The Dabbling Duck in Guildford

Nice cafe with decent overpriced food and good, attentive service.

The food is great and is definitely recommended for a stop over. It's very small so when is busy it's very noisy and there is no much "personal" space.

A lovely place on the village high st, just by the river stream - good range of food options, good quality food, nice outdoor seating area and friendly and welcoming staff

Did a delivery here, so I can't rate food or service, but it was packed. Which would indicate the ratings would be favourable. Lovely,pretty and quiet location, so customers must love it too travel here

Waited to be served for 15 minutes (we were given the menu by this time), no one came. But don't worry, they have the audacity to include 10% tips into the bill. Would be nice to have some service too

What a lovely country village coffee/tea room. A very wide range of teas, coffee, cakes, and pastries. Really friendly and helpful staff. I look forward to returning to try something from the main menu because it all looked delicious coming out of the kitchen. There's plenty of seating (at least there was on a week day), nice and warm inside, and an outside garden for the warmer days.

Expensive for what food was served. A egg mayo sandwich with too many crispy onions inside. A little bit of lettuce for £9.50. Id usually expect either crisps or a few fries with the sandwich.

I love this place. Every time we plan to go to Shere, this is where we have breakfast. Every single time! We love the food, the place and the staff - 5 stars to them, they are always so kind! My suggestion, try the banana thing with yogurt. Delicious 😋

An absolutely perfect breakfast, many thanks

Top quality local products from farm, butchers etc. Beautifully English and excellent quality and good coffee too and friendly staff. We visited from 30mins drive and it was worth it and we will go back.

I came here today with my boyfriend after a walk around the area. We were seated in the heated yurt in the garden which was very warm and cosy. We thoroughly enjoyed the burgers and they were well worth the money. Definitely one to add to your list if you’re in Shere!

Shere is a lovely little village. Dabbling Duck is an old school café, I love that style. Excellent coffee, lovely cakes, food. The staff is friendly, don't have to wait long to be served. One if my favourite cafés in Surrey.

We were staying in the area and found this place on Google, I read the amazing reviews and thought we would give it a try . The time we went it was quite, we were greeted as soon as we walked in and we're given full attention, plenty of things to choose from on the menu I ordered the soup which was sweet potato and leek and my husband ordered the same plus a salt beef sandwich. The soup was incredible the taste was amazing full of flavour and I could have eaten a lot more then we had a millionaire shortbread which was huge and very chocolatey absolutely delicious. All the staff were very friendly, I would highly recommend this hidden gem.

Excellent food quality and food cooked just as ordered. Very clean but young staff (females) spoilt it as just so unfriendly, maybe shy but it took the edge off the visit.

Had a lovely breakfast at the dabbling duck. The staff were all very friendly and service and food could not be faulted. There was only one fly in the ointment. We sat inside the cafe as did a lot of dog owners. My friend has allergies and is a bit wary of dogs so it was a bit off putting to her. They were also all a bit over excited and ‘talking’ to each other which made it hard for us to converse. I’ve no objection to well behaved dogs but not everyone feels the same for various reasons and are not necessarily just being intolerant. The Dabbling Duck has a large heated marquee outside as well as covered heated outdoor seating. Would it not be a good compromise to welcome dogs only to these areas and keep the small inside seating area pet free. Other than that small niggle it was a lovely brunch before a bracing walk in beautiful countryside surrounding Shere.

Had a lovely breakfast at the dabbling duck. The staff were all very friendly and service and food could not be faulted. There was only one fly in the ointment. We sat inside the cafe as did a lot of dog owners. My friend has allergies and is a bit wary of dogs so it was a bit off putting to her. They were also all a bit over excited and ‘talking’ to each other which made it hard for us to converse. I’ve no objection to well behaved dogs but not everyone feels the same for various reasons and they are not necessarily just being intolerant. The Dabbling Duck has a large heated marquee outside as well as covered heated outdoor seating. Would it not be a good compromise to welcome dogs only to these areas and keep the small inside seating area pet free. Other than that small niggle it was a lovely brunch before a bracing walk in beautiful countryside surrounding Shere.

Beautiful food. Attentive staff

Nice enough spot for a quick tea or coffee but the food offering is pretty poor. I went for the avocado toast and felt that most could have done a better job making it themselves at home.

