Lakeside Cafe in Eastleigh

What's not to love about this gem of a cafe - excellent service, super friendly, lovely food, beautifully presented, and great value too.

Best little cafe! We had our xl bully with us and the staff was absolutely amazing with us and so friendly we felt so welcome🤍 we all got different cakes and oh my they was the BEST cakes we had! Plus the portion was huge 😍😍 we all had different drinks and all of them was so pretty and tasted so good! 5/5 stars definitely coming again 🫶✨️✨️✨️

We had an afternoon tea here for a birthday celebration. It was amazing the scones were the best we have had. Staff were super friendly. Definitely will be returning

Fantastic cafe, with very friendly staff and great service. They were very accommodating to my autistic son. Thank you for a very pleasant and enjoyable visit

The lotus biscoff shake that I ordered was to die for, the food also came quickly and interior overall was very tidy and clean. Big well done to all the staff that manages to maintain such a good environment for all the customers I really enjoyed revising with my friend here. 😄

Me and my friend went to this cafe and were served by this lovely little boy called Phillipe. He was very sweet and efficient. Also the train ride around the park was an exquisite treat for us. Definitely will be coming back again! 😆🤩

We visited on Easter Sunday. Victoria was so lovely and helpful, and the food was amazing! Definitely recommend the wedges and the cakes! We will be back!

Great food, great service now all a happy family

Great place to go for breakfast

Rubbish overpriced coffee and food. Unfriendly service. Owner quite rude and un-cooperative. Quite a shame as it used to be really good value. Spoils a good family day out at the excellent steam railway.

14 members of the family gathered for Jan’s birthday brunch, tables were reserved and ready when we arrived. A friendly welcome and drink orders taken as family arrived. Food preordered and as they started to serve our breakfast they had names to go with the food, very impressed. A chocolate birthday cake “ preordered “ had been placed in the centre of the table ready for Jan to have with candles and everyone to sing Happy Birthday and the grandchildren to blow out the candles. A perfect setting for our family celebration. Thank you Lakeside Cafe

Lovely little cafe for after train rides and walk round the lake. Staff are brilliant and the cakes were amazing. Will be back!

Fabulous friendly service, lovely food

Lovely little cafe, never disappoints! Great service and delicious cakes. Highly recommend!

Went for breakfast, delicious!! Victoria was lovely, the cafe was cosy and welcoming definitely recommend

Popped in for lunch .. excellent friendly staff.. explained all the different cakes !.they looked amazing, didn't taste them. Went for a tuna toastie sandwich. Packed with salad ! Highly recommended

Absolutely amazing food, fantastic service, will definitely be visiting again!

We stopped off for a coffee with my wife and daughter. I missed breakfast, so I decided to go for a bacon sandwich, and my daughter chose a mashed avocado on toast. Then we noticed all of the home made cakes, OMG! My daughter went for the Mini Biscoff Bruce, and I went for the Coffee & Pecan (Vegan) Flapjack. Well, you can't have a coffee without a slice of cake, right! Absolutely delicious!! The cakes arrived with an extra fork just in case my wife changed her mind and dipped in... Yes of course she did :O) The Mini Biscoff, with its many layers, was a bit too filling after avocado toast. No problem, our host packed it up in a take-home box and bag for my daughter to enjoy later. I would really recommend Lakeside Cafe Eastleigh. If your in the neighbourhood or simply need a break from the M27,. You can't do better than to stop by. Loads of parking, friendly service, full-on breakfasts, fantastic fresh home made cakes, and good coffee. Catering for gluten-free and vegan diets, and doggy bags to go, what's more to want. JM

The service was amazing! Lovely greeting happy staff wanting to have a nice chat. Tried the experimental Biscoff Bruce cake and was blown away. Lovely avocado toast too. Just perfect. Must go in again with my friends 💕😍

Last minute booking for a afternoon tea,food was absolutely amazing. Lovely service with a smile.

Lovely food, hot, nicely presented and good selection of cakes etc. Very nice staff too.

