Ridings Cafe / The Artisans Bakery in North Dorset

Disappointing this time. Ciabatta was toasted to a brick - almost inedible. A shame as usually our experience is good.

Been meaning to stop here for a while now each time we pass and finally did today, so glad we did, lovely friendly staff and the best latte I've had in ages.

Another yummy lunch, with great service with engaging staff. Thank you all (especially Sophie who spoke this time!!!)

Absolutely lovely dog friendly cafe! Lovely staff, lovely cuppa, lovely owner and this all comes from visiting on a rainy day! Imagine it in the summer. I really appreciate the dog friendly zone! In fact it could be a majority dog friendly cafe… if you don’t like dogs then you can go out the back? 😂 I think that would be a first! Winner! 🐕🦮🐩🐕‍🦺🐾🦴

Great little find. The staff were really friendly, the coffee was on point and the English Breakfast was fresh & Hot

Wonderful Café with lovely staff!

Cosy and friendly. They make very nice baked beans on toast. Decent portions and the beans are in a nice thick sauce, not watery like served in some places. There is free parking nearby.

Pop in on the off chance as we wanted a light snack, after a visit to ightem Mote. We were presently surprised on how good it was. They had a good choice especially as it was new year's day. Coffee was good and so was the festive bap we chose. Very good service. And listen to the service provided to others who turned up when they were closing was great. They really went that extra mile. We will be back.

This place is great, found by chance, open on New year's Day. Lovely lunch time snack. Good coffee, service,choice of food. What more do you need.

I popped in to have a latte coffee after morning Church, Before walking down to Tonbridge. Very nice coffee in a pleasant courtyard garden.

Such a shame lovely clean cafe but there coffee still isit hot enough and the food still over priced. Won’t be returning

Fairly bland breakfast bap, parking could be an issue

Really friendly & warm place to grab a coffee

Lovely place. Friendly staff and made to feel welcome. Thanks girls

Lovely food, very good portions. We will definitely go again.

very small cafe, in a remote town with smiling staffs ,it was the ideal place when it got so cold

Love Ridings, such a great addition to the local Hildenborough area! Staff are super friendly and it’s reasonably priced. Can’t wait to come again!

I've been wanting to visit here for some time, but hadn't got around to it, I'm glad I did and will not leave it long before revising, it is a lovely cafe. The space outside to take our little dog was excellent. Service was certainly with a smile, but the food hits the spot. Toasted falafel and humus wrap was lovely but the Super Strawberry milkshake a glorious indulgent treat. Not just a treat for us but we also noted a group of workmen tucking into some breakfast baps and the bacon and egg varieties did look delicious. It is great to have a place like this in Hildenborough, clearly popular and deserved so.

Very nice, good service. Can get over run with cyclists so drink up and get on the road before them

Great cycling stop with covered outdoor space and space for a few bikes.

Lovely little cafe! Great range of breakfast and lunch items. It’s my go-to place when I’m in Hildenborough. Staff are always so friendly and atmosphere relaxed.

Great coffee, great food, highly recommended

As a family we came and I felt the menu wasn't that child friendly. The salads which are added to the meals were explained to me as being just lettuce but when it arrived there was dressing all over it- of course, my kids refused to eat it. The pizza slice was dry and more like a scone base than bread. The sausage roll was enjoyed by my daughter but I'd asked for the sausage bap (very dry) to have ketchup on the side but it was inside. The sausage skin was really tough and stringy, and the kids also refused this so was a particularly unsuccessful meal. Vibe was lovely and so was the decor.

Delicious coffee and good food at a reasonable price. Very friendly and welcoming staff in a comfortable atmosphere

Eleven of us dropped by and the service was very prompt. We sat outside and one of the staff took all of our orders. Food and drinks arrived in no time and it was all very nice, no complaints from anyone. When we were done, individual payments were made with no fuss at all. Highly recommended and genuine 5 stars for everything. All of the staff were very friendly and efficient. We have been many times before and will be back many more times.

I travelled here from A21 just because it said dog friendly. Unfortunately dogs have to be in the garden which in my book is not dog friendly. Looked nice but we didn't stop

Always get a warm friendly welcome, even with my endearing chaotic twin boys. Foods simple, tasty and well priced.

