The Barns Tea Room in Braintree - Phone Number, Reservations, Reviews

Service was good but the Victoria sponge was the worst I’ve ever tasted. I was shocked as I had thought Tipteee tearooms would provide quality cake. It contained about 40 ingredients and tasted artificial. Beware!!

Booked afternoon tea in advance for a celebration. Had to find a member of staff to ask about our reservation, no hello or welcome, and shown to reserved table with a high chair (which wasn’t requested) and no help was given to sort this out or apology for the mix up. Sandwiches and scones lovely, but small cakes on top were not nice. So save money and order separately. No offer of refill on tea. Staff seemed very short with customers. Tearoom could do with a good clean. Not a good look to have hundreds of flies stuck to cobwebs at the top windows. Grounds lovely but would not return due to our experience and would not recommend as somewhere special to go.

Lovely lunch, excellent location. Free parking. Service good. One of the staff appeared miserable, a smile would help or a nice welcome. Other than that would recommend.

The tearoom catered for a family event (40+) for us, one afternoon in early April. They closed the tearoom to other customers and provided tea and coffee and lots of different delicious cakes (some pre-packaged in slices) and some biscuits. The staff were very attentive to our guests and everyone enjoyed themselves. I would thoroughly recommend this tearoom. It’s in the historic Cressing Barns complex which is lovely (there were lots of daffodils when we went) and it has plenty of parking.

After visiting Cressing Temple for the Easter trail, us adults decided to have a hot drink and cake from the tea rooms, to support a small business. Our children are very fussy with food, so we took seats outside- by the entrance-so not to take room up inside the tea rooms. When we got there, a nice waitress came out and tried to help us sort tables - we were three families. She told us we couldn’t all fit in the tea rooms and if we wanted to order just head inside. Children sat down- some adults stood as there were not enough seats. Some of us gave our children food from their bags, but all the adults were ordering food. Plus it was very quiet. One family ordered. As the other adults were deciding what to order- a women from the tea rooms came out and stared at us all. At the time I thought it was to see what tables were left- there was a table reserved for 12.45- so we left that free. It was 12.10pm when we went in. As I went to go in to order, I said excuse me, as she was in the door way. She turned to me and said the kids can’t be eating, they sell food, so we have to buy food. I said that’s ok, we will go sit outside, do they take the food orders out there. Her reply ‘are the adult ordering food’ - yes all adults are ordering food and 3 of the children would be. Oh then you can all sit there then. She was literally in my face- I felt very uncomfortable! she had already served one of the families, and I was trying to go into order when she stopped me! We all felt very uncomfortable after! I even ordered double the food my family needed, as she had made me feel so guilty for feeding my child who would not eat anything else! If my child was feeding from a bottle, I would hope she would not have complained then! Once our food came out- it came out very quickly, we did borrow a chair from the reserved table, but as soon as the couple turned up, we put the chair back- the gentleman said no, don’t be silly, I’ll go and get another one! The women that had complained to us, came out with a chair, tutting. If she checked the CCTV out there- she would see the chair was given back and the gentleman refuses it! She then offered them table service- when we were told we had to go in to pay! Obviously we looked like we would make a run for it 🙄 Once the children had finished eating, they went outside to play- the doors are automatic- unfortunately the children did keep running past them/standing in the door way so the door was open. I myself, told the children to stay away from the door. The said gentleman then complained to us to say it was too cold and to keep the door shut! Honestly the Easter trail was lovely, the children loved it! But next time we will not be using the tea rooms, it was full of grumpy adults! Oh the food was lovely though, shame about the service! I would just like to point out- 2 of the adults in our group are school teachers and 3 are all professionals. Not once were we rude to anyone- and we offered to go outside! No one asked if our children had SEN or asked if there was a reason why the children were eating food, not brought from the tea rooms! We were sat in the lobby of Cressing temples- not actually in the tea rooms! We fully understand they are a small business, and like I said before we offered to go outside! Plus as soon as it started to get busy, we left to ensure others could use the tables!

