The Garden Room in Mendip

Simply the best garden in the south west

We had a lovely afternoon tea with fantastic scones and very attentive service. Amazing gardens with quite possibly the best view of Wells that there is (I grew up in Wells and didn't know this place existed 😂).

Excellent afternoon tea and gardens. Very helpful and friendly hosts. See my longer review and photos under "Stoberry Park"

Dreadful treatment of paying customers. It’s a crying shame you feel the need to speak to people the way you do. A long reflection in yourself and your place in this world is needed.

I can honestly never remember leaving a negative review for somebody, running a small business is tough, but unfortunately Frances at Stoberry House has forced my hand. Very sadly I lost a close relative unexpectedly three weeks ago. We chose Stoberry House to host a small gathering after the funeral. My aunt called the venue and made the arrangements. Initially Frances was friendly and helpful in arranging the venue. However we did unfortunately have the requirement to change the numbers slightly. Now, I understand that the venue may have difficulty accommodating such a change. Just tell us and we'll pull together as a family and make the desired changes. But Frances didn't do this. Clearly showing signs of the pressure of running her business she made a grieving daughter literally cry with her unnecessarily nasty response. I've read these types of reviews before and thought "obviously the customers were making unreasonable requests or being rude", but in this case nothing of this sort has happened. I'm not sure what's going on to cause you to treat a grieving family in this way Frances, but I'm frankly disgusted. I will endeavour to share this experience as far and wide as I can, and genuinely hope that you understand just a small part of the additional pain that your manner has caused at this very distressing time.

Lovely gardens, beautiful setting, wholly recommended.

We visited the gardens. I wasn't too keen on going but the gardens were a real surprise. Very quiet & relaxed, not too formal with a great atmosphere. Great place to wander around for a couple of hours if you are in Wells. You do need to ring in advance though as they only open on certain days. Admission can be purchased from Groupon

It was amazing !!We were celebrating my mums 101st birthday, we were in the orangery ,just a small family group and had a cream tea which was out of this world ,beautiful views and gardens ,we can’t thank Frances and her team enough , Thank from us all xxxxxx

Magical, special place and view’s amazing!

Lovely afternoon tea and a superb view over the cathedral and the levels. Thank you!

Lovely afternoon tea. They kindly gave us exclusive use of the tea rooms for my bridal shower. Views are fantastic too

We got married at Stoberry house. It was simply perfect, wonderful setting, delicious food, excellent service and amazing hosts. Amazing weather was an added bonus. We have been back for afternoon tea which was also top notch.

Attended a private afternoon tea. Lovely food and plenty of it. Excellent friendly service. A beautiful setting with wonderful views of Wells Cathedral and Glastonbury Tor

A beautiful set of gardens in a lovely location with beauticians. Was very quiet and a nice afternoon when nice weather.

This was a birthday gift to a place we had never heard of! What a fabulous place. The gardens are so beautifully kept, and the flowers, trees etc are amazing. Such a peaceful place, with plenty of seats around. Some in secluded areas where we could find some shade. Being partially disabled, I did find it very hard work to get around with my rollater on the stony paths, but the grass was easier. We explored every corner, but the lake was out of my reach. The only down side was the lack of being able to get a cup of tea of coffee and a snack, but I would definitely recommend a visit for garden lovers. Thank you for a wonderful afternoon.

Lovely place to visit for an hour or so. Make sure that the weather is good.

Had really lovely afternoon tea here. Great food, stunning views and fabulous gardens. A real treat.

We went to Stoberry House and garden for a luxury tea and it exceeded all our expectations. Imagine sitting in a sheltered spot, in a beautiful garden, with a selection of delicate sandwiches and delicious cakes. There were wonderful walks in the gardens, which are stunningly planted and the best views of Wells to be had. Quite perfect.

Magnificent view of the garden and Wells from the Orangery where we ate a delicious tea.

Beautiful immaculate gardens with interesting sculptures and amazing open views to Wells Cathedral and Glastonbury Tor. Open for NGS today lovely morning despite the weather.

