Folkestone Garden Centre in Shepway

Why on earth would you have the front door as exit only when senior citizens eat & shop here My mum is 87 ... Many cannot walk all the way to the back of your center Raining & cold Long long walk Please change

Breakfasts,buy one get one free a bargain,plenty on plate and always well cooked ,plus all Christmas goodies now for sale .

Lots of hugely overpriced seasonal tatt at this time of year, mixed with the usual garden tools & equipment. OK cafe with good service and expected range of hot & cold foods. Not particularly expensive compared with some other garden centres. No idea how it rates on available garden plants etc as we just called in for a snack & a couple of pressies.

Better than I expected... lovely items for sale and the Christmas decorations are amazing

Very helpful friendly staff quick tip

Lovely garden centre, looking nice and Christmassy at the moment! The café is nice, and we had a lovely cream tea

Alovely full stock fair prices. A good range of goods. And a lovely cafe good food.

Breakfast is lovely. It's buy one and get one free Monday to Friday before 11.30

Very disappointed with this garden centre . Hamstreet have a designated area INDOORS for dog when I visited folkestone I had to sit outside in windy rainy cold conditions. Yes I was under a gazebo but I felt penalised for having a dog 🐕 x poor standards

Lovely helpful staff. Had a great afternoon out with my family and dog. Beautiful selection of plants etc

Lovely helpful staff. Had a great afternoon out with my family and dog. Beautiful selection of plants etc

Great Cafe offering indoor & outdoor seating. Good variety of food. Tasty BOGOF breakfast if ordered before 11:00 am. Great coffee too

Great Cafe offering indoor & outdoor seating. Good variety of food. Tasty BOGOF breakfast if ordered before 11:00 am. Great coffee too

Great improvement on the previous place. Wonderful things to buy and the food and service second to none. Really well worth a visit, you won't be disappointed.

A good garden centre with properly watered plants. That is not usually the case in most other centres. Good cafe too

Not wanting to make an unnecessary journey as this garden centre isn't my nearest I telephoned to ask if they had a particular shrub in stock as I wanted 3. Sue answered and checked, they didn't but she found out they were due a delivery in a couple of days. When they arrived Sue selected 3, phoned me and kept them to one side. Astounding service.

Excellent quality plants and all reasonably priced. Choice is excellent but the standard is even better. Good choice of other garden products and lovely shop for gifts and garden furniture. Cafe is the icing on the cake with quality food and lovely surroundings.

Nice garden centre, small but good cafe

Visited with a friend. Stopped for lunch and had a jkt potato with cheese and beans. Service was efficient, food hot, and plenty of seating available even though it was busy. Wandered around the centre, lots of lovely things for the garden.

Well laid out garden centre. Ample parking, although it does get busy at weekends. Had breakfast here too.

Fantastic food. Great breakfast. Bogof offer. Great coffee. Polite staff

We usually go to the Canterbury store, came here for a change, a little run out in the car and take my wife's brother somewhere different. Had a great time, no problem parking even though it was busy, had coffee in the restaurant, no problem getting a seat although again it was busy b

A delightful place to wander around and when finished have an excellent breakfast.

Yes iv only been twice its only just opened no shore when they opened but yes a very good garden centre indeed a good choice of plants everything for the budding Gardner there's a cafe as well and it's wheel chair friendly very helpful staff on hand you can buy garden lights compost just about all you need ..plenty of parking space...

I wish the disabled entrance was not round the back of the store. Other than that a nice location.

Excellent find, staff friendly, and informative with a good choice of plants.

You could spend a fortune here, sadly I don't have one, lovely little cafe, the outside area with the dogs now is wonderful. Just need to find my fortune to sort my garden out...

Good selection friendly helpful staff

We went to the garden centre as we decided never been before. That experience was great, can't fault the staff, prices and selection of plants on offer. We gad a trolley laden with plants, etc but before we paid we wanted a sit down with a bite to eat and a drink. Can't fault the cakes, the lemon drizzle is to die for,but as we had a trolley of plants we had yet to pay for, we took the trolley to our table with us. All was fine until a grumpy staff member came over as we'd just finished and were preparing to go and said quite rudely "your not supposed to bring the trolley in the cafe". Bearing in mind there were no signs up stating that, that we could see, nor was there anywhere to safely park our trolley outside the cafe. What was we meant to do with it? I suppose most people pay for their items, put them in their cars then return to the cafe, but we got the bus there so had nowhere to put anything. I will be back to the garden centre,just not sure about the cafe now!