Afternoon tea disappointing. Sandwiches lacked taste with coronation turkey no taste in mango chutney, prawn sandwich completely without taste. Scones good though. Drinks adequate.Not a complete success but adequate.

We came here to have an afternoon tea that we were gifted. We had a warm welcome and quickly shown to our reserved table, where we were advised to choose any sandwiches/toastie and drinks for our afternoon tea. As a non tea/coffee drinker, it was great to be able to choose a cold drink and not be charged any extra that other places often do. The food came quickly and we were satisfied with the sandwiches. Sadly, when we started the scones and opened the jam, the wasps appeared. There are signs up to advise there is a wasp issue, but we thought being seated inside we wouldn't have this issue. After fending off half a dozen wasps whilst trying to eat our scones, we decided we'd had enough of the wasps and would take the cakes home to eat. It was a shame that the wasps ruined the treat, I appreciate its nature but not ideal inside a cafe.

I had been gifted an Afternoon Tea for Two and went with my Husband and our dog, so sat outside. I had to go in to order from the "front of house" cheerful enough young lass. The waitress was just lounging on a counter & seemed rather disinterested. It really didn't take long at all for the food to arrive; a selection of sandwiches and cakes on tiered trays with tea pots etc , sort of dumped in front of us by the waitress who disappeared quickly. As we organised plates and things we realised there was no sugar for the tea so I went back inside for it. The we realised a couple of items from the Selection were missing, So back inside I went again. Finally, as I started to eat it became apparent the sandwiches were of very poor quailty, the bread was dry, the prawns were tasteless and all in all, the construction of the sandwiches themselves was poor. We tried a few bites, had our tea and just decided enough was enough. We asked for a take-away box for the cakes, made our excuses and left. I have had these sort of teas before at other venues and they have always been rather fun and tasty experiences. Not this time I'm sorry to say. Overall poor quality food and indifferent waitress service. The young lady acting "front of house" was the saving grace insofar as customer service was concerned but couldn't compensate for all the other faults sadly.

Went here it’s my Dad for lunch. We both had a cheese and meat ploughmans and it was lovely. Only thing that could’ve made it better was to have had French bread instead of sliced bread. Friendly staff, nice setting, would recommend.

Fabulous place for afternoon tea. Scones with jam and cream were amazing. Felt really welcome and lots of parking available. 😁😁

Good welcome and friendly staff and accommodating to our needs. The breakfast did not take long to arrive but the baked beans were lukewarm and the sausages lacked heat. They were taken back to the kitchen and heated up but still not hot only warm. Not a good start to the day.

Treated parents to a lunch here, the service was good, it has clearly improved looking at old reviews. toasted sandwiches make a nice lunch with excellent chutneys and the tearoom is nice and airy, and in good location.

Friendly staff and a nice setting but the food is overpriced for what you get. The brie & bacon toasted sandwich had NO bacon in one sandwich and one small rasher in the other. At almost £9 this is extremely poor value. We won't bother again.

We have a tradition to go some where for a sandwich and drink at lunch time at least once a week . We live in galleywood and have been to most of the tea rooms in the area. So we know roughly what you get. Wilkin and sons have a number tea rooms and you know you are going to pay 10% -15% more for the same food elsewhere For no better service or quality. But some times it comes to location. Today we went to Cressing temple barn for the autumn craft show. So eating the wilkin and sons there was a no brainer. as usual my tea pot was getting a bit strong after the first cup so I asked the lady to top it up. Bearing in mind no one ever has an issue with this and some places supply extra hot water as standard I was taken aback when I was told there would now be a 50p charge for the privilege. We actually went to the Barley lands branch in the week , no charge there. The food today was ok but nothing super so I can see why it only got 3.5 stars on trip advisor Just to clarify nothing was bad just ok and charging to top your tea pot , well I will let you decide But I have not had it before Thanks Barry

We had a lovely lunch of steak pie, vegetables, new potatoes and gravy followed by a pot of tea. Sat outdoors in the fresh air and sunshine. The usual Tiptree offerings of cream teas, sandwiches and a quiche were available too. Dogs are welcome outdoors if you want to take your pet.

