The Restaurant at Garden King Garden Centre in South Derbyshire

Expensive for poor microwave quality and small portions. Even the coffee and cake were poor quality for the elevated pricing.

This cafe is very overpriced. Tea is decent though. The service is very slow, for what they charge I would expect more staff to be working. The worst thing is the doggy smell that hits as soon as you walk through the doorway, vile. I have tried this cafe a few times but each time found it lacking.

Went for the pumpkin woods. Although this review is about the restaurant it is worth mentioning that this is the biggest rip off ever. £3 each to get in, small walk around then huge costs for anything on top, £4.50 to go on a bouncy castle when you have already paid to go in. Friend asked staff member stood by the entrance to this area the cost and all he would say was that costs are on the board… in small writing so you have to go up close getting childrens hopes up to see! Biggest scam! Restaurant was very busy with staff seemingly poorly organised, same person on till also taking food to tables when there was a big queue and lots of other staff around. Had a childs pasta that was red hot when it came out but went to a claggy lump when it cooled down so my pasta lover wouldnt eat it. I had a gluten free tuna toastie that wasnt toasted, couldnt pick it up as the pieces didnt match up and was put on my table with the comment of "sorry it looks a mess but that bread is rubbish!" £9 for a toastie with a bit of dry salad and 5 crisps

My yorkie loved her visit today, and so did I, sat in the dog area I was suprised to see a lot of non dog owners in this area, I felt a few people gave me a disapproving glance, no problems except a toddler screaming that made me jump and was heading towards my dog, fortunately Molly stayed calm, I think children are far more disruptive and destructive than dogs 🤣🐶, we had a latte and cake, so nice, I took molly in the dog area and let her off the lead she loved that, she even found a ball that had been left in there, will be going back, thanks to all the staff, many dog lovers amang them I bet!!

Went here at Christmas for the light show and today for the Halloween woodland walk So for lunch we went into the restaurant Yes it was a 1/2 hour wait for hot food because we were told that!!! And when it came it was Hot!!! Wife had pumpkin soup in bread bowl i had loaded fries with chilli daughter had Yorkshire sausage filled pudding and grandchildren had loaded fries with bacon every course was brilliant quality and too be honest far too much for most of us … its very much service with a smile for a average £8 to £10 per plate we live 27 miles away and wouldn’t go if it wasn’t this good staff are very friendly and polite whilst obviously working very hard during the busy time …….wish it was nearer to home? No not really its worth the run out and i would put on a couple of stone

Was really looking forward to this, but came away disappointed at the quality of the vegetarian pasta dish. I ordered pesto and spinach pasto, I'm not too sure what happened, but it tasted like a cheap tomato pasta bake sauce (not a single hint of a pesto flavour) over some box standard pasta tubes, the spinach was lovely and fresh but was just taken out of a bag and thrown on pasta and mixed in stalks and all. To top it of was probably the worst grated cheese I have ever tasted (it was so sour I tried to scrape as much off as possible), the garlic bread was tasty but not home made just some slices from a freezer. With the price tag of £12 it was not worth it, and over £3 for a 500ml bottle of Fanta.. I will not be eating here again. Just to mention the cafe was really nicely decorated and the staff were lovely.

Came for coffee and cake which was lovely.... the two stars are because while enjoying our cake a member of staff proceeded to hoover up in the area where we were sitting.... banging around and moving the chairs etc... even hoovered around us.... it was only 4pm but guessing she was due to go home soon.

Attended today for a brunch was our first visit here. My husband had a Bacon splash - bacon butty topped with a splash of tinned tomatos. It is far better tasting than ketchup and only £2.50. I had a large jar trifle for £5.00 which was filling. I also had a hot choclate for £3.90 which came with cream and marshmallows. We also ordered a babychino for our baby, a warmed milk topped with cream. There was plenty of available baby chairs. There was a range of cakes and snacks plus food items which you could order at good prices. The staff were lovely we ordered our food and drinks at the till, gave our table number and they brought the order to our table. It also has a range of dog foods available as it is a dog friendly place to visit.

I meet my mum here for a coffee and cake as it has a very good pet friendly area in the restaurant which is super clean. The coffee is always hot, and the cakes are always very fresh and tasty, although on the pricey side. They currently have a coffee and cake offer between 3-4.30 which makes it affordable and reasonable.

