Watersmeet National Trust Tea Rooms in Wakefield

The tea rooms are in a stunning location and make a great destination for a walk. We walked up from the car park in Lynmouth, it's a about 2 miles along the path. The walk was lovely along side the river which is a fast flowing stream. The path is challenging in places and a little rugid. But having a great destination drives you on. Great staff and good food. One highlight was seeing a Dipper (a small rare bird).

Great choice and incredible caramel apple crumble cake. Lovely service. Definitely worth a stop off when walking in the area.

We enjoyed lovely drinks, scones and cakes at Watersmeet cafe. The iced coffee was delicious. It's a very busy spot and the servery area is small so it's a tricky job for the staff.

Spot is beautiful, coffee and food was nice, shame about the gentleman serving coffee who couldn't manage a civil word to anyone from the moment we arrived, might be time to look for some new staff with a slightly better attitude towards customers.

This is such a beautiful spot, it is a shame that the cafe has deteriorated so much. We have been visiting Lynmouth for 50 years and used to look forward to a cream tea at the end of our walk but we don’t bother now as the quality is so poor and there are nicer places in the town. On this occasion we had cups of tea but none of the cakes looked even slightly appealing.

Beautiful walk from Lynmouth, lovely location for tearooms and garden which was untended with long grass and dirty tables. 2 cold drinks and small bag of crisps cost £10.00 ...where did that price come from.? Outside the cafe which was very quiet were trays of dirty dishes! Take a bottle of water and spend your money in the village. National Trust please note a total failure and lack of professionalism. The 2 points scored are purely for location.

We have visited watersmeet for many years.Today we visited for Lunch. It was appalling. Only pasties no cooked food available ,in spite of the fact the premises have a very substantial kitchen.I had a apricot flapjack , last one,it was tasteles,soggy and on theverge of stale.Refrained from eating it. I think Watersmeet should pull their socks up and make an effort.They are trading on their location.What happened to the reputation of the National Trust.

We have visited this spot so many times over the years and I have always thought of it as my favourite tea rooms because it is in such a beautiful setting but what is going on with the National Trust at the moment? All of their cafes have become very corporate with similar food offerings wherever you go. I had a bacon roll and it was very poor, one of those pre-packed affairs which you warm up in the microwave, very disappointing. I'd go again just to sit in that beautiful place but improvement is needed.

Beautiful old hunting lodge one of my favourite places and cream teas are gorgeous The woods and the rivers are amazing

Small tea room with lots of outside tables (a few inside). Limited menu and not many staff to serve & cook to order. Meals only prepared until 2pm. Cafe can get very busy, and customers need to clear tables themselves (bins etc provided but often ignored). Dragon scones special highly recommended, and cakes enjoyed with our coffee. Ice cream - small selection on display in freezer, but can also request local brand tubs that are scooped to order until 2pm. Lots of walkers around, including several school parties, who all use toilet facilities. Toilets were fine for us.

Have been here many times in the past but it has gone downhill. Food selection limited - three sorts of pasties, some cakes and scones, nothing else. Tea and coffee served in disposable cups. Pasties served in disposable bags. All done through one serving position (rest of counter blocked off so couldn't actually see what cakes were available). Very slow service. I wonder what the problem is - lack of staff?

Great place to stop mid walk as long as you don’t have any dietary requirements. Peaceful next to the water. Staff not exactly friendly though.

We came here after the 2 mile walk from Lynmouth. It took a long time to get served service was exceptionally slow, the queue just wasn't moving. Everyone was squeezed into a tiny corridor, so it was hard to see what they had on offer. There wasn't much choice of sandwiches, and no child options. Found a nice seat outside, beautiful setting. The sandwiches were dire, stale with no butter etc. Probably the worst sandwich I've ever had, which is a shame because there's so much choice in Lynmouth of great places to eat, but I guess they have a captive audience there, so they will get trade regardless.

Thank you watersmeet tea rooms. We hired the tea room for my dad's 70th celebration, we had delicious high teas pastys and sausages rolls . It was the first big booking they had done and they did not disappoint, everyone was so friendly and accommodating making sure we had everything we needed nothing was to much trouble. Would definitely return. Well done watersmeet tea room staff and thank you for making my dad's birthday so special. 😊

We have coffee regularly in N T properties so bought their reusable lidded mugs which we use every time. Here we bought coffee as usual, never having been to this cafe before, and the coffee was only lukewarm and the cups were barely a third full. Terrible waste of money. The toilets were dirty, didn't look like the cubicles had been cleaned for months. Not a great experience.