Very welcoming staff. Tables outside and in (we moved in because of the wasps, caused no problems) Good sized helpings of tasty jacket potatoes for lunch, followed by delicious afternoon scone, cream and jam after a walk round the gardens. Elise very helpful and smiley! Lots of Tiptree products on sale too.

My husband and I had a lovely afternoon at my brother and sister in law's golden wedding anniversary. The sandwiches, cakes and scones were fresh and delicious. The table service first class, nothing too much trouble. The walk around the house and gardens finished a beautiful afternoon.

Fantastic service and fantastic food! Elise was so attentive and brilliant with the young children in our group - and very thorough with checking ingredients for our dairy allergy sufferer!! Cannot recommend her and the barns enough!

Had the dog with us so had to sit outside, only to be told that they only serve tske aways outside ie: cardboard cups, polystyrene food containers. They said that they are unable to serve food to the table outside! They then proceeded to bring the tray out to the table and I assume, clear away after as no bins anywhere.! Not sure where the logic is in that.

After all the hype regarding the Barn and the size of it's scones, I was looking forward to today's visit. My friend and I both had a sandwich which was mediocre, however the garnish and crisps were lovely. The crumble was only fruit and no crumble 😭 On a positive note.... The staff were very attentive, pleasant and polite.

Lovely setting for the tea rooms staff were friendly and helpful when being seated. We had sandwiches and cream tea- all nice but not anything special. The location is the winning element of the TipTree Tearooms.

A group of 6 of us visited on bank holiday Monday for a pre booked Prosecco afternoon tea. We were impressed with the fact we could each pick our preferred sandwiches as usually they are already made. The sandwiches and cakes were lovely and our...

Checked website before turning up with no mention of booking a table and greeted with miserable staff member saying you have to get out by 12:30 and we should of booked , well we turned up at 10am and certainly wouldn’t want to sit there...

Service was a bit rough. Greented by "Have you got a booking" followed by "You will have to leave by 12.30pm." This was followed by a tour or the Tea room while the waitress tried to find us a table.(the place was almost empty) All...

Certainly not cheap, but good quality and fairly big quantities. Also can look around at the historic barns for free. No need to make a booking if you sit outside (weather permitting).

We have been here twice now and the service has been slow both times, with the wrong cakes being delivered to the table this time, then having to wait so long for the correct ones to be brought out that we had finished our drinks...

We came here after trying to get in to the Tea Room at Tiptree where they had a lengthy queue to get in. Easy to find and we were served by Penny who was exceptional - friendly and attentive - very prompt service and the...

Popped in for a cake and drink on a visit to Cressing Barns. They do a Cream Tea with two scones but my husband wanted a cheese scone and I only wanted one fruit scone. The waitress was more than happy to change it to...

Well all I can say is wow We booked afternoon tea at the Cressing Temple barn as it was one of the locations of the jam factory we had never been to. I am unfortunately unable to have milk or gluten and told them this...

These tearooms, which appear to be so modern are in fact dating back to the 13 century. The Tearooms now are perfect for groups, especially afternoon teas, weddings and group occasions. there is excellent parking and close to the entrance. All usual facilities such as...

We visit the barns regularly, usually on our way back from Freeport shopping village, the food is always good, the staff are very friendly and always greet you like an old friend, sevice is very prompt never wait very long, lots of parking spaces, and...

We had a gift voucher for afternoon tea, but felt we would like to choose what we wanted. The staff could not be more helpful. We stared with coffee and sandwiches, then had the usual scones etc. We had a little money over which enabled...

Spotlessly clean set in beautiful grounds, I attended with my daughter and friends for a living history event at Cressing Temple Barns, With excellent parking nearby a flat walk and a lovely open terrace to sit out side we were happy with all aspects of...

My mum and I had cream tea here on Saturday morning. The scones were huge and still warm, freshly made from the oven.

Three of us went to The Barn for lunch. The restaurant was light, airy, and very clean. The toilets were immaculate. The staff were friendly and very helpful. We were allowed to adapt the menu to suit our tastes. The food was cooked to order...