Just had a lovely relaxing stay beautiful gardens,and comfortable self contained suite.

Fantastic gardens are the bonus to this wonderful house

Lovely gardens, with labels around the gardens that was helpful to identify plants if you ate not familiar with some species. Will definitely go back in the spring to see the many daffodils and spring flowers. The sculptures were great and added a lot of interest to the garden. You could see the love and appreciate all the work that has gone onto making it a special place.

Friendly people. Stunning views across Wells and Glastonbury

Stunning, amazing host and hostess.

Stoberry house was a beautiful location and the food was lovely but this was ruined by how rude Frances was. It was a shame as it is such a lovely place but overall it ruined our afternoon tea with friends. Because of this I will not return

Excellent venue, friendly accommodating staff. Varied food selection, something for everyone. Wonderful place. A must for anyone wanting an olde world atmosphere with an elegant modern taste pallet.

Afternoon tea was lovely & a great location owner very rude and feeling of being very unwelcome obvious For that reason I would not return which is such a shame. It has potential to be such an amazing establishment. Shame about owners and treatment of customers

Excellent service and setting. The afternoon tea was excellent value for money

very nice place owners are very friendly and the gardens are really well looked after so much to see 👍👍

The afternoon tea is served in the conservatory which has gorgeous views. We had the econo-tea at 15 pounds. It doesn't include any sandwiches, but the cakes are enormous. I would have preferred a sandwich and less cake. The hostess has a somewhat odd manner, which is not very relaxing for the guests, but I felt she meant well. I don't think I would go again.

Fabulous private garden with interesting sculptures scattered around.

Gardens only visited Well worth it

Birthday present from my children. Room fussy,loo would not flush,no help at night,shower and attitudes similar to John Cleese character,while famed breakfast,faded

We have visited Stobbery very often we are alway made to feel special Frances goes that extar mile to make your stay special and personal to every guest Tim see to all your needs when you are celebrating help choose wine and champagne to us they are a very special couple we have shared some very special time hope to share some more Terry & Patricia Hillsdon 💖

A first class B&B. Superb service and super breakfast. 5 stars every time.

What a beautiful location. Perfect hospitality, made to feel very welcome. The afternoon tea was superb. A great selection of little sandwiches and savouries. A tiny lemon posset with fruit in a tiny glass, a pretty and beautifully presented tiny cakes-so yummy. Any space left 2 light as air scones with exquisite jam and clotted cream each. Plenty of pots of tea. Such good value for money, a real treat but much better quality than we have experienced at other venues. Thank you , so perfect.

Rebooked the garden room at the Dormy House while staying nearby at the Fish Hotel. The setting was very warm and inviting, and overall the food was very good. However, the service was severely lacking and left us bewildered by the exoerience. Given the thoughtful and extensive wine list, we were delighted to see one of our favourite blends from South Africa on the menu. After ordering, and about 15 minutes later, the server returned to say there was an error and they put the wrong varietal on the list and wanted to serve us a completely différent wine from that producer. We ordered a different bottle in line with the food we ordered. However, our appetisers came before our wine did. Another 15 minutes of waiting (we are now 30 minutes into our dinner with no wine) and the waiter comes back with another bottle - saying they have lost our bottle but for us to drink this instead while we wait. No explanation, and not even showing us the wine she poured. That was the last we saw of our waiter - as somehow the room got busy and she took take of the other guests for the rest of the evening. We eventually got our wine, which was brought to the table opened without the cork. Strange practice unbecoming a restaurant of this caliber. When we finished our dessert, we struggled for 20 minutes to get any server to acknowledge us or clear our plates. So we went to the server station to ask for the bill. We watched our server work at at least seven different tables before we had to go up and ask a second time. When the bill came, the server didn’t even ask us how our dinner was. We gave our credit card - and the other server took it away mumbling. She returned 10 min later to say she lost the connection. She handed us back the card and cancelled processing statement, and said she wasn’t able to charge our card. She didn’t know what to do and asked if maybe we deal with it at the reception (even though we are not guests of the hotel) Will not return.

