Gardener's Cottage Cafe in Redbridge

Great setting, great food and very helpful people. A really lovely place to sit, drink and eat.

Lovely choice of vegan cakes. So extremely happy to see a vegetarian and vegan cafe in Ilford. The owners are great and I hope they do well with their business. The quality and the price is value for money. I guess some people will be a bit put out because they can't have a bacon roll, but I am delighted that there isn't any.

This place has changed ownership & staff since November 2023. And no longer nice. The previous Uk owners kept it quiet they were going which is odd. The new ones are Asian and the place is sadly no longer an English cafe which is terrible. Bring back the original lot immediately as the place now muck.

Good range of food well prepared with pleasant staff all year round.

Lovely choice of hot and cold food and delicious cakes.

Very poor service Don't know how to make the drink you ask for

Great staff , friendly atmosphere and beautiful scenery . Highly recommend

Was really looking forward to lunch in the cafe as been many time previously and enjoyed but it has new owners now and the menu is now veggie only, which is fine but not what I wanted personally. So ended up leaving and eating elsewhere. New staff seemed friendly though and will still use for cakes and drinks, but I have to admit I am a little disappointed the menu has changed as was lovely having lunch there previously.

Nice seating area but cafe too expensive I think but I guess dat normal with cafe prices

I took all my staff here for chistmas we all loved the food and lovely staff which welcomed us at the door. cinnamon buns was yum yum and the coffee was exquisite. we will come back again

The Gardeners Cottage Cafe is a small but atmospheric cafe situated in a very nice park. I ordered a hot chocolate and a margherita toastie. Service was quick and attentive. The toastie was extremely nice, with a good rich tomato sauce. Both Cashier and staff were friendly and smiley throughout my time there. Highly recommend to those in Valentines Park or the surrounding area!

The new look Garden Cafe comes across as very inviting, with much more inside seating area than previously. The food is tasty and exclusively vegetarian. The jacket potatoes were let down by being warm, certainly not hot even enough to melt the cheese. I cannot comment on the desserts as there was a limited range of cake available when we visited (early Jan 2024).

Small cosy cafe. Great selection of cakes. Lovely service

Perfect place for a oat cappuccino and a slice of vegan cake. Lovely walled garden and surroundings who would think you are in East London. Friendly staff.

The new owners have blown me away with their friendly customer service. The food selection is tasty, they have many vegan options which are delicious and the vegan hot chocolate is a lovely dark rich chocolate. Lovely place to have lunch after a walk in the lovely Valentines Park.

Really lovely cafe with lots of options- the new management have been so friendly too. My son (2 years old) and I go often for lunch.

Beautiful cafe opposite Valentine"s Mansion with outdoor seating. Very friendly staff members and quality food. Highly recommended!

Very friendly staff and enjoyed the park beautiful day out with my family. Recommend you try the mocha. My dog also loved his dog treats very dog friendly place.

Lovely pumkin spic bun treat here at valentines park.

Often drop by for lunch on a Saturday. Menu is limited - jackets, ploughman etc but tasty. Coffee is very nice

This cafe is situated in Valentines Park in Ilford. There are so many things you can do in this park. The Gardeners Cottage Cafe is just one of many. If you visit take the time to visit this little cafe tucked away.

Small cafe in Valentines Park up near Cranbrook House in a pleasant setting with nice sandwiches, cakes and drinks.

Lovely cafe within walled garden. Beautifully situated within Valentines Park. Plenty of choice on the menu and reasonably priced. Helpful friendly staff.

As I just entered the café I was asked to move (excuse me) by a staff member. I literally just got in the doorway! As I left, the same staff member asked me to move (excuse me) again!

Lovely little place where I like to take mum. She enjoys sitting out and listening to the bird song on beautiful days

Sitting in The seating area outside is beautiful,birds singing,it's a dog friendly place. Really is a 5 star place to visit,food is fresh,staff are so lovely.

Lovely location. Not too busy. Very good capucchino and hot chocolate. Enjoyed both the carrot cake and toasted tea cake. Friendly and helpful staff. Reasonable prices. Very relaxing and enjoyable.

