Poppies in County Durham

This used to be a wonderful place to visit, all members of staff were friendly, the food was always piping hot, well portioned and very reasonable. It has undergone a few changes, one being the name - now named "The Lighthouse by Poppies". It seems the new owners have made a few changes, the decor has been vastly improved, however there are couple of new members of staff who just aren't as friendly. Furthermore, the quality of the food is terrible compared to all our previous visits. The chips which used to be absolutely wonderful are now terrible - I'm not certain if a different oil is being used, but the quality is just not there, and the meal was also served warm as opposed to hot. To add to this, the prices are much more expensive, even a can of coke is £1.50 - a can that came from a multipack! I'm afraid what was a regular place and a highlight of Seaham has now been crossed off the list. Finally, a "Traditional Turkish Breakfast"... It's an English cafe for goodness sake!!!

Lovely coffee, but had to wait ages for food, even though this was just toasted tea cake. I asked at the counter and was told there had been several orders, but that ours was next, We then had to wait about the same length of time. By the time we received our food, we had finished our drinks. Although the staff apologised, this did not seem sincere and was more of an excuse than anything. The tea cakes were well-toasted, but doughy and in-edible. All in all, this was an experience, which we will not be repeating.

Great value and food good. Staff friendly. Tried new cafes in area with supposed better menus and quality but ended up back here. Fancy menus and newspaper appearances don't equal great food.

This is a very friendly cafe.....nice choice of homemade food.....quiche/s and pie are really good.....delicious tasty chips.....great cheese scones......lovely milky coffees. This really is the place to eat in Seaham for homemade food. Comfortable clean place too. Definitely recommended.

As a newcomer to this part of the world looking for a hot drink tried here. Glad we did and seeing the scones I had one as well as a cake! My partner had egg and chips- freshly cooked and just what was needed.

Always go to poppies as the scones are amazing. The food is great also, the staff are lovely apart from one new young girl who doesn’t seem friendly at all- hopefully this is just shyness and she learns to smile 😊

We popped here for breakfast, very friendly, delicious breakfast,lovely day so sat outside with the dog,he thought the sauages were particularly delicious! I had a large pot of green tea, my partner had a lovely coffee! If your hungry and want all the trimming this the place to go, 2 bacon, 2 sausages, hashbrowns, beans, mushrooms,toast! Highly recommend, and thinking ofgoung back, weather permitting! Also very reasonable priced!

The cafe is a bit tired but the staff are welcoming and the food is excellent. Certainly worth trying.

Homemade food. Good service and standard British grub. Cheap and cheerful and definitely value for money.

Don’t let the external look of this place fool you, it is a very nice place. We have visited here a couple of times when we have been in Seaham & I have to say, the food is exceptional. You have a choice of regular or large scones & believe me, you need to be hungry to tackle a large scone. The cakes also look delicious although I haven’t yet tried one but yet again, it looks as though you get an extremely large slice. Having said that, they are very reasonably priced. We were served by a young girl last time who’s customer skills need a little practice & the coffee she made was not very nice however, if the lady who owns the place serves you, you are guaranteed a great cup of coffee.

While doing a bit of shopping my uncle & myself popped in for a coffee and a quick bite. We both decided on toasties until I went to order and noticed the quiches on the counter. They looked so appetising. We changed our order and both got quiche, my uncle the ham & leek, and myself the cheese & onion. Both were still warm as were fresh out of the oven and they were delicious. Piping hot lattes to wash them down and we were ready to continue our shopping. Cannot praise highly enough.

I've visited here twice with friends and have loved the food and the friendly service every time. It's very popular but runs very efficiently and the food is homemade and delicious, can't rate this high enough!!

Whether you want breakfast, a sandwich, or just a coffee, this is a great value for money place to go. The food is good and reasonably priced and on a fine day there is a pleasant seating area outside in the pedestrian precinct. A good place to visit. We will return soon.

Visited poppies with my Mam and 2 children. Food was lovely we had pie, chips and peas all homemade (non of this frozen rubbish you get in other places) and the cornbeef pie was to die for! And the kids had Panni and chips, great selection in food. We Took some amazing and massive homemade scones home which are the best scones I have ever tasted seriously you have to go and try them. Staff where very friendly, place was lovely and clean and the music was great.

Best scones ever, huge and delicious :-D reasonable prices and good selection of food served by friendly staff.

Had a large breakfast with homemade chips it was absolutely delicious also with that i had a milky hot chocolate with creamy whipped cream, marshmallows and a flake. Well recommended and staff or very polite.

After being refused entry to Black Truffle Coffee Shop for having 3 prams in our party we came to Poppies. They were very friendly and provided great service for the duration of our visit. Much better service than Black Truffle, fully recommended.

We stopped in for breakfast, the people were nice and the place was clean, the food was average although the cakes looked really good I didn't try them today

Metimos en una taza y un tocino bocata rápido con un amigo. El personal era amable, la comida era deliciosa, y mi café con leche fue lo que me gustó. Hubiera sido 5 salimos de 5, pero las sillas un poco incómodas pero también tienen sofás. Que un poco torpe r para comer. Un bocata rápido está bien, pero mi amigo tenía un desayuno y un bebé mama alimentada, así tuvimos que sentarnos en una mesa con.

Just a quick visit and it was .....nice.... just nice, nothing special but still ok for a quick cuppa lol There are nicer cafes in seaham

En un día frío, estaba contento de ser atendida con mi wheeler en este pequeño café donde podía esperar para mi familia a unirse a mí para una comida. Desde el menú detallado que elegimos una desayuno, un sándwich con papas fritas y ensalada, y un enorme bollo con queso. Disfrutamos de una gran jarra de té mientras espera para que todo esté recién hecho. Asientos cómodos, un ambiente alegre y excelente servicio. Gracias. Volveremos

Llamé en fir un café con mi hija y pensamos que podríamos tomar café pero, chico, el aspecto de la repostería era demasiado. Nos hac un sándwiches tostados, que era servido con una ensalada. Las tartas eran demasiado bueno para no probar, así que llevé a casa, este bien merece la pena. Los asientos eran buenas y el personal muy agradable. Este es z pequeño café para una comida ligera o s reconocido.