Staff messed up food order in the soft play, took a rude manager to come out and tell us the till staff should of re read the order back to us (they didn’t), and we had to pay for the food they missed after we paid £30 for 2 children’s meals and a bowl of pasta. £3.50 the missing food was & refused to replace unless we paid the remainder. Really rude & so money grabbing. Such a shame as the children love the soft play and we always have a good time in the dino woods & garden centre.

Over priced drinks more expensive than costa coffee. Poor customer service 20 minutes wait for 3 drinks when only afew customer's. When issue raised with supervisor (Debbie) she was very confrontional and wouldn't listen. Poor supervision and poor training equals poor customer service. After making the manager aware of the issue through there email address I've since been blocked from there Facebook page 🤣🤣🤣 You need to grow up or is that what you think of the customers that shop at your establishment.

Popped in for a bit of shopping, soft play and decided to grab lunch to. Restaurant is lovely, spacious, lovely seating, light and airy. Ordered our food and the wife went and asked that if we'd not finished in time for soft play could we take our meal through, they said we could and that they'd also rush our order. 15 minutes later the foods was delivered, pipping hot, looking yummy and my was it yummy. Steak and Ale Pie, Fish and Chip, and 2 kids meals, 4 empty plates later we were very happy and the value was great. My only gripe was I thought the kids pasta dish was a bit pricey for what came, a slice of garlic bread, or some veg or something would have just finished it off and made it value for money. The wife loved the pie and my fish and chips were really nice. Popped to soft play for a coffee and a slice of cake on the offer, then got rinsed at the tills for plants etc. Great day out loved by all and already planning our next visit.

The drinks were ok. We would not be going there again as we don't like the very hard chairs. They are so uncomfortable, say the least. The chairs should have a cushion. The whole setup looks like a canteen.

After calling in for a coffee and cake recently and despite being overcharged, we decided that the cafe indeed looked inviting and that we would return for lunch. How I wish we had not bothered…! £8.50 for a microwaved and now cold jacket potato that was so dry I could not finish it. Hardly any filling and no offer of butter. My daughter’s pasta (£12!!) was over cooked, bland and tasteless. I understand that people have dogs and may want to visit the cafe with them but the party near to us allowed their large dog to sit on the bench and eat its food off a chair!!! This was not challenged and is extremely off-putting for a non dog lover. Absolute rubbish. Completely overpriced and a very poor show. Will not be returning.

I understood that there was an area for customers with dogs ,going by previous visits it was the area you first came into in the restaurant Have you thrown the whole restaurant open to dog owners and their dogs .? During to today's visit we had a table to our right that included a large bulldog type dog plus water bowl slobbering water and stuff all over the floor ,another table with a small yapping dog ,no chance of a relaxing meal. Not everyone is comfortable with dogs around them . Would be interested to know why you altered your policy of separate areas.

Tried out the new resturant and was impressed with the size and lay out selected a table ordered food and coffee which was brought out to us Everything was fine just a bit dearer than other cafes in the area

The overall appearance and quality of food is of a high standard. The use of natural light provides an airy feeling. The use of indoor to out appears to extend the overall size of the restaurant. The staff are friendly and approachable, with specific mention to Alice and Robert, who are both helpful and knowledgeable. Worth a quick visit if wandering around the garden center or bringing the kids to soft play.

I am currently on maternity leave and must come here twice a week. We have never had a bad experience! All the staff are fantastic and nothing is ever too much trouble! The menu is fantastic, plenty to choose from and served brilliantly… always tasty and hot. Good value for money, lovely atmosphere! It is also fantastic for dogs as there is fresh and dry dog food available at the counter. We always look forward to coming here, can’t recommend enough!