'Great chocolate cake' (reviewed by Adam, 6 years old)

What an absolute delight!! My daughter’s first afternoon tea and it’s set the bar high. Beautiful, fresh home made sandwiches and cakes, presented in the cutest way. They were kind enough to squeeze us in at last notice and accommodate my very fussy daughter’s sandwich preference. She said it was the “best Mother’s Day ever”. Thankyou for a lovely Mother’s Day.

Really beautiful little eatery placed in Lakeside country park. This cafe is far superior to previous years and elevates the experience when visiting the country park. It boasts a modest yet impressive selection of baked goods and sweet treats as well as generous portions of hot food. Good selection of vegan and gluten free treats, decent sized coffee, beautifully presented food. This is reflected in the price and could be somewhat of a shock in comparison to it's previous state however 6 of us eating (4 adults, 2 kids, 1 baby) were thoroughly stuffed, warm and happy after a brisk walk. Will definitely be visiting again just for the cake.

Absolutely wonderful experience. My partner and I went here for a lunch - the food was very impressive. We will definitely be back! Thank you so much for the wonderful service!

Excellent little cafe, delicious food inspired chef and a special lady makes the cakes fresh and yummy ! Big portions ! Staff very friendly and attentive. Will definitely come back with the rest by of the family.

First of all, understand that this wonderful little café, isn't cheap...a toasted bacon sandwich comes in at just over a fiver. But...and it's an important but...the quality of the bacon is 2nd to none. This is absolutely the best bacon sandwich I have ever eaten and I generally have one every week. For £8.00 and some change you get 2 full rashers of their astonishing bacon, toast and coffee... which is worth a mention in its own right. A super friendly, young, helpful team, who go out of their way to make your visit an exceptional one. Expensive? Yes. Worth the money? Absolutely. Highly recommended.

I come here every now and then to write or to clear my head and its always impeccable, friendly to a personal degree like you've known this place and people forever. Thank you for your care and dedication.

Best little cafe I have ever been too. It is too easy for a cafe to serve up a predictable and unappetising menu, so it is lovely to find a little,gem like this one. I highly recommend it and the staff especially the manageress who is a delight. Highly recommend.

Absolute hidden gem! My 2nd vist to this lovely cafe where I was greeted with a welcoming smile! The food was fantastic and I brought cake to take home for the rest of the family. All the food was so fresh and fantastic quality for a reasonable price. Woukd highly recommend.

Great experience, would highly recommend! Staff were really friendly and welcoming. The food presentation was outstanding and the french toast was delicious! Reasonable cost too, will definitely be back!!

We were served by Victoria, who was so helpful & welcoming. I had the honeycomb cake & my mum had the carrot cake. It was really divine! So soft, tasty & the best cake we’ve ever had and we go for lots of coffee & cake!! The cafe was always being cleaned, which is also unusual as a lot of places leave it to build up, not here!!

Lovely delicious cake , service was excellent. Very friendly atmosphere. Would highly recommend.

Very lovely service and nice food

Good place for sunday snacks. Hope you will change the plastic flowers into real one!good luck to the business.cheers!!!

It was an amazing experience. we first went into the cafè for some brunch and the food was exceptional! The presentation of the food was something you would imagine at a michelin star resturant. We went on the miniature train and it was very fun (there is a tunnel)!

Excellent food, staff and location. Plenty of room, food choice and parking. Had the French toast off of the special board which was amazing. New favourite place to go!

Had wonderful home made cream tea for daughters Birthday ,Victoria and staff went over and above to make our visit very special definatly will be returning. ! Xx

Awesome place! Fantastic food and wonderful staff, love this place so much ❤️

Popped in for brunch as passing, quiet rainy week day. Clean and nice atmosphere. Lots of lovely cakes in the counter. We opted for a small breakfast each one with poached egg and one fried. Absolutely delicious, hot and the best tater tots!! Coffee was lovely and hot and not overly strong.

