The Old School Tea Room in Bassetlaw

Good food at a fair price, many which are home made...

The Old School Tea Rooms are very much in the traditional style of tea rooms reminiscent of my childhood in the 1970s. It's all fine china and doilies. I had what can only be described as an industrial sized tea cake. It was double the usual size and square rather than round, but very tasty if a little over chewy. I have been here since and had the Victoria sponge, which was good but again not exceptional. Recommended for the ambience.

Great staff, lovely old school property. Good menu and great value for money.

We were staying at Thoresby Hall, a couple of milles away, and weren't happy with their lunch offering, so we had a look on TripAdviser and found this lovely cafe. We liked it so much we visited twice during our four day stay. The food portions are generous and very reasonably priced. My partner had a "lunch special" on both occasions and was delighted with both. I chose from the regular menu and we had 2 x cafetiere for two (we're coffee addicts!) with each meal - the coffee was delicious and they offered a choice of milk or cream, which we haven't come across for a very long time. We whole heartedly recommend this cafe to anyone visiting the area.

This review is about 14 years late. In 2008/2009 i was visiting and staying with a dear friend at Carburton Lodge and she brought me to this lovely traditional place. We spent a lovely afternoon and the best scones i ever had. I was very young then and when i walked in, the place was full house with much older people. I will never forget that beautiful afternoon at clumber park and this tearoom. My friend has passed away and thank you for giving us such a wonderful memory.

Easy to find with about 10 free parking spaces. No reservations s required and there is additional outside seating if the weather is favourable. The venue is, as named, an old school house. Quite quaint but in need of a big refresh. It is an old building that has some mould issues to the structure and blinds. The staff were ok, but very busy and slow to get the order taken. The food was nice, fresh, decent portions and fairly priced.

Great stop off, good choice of snacks, very nice coffee. The tea came in a big pot, so refills a plenty.

I brought my mother here for a clotted cream tea. She absolutely loved it! Service was amazing, couldn't do enough for you. Well definitely be returning

Everything was just great with the staff being very accomadating to our 92 year old family members. Thank you

Perfect little 'old fashioned' tea room in the old school house, where you can get a light lunch, selection of sandwiches as an afternoon tea, or just a drink. Warm meals typically include an all-day breakfast, lasagne, quiche, and scampi. There is always a speciality cake or scones for afterwards. Very pleasant service.

Lovely tea room, staff were friendly and helpful. The food was lovely too. Lived local for years and never tried it, but we were pleasently surprised

We broke down next to your tea rooms , your lovely staff could not have been kinder or more helpful. They let us use your landline and allowed us to wait in the grounds after closing until help arrived, we were able to leave the car in safety (a lovely old classic car) over night. The car has been recovered today. What a lovely tea room the coffee and scones were absolutely lovely, highly recommended, thank you again , kind regards Jane and Mike

Incredibly friendly service and yummy food, stops serving at 3pm so get there early

Great place, friendly staff and excellent food 👌

Lunch today - we had a 5yr old and a dog with us . Dog friendly outside and lots of tables but weather was a bit iffy. There is a dog area inside - small table and seating for 4 (very tight if 4 of you) off the hallway next to the ladies toilet. Also it’s a bit of a storage area for outside umbrellas. Probably best to book this dog area if you have a dog and don’t want to sit outside (we were advised this on phone by helpful lady - but it was already booked for when we attended ) Staff very helpful and friendly . Service fast and efficient . They kindly relocated us to the dog area when it became free . Food average (delicious quiche filling but let down by cardboard like pastry - basic frozen chips . I had tuna melt panini- very nice and good amount of tasty filling. salad ok but mainly shredded lettuce . Main tea room looks quaint - and was busy . I would go back again if in the area but will probably try other places first

Great place love from the bridges family

We love everything about this lovely tea room. They have the perfect Full English breakfast and gorgeous scones. They use quality ingredients and know how to cook them and the food is always hot and fresh. Most importantly, the ladies are always welcoming, friendly and very efficient. It's a great place with a great atmosphere in a lovely setting. You must try it!

Always nice to call in here. Lovely tealoaf and noce scones. Staff always really nice. Great spot just up the road from Clumber. Today was chily but on a nice day good to sit outside too.

Lovely little tea room, delicious food and lovely atmosphere. On site parking. Will visit again on our next trip to clumber park.

Was lovely food and lovely place had a cup of tea but when I asked for another one she brought a tea pot but not a new cup and saucer so had to go and ask for another one maybe need more staff on or maybe need staff to be more on the ball especially the dark haired lady the blonde haired lady seemed to be more busy and still more pleasant

Lovely tea room,,, ladies are friendly and helpful,,, food is so fresh, call in on the way home after a busy day out you'll really enjoy it,,, have a piece of chocolate cake yum xxx

For tea / snacks brilliant little place , dinner ladies friendly and l ate all my lunch , so no detention or note to take home. 👍

Came with my friends for afternoon tea. It was very nice and staff were lovely. With afternoon tea, you get to choose your own sandwiches and cake. Good location and plenty of parking.