- New restaurant with teething problems - too many seats for the tills/kitchen - cold food and a long wait - can't order drinks quickly - unaware of allergy responsibilities - dog friendly with free water bowls and a doggy menu. In detail: This a new restaurant and I hope these are teething problems, but the number of seats doesn't match the number of tills or the kitchen size. Got there at around 12 noon and got coffees and tea quickly. My wife and daughter joined me about 20 mins later and we ordered food. 2 penne pasta with a chicken and mushroom sauce and a cheese topped toastie. 50 minutes later, 2 penned pastas arrived, but no toastie, to which the server said "That's what they gave me". I reckon she'd been dealing with quite few complaints. I actually liked that. Then again, I quite fancy staying at Fawlty Towers! I was nice to her and she was actually nice, but I reckon she was ready for a fight!! Penne was hot, chicken and mushroom was tepid, unseasoned and tasteless, and both my wife and daughter felt sick afterwards, with an aftertaste of flour. They have menu items that are "build your own", which sounds good until you're faced with limited options that don't work together: bolognese and coleslaw cheese toastie anyone? AND the coleslaw goes INSIDE the toastie, with the bolognese! There is also a lack of allergy advice, which is contravening guidelines. There was no signage about how to obtain the allergy advice, and when I asked for it, they seemed unsure. Not a good sign. That said, the girl on the till took the allergy request seriously and relayed it to the kitchen, and one of the kitchen staff did come and ask for specifics from us at the table, so kudos for him, and I thanked him for doing so. We finished our drinks well before the food arrived but the queue was so long we couldn't be bothered to get more. They need to sort this out. Drinks and food orders need to be separated. Get an app. I can write that for you!! I hope this is a Christmas problem, but the size of the restaurant just doesn't match the capability of the tills, and they were obviously backed up and having timing problems in the kitchen.

Over priced drinks more expensive than costa coffee. Poor customer service 20 minutes wait for 3 drinks when only afew customer's. When issue raised with supervisor (Debbie) she was very confrontional and wouldn't listen. Poor supervision and poor training equals poor customer service. After making the manager aware of the issue through there email address I've since been blocked from there Facebook page 🤣🤣🤣 You need to grow up or is that what you think of the customers that shop at your establishment.

20 minutes for a cup of tea and a coffee. Restaurant was quiet. Counter staff x4 stood doing not a lot, 16 tables of 28 we could see needed clearing. General lack of care. Pot of tea was good!

Food was ok, very expensive. We were in a group with babies as the babies were getting hungry we sat down to sort them first, rather than asking us if we were ordering food we were approached shortly after sitting down by a junior member of staff and told the manager has said we can’t bring our own food in. We explained it’s baby food, to which she then said that’s fine but we couldn’t have things like crisps (the babies had weaning snacks). I felt sorry for the girl as she clearly felt uncomfortable having the conversation, so I suggested the manager comes to speak to us himself, he never appeared. We spent easily £40-50 as a group. There is a baby food warning station too. I honestly think we were singled out as a younger group of mums, there were other groups with babies who weren’t approached.

Don’t trust the allergy advice on the menu. Soup of the day is listed as DF but when i double checked they said it contains dairy. Glad I checked and hope the menu is updated in future.

Very, very disappointed with the quality of the food. 😡 I received the smallest of jacket potatoes and a miserly amount of cheese on it. The potato was nearly cold and tasted like it was just cooked in a microwave - all for the expensive price of £8.50 !! 😡 The cakes were very expensive at £3.50/£4.00. The basic Americano was a whopping £3.50.😡 I will NOT be visiting this restaurant again !!!!😡

Really well done restaurant area. Nice decor, well lit space. A little dog friendly section. The staff, as always, were really friendly and helpful. The reason for the mid rating is purely the prices, especially considering the quality of the food. £4 for cake and £4 for coffee is already on the pricey end. The cake is really yummy! Coffee just okay. It was okay as a one off, but I’d definitely consider other options in the area. You can often find tea and came offers for under £5 nearby. The hot food was really poor quality. Packet waffles, microwave bacon, soggy berries and squishy sausages. Basically nothing was properly cooked. For the cost, I was really disappointed! We’ve come to garden king for years so I expected a lot better for those prices.

Lovely location to eat and very modern. The price of the food was not what I expected. £4.50 for 10 cheese covered chips and £8.50 for a cheese and onion sandwich !!

May I thank Alicia,Heidi and Jackie for their kind, friendly way and they represented the garden centre extremely well. Thank you all

How lovely to be able to take my dog out with me. There’s a special section in the restaurant where your dogs can have a treat off their own special doggy menu. Full of beautiful things too and some great bargains. They even give stuff...

Just opened and very popular. Separate indoor area for dogs and a dog Menu on the tables. The food is good and well prepared and the staff are very friendly.

Excellent value for money Great food relaxed and friendly atmosphere dog friendly . Soft play area for the little ones And the dino woods A great day out for all