Iford Manor Cafe & Kitchen in Wiltshire

Beautiful surroundings but that’s where it ends. Very poor service,limited choice, sandwich filled to point you couldn’t eat it,flapjack not cooked,asked for water twice never appeared,staff too busy on their phones. Been here before and it’s consistently bad .What a shame

This is a very civilised place. And beautiful in the sun. But not at all easy to find... which is part of the charm. With its Peto Gardens and music festival, like a mini-Glyndborne, the 'prom recitals' on the Archery Field with picnic baskets, its shady car park on the banks of the River Frome complete wih kingfishers and dog-walkers, it is a gem to have on one's doorstep just six miles south of Bath. The monthly Supper Evenings are a cult locally, while Pizza Night is mostly family parties. The restaurant, with its sunny terrace, was our choice today while, below, the cafe terrace was also busy with dog-walkers enjoying catchup with friends. We chose the 'prix fixe' 3-course Lunch with amuses bouches and petit fours. It was good - and good value for £30. A lighter touch, from the cafe menu, about £10-15. Chef de cuisine Derbyshire Matt and his lady ensures the cooking, William provides the produce from the estate or locally, and local teenagers provide the service. There's a rather special cottage ( sometimes ) available which would be suitable for a family but, living nearby, we cannot comment. Choose your weather....

On a sunny day in any season, this cafe is a lovely place to relax, inside or outside, surrounded by trees, flowers and old stone buildings. Unfortunately the food does not live up to the surroundings and is very overpriced for what it is. For an October weekend lunch, my friends and I ordered 'seasonal' soup of the day (wild garlic (out of season!), leek and potato) and the cauliflower, potato and cheese frittata with seasonal salad and house chutney. The soup (£8) was watery and tasteless. 'I can make this soup much better,' said my friend. On the plus side, she said the bread was lovely. As for the frittata, along with finding it hard to find any trace of cauliflower, it resembled a small cheesy souffle rather than a frittata, and was the size of a child's portion despite costing £12. The woman who served us was very friendly and lovely, bringing us out cushions and blankets. But we waited far too long between getting the soup and getting the frittata. The explanation was that the frittata was 'made to order,' which I found hard to believe. Anyway I won't be lunching here again. I'll stick to coffee or a beer and simply enjoy the location.

Just returned from a wonderful Sunday lunch with thirteen of our family to celebrate my husband’s 80th birthday. Food and staff exceptional. Beautiful setting with a lovely relaxed atmosphere. Thank you Iford for making very special memories for us all!

As someone who knows that there is a cafe/restaurant here I feel guilty for not having visited before and rather silly wasting time in not doing so. A party of 13 descended for a Sunday lunch that will be fondly remembered until our next visit. A lovely welcome from William and Suzanna; a beautifully presented room; comfortable and fun. The beef and chicken roast was simply brilliant. The chef and his colleagues presented the roasts with aplomb and explanation of their provenance. The food was carved and then plated so that everyone could share whilst plate after plate of roasted vegetables, beef marrow bones, jus for both chicken and beef were served. It was magnificent! Huge Yorkshire puddings, whole roasted cauliflower, just wonderful. Genuinely the best roast I have ever eaten, all of us were seriously impressed with the quality and quantity of food. A fab wine list, cocktails, mocktails, bin ends all lovely. The cheese boards were passed around and commented on as were the multiple apple tart tatins; agin the best I have ever experienced for originality, taste and quantity. This isn’t a “cheap” Sunday roast; it’s been thought about, planned and is delivered beautifully. The left overs were boxed up and enjoyed the next day, there wasn’t an ounce of waste. The service throughout was on point. Professional, friendly; exactly what it should be. I love this place and will be back as soon as I possibly can. Thanks you Iford Kitchen for a super time.

Simply a perfect lunch. Delightful welcome and service and a delicious lunch in a very pretty dining room. It was my daughter’s birthday and it ticked every box for us. We’ll certainly be back soon as my idea of eating out is to be in the beauty of the countryside in a relaxed and charming restaurant - that’s Iford for you.

Beautiful setting, but be prepared for a long wait to be served. We balked at £10 for a sausage roll, and opted for Margarita pizza, which was by some distance the worst pizza experience either of us could remember. Basically a slab of half burned dough with a smear of tomato paste and melted mozzarella.

We had a wonderful lunch here and the restaurant is beautifully decorated. The food was really really good, we even went back the next day! Service was slow but they told us that and we weren’t in a rush. The staff were lovely very helpful and attentive. The only let down is the walk outside to the horrible toilets it just doesn’t match the restaurant. Shame no discount for the gardens after eating at the restaurant.

Beautiful setting, beautiful sunny day, sitting outside it should have been perfect. But the food was not good, the ham filled baguette was dry, not buttered and very thick with not a lot of filling. We then had a very dry sponge brownie which just crumbled. The food took along time to arrive, but they did apologise. We were very disappointed as the location was wonderful, and I had seen it in the Waitrose Weekend paper.