Lovely food! Fresh home style food with beautiful cakes

The lakeside cafe is a lovely cafe situated in a wonderful park. I found it while waiting for my plane it’s just a brisk 10 minute walk from Southampton airport and is totally worth it.

Lovely cafe, serving an amazing variety of the most delicious homemade cakes. Highly recommended!!!

Nice little hide away , lovely cakes and scones . Friendly staff nice welcome

Friendly happy service. Very quick. Amazing cakes. With 2 children made to feel very welcome. X

Fabulous cakes - lovely generous portions - nice friendly staff - good prices too - 5⭐️ all around

Lovely cakes and staff very welcoming

Amazing service from Layla, friendly and very helpful! Amazing cake and shrooms. We’ll be back soon! Thanks!

Hot chocolates are bigger than my future and the custard tarts are just 🤤

A lovely Christmas Eve brunch with the family, fabulous tasty food, great service. Thank you 😀

We were given the wrong food order & informed it would be an extra charge for the items I actually asked for. We decided to stick with the wrong items (the festive toasties which were very nice, just not the festive macaroni cheese I'd asked for), and we were apologised to. I noticed the bill I'd paid was more than the items we'd bought, and when queried, the manager (I'm assuming) said the gratuity had already been added on! I hadn't been told the gratuity would be added on & couldn't see it written anywhere. I was asked if I wanted it back, and seeing as we were given the wrong items, I said I did. The manager (?) then took my refund from the tips jar... quite unfair seeing as the mistakes were all theirs and the tips are given based on good service, produce quality, experience etc. Such a shame, as its a great café with nice food - just let down on this occasion.

Forget Costa, Nero, or Starbucks, Lakeside's coffee shop has the best seasonal coffees. The Stroopwaffle Latte is incredible! And the food as always was delicious .

Very nice cafe at the steam train railway. Food was lovely but overpriced, which is a shame as we probably won't go back.

Superb cakes, tea just right. Would be worth coming to even without the steam railway. Hard to make the interior of a building like this very attractive but everything has been done well l.

We had the Christmas Afternoon tea and it was delightful! The warm pork pie had the best water crust pastry I've tasted in ages.The filling had cranberries, chestnuts and herbs in the pork. The warm vanilla scones were a masterpiece of soft fluffy sponge which we added real clotted cream and blackcurrant jam.The chocolate orange macarons were divine and we had to take most of the rest of the cakes home because we couldn't fit any more in! Most highly recommended.

Staff were really lovely and welcoming and the hot chocolate was delightful

Very nice, fresh food, friendly service and nice atmosphere. Dog friendly too.

We had an afternoon tea. Really good value for money and the food was lovely. Staff were helpful, polite and friendly. This was the first time I had been to the cafe and will be returning.

Today i had the best vegetarian breakfast I have had in a long time. We also took fresh cheesecake home for later too😋 Was with friends and they both said the same We will be back!

Their food is fantastic, highly recommend. Pumpkin spiced latté was really good too 😄 Nice friendly staff 10/10.

Amazing food and the drinks were to die for.

Lovely dog friendly cafe. Fantastic homemade food and cakes. Would highly recommend.

Fabulous food! Well priced yummy menu & amazing selection of cakes too

We held a private baby shower at lakeside in their cafe and it was brilliant! Veronique could not have been more helpful! It’s a lovely venue for something like a baby shower. I was allowed to decorate and the team helped us tidy! I couldn’t recommend it enough and I would deffo use lakeside again 🥰🥰🥰

Really good, fresh food and nice service 😊

The customer service on Tuesday was exceptional will definitely be returning back.