Two of us visited on Sunday for a quick lunch. We both had the bacon and brie toasted sandwich which came with loads of salad and crisps. Quite a substantial quick meal and very tasty! There was an error with our order which delayed it longer than expected, when the staff realised their mistake they apologised and didn't charge for our (non alcoholic) drinks, which we considered very kind and thoughtful. We will definitely return.

We visited for lunch on Friday. It was very busy as there was a Halloween event on at Cressing Temple Barns. The staff were friendly and we got a table quickly. Considering how busy it was we got our food very quickly about 10 minutes from ordering. Our 5 year old son had the children’s lunch box with sandwich, yogurt, raisins, crisps, penguin and juice carton and he ate the lot, this was excellent value. I had a toasted cheese, tomato and onion sandwich which was lovely, served with crisps and a very fresh salad. I loved the little pot of mayonnaise that came with it. The Apple and raspberry drink was lovely too, it was nice to have something different. I have been to the tea room several times and each time the service and staff and food are excellent. On my next visit I am going for tea and cake as the cakes on offer look amazing.

Came here with my family and was snapped at by an incredibly rude lady in charge. Won't be returning

I am absolutely disappointed to write this review as we have all heard great things, especially with afternoon tea's, however our visit wasn't great.

Cressing Barns is a beautiful location. The restaurant/cafe was noisy and echoing, staff were very polite and attentive. In a group of five, some of the food looked good, my macaroni cheese was unmemorable, stodgy and pretty bland. Probably a bad choice. I also felt things were a little pricey for what they were. £8.25 for a small bowl of stodge? Would return to see the barns and grounds which were beautiful but maybe choose something else to eat!!

Reviews I've read are good and bad, perhaps it depends on how busy the staff are when visiting this cafe. Today I had my first visit, unlike the other Wilkins cafes in Tiptree and Heybridge, which I've found are always very busy, this one was virtually empty at lunchtime. The staff were very attentive and friendly, and the food and drink arrived amazingly fast. The cafe was well laid out, and afterwards we took a free walk around the Cressing Temple Barns. The food was of excellent quality, though it was not cheap. The tables were clean, but the floor was not.

We visited the Tiptree Tea Rooms as part of a visit to Cressing Temple.

My husband and I visited recently for lunch. The staff were very friendly and welcoming. We both had the cheese and onion toasted sandwich and a raspberry and apple drink. It was all very tasty and salad garnish very fresh. We have been here several times and the food is always excellent.

Visited here for Lunch on the 18 June , very small area for the Tiptree Tea Room

All though it is in a nice setting felt the staff needed improving no smiles dissapeared through the servings left only one person for all the tables. i had steak pie thought the serving was a bit small for the price. the place was very clean apart from a very large cobweb in the ceiling by the large window where the doors open it had lots of dead flies hanging from it yuck. also we had not really finished our meals and our plates were taken away before we had all finished.

I went to this tearoom with my hubby and brother in law i had the gluten free scone which was ok a bit heavy were it was probably over worked but tasted ok my hubby had a normal scone which he said tasted lovely and my brother in law had a bacon and brie toastie which looked lovely but he said tasted like cardboard the service was great and the waitrss was good

Friendly staff, fantastic location, nice building but I for one had to leave my coat on as it was quite chilly in there. Such a shame.

I'll start by saying we found the staff very welcoming and friendly. Also the barn itself provides a nice setting. I do think though the food is a bit on the pricey side. Good selection of Tiptree jams, marmalade etc that you can also buy.

Been to quite a few Wilkins Tea Rooms, and sadly I can only say that this one is nothing to write home about. Sandwich quality was distinctly average - scones OK.

Came in for a cup of coffee with my wife. The first thing I noticed was the unsmiling waitress who gave us some menus. We sat outside and the lukewarm coffee came about ten minutes later along with a scone and jam. I thought the scone was a bit claggy but my wife thought it was okay. The jam was actually quite nice. We spent a pleasant half hour sitting outside watching the next table order their food and sending it back because it wasn't what they ordered. The third attempt was successful. Then we spotted another table which had the same problems. We were a little disappointed but on the whole it was an avererage experience.

