden focused; unlike many of its competitors it wasn’t overrun with cheap and nasty tat quite prevalent nowadays.Overall a good Sunday afternoon well spent.

As the title implies this is my usual breakfast spot. Food is excellent, staff are friendly,helpful and kind to all. The surroundings are very pleasant and the overall feel of the place encourages you back. I have made hundreds of visits (true) over a number of years and hopefully will make hundreds more. I have no problem saying its worth a visit or even two (or more). If its just a coffee or a meal you will be looked after well.

as always coffee was lovely, and I again enjoyed a gluten free scone. the welcome in this place never changes and is always warm and friendlyThey reallyt are trying with Gluten Free, and take on board any suggestions made, I would just love to see a a lovely flaky gluten free sausage roll (I can dream)

Stopped by for a coffee, and very impressed by the quality of the store overall, with a variety of garden items, clothing and food . The restaurant was bright and clean, the food looked fresh and inviting, with some tasty looking cakes on the counter. The coffee was excellent and well priced, and the service was quick and friendly

Sunday Carvery menu. We chose to book for 12.30. Very busy. Order at counter and meal brought to table within minutes. Good quality. Very well cooked with generous meat portions and massive roast potatoes. Well recommended.

Superbly cooked full English breakfast. Friendly staff, good price, clean and comfortable. Highly recommended.

excellent service in the shop, very helpful, coffee shop good, (More Gluten Free Please) always a warm welcome and some really good lunch offers well worth a try

Great food and i love the fact it's home-made too! I plan to return there very soon with family and friends!

Went with friends for cake and coffee.... The only gluten free was a dark chocolate....Not so good,

had sunday lunch here a few weeks back, everything was delicious !Yesterday called in again for lunch - i had lasagne which was huge n the best i have had in ages .My husband had gammon steak, chips, peas, mushrooms, onion rings, fried tomato and 2 fried eggs, again everything was fantastic - couldnt manage it all but gave it a good try !! Cant comment on the negative reviews.Would we go back again, a definate big yes. ☺️☺️

Have used this restaurant several times over the years but the Sunday lunch has clearly deteriorated judging by today's effort. They were very busy but there was no excuse for a cold dinner comprising of hard roast potatoes, meat not fresh appearing to be out of a packet, about a handful of peas, carrots, unappetising cauliflower and mashed potato. I don't know how they have the cheek to charge what they do for this rubbish. I know they were busy but if this carries on they won't have a restaurant this time next year.

My sister and I took our mum to the restaurant today 9th November for a spot of lunch. I had a cheese scone that tasted more like a scone filled with pepper, couldn't taste the cheese. Mum and sister had jacket potatoes with cheese and baked beans and they had to be sent back TWICE as they were cold. We weren't the only people complaining id of COLD jacket potatoes. Eventually they arrived but weren't up to standard or quality. Short staffed and being told about it, ugh not the customers fault you are short staffed. Other tables had food missing for a good 45 minutes had to ask where their meals were? I am sorry but the standards here have fallen way below acceptable and this has been like it for the past several months. I have filled in satisfaction forms stating that tables haven't been cleaned properly and having to wait so long for food. Obviously you are not reading customer comments or you couldn't be bothered about it. Good luck for the future you will need it, if you want to survive in this business. Think you ought to stay with the plants and not food!!! Absoultuly fuming, after another terrible experience. But don't bother we won't be back. We can count 10 persons who said the same thing. Cold food, not enough staff and sub-standard food!!!!

Don`t know if the chef was having a off day but our Sunday lunch was awful!!! Carrots nearly raw, Brussels spouts like bullets, cauliflower cheese tasteless mush, the Pork was ok but the complete meal was only warm, we have used this cafe over the years as a meeting point for family but we will not be going again, such a shame as the staff are good

Great staff, very help, good value, good food, a great range of products across the board. A lovely place to spend a few hours.

Nice place to grab a coffee and cake or a meal . Lovely shop and garden centre along side . Friendly staff . We went late so cake choice was limited but nice quality.

