Hampstead Norreys Community Shop in West Berkshire

What a lovely place. We found this cafe and community shop after walking the old railway line pathway from Hermitage. A warm welcome, lovely atmosphere and great coffee. What a lovely place and want an asset for the village.

This is our second time visiting, and unfortunately a second really negative experience. The staff here are exceptionally rude, patronising and abrupt. It’s a real shame as the food and location of the cafe are both excellent, but not good enough to undo such horrible attitudes. The nastiness seems to come from just one individual (the manager I believe), so time your visit when she’s not around and you’ll be fine!

Frosty welcome at HNCS today, friends had ordered hot food from the kitchen, we were advised upon our arrival that the kitchen was shut! Unfriendly management, cake and coffee was okay, but staff need to work on their customer interaction skills

We tried to come here for a hot drink after walking our dog in the local area. I popped in to ask whether they were dog friendly first, to which I was told, “Yes, but they aren’t allowed in here.” I replied that I was happy to leave the dog in the car or sit outside and went to meet my husband and dog. However, upon turning to leave the shop, I heard the member of staff mocking me with her colleagues, even imitating my voice when asking about being dog friendly. We decided not to visit the café after this interaction.

Delicious Vegan brunch (from 2 non-vegans!). Well stocked and tidy village shop. Friendly staff. Healthy plants for sale. Will be bringing my 96 year old aunt again.

We called in for lunch on route to The Living Rainforest, what a find! This beautiful shop is stocked full of local produce and its cafe offers delicious homemade cakes, pastries etc. As a group of 6 we sampled the ciabatta’s toastie, ploughman’s, bacon and sausage sandwiches, sausage rolls and Scot eggs - all of which were well presented and delicious. Next time we are in the area it is certainly worth a drive to come back here. Run by really friendly staff - it was a pleasure to visit.

Two of visited this café. Theres a good selection of home made snacks. We opted for bacon/sausage sandwiches which were freshly cooked and tasted great. Followed by cake- the brownies were very tasty. The coffee here is excellent and the service very friendly. One could ask for no more in a café

4 rashers of bacon in a nice fresh roll, great location, outside seating which will be great in summer, overall fantastic!

A lovely community shop that I am sure everyone in the village is very proud of. A wide range of lovely produce. The staff were very friendly. We were unlucky there were no sandwiches to go available today. However when I ordered a coffee to take away it took ages, then it was eventually delivered to a table in to be consumed in the cafe, then repoured into a takeaway carton, and after all that, when I finally had it to go, it was the wrong coffee. So lovely as it is, I might think twice about calling in again. (Also, the whole place seems to be rammed with cyclists, one of whom bumped into the side of my car.)

Breakfast with my wife after dropping daughter at The Downs school. Full English with Halloumi substituted for eggs and eggs Benedict between the two of us. Freshly cooked and presented beautifully, a fantastic resource in this little village shop staffed by enthusiastic and cheerful people. If you have no room left, take some cake away with you, you won’t want to miss out.

Lovely friendly helpful people. Lots of great fresh produce. Local foods and beers/ ciders to be tried. Healthy interesting plants and flowers to purchase. Great coffee and cakes .. nothing to dislike.

Just had a wonderful lunch at HN community shop. Great coffee too. Lewis made a stunning Eggs Benedict (see attached photo) really yummy!

We visited Hampstead Norreys Community Shop for lunch prior to a walk. It is the perfect place to stop off before or after a walk or cycle ride on the old railway path between the village and Hermitage. Our very generous serving of tomato and basil soup was piping hot and delicious - home-made, well seasoned and full of flavour. It was accompanied by three thick slices of country-style brown bread - just what we needed on a winter's day! Full marks to the chef.

I've been going to the community shop cafe for many years and while the food and service has occasionally been a bit chaotic, it's generally been good and has been worth the lengthy drive to get there. After today's visit though, I don't think I'll bother again and I'll stick with somewhere more local. Our order wasn't correct and had to be sent back. And tbh, it wasn't great when it was right. The chef has changed since my last visit, which might explain it, or the supplier may have changed, maybe? Whatever the reason, I left half of my food as I just didn't like it. I've had the same order many times previously and it's always been really nice. What was really off putting was having to listen to one particular staff member loudly bickering with other staff members. They were being very aggressive and patronising to a new staff member who was learning how to use the coffee machine and it was very uncomfortable hearing how they were spoken to. I've been served by this particular member of staff in the past and they've always been surly and not great at taking orders correctly, but they were really off putting today. I did try to talk to two of the staff about the food and the lack of cleaning in the toilets. One was very professional and listened to my comments, which was appreciated. The other one was the staff member above... They said that it was all me, I was wrong about everything and then they turned their back on me and walked away while I was still talking to them. It's their poor attitude towards customers rather than the poor food experience that will stop me from going back there. And I'm not the only one, having spoken to several friends about them.