Special - Sausage & onion bagette came with small salad and crisps, was tasty and reasonably priced. Service was friendly and very efficient, orders arrived quickly which was good considering party of 10.

Went with my wife, sister in law and her husband

Hoy fue decepcionante. Mi pedido fue devuelto tres veces, ya que era incorrecto. Cuando llegamos no era nada más que un sandwich especiales en vez de la ensalada se describe y cobraron (10 libras. 95! Las hojas fueron expulsados) en un bol, rebanadas de pan paquete ponen en el lado y una muy pequeña porción de langostinos y salmón en el lateral. Como dije a un sandwich que me podría haber especialemten ordenados por la mitad de precio y sacó aparte yo. El pedazo de pastel Victoria sandwich estaba seco, insípido y decepcionante. Los graneros de sus juegos necesitas si es parte de la estancia de Tiptree franquicia.

I can't help but feel that the more premises Wilkin & Sons acquires, the more standards drop. We did go on a rather drizzly day so perhaps didn't see The Barns in its full glory (it looked to have a lot of outdoor seating to the front and back), but the mood the staff created was as miserable inside as it was outside - I don't think I saw our waitress or the front of house smile once! When our lunch order was being taken (at around 12 noon, so the start of lunch "time") lots of the menu was already "only one left" or "we don't have that", which we found out through front of house talking at our waitress as she took our order. All quite unprofessional and unorganised in my opinion. Also, another young waitress was flouncing around swooshing her long dark locks, just begging to end up in someone's lunch! That said, the food came quickly (and hair free), and for the most part was good value for money. My mum had the special sausage and cheese melt jacket potato which was a huge portion and, she informed me (and the waitress, who nearly cracked a smile), the best jacket potato she had eaten out recently. High praise indeed. My dad and I both had the quiche, which seems to have shrunk over the years, again as Wilkin & Sons has expanded, but it was tasty and its accompanying new potatoes, just on the right side of al dente. We left full, full but a little perturbed. Wilkin & Sons, you're losing the charm...

Escaso y desbordado; pero otros personal charlando con los clientes mientras nos sentamos esperando a ser alcanzado. Parece una falta de conexión entre la espera y el personal de cocina. Mi pedido ya no estaba disponible y mientras el gerente vino y se disculpó sin...

Visitamos hoy con mi hija, como siempre la buena es delicioso, con mucha variedad, ensaladas, sándwiches, patatas chaqueta, menú y varias ofertas en la pizarra sobre el mostrador. Por ejemplo, queso horas macaroni, sopas. Los postres y pasteles. preciosa También pudimos comprar mermeladas, salsas, etc.,...

Thought we'd pop in for tea and cake whilst on a bike ride. Found there was a car show going on and the area was heaving but we only wanted a cuppa and some cake so went in. Order taken no problems, after waiting thirty minutes for a cup of tea and a slice of cake I went back inside to ask where it was. A female at the desk said to another customer in front of me that they were no longer taking orders as they were 'too busy' but explained she was welcome to wait. The customer asked how long she might expect to wait and the staff member just walked away from her and started clearing tables!! How rude!!! And if no orders are being taken why bother with the tables? She could have been serving my tea and cake instead. Having spoken to the manager my order came out funnily enough pretty quickly.I counted just three staff members, serving, taking orders and clearing. It's not like they don't have notice for the Car show. I'd avoid especially on event days.

Was very impressed with the menu and choice of food available, nice place for some lunch. Good service too. Slightly pricey but I guess its what to expect for the quality. Will be back.

We were looking forward to visiting this Tiptree Tea Room and we were not disappointed. The staff were very welcoming and patient with our two young children and we were pleased to find that hot chocolate was available in a child size cup. It was a great end to our visit to Cressing Temple.