Called in for some coffee and cake, both were lovely, staff were cheerful despite it raining outside. Reasonably priced menu, will definitely go again.

Lovely cafe in a lovely setting with lovely people and lovely food. It's a gem 💎

Always a great place for refreshments when in Valentines Park.

Long time since I was last there, I thought the walled garden cafe had flowers in the beds. Not anymore, its been abandoned so it seems. The cafe itself was fine, nice staff and the coffee wasn't bad either. All in all was a bit disappointing as far as the ambience was concerned.

Beautiful setting for a coffee.

Always good to go to The Gardeners Cafe. In a group or alone. Food and drink both very good.

Love this place. Set in the historic walled Garden and they even have live music on occasion.

Great place for jacket potatoes and finding out about current shows

Love coming here and sitting outside having a drink or a snack. Dogs welcomed. Nearby car park.

Nice location for a café, especially on a warm day in the park. Staff are friendly and prompt. Didn’t try the main food but I did opt for a bakewell slice and some ice cream. The slice was delicious and the ice cream was fine without being spectacular. They have soft ice cream options too. Pricing of the items are bit on the expensive side though. Nonetheless, for a quick snack whilst enjoying the park this is a nice little spot.

Good food and excellent service.

Found this lovely cafe near Gants Hill and had a lovely afternoon meal! A yummy homemade vegan chilli jacket potato and large choice of toasties and paninis. Nice coffee and great milky hot chocolate (not watery like some cafes). Beautiful relaxing outside seating in the sunshine with umbrellas if you prefer shade. Will definitey come again. Very friendly staff.

This is such a perfectly located cafe in Valentines Park but the food, drink and service is quite disappointing.

I’m from London and I love the London attitude. These people are plain rude. Lack of manners and no intelligence is a sorry combination. This is indeed a wonderful venue, so pleasant and calm, especially in the sunshine. It could be a real gem. Do try it- you might be lucky and come when the old lady in glasses has her day off!

I love this little cafe in Valentines park. Perfect for tea and cake. Cannot wait for the warm weather to go and visit again and sit outside. Family friendly. Really lucky to have this locally. Beautiful little cottage cafe and part of the mansion grounds and kept very well.

Amazing staff peaceful and quiet

Beautiful sunny day and a very relaxing open air cafe. Excellent coffee and lunch today thank you. Thoroughly recommended

Lovely little cottage cafe. Nice launches and tea, good ice-cream. Listed to music in the park Nice afternoon

Nice food and beautiful scenery.

This little cafe really is a hidden gem in the middle of Ilford. Tucked away within the courtyard at Valentines Park, it's very cute. Friendly staff and nice atmosphere. Treated my mum to lunch and we both really enjoyed our food, lovely cake too! I often stop in for a hot chocolate or an ice cream while walking around the park and will certainly visit for lunch again. The prices are good value too.

The Gardeners Cottage is like finding your magical happy place. It is situated in a beautiful setting within Valentine’s Park. The proprietor Charlie greets his customers with a smile and his staff are always polite and friendly. The cafe is always spotless and the coffee, lunch or tea are always well displayed and served. We enjoy delicious cakes, sandwiches, jacket potatoes etc etc. and even a cream tea there! All dogs are very welcome and even receive a treat! We always look forward to our regular walk in the park with a visit to our favourite cafe ! Cheryl

It is a lovely sheltered outdoor area with excellent range of coffees. Very peaceful spot to go with my elderly mum and she loves it there.

Great! Charlie and the team always so friendly. Fantastic in the summer the walled garden is a little oasis.

We visit Gardeners Cottage at least weekly through the summer and winter. We are always assured of a very friendly welcome by the owner and his staff. It is always spotless and the surrounding gardens perfectly kept. Our dog Charlie is not only welcomed, but also given dog treats there. Although a limited menu, it is always nicely displayed on the plate and well cooked. So nice to have also have good crockery and a teapot. This cafe is a wonderful part of our life and I couldn’t recommend it highly enough.

