Hill House Nursery in South Hams

The nursery looks lovely. This review is for the tea room. I have never left a bad review before but one of the staff members here was so unfriendly and unwelcoming that I felt compelled to do so. We would not return for this reason.

We visited on a Tuesday so unfortunately the little cafe wasn’t open but we didn’t mind because the main draw was the nursery itself. It’s a lovely nursery where it’s possible to see how the plants are propagated and raised for sale. There’s so much to look at. It’s defo not a garden centre full of stuff and bought-in annuals. You can wander around the greenhouses and even into the churchyard and church next door. The flower cutting garden is a treat. Very friendly and knowledgeable staff. If you’re a plant lover, go!

We went for a light lunch and a cake. The service was efficient, friendly and helpful. The cakes were homemade and really nice. Had a sandwich which they were happy to customise to our whims. Would recommend.

Love this nursery with the great little cafe. Best ploughman's lunch we have had for a long time. Fresh food, great service from friendly staff. The cakes look amazing, so coffee and cake on the next visit. Thank you all!

Not as good as on previous visits Jacket potato with prawns and salad. Potato and salad perfect Nice dressing on salad. Prawns most disappointing. Good quantity but very small prawns, little flavour, little dressing. If someone had come and asked if we were enjoying our meal answer would have been no . Sorry but you need to do better. Nursery excellent.

While the nursery is ok the tea room lacks somewhat. There was a lady running around sorting cakes but being quite inefficient. There was a young lad doing front of house all on his own and very slowly, once he'd finally realised we were waiting he continued washing teapots! Eventually got served and had to finish off making the sandwich myself, no butter! It wasn't anything special or like described on the menu. Then there was a pot of tea for three that was obviously pot for 2 and 3 non matching tiny cups. Overall it wasn't good value for money and could do with more staff.

One of the loveliest places to visit, just wonderful, we sadly didnt realise the tea room was closed the day we went so heading back there this week..the chapel and grounds are very special and the glass houses of the nursery amazing..birds nesting and flying around they have feeders and water but are free to fly whether inside or out..the plants are of excellent high quality and a great price..this is a hidden gem..staff are so informed and very helpful..

Great mature nursery.. very healthy plants and a nice little cafe.

Fantastic independent nursery. Great selection of plants that vary by year. Nice little cafè too.

Lovely civilised pot of tea in beautiful dog friendly gardens. The Bakewell cake slice was truly delicious (speaking as a cake expert here...) The plant nursery is also great for a wander around beforehand.

It is a lovely tea room, we had a cream tea the scones were gorgeous. I am gluten free and I have not had a scone like it they were beautiful and the cakes on the table looked so appetising.

Beautiful setting and great range of reasonably priced stock. An absolute gem!

Great place when you've found it. Food excellent and staff very helpful. Great visit looking forward to next one

The tea shop was lovely , best Victoria sponge I've ever had and very reasonably priced, the nursery itself was a little shabby, lots of plants that could do with more care. Very reasonably priced well established plants, but again a bit shabby.

Really lovely place. Well worth a visit. Good cafe with garden.

Lovely little spot in a beautiful nursery. We shared a slice of a huge piece of cake and a cheese scone, both very delicious.

Excellent selection of high quality plants. Staff are knowledgeable and very helpful. The tearoom is also very good indeed.

We received a pretty frosty welcome at the cafe.

Beautiful place, great food and really good prices.

This place is amazing! We found it accidentally on our way to something else.. . We couldn't find particular compost that we were after, but we left with car full of plans and herbs...The tea room is charming and tranquil

A gem of a place but well off the beaten track. Lots of more unusual plants at very reasonable prices. AND marvellous café with beautiful gardens to sit in...weather permitting. Well worth a visit!

One of our favourite nurseries. Always come away with some plants, a good selection of quality plants. The staff are friendly and helpful. Great tea room. Highly Recommended .

We popped in for cake with our toddler and newborn. The service was very friendly and welcoming. We were served huge pieces of cake and drinks very promptly.

We just love this place - and will be going again tomorrow. Such a unique hidden gem Wonderful gardens, fountains and the most enormous cakes you have ever seen - a very special place!