I had an awful experience today unfortunately. I’ve been here a few times for coffee and cake and it’s always been lovely. Good service & cakes are divine! However today, it was packed, it was full of screaming out of control kids, and barking dogs which was scaring my 1 year old daughter who doesn’t like loud noises. The barking was relentless and no one said anything, same goes for the out of control children, the parents didn’t even try to quiet them down. The food today was awful! It was my first time ordering food, I had a full breakfast, it was the most bland thing I’ve ever eaten in my life. Tough tasteless sausages that were hard to bite into, eggs literally dripping with oil, overdone toast, dry tasteless bacon. It was completely awful! After struggling to Finnish my terrible breakfast I thought I’d grab an iced latte to go, the what seemed to be a child on the till didn’t have a clue what I was going on about when I said ‘iced latte’ so she had to ask her manager, to which a blonde lady emerged from the kitchen and abruptly said ‘can’t do iced coffees we don’t have ice’. I was like oh..ok? She was very rude and not very customer friendly, and I thought it was bizarre they had no iced drinks on a hot summers day. Overall, a bad experience and it’s kind of put me off coming again. The staff clearly cannot deal with the busyness very well which is never a good sign.

Such a lovely place the staff is super nice and lovely. The food is amazing and so is the coffee will definitely come back here.

Food is overpriced and not very good, ordered the big breakfast and it was sooooooo greasy (swimming in oil), but not as greasy as the tables, which remained uncleaned and full of dirty dishes for our entire visit, with some customers even having their orders brought to their table and the dishes from previous customers left on the table! All this while the FOUR staff stood chatting and drinking soft drinks at the counter. Also for some reason the toilets are no longer available, so it's really unlikely we'll eat here ever again.

It's such a lovely little café. Only popped in for a quick coffee and catch up with a friend. Always pleasant staff and quick service. Will definitely make time soon to try out the amazing looking cakes 😉

17 of us descended and enjoyed beautiful food (including delicious vegan options) then rode the rails after. This place is an absolute gem with lovely staff. Veronique was incredibly kind allowing us to book ahead and we had an area to ourselves. It was a very busy open day Saturday when we visited but the staff were genuine, kind and polite and the food was delivered promptly, beautifully presented, and absolutely yum. Cakes are amazing. We’ll be back :)

A warm and welcoming cafe with a lovely little steam trainline attached. Perfect for all the family to visit. Visited during their lunch rush today and the service was efficient and attentive. My toastie and cake were delicious! Lots of vegan and veggie options available so it really does cater for everyone. Highly recommend this place as I have visited many times and the standard is always amazing.

My dietary needs, being a coeliac, we're very well catered for. We had an excellent afternoon tea as part of a staff away day. Very good cake for money, gorgeous food excellent service thank you so much

Alarm bells should have rang when I entered the place at 9.45am and it was empty 2 slices of extra bread £3.95 Sausage not cook right through Mushroom not cooked right through One of the worst breakfasts iv ever had for the money Shame as its such a lovely location

Well what can i say "the biggie" breakfast 11.99 each very disappointed firstly Not everyone likes smokey bacon should have been called smokey crispy hard bacon ? Not good next sausages were like rubber ? Eggs not cooked enough whites runny ? Baked Beans not nice lidls own taste better? Toast was brown bread also personal choice no option brown or white ? And Not enough butter supplied.? Tater tats nice. Mushrooms nice. SO overall NOT good especially as its 11.99. EACH... and tea/coffee extra cost over 25 quid for 2 people. If i paid 15 quid it would have been too much. Definatly will NOT eat there again. Maybe needs a better chef and better quality ingredients. SHOULDNT assume everyone likes smokey crispy bacon and brown bread. I WOULD DEFINATLEY NOT RECOMMEND THIS FOR FOOD. Also 1 toilet disgusting.

Arranged to have son's birthday party here. The party food was very nice, and everyone was very helpful in getting everything setup. Would recommend!

Had an amazing afternoon ☕ with my family and little doggie the food was great the service welcoming and atmosphere very unique.

Stopped by during a dog walk at the park for a cup of tea and slice of cake. Lovely unpretentious place with quite the best tasting Dorset (?) Hampshire (?) sorry forgot which! cake ever. We shared a slice and it was delicious. Friendly, unhurried service, a treat offered for the dog. Highly recommended.