We are going for a walk to Valentines park everyday and buying an ice cream for our two children. Its such a hassle to buy an ice cream. You need to say which ice cream you need at the till, then you need to repeat it again to a person who served the ice cream, then he/she asks you again which one you need... Very disorganised. Makes me feel each time very AWKWARD. Staff never smile. Outside area very nice and spacious. But inside very narrow and small. Ice cream services need to be improved ASAP. If i could i would rate this cafe a Zero Star.

A lovely little oasis tucked away in Valentines Park. Coffee is good, the cakes are really good especially the carrot cake and they have gluten free options so my friend can get some cake too. It's one of our favourite spots in the area

The sandwiches are over priced, poor and uninteresting. Coffee and tea ok. Cakes ok . The setting is lovely. The food quality needs seriously up grading. My advice is dont eat the sandwiches, toasties or paninis!!!

Nice caffe inside beautiful valentines park

Good quality sandwiches and roast potatoes. Nice selection of cakes.

Quiet cafe hidden in Valentine's park. A rare gem.

Really brilliant.Nice and clean and not too busy. The cake we had was lovely!! Friendly staff, very relaxing there. Abit more expensive but sitting in the garden was wonderful.

Had a very enjoyable morning sitting in the courtyard with a cup of coffee and slice of cake. Wonderful!

I absolutely love The Gardener's Cottage Cafe, fab coffee and a great place to relax ❤

Food was OK but for the price the cabin cafe in the centre of the park is better. Racist/Rude staff member serving behind tills smiled and welcomed White customers but every brown or black customer got a dirty look and talked down. Seating area outside is really nice but only plus side.

The service here is always painfully slow. Nothing to do with Covid and queuing etc, they're just slow to process each order. Which I've never complained about because I do like coming to this beautiful place, but there really is no excuse for such awful coffee. My large cappuccino was more watery than the ornamental lake outside the cafe garden. I don't know if they skimped on the ground coffee or just reused the grounds from the previous brew but either way, this was worse than the coffee at the local beigel shop, which is a real achievement.

Such a great place and stunning.

An oasis in the east London suburbia. Nice place for lunch or afternoon tea. Mainly used by retirees but don't let that put you off

Very nice place and very food coffe

Nice setting & Cappacino was great but the cakes were a bit dry!!

Now this so stunning.great food.loved it here.

Nice seating area in court yard ... Helpful staff Nice tea/coffee sandwiches /cake

This is a lovely cafe to have lunch or afternoon tea

Lovely atmosphere to meet people

Lovely cafe in beautiful location, serving all you could want.

very nice snacks tea and coffee.

Lovely afternoon in the spring sunshine! Delicious cakes & kind, friendly service! Will return!🌻

Gorgeous setting in the walled gardens at Valentines Park, for cuppa and slice of cake, or ice cream if you prefer. Toilets nearby. Good for bird spotting.

Delightful toasted nibbles and fresh cream teas can be enjoyed within its walled surroundings with plenty of spaced seating on its raised flower beds free from the cooler breezes that frequent the pleasant surrounding gardens beyond!

lovely cafe in a beautiful setting..look forward to it opening up fully post covid for paninis cake and coffee!

Really wonderful cafe in the park - lovely coffee, amazing hot chocolate and a great selection of sandwiches and cakes too. We’ve been coming here for years and the owners are so friendly.

Nice even outside in walled garden

Great coffee and pleasant locatiion

Lovely little place a gem in Valentine's Park

Ilford's little corner of heaven! Quaint walled cafe set in the mansion area of valentine's park. Outside tables so dogs are welcome and Charlie always comes out with treats for them. Wholesome food and delicious homemade cakes - great for breakfast, brunch, lunch, elevenses etc.

A wonderful oasis to stop by of you are in the area, we go there regularly, but the only thing stopping a five star review is the coffee. As has been mentioned by a few previous reviewers it really needs attention. The blend is not great (or not well extracted), and the milk is heated to much. If they could improve this, I would be there every day. Perhaps Waynes Coffee down the road could give some tips ?

The Gardener's Cottage Cafe is a good place to stop if you're visiting Valentines Park and/or the mansion. Nice coffee and a good selection of cakes and nibbles. The setting is also very nice in the summer months.