Gorgeous tea room in a beautiful setting. I go as often as I can and I can never fault them. Obviously on days that events are held on site the tea room is very very busy and a wait can be incurred but the team are always smiling, always willing to help and very friendly. I love going here, alone or with friends. I've seen people book tables for big groups and they always dress the tables really prettily for guests.Cakes are delicious, specials are lovingly created by the team and are so yummy! Thanks for always being so amazing!

We had a nice lunch today. I had a turkey salad, my mother-in-law had a jacket potato, and my husband had quiche. The portions were generous, the food fresh, the service good. Would have loved a salad dressing with my salad, but it was nicely prepared.

A 50 minute wait for afternoon tea for eight people which was pre booked weeks before. When the food finally arrived the order was not correct. Unprofessional.

I was taken to the tea rooms as a treat, but the high tea is so overpriced! £15.00 each for 4 triangle sandwiches, scone and one small cake! Oh and a cup of tea! Not even a glass of fizz!! The manageress was more interested in seeing my vouchers when the food arrived than letting us eat it!!! On the way out she asked my daughter not to stand to the side of her as she had a thing about it!!! Very customer friendly not!!!! I won't be going back you get better value and friendlier service at Wyvale!!!

Was there yesterday and had an Afternoon Tea. Was delicious. Our choice of sandwiches (with plentiful salad), beautiful fresh warm scone with clotted cream and jam, plus 2 cakes, and choice of teas.Service was excellent, friendly staff, and we weren't rushed.

I was taken for lunch here, the service was very slow but to be fair it was lunchtime. The baked potatoes were not nice, the cheese had been microwaved which made it stringy and hard in places, the potatoes were very dry and over cooked, one was supposed to be with sausage which was difficult to find. We ordered tea for two and given a pot which just about made two cups. The food is very expensive for what it was and very disappointing.

The great thing about Wilkins Tea rooms is that they serve consistently good food and usually excellent service.On past experience these tea rooms are always good value and have very enjoyable food.Our experience today was not good and very disappointing, having enjoyed these tearooms at Heybridge, Writtle, and Dedham it came as a bit of a surprise.Considering the lovely building and fantastic setting I would have thought this would have been a fantastic opportunity to excel and display the quality of the Wilkins Brand.My advice take a picnic and enjoy the fabulous setting

A great place for a morning coffee or afternoon tea. Having been there on a number of occasions and had the best scones and sandwiches around.The staff are always pleasant and helpfull.

This tea room is ok, but staff need to speed up and be on the ball with customer service. Anyone who comes to the door (or gets to the front of the queue) needs to be acknowledged immediately, not left waiting wondering what to do. Food fine - have only had scones and coffee. Didn't bother to visit today at the Apple Day as one thing I do know, is that the tea room can't cope with lots of people.

Visited yesterday as was attending a meeting. It was around 11am and the tea room was open for business. After finding myself a menu I went to what I thought was the ordering counter. There were around four woman busily behind the counter/kitchen. Who all proceeded to ignore me. I eventually asked "do I order here, or is it table service?" They blankly pointed to a young woman who was standing across the cafe (why didn't she approach me to begin with?) who came over looking at me like I was from Mars! I ordered from the menu. The breakfast arrived. It was clearly microwaved and pre cooked sausages and bacon. Soggy mushrooms and all round very poor. Pull your socks up!

Poped in here on a wet afternoon for lunch. Nice big car park out the front with easy access. Staff helpful on arrival and speedy service. Good selrction of lunch items as well as daily specials. I had a very nice cheese ploughmans gor £8.95 which was good vaule. My son had a quiche which was huge.All in all a good experince and not bad value. Will use again.

My daughter, grandchildren and I visited Cressing barn tea room today. We only had drinks but were served by a most courteous, charming young lady called Erin. A credit to this tearoom. Thank you.