Excellent breakfast as always 5 *

Nice garden centre, knowledgeable staff.

So, where do I start, was having the absolute worst day of my LIFE, ong, then went into the garden centre, spoke to the lady with the orange hair (absolutely fabulous customer service) and my day was nothing but sunshine and rainbows from then on. 10/10 would visit again x

Stunning 2 for 1 breakfasts on weekdays, so worth the price. We got milkshakes and they were quite sweet but we liked that. Breakfast was fresh and tasted great. Was quite busy but we managed to find a table and the quality of the breakfast made it worth it :)

I live relatively locally so for me this is perfectly situated. They have a lovely selection of plants however they increase their prices constantly. On 1st March I popped in and saw beautiful large lemon trees, full with lemons, and priced at £50. I went back 3 days later and the price had increased to £100 and smaller ones, without lemons were £50. They had a beautiful tall planter priced at £165 and yet on the 25th March the price had increased to £175. I had taken photos so I have evidence they're doing this. It's pure greed and once I've bought the planter (at the higher price) I won't be going back. It's daft, as I spend a lot there.

Lovely place to have a wonder around,

Nice place plenty of choice, sadly didn't have what I needed

A good economic breakfast staff very good

Had a fabulous afternoon tea. And the choice of plants and flowers was varied. Very clean and tidy as well.

Nice breakfast, very good value. Nice gift ideas in the shop

Great service friendly staff good value. Hannah is lovely

Had lunch there and it was yummy

Lovely garden centre, always visit the cafe for a meet up with my friends, had a voucher for buy 1 meal get one free ,and it was lovely and reasonable priced .

Went to the cafe for a breakfast not disappointed at all quick service and great food

Happy and polite staff,very helpful, but unfortunately did not have the item I wanted, their X mas display was very good, congratulations, well done.

Lovely garden centre with great choices and nice restaurant.

Excellent food and staff are so welcoming .

Good selection of everything, Christmas gifts, chutneys, sweets and the cafe has nice food too!

Would give a zero if I could. First time visiting and made to feel small and embarrassed by the cafe staff. No choice but to leave. Unbelievably rude. Never ever again.

Love this garden centre and knowledgeable staff.

Great little garden centre always lots on offer and plenty to see and good facilities

Extensive selection of garden plants and accessories with a good restaurant attached

We love Folkestone gdn centre..went with friends for lunch last week and the plants are very well priced too.

Had another excellent meal here today. Always consistently good. Staff are excellent, friendly and helpful. You won't leave hungry as quite large portions. Highly recommend.

We celebrated my son's birthday at Folkestone Garden Centre. The staff couldn't have been more helpful and the food was excellent. The staff set up the tables and we arrived a little early to decorate with balloons etc. We ordered from the normal menu, there were 12 of us and all of the food was delivered at the same time. It was a lovely occasion and we will certainly visit again.

The food was excellent and there was a good selection. I had the baked potato which was large and fully filled with beans and cheese and my partner a cheese and tomato tosted sandwich both of which were excellent.

We often shop at this garden centre and take advantage of eating breakfast as well, a great way to start the day and excellent value for money with the two for one option. Yesterday I accompanied my Wife together with a group of 19 to a cream tea there, we were greeted by a friendly staff and served a wonderful variety of sandwiches, scones with cream and jam and cheese scones with cream cheese finished off with variety of cakes accompanied by fresh made tea. Fantastic food great staff and a wonderful aftrenoon.

We stopped here for lunch prior to shopping in the garden centre. An impulse stop as we had not been to the cafe before. It is pleasant inside and offers basic fare at an average price. I had the coronation chicken baguette. It was well filled and had good chunks of chicken in. It appeared to be fresh chicken and not the type that comes out of a supermarket tub. It was very nice and very filling. A generous portion. Served with a small salad and crisps. They had run out of the chicken by the time we were served so my friend chose again and had a baked potato. She enjoyed it and it was a good portion. She asked for a pot of tea rather than a cup and they were happy to oblige. Staff were pleasant. They were advertising cream teas when we were there which sounded appealing and will be a reason to return.