Came for breakfast here for the first time this morning. Ww had a large abd a slightly smaller full English hot breakfast and they absolutely delicious! All hot and very tasty. Great customer service from the staff too. Will definitely be visiting again :)

Very good breakfasts ( cakes and sausage rolls.

We had an absolutely wonderful afternoon tea, everything freshly prepared. Staff really helpful...nothing was too much trouble. Will certainly be booking another one.

Fantastic selection of GF and vegan cakes (and normal) but so disappointed in the flat white out the machine rather than properly made ....so much froth and not a lot of milk or strength...

Superb! Don't miss out a visit here, it's excellent.

Lovely little cafe, great selection of cake and coffee. Very helpful and patient staff. Still a lovely little cafe with lots of cake and food on offer. Still lovely and breakfast was great

I really enjoy going here. Dogs are very welcome. Staff are so pleasant. Food is freshly cooked and very tasty. Recommend a go if you're there or even passing. I had the breakfast. Lovely. Hubby had sausage sandwiches with extra fries. Already started the meals before I remembered to take a snap. Sorry but it smelt and looked to good to wait 😋

Lovely cafe, great staff, always clean. Food is brilliant, cakes are so scrumptious. It's a perfect place to visit. 👌😁

Nice and clean homely setup, food is delicious, wide choice menu complemented by great service, friendly and polite staff, plenty free parking, well worth further visits for sure.

We were early for the train so we popped in for a takeaway drink. After having seen the hot food being served and all the cakes, we decided after our little train ride to have a late breakfast at the Lakeside Café. The breakfast was fantastic, lovely doorstop bread and everything was fresh and hot. We got a takeaway cake, you'll have to ask the wife what that was like because it didn't hang about!

Great place for walking around the lakes. Outstanding Lakeside Railway to ride on which young children love especially the long dark tunnel

What a fab place to go. We turned up (18 of us) and I'd forgotten to give them warning we were coming but they were on the ball and everyone's order was correct. There was even a trainee on the till but it was fine and he was helped by another employee. Food and atmosphere were great. The only downside was that the toilets weren't open so it was a bit of a walk to the other toilets for us disabled people and luckily it was dry. The staff were all friendly and efficient and handled the large numbers professionally. The cakes are to die for and the breakfast bap I had was delicious. We got to see the little trains too. Thanku

How fortunate are the residents of Eastleigh.we should all have a facility like this within a public transport possibility of one hour

Lakeside Cafe is next to the steam train station ( large and small model steam trains ) Cafe has inside and outside seating lovely selection of cakes. Some hot food. Nice walks round the lakes on gravel paths. Toilets and picnic tables near the lakes. Fishing on lakes with the right ticket I believe.

Cakes looked amazing. We had a Berry smoothie and an iced coffee to go (just placed them on the table while I waited). Our timing must have been really bad however, as the staff was very irritated to serve us and borderline hostile. They started putting chairs up in a passive aggressive way while I waited for the order to be completed. Our drinks were great, but the service was poor. If they didn't want to serve us they could have told us they were closing and turn us away rather than serve begrudgingly.

Was really looking forward to trying this cafe again. Ordered a cream tea, and coffee and cake. Tea was incredibly weak as it has just been shown a tea bag, cream tea advertised with strawberry jam but came with raspberry. Cakes look nice but are too dry and overly sweet. Pity, looks nicer than it used to but food is disappointing and not cheap.

Pleasant cafe next to Lakeside Railway. Good coffee & cakes. Well worth a visit.

Lovely food, vegan options there if you ask. Cakes were amazing! Lovely stop after the train.

The young ladies made sure to give this Canadian a beautiful cream tea (high tea) experience! It was delightful and made my entire day !

I had a BBQ pulled pork toastie and it was delicious.

Food very expensive for what it is. We were given another tables order so we took it back. The waiter then promptly brought it back out and gave it to the table next to us. They refused it as they knew that we had been given it. Bad food hygiene issue.

Lovely toasted sandwiches and cakes