Visited in August for a cuppa and scone, as its nearby and had been recommended When we arrived a big sign said " please wait here to be seated " so we did and about 6 staff in and around the counter just ignored us as they seemed too busy talking to each other .So we just sat down . Friendly staff smiled at us and eventually one thought to bring over menus.After some time another waitress came and took our order . The others where still too busy talking . We ordered cream tea and a sandwich and it was all fab and scone was fresh, warm and perfect , with jam and clotted cream to top it off. Tea was Assam and perfect too.All in all I would go back , but others might not with poor staff coordination

I visited the barns as part the rollhard car show. When visiting the tea rooms for lunch the service was pretty awful. When ordering our food we were warned that there was a half an hour wait for hot food (which we were fine with) and the woman apologised for this. However I ordered tea and scones and the rest of my group (6 friends) ordered sandwiches and toasties. My scones arrives first, after a 20 minute wait, and then everyone else's drinks. We had to ask for my tea to come after a while but then they didn't deliver milk nor did they apologise for my wait. I had nearly finished my scones before everyone else's food had turned up after over an hours wait. I felt that many times I looked up and saw the two waitresses who were working chatting and taking their time about their jobs. I understand that the tea rooms might have been under staffed, but waiting over an hour for a mediocre sandwich that had gone stale from waiting to be served was a bit of a piss take. The waiters came to our table with the wrong sandwiches a number of times, and they also didn't take the plates that were left from the previous group until we asked them to.

Have visited many times with my daughter and with friends. Lovely jacket potatoes, quiches, nice specials board, and yummy desserts. Nice teas and coffee too. Best to book at busy periods. Staff are friendly and attentive. Recommended.

Ordered a prawn salad with new potatoes. Arrived with roast potatoes covered in grease and heavily sprinkled with herbs. Sent it back and asked for the new potatoes as described on menu. Waitress yelled to cook in kitchen " can you do any fresh new potatoes" ? What came back were hard dry potatoes. The tiny dish of prawns were tiny shrimps sitting in some pink water - no seafood sauce and they were warm!!

All excellent in every asoect food , service variety cleanliness all freshly prepared booking advised as gets very busy

Took mum for high tea and thoroughly enjoyed.Everything was fresh, unlimited lattes, choice of sandwiches rather than most high teas that come with set fillings.Staff were friendly and helpful.Will return!

We visited about 3pm on a weekday in school term time, so it wasn't busy. There were plenty of staff and we were seated quickly and served pretty efficiently. Even though it was towards the end of the afternoon there was plenty of choice for cakes and they were v tasty. Nice venue and we looked around the Barns and gardens afterwards at no extra cost.

Attended a residential course next door to the tea rooms so decided to have lunch in the Cafe (doesn't deserve to be referred to as Tea Rooms so from here on in will be referred to as Cafe)Promptly sat to table (please note cafe was not busy, 4 other tables of no more than six present)3 of us ordered Latte, which when arrived ordered x2 Sausage Baps and a Soup (1st menu choice from special's menu board not available (not sure why one of the plenty of staff hanging around didn't have the ability to remove said special from chalk board!)30 minutes later chased the Sausage Baps and Soup (remember Cafe isn't busy) also noting on hours break from course - was told sausages being cooked from fresh ......we could only assume cook was on way back from slaughter house..........45 minutes had passed by which time we gave up cancelled our order and retuned to our course on an empty stomach.Have visited a number of TipTree Tea Rooms sadly this one does not live up to the usual standards Avoid Avoid Avoid.If your on a residential course pack a Sandwich......we certainly will next time.

What a disappointment for Apple Day. It was a lovely day at Cressing but there was no takeaway food available only overpriced tea or coffee to take away. We waited in line for quite a long time for a table in the tearoom and could see tables free but they had not been cleared. It was a strange set up overall. The outside tables, which we waited for, were not served by the waitresses at all and in fact, we could have just sat down there without coming inside to wait in line. It seems stupid that we had to wait all that time just to go up to the till and order and pay before eating while the seats inside were waited on as in a restaurant. Everything was super slow and clearly very inefficient. It's a pity as Tiptree has 8 or 9 other tearooms in the wider area and should have sent over more staff and more food to respond to the long lines.