Amazing place, couldn't ask for nicer starff, banoffee milkshake is worth the drive alone 5 star 🌟 100% recommended

Great food service with a smile undercover seating at rear of coffee shop

Seems to be the only cafe in Hildenborough. I love the vibe of a local place in its lovely light olive green decor. Staff is helpful and at ease, and I felt relaxed enjoying my lunch. Food and drink are good overall, and prices lower than Tonbridge and Tunbridge Wells, which is a plus and I come here quite often even I am not a local resident.

Excellent coffee, good pastries, friendly service, cosy ambiance.

Fab little cafe with great home made food, (the pasties are completely amazing), really friendly and helpful staff and a really lovely community atmosphere. This was our first visit, and most definitely will not be the last.

A great little cafe myself and my family use most Saturdays. Great sausage rolls and granola pots. Staff always helpful and polite, in addition to the local, friendly atmosphere. You can tell that this place is loved by the locals.

Great local cafe, good coffee, nice snacks, good light eats. They also have a good spot to hang your bike if your passing through on a ride. The outside seating is nice when weather allows

Quality local business well worth a visit!

Very friendly and top notch coffee.

Nice staff, nice vibe and nice food. Their coffee does let them down slightly tho. The texture wasn’t creamy enough and the coffee tasted like a slightly better version of Pret’s coffee. Would be good if they improve their coffee, but overall a good experience!

very nice visit. dog friendly. human friendly. biggest coffee in the world

Food is over priced and you should be getting more than 2 rashers of bacon in a roll for £5

I'm completely addicted to the coffee here, it's delicious! Really cute cafe with plenty of seats inside and outside, good music and food menu. I also really love the option to buy pay it forward hot drinks - thank you Ridings!

Great food lights hard-working intelligent staff

Just had the breakfast wrap and was just the right size. Large coffee is going down well. I wasn't expecting the garden, nice shaded area for my ginger skin on these hot days so win win. The music is my sort of playlist so it's been spot on. Will be coming again.

Good is great as is the service. Staff are very obliging

Lovely little local cafe with nice service and fabulous coffee.

Really friendly, excellent service!

Coffee was excellent, as are the staff. They can make the sandwiches gluten free too.

Friendly and accessible. Reasonable choice on menu. Seating available. No complaints

Nice coffee (large latté needs an extra shot, for me at least). Nice sandwiches. Nice staff, friendly atmosphere.

Lovely lunch & breakfast selection & friendly staff. The veg pasties are the best I've had outside of the Westcountry!

Great place for a bite, always a friendly smile with each order.

Excellent coffee, reasonable prices and table service to boot

Lovely coffee, really nice service

First time there with our grandchildren. What a lovely little gem 💎. Excellent service and good local produce. Well done will be back

Absolutely brilliant cafe with delicious cakes and superb service: a boon to the weary cyclist!

Recently visitied for a business meeting. Great location and easy parking. I ordered a hot chocolate which was fantastic. Very friendly staff. Will visit again soon!

Friendly welcoming staff, nice hot drinks and tasty pastries

Lovely cafe with excellent food and great service

Friendly service and lovely coffee and cake thank you.

Really friendly and helpful staff. Nice coffee (not burnt) and the panini's are good too

Small but nice. Some covered/open outdoor space, plus indoor seating. Staff always helpful plus good food and drinks.

Nice cafe but unfortunately the coffee never that hot and over priced!

A great cafe. I have been in there a few times and I have always been impressed! The staff are very friendly and the level of customer service received has been excellent! The milkshakes and smoothies are very nice as well! Would highly recommend!

Lovely little, cafe, girls in there are great and very welcoming, and most importantly....food was fantastic,

Nice place, enjoyed the coffee and cakes

Really nice cafe, lovely coffee and buns.

Great food, fantastic value and great with dogs. Highly recommend to anyone in the area.

Lovely cafe, great food, well priced.

Lovely treat to start Father's Day. Great service, very friendly staff.

Really disappointed today. I found Ridings online and decided to go with my wife for something to eat and drink. The coffee shop was really clean and well presented, however, we walked in and there were 3 servers behind the counter chatting. We stood for a while but didn’t even get a hello. My wife said “excuse me” and asked if we could sit anywhere and was told yes (still no niceties). We sat at a table for two, and sat, and sat for 15 minutes. During this time two ladies in the kitchen were chatting and looking at our table. At no point did they come to us or pass on to any of the servers that we still hadn’t had an order taken or even acknowledged that we were there. There were two other people in the cafe and half a dozen in the garden. The 2 stars are for the cleanliness not the service. Unfortunately we won’t be returning.