Within the main store is a wonderful restaurant called The gardeners Rest". We had a Sunday roast in there. It was excellent, well priced, served up hot and all the staff were very friendly. A truly good meal. Also a good selection of deserts.

Pleasant cafe-style restaurant serving a range of simple, home cooked, good value meals. Staff always pleasant and helpful.

The Gardeners Rest is a well situated cafe style restaurant. It is in a pleasant surrounding within the garden centre and offers a good menu range. We opted for the single course Sunday lunch £8.95 and it was a good sized lunch. The choice was either beef or pork. There was a two option available for £10.95. Staff were very nice and even brought the meal to the table for us. We would happily visit again even if we weren't looking for gardening things.

My wife and I decided to go out and look for shed,not finding a shed we stumbled across the cafe at the Downham Market Home and Garden.We only had a ploughman,s and a sandwich but the food was presented nice and the staff are really polite and helpful .To drink we had a latte each,normally when we have a latte in cafes we have to ask for them to be extra hot.Not in this case,served really hot and tasty.So to sum when passing on the A 10 ,we will be stopping again for a hot latte.

It is what it says on the tin -well sign! I've heard many good things about this place but it didn't quite live up to the expectation. The day we visited there was only 1 chef on. This slowed the orders coming out, not exceptionally so. I think it took longer to order due to only one till working than it did to receive the food. On sitting down it was a shame that there wasn't more space between tables. I saw a few people turn around because they had buggies and walkers that they needed space for and there wasn't that needed space, even though half of the tables weren't occupied.pThe food was of fairly good quality although the side salad wasn't up to scratch. 2 warm bits of cucumber, 1 cherry tomato and a mountain of curly lettuce and red onion.The menu could do with some updating. They no longer do chicken nuggets for the kids menu, instead it is chicken bites (so plain pieces of chicken). The menu I found to be a bit strange. Apparently you can have a egg mayonnaise panini (which in a sandwich is fine but hot not so much). Its a shame they don't have just cheese or cheese and tomato. Again with the jacket potatoes coleslaw would have been a welcomed side (i know it is possible to do it separately but cheese and coleslaw is fairly standard). I found the chips were only just done and could have been cooked for a couple of minutes more. My last critique is to put squash as a childrens drink option on their menu. The milkshake just tasted powdery. The waiting staff however were a delight. The tables were kept clean and they were prompt with the delivery of hot food and extra sauce. An update in their menus would do it the world of good and perhaps a rearrange of furniture. You only have to put someone off once for them not to return and there was a lack of custom that could have been easily rectified.

Lunch with family as a father day treat, booked a table, when we arrived no table for us(so the waitress seated us at a table reserved for someone else) the carvery was not the best, Yorkshire pudding was hard, mash didn't taste like real potatoes, apple pie was dry

I visited the cafe on tuesday of last week with my dad and husband. I have previously eaten here but not since its refurbishments. I was so pleased with the new layout and the food was excellent. I will certainly visit again.

Well that was a pleasant surprise! Not your usual garden centre cafe food, it was superb! The Regal burger was huge, well presented and extremely tasty. The Ham, egg and chips was also huge with good quality Ham, free range eggs and proper chips. The coffees were excellent, not the usual bland excuse associated with most garden centres. Well done and we Will be back.

My wife and I frequently go here for the Sunday roast, where a choice of two meats and a selection of fresh vegetables is offered. There are also mouth-watering deserts, but we find that we are given so much food for the main course that we are unable to manage a desert.We also recently visited during the week and both ordered lasagne with garlic bread and salad garnish, blissfully unaware of the gigantic portions we were about to receive. It was very tasty, but quite frankly, one serving would have been enough for both of us, so we were certainly getting value for money, especially since the prices are most reasonable.The service is excellent and the staff are cheery and friendly.Afterwards, we enjoy a stroll round the garden centre, where we can get attractive and healthy plants, among other delights.