Perhaps one of the most amazing finds that my wife and I have stumbled across in years. The food is exceptional as is the value. The staff are friendly, engaging and welcoming. The standards here are clearly always set to amazballs as the kids would say. X

I ordered a bacon and egg sandwich, with brown sauce. I asked for bacon to be crispy. When delivered, fairly promptly, from the kitchen there was no egg. When pointed out this was rectified; the egg had been cooked but left on one side. But the yolk was solid by then. The brown sauce never appeared at all. The sandwich was not unpleasant but the bacon had little flavour and was not crispy.The kitchen clearly needs to take better note of orders.

Lovely visit, we go every week and are never disappointed, best scones in seaham, lovely home baked food fresh every day, my favourite are the date and walnut scones, to die for

A little cafe unobtrusive on church street seaham nothing special to look at - well decorated and furnished inside nice and clean with helpful staff. General good English grub is the type of food you'll find on the menu. However this is where run of the mill generally good stops! The food no matter what you order is Devine - don't go to seaham without visiting this cafe you'll be missing out

The scones here are amazing, date and walnut for me and fruit for hubby. Great coffee too. Wide range of freshly baked goods, smashing menu, all home cooked and decent portions, lovely.

Called in here at 3 pm on a Saturday and they had no scones left. Tried homemade cakes instead, triple layered lemon cake and apple crumble cake. Got very large pieces of cake costing £2.20 and a very large pot of tea for two. Cake was very good, and service also good, prices reasonable.In Church Street and looks nothing from the outside, in keeping with a lot of other shops in this street, but quite nice inside with plenty of tables. Worth a visit if in area.

Poppies is my favourite place to have a full Breakfast, everything on the plate is of good quality. Staff make you welcome

Called in here after another cafe was busy but that didn't matter as we had a lovely very large pot of tea and homemade cakes...huge portions and they were lovely...great staff and a fabulous regular gave us a run down on some of the other food on offer which sounded lovely...they reckon the corned beef pie and homemade chips are lush...we'll need to try that next time!

Poppies is a very friendly café with an extensive menu for home cooked snacks and meals.They provide an excellent choice of home made cakes and scones, my favourite scone is the date and walnut... yummy and be warned, they are huge. I visit a few times a month with my hubby or daughter & grandson.Plenty of seats plus leather sofas. Prices are good, not expensive at all. Well worth a visit

Have visited this place a fair few times now but feel it's time to let all you folk out there, who enjoy fantastic tasty scones and steak pies know that Poppys are 2nd to none and what a genuinely lovely set of staff!! Great little find. We'll be back.

We visited here in January and wrote a review as we were so impressed and have been back once or twice since, each time being given a warm welcome. Today we called in and had superb freshly baked scones. One scone was lemon and blueberry and the other was apple and raisin and they were the best we have had anywhere; fresh, moist, full of flavour with a generous amount of fruit in them. The scones were also a generous size. Cappuccinos were excellent too.As it was warm and sunny we enjoyed sitting outside this excellent coffee shop .The owner and staff are lovely people and clearly value their customers, and give good value.

Tried this cafe for the very first time and really enjoyed the breakfast. There was three of us and ordered the large breakfast option. Their was also a choice of toast which you don't get in other cafes around Seaham. When the breakfast arrived I noticed that it wasn't covered in grease and oil and it felt that they had spent money on the ingredients and wasn't anything cheap.Will be going back there all the time now....

Popped in here on a day trip into Seaham and enjoyed everything about it. Great coffee, delicious baked goods, warm atmosphere and friendly service. Wish we had a place like this closer to home. Will definitely be back!

Called in here today (8th March 2014) by chance, and glad we did.We had a meal and some cakes. Coffee was very strong and hot, exactly as I like it. Food was extremely good and the ladies who ran it were very friendly. Try it!

Regular visitors, everything is homemade and delicious, pleasant atmosphere and comfortable surroundings

Visited for the first time today. This place is a change from the norm of other coffee shops in the area. Fantastic service. Lovely friendly staff. Relaxed atmosphere. Lush coffee and selection of homemade cakes, scones, quiches etc, all at a great price. Taking friends and family on our next visits to share the experience. Well done to all staff on a lovely place!

My husband and I have been frequent visitors to Poppies - we are locals - and recently it was taken over . The menu is now more extensive with more choice of meals both hot and cold. ( the all day breakfast is a favourite of my husband ) I agree with everything that Py M has written.The girls are extremely friendly - nothing is a bother -. The good selection of cakes and scones are yummy, we are working our way through to find our favourite. A good place for meeting friends

We were thrilled to find Poppies on the afternoon of Friday 10th January as we were made so welcome by the two very friendly ladies.They were happy to describe each of the assorted ( and delicious looking) cakes and we settled for Date & Walnut. ( scrumptious) and the Orange and Cranberry (exquisite!) We also ordered tea for two.The pot of tea was a great big pot, more than enough for two and the cake portions were incredibly generous.The scones in the covered display area looked gorgeous too and were also a good size.The cafe is light, airy and spacious with plenty of seating and although only limited toilet facilities it was very clean and fresh.We do not visit Seaham very often, but we will certainly return to Poppies next time we go.It was so nice to find such a genuine place offering such good value and generosity.We did not look closely at the menu but I think breakfasts and lunch items are available too.