Nice cuppa and bacon sandwich, gluten free bread, also had cheesecake nice.

Lovely place to stop for tea, and they served cheese scones, which I love

I only stop here for a scone and a cup of coffee on my ride back from Clumber Park, nice cozy place, afternoon tea or breakfast options.

Went with 3 friends for afternoon tea,lovely food good value friendly staff and a quaint place .

Rude beyond belief. Couldn’t be bothered with customers.

Disgusting coffee. Cold room due to doors being left open, so food went cold. Nothing left at 2 pm when it shuts at 4 pm. Food overpriced. All in all, not a great experience and won't be returning!

Such a quaint lovely place. Lovely fire roaring. Food was delicious

Nice, freshly prepared food and a nice cup of tea. Tried a cherry scone homemade that morning, lovely! Lunch specials available daily and they do nice sunday lunches(booking required).

Just had Christmas fayre lunch. It was perfect, everything was fresh and hot.

We love coming to this tea room - quick service and tasty food at a great price. We came on Saturday and the two girls serving were wonderful - they were having the best time at work, which is so refreshing to see! Cake was delicious and the scones are always perfect.

Loved it my 1st visit meet some friends Sandwich with salad and crisp filled me up a treat

Only problem was, it shuts at 4pm, we got there at 3pm and there was no food!?

Great little restaurant. Good home cooked food and afternoon tea.

We called in for lunch on speck and we’re seated at the window it was cold outside and cold inside. We both has steak pie with chips and pot of tea for two. We waited quite a long time for the food to arrive. It was not a homemade pie but it was tasty.however £31.80 was too much for what we had. I feel it’s overpriced for pie and chips x 2

Excellent ,will visit again.was for my wife's birthday, and we weren't dissapointed. Thank you.

Called in for breakfast and instead of toast she did me fried bread. Brilliant xx

We called in a few weeks ago having pre booked a table . Fantastic setting & charming building .Menu superb offering top quality produce , presented & served by extremely friendly & attentive staff . Great Coffee too… This is now one of our ‘Preferred Cycling Cafes’ and will revisit periodically. Thanks Team for looking after us Paul and On Behalf of ‘Retford & District Wheelers’ ( R&DW) Apologies for delayed review

Disappointing meals. The soup tasted of packet or tinned soup certainly not homemade with a slice of bread from a loaf, not worth the cost. Steak and ale pie was a shop bought pie with a couple of lumps of meat. Overpriced for the quality.

Food is delicious. No long wait, staff really friendly.

Lovely location and food - just be aware that breakfast menu finishes at 11.30am and lunch doesn't start till midday.

Have been before, but today it was a lovely sunny day sitting outside. Ordered some lovely sarnies which included salad and crisps, lovely plate full, coffee very nice too. My only negative here is that can't take my dog in which doesn't matter during sunny months but chilly during cold months, but definately a lovely old school building to stop and have tea, cake etc.

We've had this place on our list to try and visit for a while now and today we finally had the chance. It's a gorgeous little tearoom set in a lovely spot just outside Clumber Park. The staff were all super helpful and friendly. There is a designated area indoors to sit if you have your dogs with you, the staff made a big fuss of our two pooches and treated them with dog biscuits. We both ordered sandwich platters with a side of chips, it was all just delicious and very well presented. We really enjoyed our visit and will definitely be back again 😊

Fantastic homemade cakes and delicious breakfast 😋

Good food, especially quiche, afternoon tea etc. Good flat white coffee.

Nice little run cafe very accommodating good for cyclists and walkers etc. Can get overwhelmed as only small.

Excellent highly recommend a visit

Excellent, accomodating staff. Amazing food, great portion size and excellent value. Will definitely be back

We have visited this little tea room many times, I love the fact it used to be a little school. We have been for meals or just a cuppa and have always been welcomed by the friendly staff. Today we had a delicious home cooked Sunday lunch followed by bakewell sponge and custard. We will be visiting again soon.