My husband has watched this establishment grow from a tin shed with pallets until now, an unrecognisable, amazing garden centre, shop and Gardners Rest cafe. Yu will need plenty of time if you want to have a really good look inside and out of the garden centre isn't self and the fantastic shop. Then, you can sit in comfortable armchairs or you can sit at p a table and have either a light bite, sandwich type lunch and or a beautiful scone or piece of cake and all manner of deliciousness. They cater for those who are gluten free too. Opthirsday evenings it is open later for dinner. They also do a pensioners lunch on a Tuesday I believe. The cafe and shop were immaculately clean and welcoming and have such a wide range of things to buy from gardening to home and even presents and confectionary. There is no rush to forget get customers to leave when dining and the staff are all very friendly. My husband and I enjoyed our first experience very much and look forward to repeating it again soon. This is a wheelchair accessible establishment..

Myself and she who must be obeyed popped in Sunday to grab a coffee. Very impressed with what I saw, great looking carvery, staff zooming about delivering food quickly and what looked like very happy customers. Made us wish we'd not had lunch before coming out. As regards the coffee, very nice and a perfect scone to go with it. Will definitely go back to try the carvery!

Went on a Monday as there was a poster which simply read "2 mains for £10 on Mondays".No mention of this in the actual menu so just ordered 2 mains but was charged full price. I challenged this but was told the mains I had chosen "did not qualify".Only the mains marked "(M)" on the menu were included in the offer. I pointed out that this was not mentioned on the poster or in the menu so how were customers supposed to know that? "Oh yes" said the lady on the till, "we will have to change that, here's your change". Great........After the main course I ordered a desert. A different desert arrived to what I ordered and when I told the waitress she said "the chef has run out of the one you ordered so he has sent that out instead". no dialogue on this at all, they just blatantly changed the desert for something else. I said this was unacceptable and requested a refund which after waiting some time was forthcoming.All in all a really poor experience so won't be returning, I will be taking my custom elsewhere.

Went just before Christmas and it was well stocked, affordable prices and great place to wander and browse. I was amazed at the size of the place, (looks smaller on the outside). Well worth a visit, I was at Arbuckles and visited without having to park again as there is a gateway to walk through.

Brilliant menu choices and specials of the day. Vegetable lasagne is to die for and a good size portion. Loved it and staff friendly. Cold in shop though.

Visited with friends yesterday. It was a bit samey as all others. The Chrsitmas suff was nice but thought a bit pricey. We did not eat here at it was full. The staff at the till in the shop were good.I have to add a rating for the food, service etc but we did not eat so should be able to refrain from doing that part

Had an interview for Coffee shop assistant which turned into a cook interview...Did a trial day on a Sunday with no offer to be paid for... no promised phone call back after appalling business like attitude.

Food was good but spoiled by very indifferent staff, almost felt we were a nuisance, didn't feel comfortable.

It's never been great, but our last visit in September was really awful. A sandwich that was horribly stale (although we were given our money back) and then we found two plates in the stack of supposedly clean ones to be covered in cake on the bottom. Such a disappointment, as this could be really good. The staff don't seem too dedicated, either!

Food is fine without being exceptional. Service can be a little slow at busy times but it does seem to be a very popular venue. Very comfortable armchair in the conservatory.

We have visited this "restaurant" twice in recent weeks. The first time, the food took about 30 minutes, and was ok, but another couple waited nearly 40 minutes, then found their order had been misplaced. They were given a full refund. Our second visit on Friday 14th August began well enough, we ordered at 12.52, 3 jacket potatoes and a children's lasagne. It was busy but no queues. After 40 minutes, we asked what had happened to our food, and it appeared about 5 minutes later, no explanation, perfunctory apology for the wait. My order was with cheese and coleslaw, but when I cut into it, the potato was hard and inedible. We returned it, more apologies, 30 minutes late, all the other meals eaten, mine still hadn't reappeared. Further enquiries show that my order had been given to another table. We got a refund and was told to fill in a customer comment card, which I did, I have heard nothing since and don't expect to. The staff did apologise, but there were other people moaning about the slow service - the lady next to us had finished her lunch before her partner's even appeared. Seems they need more staff and some training or don't offer anything but snacks