The egg royale ordered was inedible, there was so much salt in the hollandaise sauce it ruined all the whole meal - the egg was slightly under cooked too - and despite mentioning to the member of staff at the end nothing was done about it. Extremely disappointing and I would urge caution if you are thinking of eating there.

My local ♥️ me and pooch, breakfast and coffee. Normally Mondays. Hopefully still will be. Xx

Food was fine. Ordered drinks almost straight away, hadn’t arrived when I asked for the bill. Literally a hot chocolate and 2 bottles of juice. Drinks then arrived and we turned them away as they’d taken 20/30mins to arrive. Staff attitude was abrupt, felt a bit unwelcome. Paid for food and left quickly.

Just had breakfast here. Food was unbelievable, Everything was cooked fresh and locally sourced. The scrambled eggs was unreal! Despite it being super busy the staff was friendly and polite. Our waitress Tilly was excellent and a credit to the company. Super dog friendly and just a great experience.

Cafe with quite a large garden area (partially covered - they have a heated yurt!) which is well done up and nice to sit in. Good selection of cakes and drinks with table service. A bit pricey though!

I thought we would have had a section of the area that was dedicated to people having afternoon tea. But there were customers sitting on the table next to us just having snacks. When I rang to book the table I explained what my family could and couldn’t eat. We arrived and were greeted warmly and shown to our table. I was expecting the staff to offer us a choice of sandwiches but I mentioned what we didn't want and was told don't worry we have chosen for you. My sister can't eat sauces/ pickles etc. Most of the sandwiches had onion pickle or pickled gurkins on. No fish or meat at all. cream cheese with gurkins cheddar with caramelised onion and egg. Didn't feel special at all. My sister couldn't eat any of the sandwiches. She had a scone and thatbwas it. £125 For 3 guests was very upset with the experience. Sadly the day was fir my sisters birthday treat. The cakes in the shop looked so much nicer than what we had.

This is my second time in Shere and at The Dabbling Duck. I came last year as well. I travel from New Zealand and love coming to this place with my family here in England. Great food and staff.

Incredible panini and soups. Very good value. Lovely staff. Delicious food and drink. I recommend massively!!

We popped in for lunch on a weekday in November - it was very busy but we were seated quickly. The service was average at best (although beware, they'll add a service charge automatically when you pay the bill, regardless of the quality of the service). We both felt that it was overpriced for very average food. The panini was ok, but nothing to write home about. The cakes are £5 per slice and they looked amazing, but we found that they had a very oily, cloying texture which made us feel a bit sick. We couldn't even finish them, which is saying something for two cake lovers! I'm not entirely certain that the coffee cake had ever come into contact with any coffee - it just had a weirdly bland and slightly strange taste. Overall, at almost £40 for a quick lunch for two, we were disappointed.

Nicest burger I've ever had, seasoning and dressings perfect

cozy place with really good coffee. Scones were warm and lovely 😋

Overpriced and low quality. The avocado sandwich comes on average supermarket bread and costs £11. The layer of avocado was barely a layer. The espresso is made with over roasted coffee and is more like an americano. There was a staff of six for in such a small venue. Paid £32 for two avocado sandwiches, a hot chocolate and an espresso. Joke.

This is a pleasant cafe in the area, their take on a smashed avo on toast was interesting. loved the hot chocolate!

We visited the Dabbling Duck for my Mum's 90th for afternoon tea for 5 of us and it was fabulous! The food was beautifully presented, fresh, light and tasty. Service was top class, we were well looked after. Highly recommended.

What a gem! Lovely local cafe. The food was fresh & delicious, cooked to perfection. The desserts to die for. Excellent, highly recommend.

Lovely spot in Shere. Coffee great but would recommend avoiding the avocado toast option as rather odd, sweet and not spicy at all. Service excellent

The staff were pleasant and efficient and the soup of the day and the bread were nicely presented and tasty.

Great birthday treat. Will return to this lovely place.

A lovely dog friendly cafe in a beautiful quintessentially English village! Lovely food - I had the smashed advocate on toast with poached egg, pine nut pesto and heritage tomatoes which was very tasty and fresh. My husband had the Thai beef toastie which he said was delicious. Felt very welcome, not rushed at all and the dogs were also able to relax and were fussed over!

Thank you for brilliant customer service today - for supporting my friend and I with wheelchair access to eat inside your lovely cafe.