Tomorrow is my Dad’s birthday and knowing that he has been here before and has enjoyed it, I booked a table for four for yesterdays Sunday lunch. I live 45 miles away from here plus the detour to pick up my parents, this was a relatively long journey for an absolutely terrible meal. We asked if our table was ready as their was a ‘chat’ going on at the till and neither of my parents can stand for a long time. Our table ‘over the there by the window’ was how we were ‘shown’ to our table. We waited for our order to be taken. And waited. And waited so we went to the till to order 3 x beef roasts and 1 x chicken roast. The food came in about 10 minutes but it was awful. The beef was so over cooked it was inedible. The mash was portioned out in an ice cream scoop - clearly got the school dinners feel. The veg were clearly frozen previously. The gravy was so thin it slopped all over. We ate what little we could. No one came to ask if everything was okay. No one came to clear our plates. No one came to ask if we would like dessert, however at least 3 members of staff were free to chat to other visitors for in excess of 15 minutes. There were only 4 tables occupied during our time here so they were not busy by any stretch of the imagination. Absolutely no customer engagement with us whatsoever. When I grudgingly paid our extortionate bill for what we had had, no pleasantries were offered. It was just so disappointing. I said to my dad ‘ sorry your birthday present was so sh**’ AVOID

Lovely food and place, a little pricey, but I am from Yorkshire!

It is very dog friendly and has an area inside . The service is friendly and welcoming. There is an outside space with extra seating. Lovely views

This was the first time we've been. The main car park entrance is wide enough for one car, but not two (one in one out) the car park is tight and the access to the tea room is a tad uneven. But, It's an old building that's been there many years, so what do you expect! The staff were lovely and accommodating, the food was prompt and also lovely and reasonably priced. There is seating inside and out but again, it is limited (we got a picnic blanket out of the car and sat on the grass) A very quaint, traditional tearoom .

Staff friendly and helpful, lovely setting and clean and fresh inside. The food was delicious and reasonably priced. Well worth a visit

Very pleasant little cafe, good selection of food, great teas, pleasant staff

Relaxing atmosphere. Tables nicely spaced. Prompt polite service and staff. Food:- fresh, tasty and well presented.

Acting on the memory of a previously satisfying 'home-cooked' meal, I order the steak and kidney pie. Imagine my disappointment when I was served a cheap Pukka pie and charged the grand sum of £12.00. Passive fool that I am, I paid for it. I have not been back since and am unlikely to do so.

Never been before. The staff are very friendly.

Lovely friendly place to meet. Would highly recommend

Great coffee, friendly service. Excellent lemon cream tea. 😋

Was a lovely morning the ladies could not do enough 5 stars x

Tried to have brunch there on Sunday but could not . accommodate 4 adults and 2 young children due to having a large booking for local cycling club. Felt embarrassed as I praised this establishment to my daughter who was here for the weekend from Penrith

Lovely food, friendly service, always helpful with requests, nice surroundings. Just be aware the drive & carpark is full of potholes which are becoming difficult if you have a large car. Time these were filled in!

After 50 miles on a motorcycle, thus is a perfect stop lying within outstanding scenery. Staff are lovely.

What an amazing place to visit I took a party of 26 for afternoon tea. They are well organised food was fresh and tasty and good value. The staff are extremely helpful and very polite. I definitely recommend if you are passing pay them a visit.

Visited for lunch with a friend. Table not booked but there was a free table and was shown to this. Food ordered what we had was very nice and the lady that served us was very pleasant and engaging. However that’s where it ended. Plates were cleared and we sat for about 10 minutes and waited to be asked if we wanted to order desserts. We was running out of time so asked if we could have one . The answer was no. The kitchen closed early as there was a private function arriving. I asked if we could have a scone and cream rather than a hot dessert , the answer again no as the kitchen was closed because of a private function and the tables being needed. I appreciate that there may be private functions and have seen that I am. It the only one who has experienced this, the suggestion to the other person was to book online and it would tell you this. Whilst I never booked a table you did say there was one free with no mention that the time was restricted. It should have been communicated with us that this was the case so we could make a decision to stay or go somewhere else. It does not matter how nice your food is or that one of your members of staff was nice, good customer service is vital from beginning to end and is just as important as the food. I would suggest that you need to improve communication to your visitors, As a regular customer who has brought others with me at times that have not visited you before including my friend today I have been left very disappointed by this and will not be visiting again. For the person who visited with me, she was very disappointed with the service, so potential new custom lost

Visit here fairly regularly. Went today with a friend, table not booked but was shown to a free table and we ordered food. What was served was very good and the person that served us was very pleasant and engaging. After finishing our mains we waited to be asked if we wanted a dessert after a while we asked if we could have a dessert and was told that we couldn’t . That there was a private function coming in so the kitchen was closed. We asked if we could have a scone and cream rather than a hot dessert and was told no because they needed the tables for the private function. Now I accept that there may be private functions, however what is not acceptable is that we come for lunch, are shown to a free table and then not told that we would have to vacate fairly quickly without having a full lunch that we came in for. I can see from reviews that this has happened before and was suggested that a table be booked online and the online booking system would say that it was closed from a certain time. However if you are going to allow someone to have a table, that has not been booked then at that point it should be explained so we could then make a choice to stay or go somewhere else. Good customer service is essential and without that it does not matter what the food is like. I can only suggest that your communication with your customers improves, as it was that that spoilt the experience and you have now lost a regular customer that brings others to eat with you .