When walking in the park this is a nice place to go and have lunch or a snack. It’s nice to go there in the summer when you can sit outside, which you can also do in the winter months if it’s dry and not too cold. When I have eaten there I have had either their jacket potatoes with cheese or beans or a toasted ham and cheese sandwich and / or one of their cakes (they do really good carrot cake). Drinks wise I have had either soft drinks when it’s warm or peppermint tea in the cooler months. The place is very clean and welcoming – there’s not too much space to sit indoors during the winter months, but it is good if you can get a seat. My last visit was in November after going walking in the park and going to the Christmas Fair in the mansion and on this visit I had a warming peppermint tea and a piece of carrot cake.

Always greet u with a smile and give dog treats

Locația se află în partea periferică a superbului parc Valentines,(parc ce se întinde pe o suprafață de 50 de hectare, din zona 4 a Londrei); cafeneaua se află practic într-o grădină închisă cu ziduri mari de cărămidă și multă vegetație, care face legătura cu alte 2 grădini închise bine îngrijite și amenajate cu bănci,este un loc unde poți avea multă liniște și intimitate pentru meditație și introspecție, lectură etc; însă locația își împlinește menirea mai mult în sezonul cald (15iunie-10 octombrie), deoarece practic este o grădină de vară,în apropiere se află și o parte amenajată a unui lac al parcului,unde aveți posibilitatea să vedeți pe viu,lebede, rațe și gâște sălbatice! Într-un cuvânt atât aceasta cafenea cat mai ales întregul parc reprezintă o oază de liniște și recreere intr-o zonă destul de aglomerata a zonei 4 din Londra! Dacă aveți puțin timp,nu ezitați să vizitați tot parcul,nu ve-ti regreta!

An untapped gem in Valentine's Park. Food well cooked. Staff were friendly and helpful. Food well priced. A good place to stop for lunch or just a cup of tea. Will definitely go back.

The place to visit on a nice sunny day ... when you fancy a light lunch ... or cream tea ... in a beautiful corner of Valentine's Park

Very nice and quiet cafe. You have a variety of cakes and sandwiches. The staff is nice and friendly.

We wife asked for and bought 2 skinny Cappuccinos. She carried the drinks to the table. We started to drink them and it was like drinking hot milk. Very pleasant place to sit.

Love this little cafe in Valentine’s park.

Very cozy and well maintained garden, with plenty of seating available. Felt like being on the set of game of thrones.

Nice to sit outside. Homemade produce is always on the menu.

I love this cafe. Sitting outside on a sunny day - whatever the time of year - can't think of a nicer place to be.

Previously gave 2 stars as never been the best laid cafes, in fact it is really Ill thought out, the entrance doors are rubbish and if you get a self centred woman in their moaning it is "cold" cos the doors are open so you can get through with a tray without knocking it out your hand asking to close it instead of moving to another table inside away from the doorway, place has lost any charm, poor and expensive choice of food, the cafe in hainault forest has a better selection on offer and that isn't much bigger. Avoid at all costs

Lovely place to eat and drink. Visit often before and after walking.

Love the place. Wonderful spot so relaxing for a break.

Fancy a quiet coffee and a light snack while enjoying one of the best parks in London? This little gem tucked away in the corner of the park, with its outside seating in a period walled garden setting is ideal.

Relaxing, good food and coffee, would recommend.

Lovely balmy sunny day Sptember 25 degrees. Great location to pop into.if in the area or out for a walk in the Park Being within The Victorian walled garden makes it a picturesque spot . However they should get the basics right- being a cafe and work on their team barista - coffee skills and quality. Worst coffee i've come across in a while. Over extracted , very bitter ( maybe a lot of Robusto in the blend) - suggesting coffee bean grinder blades need checking, water filter needs replacing ? machine hasnt been cleaned properly or maybe just the blend? Also you dont need to boil the milk to nuclear hot! only blood temperature . wanted a flat white , got a 14oz latte , twice ! (asked for first to be changed) and was told thats how it is... i can assure you it isnt. I'm always looking for great little independent coffee spots around east London . my current go-to that you can compare with, would be Butlers retreat, Epping Forest I only write this as advise . ti would be great if they can improve on this and i'd be back all the time