Apple Day - lots of people- no takeaway food available at the cafe or on site elsewhere and its waitress service only ( though half heartedly as you go up to till to order and pay ). Long queue, staff seemed in no hurry and empty tables were sitting idle. Waited 15 mins to get a table. Then every time I tried to place an order something had run out- including all but one of the savoury specials ( Apple themed for Apple Day- bound to be popular - so why not have prepared lots!) and no jacket potatoes. Order arrived 20 mins later , but savoury course missing, just the drinks and cakes arrived. Asked where main course was, told it would be here shortly. Waited for another 10 mins . Chased it up and told ' we are busy ' and no apology. When it did turn up there was an apology but spoilt with 'but we are busy' - fair enough but then if it is an event day be prepared- more food, more staff and warn punters if its going to be a long wait before they order ! And why bring out the food when some of it is missing, I don't want to eat the sweet stuff before my main course and eat on my own when everyone else has eaten their food! Pricey food, long wait, staff not bothered. Take the pressure off yourselves and do some sandwiches/cakes pre-packaged to take out. Is there a children's menu ??This café is letting the Wilkins brand down.

Very nice experience for a birthday treat high tea was the order of the day and it did not disappoint, friendly staff who did embarrass me a little by singing happy birthday to me. Really lovely coffee and tea well worth a visit since Tiptree jam has taken over the cafe.

We visited on 19th September, how disappointing. Surely Wilkin & Sons are in the business of selling a premium product, the jam cannot be faulted. However Tea Room at Cressing Barns is anything but premium, cheap cutlery, indifferent food, staff who do not seem to know what they are doing and finally having to go to the counter to settle the bill; hardly premium. If Wilkin & Sons are to remain in this business they really need to take a look at another company from Harrogate, there service is seamless and is an experience to behold. Please take a look at your operation, your brand will very soon be diminished if you are not careful.

My sister and I took our parents for afternoon tea here to celebrate their 65th wedding anniversary and my birthday. We had emailed in advance to make this a special occasion, and we were delighted with the results. Flowers and a card were provided, along with a complimentary jar of jam labelled with my parents name and the occasion. The afternoon tea was delicious with well filled sandwiches, a selection of cakes and scones, jam and clotted cream. The staff were courteous and very helpful. Our thanks to Lianne and her staff for making it such an occasion

We have visited many of the other Tiptree tea rooms and enjoyed this experience the most. We arrived and were greeted warmly and ordered our afternoon tea, it arrived looking very appetising indeed. Pots of tea were delivered and many more were ordered during the one and three quarter hours we were there indulging ourselves. The staff were attentive without being obtrusive, NOTHING was too much trouble for them and they made our experience at The Barns an extremely enjoyable one, can't wait to go back with more friends to repeat the experience again. Plus all the extra pots of tea were included, a bonus for Kev who's a complete tea addict!Thank you Chloe, Leanne and The Barns Team from Kevin and Kim

We are regulars at the Lock Room in Heybridge and the Tearooms at the factory in Tiptree, living near Braintree we were delighted when we heard that Tiptree were opening a Tearooms at Cressing Temple.We visited for lunch on a lovely Saturday lunchtime, food was nowhere near upto the standard of the other Tearooms, we ordered 2 mixed ploughmans. Salad was small and rather sad, the coleslaw was nice but warm, the ham and cheese was lovely. The pickles were soggy, not the crisp pickled onions we have come to expect visiting the other Tearooms.We were welcomed to the table by a very polite lady (Chloe i think), the service from the rest of the team (school kids, with earphones in whilst working) was terrible, again far short of the normal standard.One delivery of our food, we had to call the waiter back after a few minutes when we realised he hadn't gone back to get cutlery he had actually forgot, we had to ask for butter and the chutney with the ploughmans as this too was missing.I'm sorry to say but we won't be going back, spending the best part of £30 for lunch for 2 I expect more.We are now left wondering if the whole chain has gone down hill or just this new one not upto standard.

Went here for afternoon tea on a Sunday. Absolutely beautiful grounds, the walled garden was stunning to walk around. The barns were lovely. The cafe itself is very nice with nice staff. The sandwiches were delicious. Absolutely stuffed with filling! The cream tea didn't come with cream but was lovely tea and cake. All very reasonably priced as well. We bought some jam to take home too. Will definitely be visiting again.