Small cafe with great outdoor space. Good choice of food and good coffee. Can be a little slow as counter area quite small, but once ordered food arrives quickly and is hot. Great pasties which are well priced and make a good fuel up if on a cycle ride. Rear entrance into outdoor area for customers on their bikes. Bike hooks on rear fence for storage if busy. Just wish it was bigger as is quite popular since the 1809 cafe closed, which is just down the road, so customers switching to this cafe.

Fantastic food and drinks, been here twice recently. Lovely and friendly staff, cannot wait to visit again soon.

Expensive but lovely. Highly recommend it.

Amazing cakes, milkshakes and smoothies

Cake, coffee and now breakfast baps. All great.

Lovely, friendly little cafe. Great coffee, and the paninis are incredible. Amazing cakes too. A must if you’re in or passing Hildenborough.

stepping down into a well-lit cafe, with delicious food, you are also aware of the freshly-made bread which this Bakery is famed for. The flans are always interesting, and delicious; with fresh salads, and tempting cakes and coffee at other times of day

I came here after a hard working day. Very comfortable and warm. It likes a kitchen at our home. very tasty home cooked food. owners were friendly very much. Really love this place

Esto es una cafetería de artesanos - una palabra más utilizado por establecimientos que desee que aparezca mejor que ellos, pero en este caso es realmente merecido. Mucho del producto se realiza en el lugar y lo que no es cuidadosamente elegidos para ser de la mejor calidad. Se nota cuando el propietario le importa realmente.

Stopped for a lunch and enjoyed some very good food. Soup / Quiche / Bread etc Great service as well, so would certainly recommend.

Paramos a tomar un café y tarta. El café era muy buena y deliciosa tarta. Sin embargo, cuando pedí una machiatta que no sabía cómo hacer que uno, lo que me pareció algo extraño, ya que estaba en la carta de bebidas. En general una buena tienda de café.

Great little cafe. Found it by recommendation of trip advisor. Great decaf coffee or some soup and beautiful home-made cakes. Another added bonus was there fresh artisan bread. Friendly little hideaway and well worth a visit.

We just stumbled on Ridings as we walked around Shaftesbury last Saturday morning. It's a very pleasant place, friendly host, excellent coffee and lovely pastries, (try the Portuguese Custard Tarts!). Well worth a visit.

Un verdadero artesano panadería. Nos preguntábamos en para una taza de té y un pastel como un descanso de nuestra pasear Shaftesbury. Ya que nos quedamos sólo una noche y queríamos encontrar un sitio para cenar, le preguntamos al dueño si podía sugerir en cualquier lugar. No sólo nos sugiere un sitio pero también encontramos a su sitio web a su ordenador portátil, así que pudimos ver el menú! Gran servicio (té y pasteles deliciosos! )al cliente .

We use this lovely cafe regularly and can recommend the excellent coffee at a reasonable price along with a lovely selection of home-baked cakes and pastries. Very friendly staff too.

Mi mujer y yo (bueno, me lo menos !) tienden a encontrar un buen sitio y cumplir así que ella torcí el brazo un poco. El lugar tiene un ambiente agradable pero me quedaré con la bromas más animada en la esquina un poco la próxima vez. pasteles estaban bien, pero prefiero más opciones de cosas dulces y otros.

Metimos en para el almuerzo durante la ola reciente fría. Comida disfrutamos como de costumbre. En invierno el propietario holandés mantiene una auténtica chimenea encendida que agrega al ambiente acogedor.

This bijou café, half hidden from view at below street level, is one of Shaftesbury's little gems. The Dutch proprietor is very welcoming, the ambience 'cosy', and the snacks on offer first class. The breads, the quiches, the pastries are all superb, and for gluten intolerant people like me 'The Dutchman' is always happy to make an omelette with one's chosen filling. The coffees and teas are good too. Altogether a reliable choice when in need of casual sustenance in unpretentious surroundings!

Bit confusing as this place now seems to be called Ridings Bakery but i recognised it from the reviews i had read beforehand. Lots of choice of yummy cakes and some unusual choices amongst traditional favourites. I had the portuguese rice cake and my friend had the plum cake, both delicious and light sponge cakes. Coffee was good too and the savoury pies and soup sounded and smelled tempting. I would definitely visit again.