Really cute little cafe and the food was incredible. I don’t normally expect much from cafe food but this was honestly delicious. I had the soup of the day which was sweet potato, chilli and ginger and it was the best soup I’ve ever had, and then we shared a applewood cheddar toasted panini which had a delicious carrot chutney in. 10/10 and would definitely recommend trying this cafe in the beautiful village of Shere!

Delightful tearoom. Does a lovely breakfast. Staff is lovely and the atmosphere is fantastic.

Been to shere a couple of times for walks and mornings out. Firstly where is a lovely little village. My partner and I plus our dog stopped off here initially for a tea and a pastry but ended up having the half a sandwich and soup option which was a great shout. Best of both. The soup of the day was delicious. The pot of tea was lovely and big and the scone afterwards was again delicious. Id recommend this little place to stop off if ever in shere.

Went her for breakfast with my mom. We loved the old town vibes, the sustainable cottage shop next door. The place is quite cozy in a good way and homey, staff are lovely, though service can be a little slow which is understandable because the place is small. Absolutely delicious bang on fresh cakes!! We had the vegetarian breakfast, high quality food, well made. Coffee was great and I'm difficult to impress when it comes to coffee. Will definitely go again just to try more of the cakes 😍. Pro tip: visit the loo, its full of duck, I loved it because I'm cheeky.

Great coffee and cake, worth a visit

Amazing food and excellent service. Well worth a visit.

Stumbled upon this place today - what a lucky find. Lots of great food choices & many gluten free options which was brilliant. Spotlessly clean and lovely staff to top it off. Oh, and superb coffee!

Lovely dog friendly cafe in a beautiful village with lots of outdoor seating. The staff were all very friendly and accommodating. They have a good selection of lunch options. The only critique we would make is that the coffee and walnut cake had little to no coffee in it. But lunch was delicious.

The best EVER eggs benedict we have ever had. The tarragon oil addition was superb. We also had a serving of sausages, which were excellent.

Wonderful teashop in lovely old world village. Friendly staff. Moist Ginger cake and lively pear and elderflower drink.

Superb shabby chic cafe in a hungry pretty Shere in the Surrey Hills. Plenty of room inside, open Bank Holiday Monday, well staffed, polite and attentive staff, amusing ducky loo, well above average generous mug of americano and a stonkingly good granola and greek yoghurt pot. Comes at a price ( £25 for two ) but worth every penny. Thanks guys, we'll be back!

Popped in for a coffee and cake after a walk. Very popular cafe, but still room inside on a busy Sunday. Cake was delicious, and lots of choice. Will definitely use again and recommend.

The lemon drizzle cake was fantastic, friendly staff

An enjoyable visit. There were a lot of staff, all young and somewhat nervous but friendly. We had a slice of cake each which were decent slices and interesting flavours. Deffo recommend

We have eaten here many times before. After a walk in the Surrey Hills it was delightful to be welcomed here for a delicious lunch. As ever, the service was very relaxed and the food delicious.

Interesting menu with delicious sandwiches. We sat outside in the very pleasant rear garden. Nice atmosphere and good service.

Lovely brunch in the shady garden. My daughter had the best vegan breakfast ever, my grandson was amazed by the jammie dodger milkshake and I had the delicious apple and cinnamon loaf with yogurt, fruit etc. Altogether a very tasty experience!

First visit to Shere, this is an excellent cafe, well worth a visit. My daughter had the Granola with fresh fruit and I had Bacon, poached eggs, Mushroom and beans. Yery very yummy!!! We also bought some lovely mugs and a plaque from the shop section. Staff very attentive. We will be back.

First time came and amazing village… we had latte and duck (which is full)breakfast which was very delicious. What amazed me was the breakfast was hot till half way through as I ate slowly… lol. Anyw, that was super tasty for me. The whole experience was lovely and we planned to come back again some time in the near future.

Lovely spot for warm service and great food. Highly recommended.

Didn't go in, had booked elsewhere, but definitely looked inviting, so will probably visit the next time we are near.

Visited at about 1pm on a Friday. We Ordered coffee and fruit scones. A few minutes later the waitress returned to advise us that they had run out of ALL types of scone. I pity anyone expecting an afternoon tea later in the day. When we received our bill they had added a 10% service charge making the cost of our two coffees £8.25. I do not expect to pay a service charge when just having a coffee.

Went during a busy weekend but the staff were really good. The food was so tasty and the coffee delicious! I love their desserts as well, the rocky road is the best!!