We had a look around the garden centre as we were after a few plants and then went for coffee in the cafe. We also had a scone each but they were stale. When we were leaving I took the tray to the counter and said to one of the staff that the scones were stale and all I got was a grunt and she walked away. Not good customer service not a good experience

We went to this garden centre cafe for a 'quick lunch'. We only wanted jacket potatoes. What a pahlava. It took 45 mins just to order and get a fairly simple meal. Like watching paint dry. The food was OK although not cheap.

A lovely experience. The food is amazing. I opted for the vegan option and was so impressed. Freshly handmade food with decent portions. Plenty of seating and super friendly staff. I look forward to going again with family friends or by myself. Definitely enhances the rural garden nursery visit.

We were visiting the garden centre and stopped for a meal, although not a vast menu we (4 of us) had something different and we all thought it was very nice, the ham and chips used "real" ham the Fish and chips were tasty and the all day breakfast was excellent. We will return.

No problem with the garden centre. Well stocked and helpful cheery staff. Stopped for lunch though and that was different. Had to ask for cutlery, no napkin and my upsized cappachino was the smallest I've seen. My tuna and cucumber sandwich was lovely once I'd removed the huge chunks of cucumber. Great little place but a bit more care needed for a 5 star customer experience.

Despite my son ringing in advance before we arrived to check wether this garden centre restaurant would still be serving hot food at 2pm and on being told yes, we set out on our journey. On arrival we were informed the Chef had gone home and all they could offer were cold sandwiches and cakes. Not only was my Sandwich cold, it was dry and unappetising with no butter or mayo. A slice of Cheese and Ham on dry unbuttered bread for almost £7! What a rip off. No fries or salad and when asked for the advertised chutney the staff didn’t know where it was? I’ll know what to do next time. Time to sort your food and customer service out here or lose customers! Shocking experience

Almost every day my partner and I go have breakfast in our favourite café-restaurant in the Folkestone Garden centre in Swingfield. We are always met with a friendly greeting and when ordering we like to make some changes and where possible they are met. Always correct and polite, I can’t fault this hardworking staff. Lately the garden centre suffers with staff shortage in the kitchen, this results in a limited menu some days. But they try their utmost to get you a nice meal. We are very easy, we are “Tell me what you got and we choose out of that limited menu”. We get pleasantly surprised choosing food we otherwise would not try, funny isn’t it. The food is fresh and tasty. We will keep coming, the staff and managers are great, we feel a bit like family. And about the staff shortage, that will work out.

Having heard about some recent negative reviews about one of our favourite places to visit, I felt I had to add a review to redress the balance. We have been regular visitors to the Garden Centre and particularly the restaurant, since it opened around 6 years ago. As long as the law allowed, the GC and restaurant remained open and always welcoming. The menu in the restaurant is wide and varied and you can enjoy a different delicious meal every day of the Month! Along with almost every business (and particularly those in the hospitality business) the restaurant has struggled in the last few weeks to find and retain staff, and this may have resulted in negative reviews, but this can be devastating for the loyal and hard-working staff that remain. During these difficult times, they continue to strive to provide the best service while continuing to consider the welfare of staff. We’re fussy Customers, and we don’t keep returning to places that offer bad service. We continue to return to Folkestone Garden Centre and the restaurant almost daily, because even at their worst, they strive to be the best. We are confident they will get back to full strength, and in the meantime, we will continue to support them. And if we have an issue, we will tell THEM and give them a chance to fix it before leaving a negative review. Thank you to all the lovely people at Folkestone Garden Centre and Groves Restaurant for your support and great service through thick and thin, through the bad times and the good. Keep up the great work.

Used to go couple times a week as was lovely atmosphere very friendly staff.but last 2 visit no cook meals.the good managers and some staff have left so will not be going again whuch is such a shame as the good management and friendly staff you can have a bit of a joke which made it an enjoyable visit.shall miss it.

Good garden centre and very nice restaurant!

Mazing place to be and so friendly and the food was good as they did also gluten free food for me .

A company who cannot be bothered to answer their phone doesn't deserve my business.