When we booked this restaurant 2 months ago, the website showed a completely separate menu from the Potting Shed restaurant We booked the Garden Room on our 2nd night because of the different menu shown on the Website, we were extremely disappointed to be given the same menu as we had eaten from the night before. This is very lazy, and totally unacceptable. If we had been told, we would have considered eating in another establishment.

The best of the best. We have been visiting for many years and have never found any where even close to this quality. Now they have won the Cesar award from the good hotel guide, which is the Oscar of the hotel industry. Well deserved.

Well the sun was shining and it set off the sculptures rather well. Still lots of colourful blooms and the roses had delightful fragrances. A lovely destination to spend a good couple of hours.

Simply the best. The Good Hotel Guide César award says it all. Nowhere in Britain could ever compare to Stoberry.

Beautiful place, very peaceful, stunning views. Lady of house was very friendly and the orange and lemon cake was yummy!! Highly recommend a visit, we shall be going back in the spring .x

Amazing place - the best B&B in the country - it's official!

The food was fantastic deserves a Michelin Star, faultless! Would highly recommend

Beautiful gardens and lovely cake!

The chef clearly scoffs at the idea that less is more and is firmly in the camp of more is more. There was a lot going on in every dish. Sometimes it worked, and sometimes it didn't. With the desserts, it didn't. Neither of us liked our desserts, nor understood what they we supposed to be. The server also brought me the wrong wine, which was disappointing.

Excellent accommodation and food

OUTSTANDING...Such a pleasant evening, with great food, good wine and exceptional service.

We had a wonderful evening thanks to a lovely atmosphere, great food and wine and a very attentive and knowledgeable somellier. We will definitely go back the next time we travel to the Cotswolds.

A small family occasion enjoyed immensely with good food and service.

Delicious food and excellent table service. Only negative the pre dinner drinks took ages (20 mins from ordering to their arrival). This was early on a Wednesday evening and it was not busy so rather disappointing start made up for with the meal that followed.

It’s a nice venue with a great reputation but perhaps overhyped. The tasting menu was no doubt very good with a good amount of food served over the courses and most importantly of a great standard but it wasn’t very adventurous or inventive. This is perhaps because it’s quite a traditional location and offering but personally I like to try things that are new and not something I’d come across easily so this compared to other tasting menus (mitchelin star) this was very ‘safe’. The accompanying wine flight was in my opinion overpriced for the amount/quality you get in comparison to others I’ve experienced. They were the lower priced wines on the list (£40/45 bottle) and for the £55 uplift in costs each were not worth it as they didn’t even equal half a bottle of wine for each diner across the courses, do your sums but £110 for you both for about £45 of wine from the list was a let down. The wines were ok but again for a tasting menu you expect something special, these were decidedly average. I really did not like the fact there were 2 babies in the restaurant while we were dining late on a Friday evening nor the fact a group kids came galloping past our table to get to the garden. When you are spending well in excess of £300 on a meal and drinks as a couple you don’t expect to have to listen to babies/children while you are trying to have a special meal. Other higher end restaurants and hotels limit where children dine at certain times to maintain ambience, this is something Dormy should look to adopt. All in all it’s a nice venue with good food but I didn’t feel as though it was much of an experience and it definitely won’t feature as one the more memorable restaurant visits we’ve made.

Very pleasant and peaceful garden. Welcoming staff and beautiful surrounding. It's slightly smaller than what I expected but the work that went into creating this place is phenomenal!

Another stay at this beautiful house and gardens. Frances & the team could not have been more helpful and welcoming. Always feel so rested after staying here, with panoramic views of Wells cathedral and Glastonbury Tor. The choices of breakfasts have to be seen to be believed! At this stay we had the added bonus in the form of Monty their cat who generously gave us a guided tour of the gardens! Will be back for sure!