Am cycling from London to Portsmouth on our way to Europe and had a fantastic breakfast here this morning. Very tasty, good coffee, and they have cake slices you can take away. Clearly a favourite with cyclists in the region. Very friendly staff and service was quick and very pleasant.

A photo of the BLT sandwich says it all. £11 which is a bit of a (bad) joke

Treated to an afternoon tea and in the comfort of own home … Absolutely delicious added pot of tea and glass of Prosecco … Perfect birthday treat

Met here for an early Father’s Day treat with my son and one of my daughters. What a lovely place. Coffee was excellent. My son and I had smashed avocado on wholewheat toast and my daughter eggs Benedict. Simply the best! We will definitely be back.

Great brunch, cakes and coffee - the perfect way to refuel mid-bike ride. Cosy yurt for cold days, lovely little garden when it's sunny. And amazing service when the heavens suddenly open on your poached eggs: by the time I felt the third drop yesterday lunchtime, the girls were rushing over to put up a parasol. Recommended.

Love it!!!, it is quite with good selection of cakes and the places is full of good things to enjoy. Check the village!!! iit would be a relaxing choice.

We went for afternoon tea to celebrate a birthday, and it was so cute! Very generous with the food and attentive staff who kept us topped up with drinks!

Nice country cafe. Large outdoor space.

Greeted by friendly staff, great choice of drinks and breakfast options (suggestion to the owners:acai smoothie bowl) lovely vibes and architecture. Clean throughout. Only downside is no WiFi inside.

So disappointing when a great little find lets itself down with very poor service. The room was lovely. Dinner was great and in fact the younger lady serving us in the evening was very pleasant. If only the more senior staff could take a leaf out of her book. What a shame! We felt very unwelcome.

I go here frequently with guests from abroad, but also for lunch or English tea, with my family and friends. The menu has a good variety and good vegan options. It’s a lovely tea shop to go to after a lovely walk around the quaint village of Shere: always take duck food to feed the ducks, and kids wellies in the Spring to Autumn to paddle in the stream ❤️💙🇬🇧

Always a great place to visit when cycling Surrey hills. Great service from the staff and always good coffee & cake.

Excellent coffee and pan au chocalate

Only ordered some chips but the food all looked lovely, great service and a lovely little place!

Had a lovely Avocado on toast with bacon. Always add bacon.

With indoor, outdoor in the sun, shade or yurt the variety of seating options is sure to please everyone. The food was great, the Vegan and standard burgers were very nice, highly recommend the beetroot and horseradish relish. Our kids found the cheese on the kids cheese and toast too strong and this is coming from a family that only eats extra mature cheese, for an adult or Mac and cheese it would be outstanding. Interestingly the plain kids cheese sandwich seemed a little calmer and was happily chomped. We sat in the shady garden which was lovely, but there were a lot of dogs around so if you don't like dogs you may wish to sit in the yurt or inside.

Dropped in for brunch while visiting the area after it was recommended to us by a local taxi driver. No complaints at all; service was prompt and good arrived quickly. Food looked lovely and tasted great. Didn’t try the cocktails but what was on the menu looked fab.

Had been wanting to visit for a few years as this cafe and village has been made somewhat famous by a certain film franchise (I do believe?!) and it’s very charming. Understandably busy due to it being a bank holiday Sunday lunchtime but we managed to get a table. Service was very friendly and the decor is super cute. It would’ve been nice to have the heating on as it was quite chilly, but I always feel the cold more than most. Food took a while to come, but again, it was busy. However food was lovely and it was hard to choose what to have as there was really good choice for veggies. Didn’t try the cakes but they looked incredible! Definitely worth a visit.

A very average experience. Took my mum for a birthday lunch. We booked into the Yurt which is pretty but freezing cold if weather is not on your side. We were given some lunch menus but my mum really just wanted tea and cake but we’re not offered any of the ‘traditional’ tea room stuff I was expecting. The food we had was delicious but I’m a real stickler for customer service which I’m afraid is what let this place down as staff were clearly busy but very abrupt and we were certainly made to feel we were a bit of an inconvenience to them. With all this in mind I was very disappointed to find the service charge on the bill was not optional which I strongly disagree with especially with not great service but absolutely will tip for good service.

The most fantastic tea. Everything was beautiful, unusual and delicious. The ladies serving were friendly and cheerful even on a very busy and wet afternoon. Extremly memorable for all the right reasons.