Very nice garden centre. They have a nice cafe thats worth a visit. When i was there they were doing buy one get one free on several breakfasts

Lunch and shopping, good quality and well cooked food. Lovely staff, and fabulous things to buy in the garden centre, well worth a visit

Dublcheck Cleaning Services Ltd (EAST KENT) visited here. Very friendly and well informed staff which helps set itself apart from the DIY stores. Although the car park was very full and the centre was busy there were 4 open tills that meant queuing was only 1-2 minutes. I trollied around and bought 12 bags of compost and the cashier was happy to remind me that I should of gone to the till to pay for the items and then collected them from the car park so as to save me struggling around the store pushing a very heavy trolley. Very happy to recommend a visit.

Great selection of plants and lovely cafe and very helpful staff.

Good selection well laid out but a bit overpriced in my view

Lovely time nice coffee and crumpets sitting outside. Git my bird table very happy. Only thought had to wait a long time to get help to lift it. But when I did the man was very helpful and loaded it in my car for me .

Good prices and a variety of stock, whether you are looking for the garden (planting and landscaping), outdoor clothing or gifts. I really like it here and you can also pop in for a coffee or snack if you don't want to shop. Definitely recommend a visit

Lots to see and buy, bit pricey

It is pleasent place with a good restaurant plenty of parking.

Excellent garden centre it also has a cafe but we didn't try it so cannot comment on this aspects of its operation

If you have 47 minutes to waste order something to eat and then wait and wait and wait 47 minutes after you will receive your order,can anyone beat this.

Fish was nice, batter nice and light but too greasy. “Newspaper “ went soggy.

Friendly staff in cafe, food good, would prefer more upright chairs

Great garden centre with very helpful staff. Will use and visit again

It was great fun for my kids before Christmas. Meeting Santa and looking out for elfs. We had nice hot chocolates and came out happy. Thank you.

Very well stocked for a wide of Christmas decorations and ideas for gifts.

Absolutely phenomenal staff who are caring and understanding after a very disappointing Santa experience, I gave feedback to the manager who was amazing! The staff and management are an absolute credit to the Garden Centre and are amongst the nicest I've ever dealt with

We took our Son and Daughter here today to see Santa and honestly was taken by surprise at how good it was, as we have never been here before. The Santa was amazing, took time to properly talk to my 3 year old and he was so funny 🤣 ALL the staff in the cafe absolutely lovely, even my 8 year old mentioned how nice they were, and the food was really tasty with big portions. Staff in the shop also really helpful and all so happy(maybe because it's nearly Christmas 🤣) we are looking forward to coming again in the new year to do some shopping as didnt have much time today and there are so many lovely items for home and garden... the Xmas decs were beautiful and a huge selection.

My asd son went to see santa, was fantastic with him

Great selection of gardening supplies. Brilliant shed section. Great Café, well recommended. Easy to find with a large parking area.

A place must go in this area. Breakfast, Brunch or Tea, shopping or gardening stuff all provide.

Friendly enough. But food dry .breakfast been under the hot lights too long , bacon like wood sausage like a broom handle so not good.

I was first the person to have the Christmas Dinner and it was lovely. Definitely worth a visit!

Cafe was busy, but didn't have to wait long. Food & service good. Garden centre staff helpful &good advice.

Brilliant place. I've just moved to Kent and have been here a few times now both to buy and to eat. This mornings visit was made special because although I didn't read the menu properly the team in the restaurant came to my aid and sorted what I needed. Great service ladies. The garden centre has very good stock levels, well cared for plants with plenty of choice. I bought yet another indoor plant! Tempted by a David Austin Rose next time. All in all a great place to spend a couple of hours

I decided to bring my autistic sister here as she loves seeing all the seasonal displays , flowers and sculptures. Plenty to see. First time at the cafe as it was closed when we visited here last year due to restrictions. Nice spacious place and...

We walked to the garden centre from the Black Horse Camp Site. Easy walk along the footpath, very busy road with fast moving traffic. Garden centre doesn’t look much from the outside but inside the quality of the plants was excellent. All in good condition and well cared for. We had lunch in the cafe which was very well organised. Extremely clean and the food was good. Freshly cooked and well presented. Highly recommended.

Lovely experience, good prices. Reasonably priced cafe, good food

Staff give help and advice and plants fair value

Expensive plants and other products but nice cafe

Stock getting low but considering time of year acceptable, good food in cafe.