If you never been to this nursery go it garden is so peaceful seating down with a lovely cup of tea from there delightful cafe, then stroll round the greenhouses to buy some plants 🪴 reasonably priced plants go on treat yourself

Hill House Nursery is one of my favourite places to visit! The glass houses are amazing with birds flying around. With it being a Nursey the plants are a very good price.

Really great independent nursery, very friendly staff, beautiful and healthy plants. Reasonably accessible for wheelchair users, some areas are uneven due to the aged paths but still manageable.

Beautiful selection of plants, beautiful setting. Nothing nicer than being sat watching the local birds stopping at your feet, whilst enjoying tea and yummy cake, lovely.

Lots of unusual plants at a good price. Ample parking. You can hand pick flowers from the Cutting garden. Great tea shop.

Off-putting staff member. Our recent visit with children was nothing like the one we had a few years ago. It seemed like one female staff member (from the gardening centre) just didn't like our children - and others - ringing the big bell in the zen garden. This is a pity as children are inquisitive by nature and the gardens are very beautiful and inspirational to all ages. Shame on the woman for taking it upon herself to give a brash public undress to our seven yr old - she might have been better off playing a certain character in 'Matilda' with her attitude, than mixing with the general public at this peaceful garden centre and tea room. Disheartened, we won't be returning and will save our money to buy plants elsewhere. The staff at Hill House should be trained for dignity and respect as some are getting out of touch...

A nursery, not a garden centre, so don't expect it to look like those big plant supermarkets. Every area contains joyful surprises, however. Unusual plants, massive climbers that have settled into permanent homes up to the roof of the glass houses. A superb setting and possibly the best tea room around. All this and a cutting garden - select your own flowers, choosing between some, quite a few and loads. You will not find bouquets like this in a supermarket. I totally recommend Hill House Nurseries!

Beautiful garden and wow what a tea room

Great plants at reasonable prices. Excellent cafe!

Beautiful nursery, you can't get better quality plants, very friendly and helpful staff. Also the best scones.

Ample parking, lots of quality plants and Cake to die for 👌

Excellent range of plants and very knowledgeable staff. Huges cakes in cafe. A must visit.

Lovely little nursery, reasonable prices and interesting plants, love the hot houses.

Very good cakes and a nice place to go to. And friendly service

The Nursery cafe is closed on Mondays. There web-site states the cafe is open 7 days a week this is incorrect.

As always it's a delightful experience visiting the nursery. A great selection of many different types of plants etc. The cafe is fantastic as well.

A brilliant botanical garden presented as a nursery. All sorts of unusual plants in big greenhouses with attendant semi-tame sparrows. The cafe is comfortable with the biggest slices of cake that I have ever seen. The only downside is that all the approach roads are narrow and proficiency in reversing long distances multiple times is needed.

First of all I write this as a warning...the cake portions are bloody massive, you will not be disappointed. We tried approx 6 different cakes and each piece was just as tasty as the last, it was hard to pick a favourite. The cheese scone was delicious also. The talented baker/server in the name Pauline I think was a great host, very welcoming and funny and she really couldn't do enough for us. The tea cups and saucers readily laid on tables were adorable. All in all it was a superb visit and we look forward to returning. PS. We're still full.

Excellent plants. Lovely to find an old fashioned plant nursery

Cutting garden is a great day out on a sunny afternoon!

Helpful staff.. lovely place to visit. Cafe food excellent.

Nice garden good service and nice food Visit the nursery and then treat yourself to lunch Salads are very good and generous

The slices of cake are big enough to share

I visited with family & friends this afternoon, for tea and cake. We enjoyed the pretty tea garden setting and the nursery is lovely. However, the mature woman taking orders at the till is incredibly unwelcoming and brusque. It seems customers are perhaps an irritant rather than the lifeblood of the business. I see from other reviews here and on Google that I am far from the first person to experience her this way. It is very interesting to notice also that the business responds to most of the critical reviews with counter-criticism of the customer rather than a gentle apology. We were too scared to ask for butter for the scones and she frightened my young child when he momentarily couldn’t see the rest of his party as he explored the garden and took a different turn, and asked her if she’d seen us. He tells me she just said ‘no’ abruptly and walked off. Great safeguarding! If a cross between Aunt Spiker (James and the Giant Peach) and Basil Fawlty is the aim then the performance is spot on.