We have often used this community shop & its cafe for occasional shopping & refreshment but during lockdown when we couldn't get home delivery from any supermarket we started doing our weekly shop there. I e mailed a list, paid over the phone & although they would have delivered,I collected my order which was brought out to me in the car park. Feeling like a treat one week I ordered a magazine & some chocolate - neither were in stock but someone actually went out & sourced Both items elsewhere! Personal service that cheered me up during strange times. A big thank you to everyone at the shop but particularly Mandy & Trish. Dini Hunt

The shop & cafe are fantastic. The shop has lots of provisions. The cafe is great with plenty of outside seating and good interent coverage to do some work. The Chef is a legend and will go the extra mile to look after you. It's well worth a visit if you are in the area. Delicious, clean and frendly.

We lived in Newbury and moved away for a few years only to return last year. We where asked to do a popup stall at the community store for a local producer. We didn’t even know that it even existed What a fabulous well run shop/cafe. Everyone who worked there where so friendly. I had a homemade sausage roll and it was delicious,just came out of the oven. Unlike a lot of places that just put it in the microwave and it goes all soggy. And my partner is a barista so is a coffee snob,she really doesn’t like poor coffee,and she said what lovely coffee it was. We will definitely be back with family members another time. Keep up the good work Best wishes Shelley & Nathalie

We were passing through on a car journey looking for lunch. Stopped at what we thought would be a small local shop to find a wonderful cafe and very well stocked community store. The food in the cafe was delicious and plentiful. We didn’t sample the cakes but they looked amazing. Will definitely return as have already made plans to meet family there for lunch.

An amazingly well-stocked community shop in the lovely village of Hampstead Norreys. There isn't much you can't buy here! Great for breakfast, lunch or snack too......dare I say the best sausage rolls I have ever tasted!!

Went into here for a quick snack just before they closed. I asked for a tart (having checked the ingredients we're all vegetarian first) only to find in 2 mouthfuls that there was in fact bacon in the tart. It was rectified immediately but I felt that the apology came too late. I love this place but please ensure that you check that it is vegetarian with the chef unless the food is clearly labelled.Normally I have not had any problems here and will return for the freshly produced food. I will however, check with the chef if unsure of the ingredients!

Have never been here...can't comment at all on ambience , friendliness, service, or bu$#er all, but trip advisor informs me that I am in the top 25% of reviewers in Hampstead norreys! Weird...sure it's lovely (perhaps!) But hadn't even heard of it till trip advisor came up with it! (Rogue algorithm!?)

Popped in for lunch with friends and really enjoyed our visit.The food was very good: home - made quiche and salad and very tasty. There's also a good selection of cakes. My friends order didn't arrive at the same time as ours because it hadn't been put through to the kitchen, which was a bit of a shame though.Overall though, it's an interesting place to visit if you happen to be passing, to buy a few unusual goodies, stop for lunch or a cuppa and a cake. (And the very modern toilet is immaculate!)

Lovely cuppa. The shop sold nice local produce and a small range of essential items too. Staff were friendly.

Such a special place with very tasty food. A true community effort with some beautiful products. Outside and inside space.

This super friendly store is run by a few staff and mostly volunteers. They are all so helpful and friendly. The store sells everything from bakery items to wine, ice cream, veggies, stationary, local art and crafts, plants, frozen meats and locally made frozen meals. A bit of everything and all served with a smile! A delight to shop there!

Loved it. Friendly and cosy. Good food and loved the shop too, food and interesting paintings. Unique. Lovely outdoor area for better weather moments.

This shop is an example of how good things can be when done right. The community have come together and opened a lovely little shop, friendly professional staff are the cherry on the cake.

This café is largely run by volunteers and it shows - delicious home-made hot and cold dishes served with a smile. Good value. But the seating area indoors is very cramped, and on several visits our enjoyment has been spoiled by someone conducting business interviews and sales calls at adjacent tables, obviously they aren't successful enough to have an office so settle in at this community facility and expect others to endure their loud posturings. Oh dear. We check carefully before ordering now, and move somewhere else if the dreaded laptops and mobiles are in evidence.

An excellent place, very clean, service very good and friendly. Lovely items for sale in the shop including food items. Second time there and the last time was in summer so we sat outside which was great. Will definitely go again.

Don't bother going here the food is over priced and the staff are disinterested best to be avoided what more could be said apart from a waste of money

This tiny village didn't have a shop or a cafe,so they started their own ! The shop and cafe are mostly run by keen village volunteers .

Had lunch and was very impressed with the quality of the food. We had a red pepper/tomato ciabbata, a burger and jacket potato with beans and all was lovely. My 9 months old tasted chips for the first time as my husband and I genuinely thought they were the best chips we had ever had and we didn't want him to miss out!

Fabulous venture, friendly staff, great coffee and hearty breakfasts and kunches, can't recommend highly enough.

Very nice shop and café, excellent range and selection of goods in a small village, including some nice beers and wines. Slightly out of the way but very worth the effort.

This community-run shop carries a range of deli-style goods alongside staples such as bread, milk and so on. Also has an extensive cafe serving a range of food (including home-made cakes). Slightly hidden (but well signposted) off the main road, well worth popping in to.