My partner and I had a meal at dormy house in the garden room, we opted for the 5 course option, overall I was disappointed in the food & service here, id looked at many different Resturants in the Cotswolds area and thought dormy house would be better suited plus it had quite a hype surrounding it, I thought this would be ideal for my partners birthday unfortunately I was wrong, the decor of the room was beautiful, I couldn’t fault it, very intimate, quiet, perfect. But the food and service on the other hand was not, overall we had 3 different waiters/waitresses serve us, the waitresses were lovely! But the male waiter that seated us, was so arrogant made little effort or conversation, and came across completely rude, we was glad that he disappeared and the two women took over, it was made worse by the fact he was making such an effort with other guests and not us, must of taken a disliking to us but he had no reason to & it’s not what you’d expect from a fine dining establishment. Now the food my partners starter she thoroughly enjoyed, mine on the other hand was disgusting, I had the veal loaf, I felt awkward making a fuss so I spread it onto the bread we had and attempted to finish it, but it lacked flavour, texture, and was in all honesty horrible, our main course was very nice we both had the cod, we opted for the white chocolate sphere for desert and both found it was ruined by to much going on within the desert, sometimes keeping it simple is best, the amuse-bouche weren’t great either my partner didnt enjoy any of them. Overall the ambience and decor of the restaurant was beautiful, but the food was very average and I wouldn’t class it fine dining, starting from 130£ for two people you’d expect a lot better service and food, wasn’t worth the money. I wouldn’t recommend or return here, very unfortunate that I picked here for such a special occasion.

Had a Sunday lunch to celebrate our wedding anniversary and we thoroughly enjoyed everything about it - from our greeting at the front door to the presentation of our 'Happy Anniversary' chocolates at the end.

Great location, hotel is lovely. Food was fab, would thoroughly recommend if you are in the area and are looking for something special.

Fantastic dining for a special occasion, enjoyed every moment of this culinary experience

Have been to Dormy House many times over last few years eating in either Garden Room or Potting Shed. We have always enjoyed a good experience with great customer service and excellent food. The last two times however we have been very disappointed with the lack of attention to customer service. Food still very good but the experience last 2 times (we did give them the chance to be back to its normally very good by going this latest time) sadly would make us think twice about going again. Such a shame as was such a great place! Might try their new Hook restaurant in the week to see if that is any better.........but worry that it won't be! Why have they changed what was such a great customer experience? It was a winning formula but sadly no longer. Would no longer recommend unless they rethink.

We stayed in the outbuilding and I can honestly say, it was one of the best sleeps I have ever had! The bed was so comfy and the selection of free drinks, food and all other amenities was wonderful. The grounds are beautiful, which we wandered around one evening. The breakfast choice is stellar with some local cheeses and preserves on offer. I have recommended this place to my friends and colleagues

The food was good, although even by London standards very over priced. We had 5 courses, with a carafe of wine and 2 coffees @ total of £200 for the 2 of us. So although the food was good, and the setting nice, I would not go back simply as this is not a Michelin star restaurant, but charge as if it is. Staff was friendly and attentive, but at occasion too much so. Constantly checking up, trying to clear the table etc. which became annoying after a while.

We had the 5 course tasting menu with wine pairing and thoroughly enjoyed all of the food. It is a great concept to be able to mix and match the tasting menus to create your own menu and chose your favourite options. The portions were the perfect size & service was professional and friendly. For a special occasion it is a very good choice!

A lovely menu and the ambience and staff accompanied it well. Occasionally, a dish has a little too much going on within it but the quality of the venison and scallop were, in particular, excellent.

Visited twice and both have been amazing. Everyone is so friendly and welcoming. The breakfast are such a good range of options I always feel totally spoilt. Will definitely be going back :)

Everything was perfect! I would highly recommend this restaurant.

Fantastic dining for our tenth anniversary dinner at the Garden Room, everything was just spot on, couldn’t fault a thing.

Having been recommended was great to have our expectations surpassed! Great service, lovely ambience. Will come back to stay also

An excellent birthday Sunday lunch. Being super critical our main course could have been hotter, but undoubtedly we will return.