Beautiful gardens. Had a lovely afternoon picking flowers. Staff were friendly apart from the cashier with the bad attitude who made me feel very unwelcome while ordering a cream tea.

Lovely setting, delicious cakes and some unusual plants make this a great place for an enjoyable afternoon.

Always lovely.😍. Good choice of plants at reasonable prices, with some unusual ones as well. If course can't go there without coffee & fabulous cake..be prepared, you're given a " proper " slice not a taster !!!

Just love this place the sounds smells and colour and peace of it all, oh and can't leave without indulging in a plant!

Beautiful place, knowledgeable staff, great service in both nursery and the delightful tea rooms.

Lovely friendly garden centre beautiful plants and a delightful tearoom

Great plants, reasonable prices. Lovely setting. A great place to visit

I have visited Hill House nursery tea room many times and always been happy with cakes, lunches and more. However on Sunday the 20th June the scones were the worst I’ve ever had, they tasted salty and crumbled away, very disappointing!

Delightful place to be. Friendly, knowledgeable staff, great range of plants and the coffee and cake was great as well. Top stuff

Beautiful plants and honest gentle people.

Beautiful place to choose from the range of unusual plants, and a great café serving huge slices of cake!

Really good quality plants, some more unusual plants available at great prices

Love it here. Cafe is brilliant, gardens are beautiful, always leave with more than planned...

Great choice of plants. We bought two beautiful hanging baskets full of geraniums, can't wait to pick them up in a week or so. They will look wonderful hanging either side of our front door.

Very good plant nursery with a tea room

Great plants and lots of lovely things for any garden. Very helpful staff too.

Great selection of plants. Marvelous cakes.

Fabulous country gardens, 5 star homemade cakes - an enjoyable visit guaranteed.

Been going here every spring for the past 20 years. Need I say more?

Lovely nursery. Very reasonably priced plants.

Beautiful setting with plants to buy and lovely food and drinks from tea house.

Amazing tea rooms best cakes and flans in Devon, very nice staff especially a lady called Pauline you must give it a try if your in devon,plants are good as well.

Proper nursery not a garden centre lots of different plants and excellent little cafe a real little gem

Wow! First visit here but really impressed. Great selection of quality plants and a lot of unusual varieties. Nice atmosphere about the place too and the coffee shop and eaterie looked good too. Will definitely be back.

What an absolute gem of a place, more than you would ever expect of an English garden nursery, always a pleasure to visit.

Excellent nursery selling good quality plants, shrubs, trees etc.

A absolutely fantastic privately owned and family run nursery set in the heart of South Devon beautiful countryside. We here at Green Box Gardens Devon use Hill House Nursery for 98% of our plants etc. Great personal service with an abundance of good quality stock, and if they haven't got it they can get it. Not to mention the cafe that is usually open when we aren't in a situation like the covid one at the moment. I must admit I have been known to take a long time collecting plants 😉. If you haven't visited Hill House Nursery yet, then your missing out on something very special.. Matthew Heath owner Green Box Gardens Devon

It's a really fantastic nursery with a great selection of plants, including unusual plants and conservatory plants. Plus they have a nice café

Hill House is a magical place that if she was alive, Enid Blyton would have created stories about. Lisa x

We spent a delightful time, picking flowers of every kind and variety in the garden. Wandered around the greenhouses and the beautiful old Church. Then enjoyed the most delicious cake with tea in the charming cafe. Loved it.

Peaceful. Lovely plants and staff and tasty lunch.

Lovely old fashioned garden centre. Such character. Fabulous tea rooms and garden. Pick your own flowers from the garden. Well worth a visit.

Beautiful surroundings, tea rooms are amazing!! We had the most delicious home made lunch and my oh my I had to buy some cakes to take home. They even catered for my vegan sister. Lovely staff, nice atmosphere, stunning food and view. Great day It's a must! I dont review very often but I'm definitely going back for more 5* food

Hill house nursery, we had a wonderful lunch,and very pleasant staff could not do enough for us, cakes was wonderful, nursery was good selection thank you.

This place is a real treasure. The cake selection was incredible and so delicious. The lady who makes the cakes was really nice and welcoming too. I only wish I lived closer as I would definitely make a weekly visit. If you go I recommend the Scones (best I've ever had) and Victoria sponge cake! Reasonable pricing too.