We went into Shaftesbury looking for a cream tea, and walked into this cute little bakery which had a window full of great looking bread. The cafe is done in a fresh country style and we sat ourselves down wherever we liked, and the guy chatted to us as he came to serve us. He was very friendly and talked to our baby boy. We had a slice of a traditional quiche each which came served with salad, and we also had a cream tea each (choice of plain, sweet & savoury scones), it was served with apricot jam, but made a refreshing change. The bill came to £20, which I thought was good for the quality of food. Lovely location, which I would recommend.

We had no intention of eating here as we had just had lunch in The Cellars, however looking through the door an amazing light pendent caught my eye! I was drawn in and discovered I was a cafe! We returned after a stroll around the town, to enjoy lovely homemade cakes, too many to choose from so we went halves on two!Well worth a visit, will be going back with hubby for lunch one day, menu looked varied and interesting and we will prob pick up a loaf of Spelt bread when leaving, all very temping! I might even get lucky in the meantime and be able to make an offer on the light fitting!

Having had a very disappointing lunch elsewhere in the town, it was lovely to find this place at the end of the day and what a lovely surprise. Very tasteful decor and just as tasty food. All brought to your table with good speed and charm. Would happily come back

Went for lunch today in what looked like a lovely cosy cafe offering homemade produce. I had the tomato and lentil soup which was saltier than the Dead Sea the bread it came with was nice though...... My husband had quiche which was very oily served with a terrible limp warm salad. And to make it worse we paid £16 for the erm pleasure. A real shame could be so much better.

We had lunch here on Saturday, it was busy, and as everything is freshly prepared, we did have a few minutes wait.The quality of the food is excellent, and a great choice, especially for celiacs, great in every way.We would definitely return on our next visit.

Desperate for a decent coffee and a loo we stumbled upon this treasure purely by accident. Great decor, superb coffee and tempting goodies make this a, not-to-be-missed, essential for a visit to Shaftesbury. The delicious smell of homemade vegetable and lentil soup was irresistible and a great choice. Absolutely yummy! Will definitely return and highly recommended!

Strolling through this lovely country site town named Shaftesbury, I ended up in this lovely cafe. Located in a very lovely building going back to the 16th century. Pleasant atmosphere, great food and a nice welcome. I decided to go for the lentil and tomato soup and the roast vegetable herb sandwich, in one word brilliant. Freshly home made food, the way how it should be. And for a Dutch visitor very important, nice coffee at last. Something they still don't know how to make in the UK. Costa or no Costa Coffee or Starbucks.A nice find a little off the beaten track, but that's usually where the better places are. I will surely go there again.

See my review at The Artisans Bakery, they go under the same roof. Maybe a bit confusing but for me no problem, as long as the food and ambiance is great, and it was.

Small cosy tea room and bakery.Lots of home made goodies: cakes and stuff to spoil yourself with. A little bit off the High Street being outside co-opbut well worth the tgime to find it.

We have been in this place many times before and enjoyed the experience. On this occasion the regular guy seemed to be absent and all seemed a bit fraught. The person who seemed to be the main one took our order then answered the phone. It looked like he went into the toilet to answer it. When he came out he made the coffee and then went out the door across the road to we think the co op as he returned with a carrier bag and put things in what looked like a large microwave. He then proceeded to answer the phone again whilst getting out plates for the food. Phone finished he then proceed to cut up fish on a wooden board. All this time we did not see him wash his hands once and were now very concerned about our health. So we asked if he had started doing our food and he said yes and was sorry about the wait. We tried to point out the wait was not the problem but the hygiene to which he became very defensive and angry looking so we got up to pay for the coffee and leave. He said he did not want the coffee money so we left. We will not be going here again.

This now seems to be called The Artisan Bakery so My recent review is under that name and not impressed with their food hygiene.

This attractive and cosy cafe, owned by the friendly and efficient John who is not often on site, is usually manned by a gentleman who is more interested in his laptop than his customers........ I am a frequent customer wanting to support this business but am increasingly frustrated by the lack of attention and delay in service. Could it be why I've never seen it busy?The pastries and home cooked savouries are delicious. A business needing a prod.