This was the 5th or 6th time we've been to the restaurant. Setting is stunning, the staff are really great and the owner's enthusiasm makes you really want the restaurant to be a huge success. However the quality of the food leaves a bit to be desired. The fish stew I had was basic and not very well prepared ( skin left on the fish, unappetising mussels ) and the beef rissole became a chore to get through as it was dense and lacked dynamic. My wife had the chicken main which was very nice but over-done on the seed garnish. It just seems that the kitchen here deserves a better qualified chef as the cooking mistakes are quite basic and clumsy - not on all the dishes but enough of them that it puts us off going again ( we felt that after the 2nd, 3rd, 4th visit but have gone back hoping that there would be an improvement to the quality of cooking that the owner and his restaurant deserve).

Bij toeval ontdekt, tijdens een zoektocht naar het beginpunt van een wandeling. Een groot cadeau dan onze ervaring, na de wandeling tijdens onze lunch. De zeer voorkomende gastheer geeft aan dat het erg druk is, maar zag waarschijnlijk aan ons dat we het wel heel erg op prijs zouden stellen als we hier onze lunch hier konden gebruiken. Beleefd vraag hij of we wellicht even willen wachten zodat de keuken even ruimte krijgt de bestellingen bij te benen. “Uiteraard, op zo’n mooie locatie wachten we graag even” Onze lunch wordt geserveerd, na een half uurtje. We hebben genoten van de prachtige locatie en heerlijke koffie en thee. De vier verschillende gerechten uit de kunst ! Wij willen graag onze waardering uitspreken voor de inzet, voorkomendheid van de bedienende staf en danken de keuken voor een meer dan heerlijk gerecht. De omgeving is absoluut schitterend.

Unfortunately we chose a wet day to appreciate the lovely surroundings of historic Iford Manor. If it would have been a lovely sunny day it would of been delightful sitting on the terrace for lunch. The inside dining room has a very comfortable feel. The menu is relatively short and 3 of us chose the home made spaghetti with Scallops in a heavy tomato sauce and basically the dish didn't work besides the sauce being far too heavy the home made pasta was a disaster! Doughy and thick and I was told was not made using eggs which I think was a mistake. This was brought to the attention of the very good staff who handled my complaint with professionalism

This place is exceptional, I loved the ambience,the food and it's dog friendly! The menu is so well crafted and local produce and innovation there for every course .

We went to the restaurant for lunch. No draft beers or lagers, no bottles, only cans and at £8.50 how can they charge that. Sourdough Bread 6 small pieces £1.33 per piece. Olives 23p per olive. The chicken was nice and moist bit to charred though the potatoes were old and reheated £25. I would say this was not restaurant food but something you would get in a farm shop cafe

Tucked away in the English countryside in the grounds of a grand home, Iford Manor restaurant boasts the most wonderful setting, wonderful buildings, a beautiful garden, and a stunning landscape in which to lose oneself on a summer afternoon. It makes me glad to say then that it also serves an astonishing menu of delights. We have been a few times now (praise enough perhaps, but please read on!) and it has been an absolute delight every time. In the first instance, the setting really is all that it promises with an old-world ambience that seemingly more impressive stately homes and hotels could only dream of achieving. The restaurant itself is light and airy, or, if you prefer your meals al fresco, there is a walled courtyard adorned with flowers. The welcome that you can expect to receive is courteous and friendly in all the right ways, with a significant effort made to answer any questions relating to ingredients, needs, and allergies. And the food is simply outstanding, a broad mix of small plates and large plates, simple salads, seemingly simple but actually complex and clever meat dishes, and even a choice of homemade pastas that could put many an Italian restaurant to shame. On our last visit, we opted for bread and olives. This was as you would hope with an assured quality balanced by delicate flavours. We followed this with a bowl of pasta with a bacon and tomato sauce – deep, rich, and cooked to perfection – and the lamb – a clever concoction of perfectly cooked meat, sausage, bubble and squeak, and leeks that must be tasted to be believed. If this isn’t enough, they have a fantastic range of puddings too. The gelati is simple, unusual, and well balanced. A range of sorbets provide a refreshing end to your meal. But if you are a real pudding lover then the Chocolate cookie mi-cuit is the must have, a gooey, sticky, chocolate-lover’s delight, and quite like nothing else I have ever had. A broad selection of drinks is available, and wines are reasonably priced. And if I could just mention the coffee – their cappuccino is one of the best I have ever had. But what about the service? I hear you ask. Well, we were looked after throughout by the team of friendly staff who do seem determined to ensure an enjoyable time is had by all; a special shout-out to our waiter Harri here. So, to sum, a perfect lunch in a perfect setting. A favourite of ours already. I’m sure it is others’ restaurant of choice too. Very highly recommended.