Absolutely beautiful surroundings, the tea room is lovely! great staff, and wonderful cakes and temptations. we had a a great day and brought lots of delicious treats to take home. Highly recommend a visit Delicious food Beautiful place What's not to love

Awesome food, we had the Coffee, Chocolate and Walnut cake and loved it! The staff were lovely and so welcoming, couldn't recommend enough!

Me and my friend came here for a bite to eat and a coffee and it was lovely! The staff were super friendly - will definitely be returning when I am back in the area!

Saw a sign to this place and thought we’d give it a try. Lovely traditional tea room deep in the countryside. Generous portion sizes. Cakes looked home made and amazing (which is rare to find). Service was great and staff welcoming. Tables well spaced to maintain social distancing too. Service wise - thought it was great. Very welcoming, friendly and up for a chat. Don’t know where some of the comments on here about rudeness etc have come from as did not experience that at all.

Always a good mix of unusual plants and an interesting garden to admire. Huge slice of cake and tea in the garden it's a treat,we absolutely love this place.

Visited as a family this morning for our first time flower cutting, we were greeted by a lovely lady who explained the process. Spent an hour in the garden, very peaceful and enjoyable, so much variety of flowers to choose from. Then we went for some coffee and cake in the tea room where we were served by a very helpful and kind lady who took our order promptly. Overall it was a really nice experience and such good value for money, couldn’t fault it, will definitely be back. P.s I had the lemon cake and it was delicious!

Had a wonderful time picking our own flowers, dog friendly nice little cafe. Everyone was at the beach so it was really quiet calm and pleasant today.

We live in the area and I visit the nursery often, it’s so beautiful. However, this time we went to the tea room for cake and tea after a lunch out. Think twice if you do this. The female member of staff (mature in age but not in attitude) who served us is the rudest person I have ever met, patronising and brusque. We nearly walked out. She was so rude it was gobsmacking to be honest. Hill House do yourself a big favour and get rid of this staff member. This review also went on to Trip Advisor a few days ago and the Nursery response was as rude as the visit, insinuating I and my friends were ‘hooray Henry’s’. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Gobsmacking. Last time I’ll visit, even the Nursery, which is such a shame.

We visited Hill house for tea and cake with friends. It was 1545 on Saturday but there were quite afew large pieces of cake left which we were pleased about and excited to share. However our excitement quickly turned into disappointment by a rather unfriendly lady behind the till who was clearly put out by our presence. She was rude and argumentative and made us feel very uncomfortable. She seemed unable to use logic and common sense to split said cakes between the six of us. Suffice to say the exchange was much more difficult than tea and cake needs to be. What should’ve been a pleasant experience very quickly and unfortunately turned in to a never again event. The nursery is lovely but there are better and much friendlier places to eat locally.

We only live up the road but despite having shopped at the lovely nursery many times, had never been for a cuppa and some cake at the cafe. What an amazing experience. The miserable old woman who eventually appeared was so rude that i initially thought it was an act which would suddenly turn into a smile and humour, boy was i wrong. If anything she got worse. Stay away people, its not worth the trip. My friends were amazed too when it became their turn to be insulted. Sack this old goat, she’ll ruin your business

We live in the area and I visit the nursery often, it’s so beautiful. However, this time we went for cake and tea after a lunch out. Think twice if you do this. The female member of staff (mature in age but not in attitude) who served us is the rudest person I have ever met, patronising and brusque. We nearly walked out. She was so rude it was gobsmacking to be honest. Hill House do yourself a big favour and get rid of this staff member. I can see other reviews on here complaining about the same person. You’ve lost local clientele.

One of the best plant nursery in the southwest. Extremely diverse choice of plants with reasonable prices. If you are new to the area, you will need a good satnav as the place is tucked away in a small village.

So pleased it is open again. Good selection of plants.

A purveyor of an excellent range of good quality plants - no garden furniture, tools, bbq's or plastic frogs. Knowledgeable staff. A true delight for gardeners.

Wonderful nursery. Well adapted for today's social distancing. Friendly & helpful staff. Had everything we wanted - and more!

Always helpful and wonderfully warm and welcoming! An excellent array of plants and trees.

A proper nursery. You won't find cuddly toys and other tat here. Interesting range of antique garden items however.