Excellent lunch with friendly staff.

such a pretty building. Great staff, great prices and a great little place for a ride out.

This beautiful place is outstanding. A warm welcome. Immediately seated and perfectly hosted. Delicious food beautifully presented. A top class Cappuccino. Friendly staff in a beautifully historic schoolroom. A perfect place.

Lovely food, great setting and great service too. Sat outside in the sun, what more could you want.

We drove here especially for afternoon tea. We were a little apprehensive due to the fact that we had received a voice message the day previously warning us that they were fully booked and therefore busy. Although the tone of the message was somewhat unfriendly ... more or less telling us not to turn up we decided to go anyway because we had booked a few weeks in advance and all plans were in place. We shall never visit again. The staff were rude, unfriendly and we didn't feel welcome. We arrived to a scrappy piece of paper taped to the door with fully booked scrawled on it. A member of staff glared at us and curtly asked us if we had booked. No smile, no hello... we felt so uncomfortable while she looked for our booking. If the staff had put as much energy into attempting to create a positive atmosphere as they did complaining about being busy and fully booked it might have been a better experience. The place itself was a shabby and grubby. There was dust and grime onthe window sills and light switches and huge cobwebs hanging from the ceiling. We were glad to leave and shan't book again.

I've been quite a bit over the past 12 months and it's always lovely, afternoon tea is amazing and I can't recommend enough. So much choice and so reasonably priced!

Always a pleasure. Lovely food & staff.

Lovely small tea room, friendly staff, would recommend a visit

Lovely cuppa, lovely staff....didn't try the food....all in all, a nice stop for those tired legs

Excellent cake and coffee. Not to be missed. Thank you

Always a cheery welcome and excellent scones.

Staff always pleasant and food lovely

Lovely place, great breakfast sandwiches, & coffee, popular with cyclists and walkers

We've been here twice for lunch and both times were not disappointed! The service is exceptional and the food is really tasty with huge portions! My personal highlight is the homemade soup, which is absolutely excellent!

Being a fairly regular visitor to this cafe and loving their bacon, brie and cranberry panini ( best I've ever tasted). I was disappointed in the food today. A friend and I decided to go and have a Turkey Xmas lunch. Roast potatoes tough, pig in blanket overcooked, vegetables bland all swimming in a watery flavourless gravy. The test of a cafe is would you go back, yes we would go back to The Old Scholl House but no we wouldn't have a Xmas lunch again.

Having been to the tea rooms numerous times ,I went again on 29th Nov,food was excellent as always and the staff friendly and efficient ,definitely recommend eating here.

Lovely friendly staff,fresh hot food,good prices,what more can you ask?!! Probably advisable to book for breakfast as it got quite busy. So nice,thankyou

Very friendly service and a great coffee x

Best afternoon tea 🍵 great price and perfect food , great service friendly and cosy 😁

A lovely nostalgic walk back in time

Sunday roasts back again , great dinner plenty of it great service , recommend a visit on a Sunday

Absolutely beautiful place, staff are very friendly & polite, the food is tasty n hot

Booked for Sunday lunch. Food was delicious and well presented. Great price Super value. All staff polite and attentive.

Lovely People, lovely Location. Great Food for a break. Thank you All

Brilliant little place. Arrive by foot, bike or car. Great selection of food and very tasty. A few tables outdoors if weather permits.

Nice Morning coffee and cheese scone.

My mother and myself went here for lunch today, we'd never been before, it was raining so we sat inside, the building had so much character due to it being an old school room, the female member of staff who we spoke to first was very pleasant and welcoming towards us, she bought us a menu and went through what the specials were and what flavour soup it was, we both decided on the following to eat: A bowl of soup, butternut squash and coconut with a hint of spice served with a warm bread roll, butter was optional. A brie, bacon and cranberry panini served with fresh salad, coleslaw, potato salad and crisp. To drink we had a pot of tea for two and a glass of wine. The food was absolutely delicious, if it had been possible we would have taken a large container of the soup home with us due to how lovely it tasted. We were to full to have a desert whilst we were there so we took a piece of black forest gateaux and a cheese scone home with us, we had them later and, like the food we had earlier, they to were delicious. We have booked to have Sunday lunch there on the 9th of October and can't wait as we know it's going to be beautiful. We cannot recommend this place enough, our first visit here but it definately won't be our last, all the staff were so warm and welcoming towards us, we can't compliment them enough. If you're ever in the area then this place is definately a must to visit.

Great customer service and excellent food

Excellent food, lovely staff, great value and a stones throw from Clumber Park. Love it.

Nice position and good quality food and drinks at reasonable prices.

Best cup of tea we have had out and about for years Jam scone with cream to die for