Considering we were contacted to book a table for a "special" Yorkshire Pudding day, there was no suggestion of this on arrival, (it was just another Sunday lunch booking!!). We arrived early to enjoy an aperitif and take in the ambiance of the house, as recommended on booking, but on arrival we were informed there was no room to do so, and therefore ushered, early, straight to our table in the Garden Room which was almost empty and had little ambiance. Despite this disappointment, we did enjoy the food and wine (including the 1 Yorkshire Pudding with the beef we chose). Staff are very polite and attentive and we will be visiting again, but maybe wont take too much notice of the "special menu" days in future!

Once again the service and the food at the Dormy continues to impress us. We live locally and we feel lucky to have such a great restaurant nearby. Well worth trying.

Very friendly and knowledgable staff. Incredible food without being pretentious. Nothing is too much trouble. Wonderful restaurant setting overlooking gardens, and atmosphere.

When we arrived at the Dormy we were delighted to see the beautiful Christmas decorations and fairylights everywhere then as we went in it was so welcoming with all the fires lit - it felt like you were entering a weekend house of a dear friend! The service was excellent from beginning to end. The food was outstanding and we especially loved the venison and the soufflé. Compliments to your talented chefs - it felt like we were at the Masterchef finals! Thank you so much for a wonderful evening - we have already recommended you to our friends/family. We hope to visit again very soon.

Fantastic first visit to The Dormy. From the moment we arrived, our welcome was friendly, not over the top but service was so prompt, everyone was on the ball. Every area was warm and cosy - the Dormy Cosmo was fabulous, the best Cosmo I’ve ever had (and I like them a lot :-)) We love eating out and class ourselves as big foodies, frequenting Michelin restaurants a lot. Our experience the the Garden Room was fabulous. I was very impressed we could choose across the whole tasting menu and both me and my mother could choose a 5 and 7 course tasting menu between us. Every course was delicious and we are still talking about the whole experience 2 days later! I can’t wait to return with my partner. A really memorable evening - the food, staff, service and ambience were perfect!

Completely faultless Excellent food and wine Attentive staff and friendly as well Spacious room Expensive but well worth paying the extra for ambience etc etc

Our meal was fabulous. Such wonderful tastes. Every course a delight made even better by the friendliness of the people who took care of us. Highly recommended

Reception non-existent. Eventually greeted by 4 different people having asked a passing waitress where we should go for a pre - dinner drink !

I had a lovely anniversary dinner here the other night. The service was brilliant (especially because my boyfriend is gluten free so needed to be given alternative options - they even gave different bar snacks for free), the food was amazing (with the meats being the star) and the atmosphere was perfect. Not to mention the location which is a beautiful cotsworld house! I would highly recommend this place.

Very good service and food for our 30th wedding anniversary. We had complimentary champagne from Dormy house, a nice touch. The tasting menu is very good and the wine flight that goes with it, also very good. Would recommend to friends and family.

A superb country house hotel, very welcoming very attentive staff, not at all stuffy .The kind of place to end a good walk have some good food and wine and have a doze in your room.

We were looked after exceptionally well by Murray, Who was managing the restaurant that evening. When I queried the wine he willingly opened another and after we had drunk it arranged for a car to take us home! The first two courses were excellent, but we were slightly disappointed by the pudding.

Food was excellent, but service was terrible. Gave us the wrong bill twice, wrong wine and really slow service.

Our waiter made us feel very special, thank you. The building is amazing and very special. Booked a manicure just before dinner which was a real treat

Fabulous 4 days in Wells. Best breakfast ever and very comfortable accommodation. Everything was perfect. The gardens and view overlooking Wells Cathedral are amazing. We will return to see the gardens in flower. A perfect stay.