Lovely cafe in a beautiful village. Can't go wrong.

Cozy café in a quaint village. Lovely coffee and cakes.

We booked afternoon tea here and we were not disappointed. The yurt was beautifully decorated, the food arrived promptly and each piece was lovely. Highly recommended!

Lovely cafe in beautiful Shere. Delicious food with good variety to cater for different dietary requirements. Excellent service. Happy to recommend

THE FOOD WAS AMAZING! Everything was just perfect! Their Tomato soup was perfect! And everything thing else we had there!

Quick service from lovely friendly staff. Tuna sandwich was beautiful and others in our party enjoyed their choices too. Recommend!

Warm friendly and hearty food. Perfect for all the family including your doggy.

Nice setting in the middle of lovely Shere. Coffee was good, cake selection a bit average and so was the cake, service could be better. As there isn’t much choice would probably return but would love this place ti achieve its full potential!

Delicious breakfast, great service and very dog friendly!

The food is cheap produce/ingredients e.g not fresh scrambled eggs and very cheap cuts of smoked salmon. We sat at a table which hadn’t been cleaned from the previous customer. Staff friendly but I wouldn’t recommend, extremely disappointed.

The food is cheap produce/ingredients e.g not fresh scrambled eggs and very cheap cuts of smoked salmon. We sat at a table which hadn’t been cleaned from the previous customer. Staff friendly but I wouldn’t recommend, extremely disappointed.

Did not have a booking but really wanted to try this little tearoom out as we were visiting Shere and had seen good reviews. It was raining, and nothing else was open. So we decided to wait for a seat. The staff were welcoming, but it took ages to be seated. After our food arrived, I could not get thier attention and when I tried to find the staff they where too busy chatting around the side and couldn't be bothered to come round to the tables to check if your food is OK which would have been nice but given that it was very busy and squashed seating plan was less then ideal. Sadly, as we had come a long way to visit Shere Village and this was the only little tearoom that offered what we wanted, so there were no other options. Otherwise, we would not have waited. The panini with chicken was dry the scones where made with a strange type of semi wholemeal flour, and the clotted cream portion was very tiny given the size of the scone, so it was not the authentic cream tea scone we were expecting. All round not a great experience and we certainly with not be back. If you do discide to try this place, make sure you book, but in all honesty, I simply wouldn't bother.

What a delightful find! Despite its size, this cafe packs a punch with its delicious offerings and inviting atmosphere. Definitely a 5-star experience

Good food and great service as usual.

Very friendly and a little bit quirky.

Our second visit and it won’t be our last. It’s not cheap but the quality and freshness of the food was outstanding on both occasions. Was the best egg mayo sandwich I’ve ever had … the truffle mayonnaise and cornbread elevated it to another level! And the sausage roll connoisseur in the family was extremely complimentary about his lunch too! Coupled with polite and speedy service and a warm homely ambiance this is one establishment not to be missed on a visit to the area.

Full marks all round for the Dabbling Duck. We stopped here today for lunch on a busy Saturday, when the village was heaving with walkers. The cafe was full, but the waitress who received us very politely said that we were welcome to sit at one of the tables outside. We said yes, we'd sit outside, as the weather was fine, and we gave in our orders. While we were sipping our tea, but before the eats were served, another waitress came to us, and said that they'd shortly be able to accommodate us in their marquee or tent at the back, a facility we'd hitherto been unaware of. Sure enough, a few minutes later we were moved inside. The tent is amazing, a lovely warm enclosure which doubles the cafe's seating capacity, soothingly illuminated by what appear left-over Christmas lights. In January it's very atmospheric. So the first thing is - full marks to the Dabbling Duck for looking after its customers. The second thing is, full marks for the food. Three of us had soup, one a sandwich, and one a baguette. All were excellent, and served by waitresses who, even under pressure, seemed to enjoy their work. We'll be going back to the Dabbling Duck again.

My friends and I were unable to be seated in the main café as they were too busy but we found out that there was a table available in the yurt outside and we had such a lovely surprise! The yurt is absolutely beautiful 😍 really special and atmospheric. The young waiter who served us was really lovely and we thoroughly enjoyed our hearty homemade vegan meal and lovely cup of tea served in beautiful crockery. Definitely planning to return and highly recommended.

Very popular cafe with good food and coffee, and friendly service. Gluten free options available