I took my boyfriend here as a birthday surprise, we were staying at the Fish on the estate so this made the perfect additional experience for him. The staff were friendly and knowledgeable, although we were referred to as Mr and Mrs which is not the case. We went for the 7 course's plus wine flight for which the food was exceptional and seasonally based, the only downside for me was that there was so much dessert wine as part of the flight for which I am not a fan of and would have preferred an alternative option as I felt this detracted slightly from some of the courses they were paired with. All in all though a lovely, romantic dinner for which I'd recommend and hope to return for at some point in the future.

It was our 52nd wedding anniversary and the whole experience was very impressive. We have been going to the Dormy House for 40 years and the standard has always been high. We shall return.

A Fabulous experience, greeted at the door, sat by the fire with our first drink and soaked up the relaxing ambience. The staff were great and knowledgeable on both wine and food, the decor was warm, inviting and luxurious, lots of small reception rooms made it very interesting and homely. Interestingly great food and service with a lovely atmosphere and an amazing selection of wines. Definite return on the cards.

The garden room restaurant was a lovely evening. Me and my boyfriend had the 3 courses option and enjoyed it immensely. The staff were super friendly and chatty which made it that much more special. We like to go out and try new foods as our treat and it definitely was worth it! My boyfriend's favourite dish was the Tamworth pig main and even said that he wouldn't have batted an eyelid if that came out of a Michelin star restaurant we have previously been too. Super evening!

Amazing food and fantastic service. Will definitely be going back

Lovely hotel but thought the food was dissapointing , we only had Sunday lunch so maybe try another time . Have been once before for lunch in the week and remember it being a lot better , shame because it's a lovely place .

Jederzeit wieder. Wunderbares Essen in herrlichen Ambiente mit freundlicher Bedienung.

Beautiful rooms, gorgeous gardens and amazing views. Lovely welcome from very friendly owner. Will definitely be back and highly recommend it

An outstanding place. We went for a special occasion and they well and truly went out of their way for us. The food, service, environment was faultless, and would thoroughly recommend it to everybody. A big thank you to everybody at the dormy house (and the fish hotel - their sister hotel) for making it a really special night.

What a great evening we had at the Dormy, really fabulous food and we've eaten at some of the top restaurants in the UK and this really deserves to be awarded a Michelin star. The tasting menu was excellent, the scallop dish being the star of the show. Lovely ambience in the lounge and restaurant and its on our doorstep !! We will be back.

Beautiful meal for Mother's Day lunch, one of the best I've had in the area. Service was excellent and attentive. There are lots of really great places to eat in the Cotswolds and this is up there with the top for freshness, flavour, choice. You know it's nice when you don't want the meal to end because it tasted so delicious.

Afternoon tea was lovely, views were amazing and beautiful garden, however messed up the time of booking, had one hardback book that had to be taken off another couple and had to look after it as it cost £22.50, and be careful as we were going to be charged to view the garden

Rather Dissapointed in general. Not what I have come to expect based on previous visits. Enjoyed the Potting shed recently. <br />Food was grossly overawed and expensive.

Excellent meal, not cheap but worth the money, table preferences were given to patrons which is understandable but I dont like being sat next to the kitchen when I&#039;m spending a lot of money, it makes me wonder sometime why restaurants have these tables in these locations.<br /><br />All in all very good, I would go back, but the table location would be important

I have been here before but when it was far less busy. I went for Sunday Lunch with friends but it did not seem to have the staff to cope with the number of guests in the Garden Room. Service was at best what could be described as erratic. One of the party had to have a gluten-free diet and I gave plenty of advance warning about this. I was told it would be no problem but I wasted my breath in informing the place beforehand. We had to ask for everything much to the embarrassment of the person who had to have the gluten-free diet. Nothing looked as if it had been prepared beforehand and the person who had the special diet was always about a course behind everyone else - truly awful for her. I would say don&#039;t go at busy times as they can&#039;t cope. If busy times can be avoided, then the service etc is excellent. But for an establishment which purports to be of this grade, it shouldn&#039;t matter what day/time a person goes.

Wonderful champagne tea for my grandma's 90th birthday, so many yummy treats and especially loved all the different savoury bites