This Tearoom is in a stunning location and is definitely worth the steep walk down, it eas lovely to sit outside in the sunshine but unfortunately the quality of the Cream Tea let it down

I am not a greedy person, but I don't think I've ever been served such a small scone for a cream tea ever before and it was cold and hard to boot. The cream was also rock hard, so very difficult to spread on the scone. It didn't stop them charging more than I'd seen elsewhere either! Such a disappointment after a very pleasant walk along the river. I've no doubt that folk will continue to use the tea rooms due to their location, but I really don't recommend them at all.

A cream tea or lunch here is the perfect reward for those who have trekked across the moors or along the river trail. Service is friendly and thorough. They understand the needs of diners with celiac.

This is a great cafe in beautiful surroundings. A must if you are having a walk around Watersmeet/Lynmouth. Great tea and cakes. Indoor and outdoor seating. Dog friendly.

We tried to visit after doing the 3.5km circular walk along the banks of the East Lyn River to the Ash Bridge; but the queues were long, every table was taken and huge piles of dirty crockery were everywhere. After a short while we abandoned our attempt to eat here - shame as the grounds are so nice it really would have been nice to enjoy some refreshments here.

Had a lovely walk along the river from Lynmouth up to where the waters do in need meet… tea rooms situated where two rivers converge and flow down to the sea. Despite them being small rivers, the water thunders down the valley and create the illusion of much bigger rapid flowing rocky rivers…. The tea room is lovely, with outside and inside seating and the usual National Trust type fayre. It’s a beautiful setting and worth the walk.

We waited for ages to be served (over 15 minutes), despite there being only 3 people in front of us and none of which wanted hot food simply drinks, only to be reprimanded by the staff member for not jumping to and collecting our one toasted tea cake from her the second she stepped out of the door. You had to clear your own table and return tray to the rear of kitchen. Not the fabulous service we usually receive from the National Trust - we won’t visit again!

Very lovely setting worth the walk and fabulous scrummy cream tea, very tasty. Staff were professional and helpful

A place of happy memories over many years, the walk up from Lynmouth is beautiful and whets the appetite for a little something savoury and sweet. Usually best to arrive there before 11a.m. for a better chance of a good seat. Staff work hard to...

After a good walk along the rivers edge to get to the tea room it was a welcome sight for refilling before the return journey. Clean inside, good cream tea and cake was had, expensive but you need to remember that you are a paying...

ordered a cream tea for 2 and was not disapointed, delicious and very reasonable price. toilets clean, lovely out look we fed Robins & other birds. very safe for children.

Be warned if you have a dog you must also have a partner ! After queuing for 15 minutes for two couples to be served in front of me . I was asked by what appeared to be a schoolgirl if I was on my...

Well we enjoyed it here it was lovely and tranquil, great walks short or long, and the dog loved it as there is ample opportunity to go in the water safely. We made the most of the tea room, do not expect hot food -...

These tearooms are located in the prettiest of pretty places and are reached either by walking up the valley from Lynmouth of down from the road. We went at the wrong time because it was busy and we had to queue but that did nothing...

Such an idyllic location. There are numerous walks along the banks of the river. The food and drinks in the cafe are excellent. Well worth a visit but be prepared for the effort needed to walk down from the car park.

Visited as a family last weekend. After a lovely walk from Lynmouth, following the river to what used to be a treat at the end; very disappointed to find the shop closed and gone, hot beverages bring served in take away cups and astronomical prices....

A lovely setting to enjoy one of the best scones ever. I was also pleasantly surprised by the prices of the drinks and food, very good value especially considering how beautiful the area is. Also lovely staff.

We parked in the designated area and paid the fee, then set off down the track to the tea rooms in the rain. On arrival we discovered nowhere to sit out of the rain as all the tables under the "overhang" were taken, no umbrellas...

If you can make it by walking from Lynmouth having first visisted the museum to learn about what happened on that errible night you can imagine what it must have been like on the night of the disaster.

Over half an hour queue from the doors, around the corner to the point of being served by a couple of nice staff tasked with making tea and coffee and handing over cakes, scones, little pots of jam and Roddas cream and taking money for...

Drove here specially from Braunton on Mothers Day thinking we would be sure to get a quality cream tea. Not so ! Small, dry scone and cream in a plastic single serving tub, jam in disposable glass jars. I can remember having lovely fluffy buttery...

We really enjoyed the food we had here. Not a huge selection but delicious. Pasties and cake for us. What a great location and a perfect stop for your walk. All staff friendly and looked clean and well organized. Our only negative is the very...

Visited on Monday 30th August 2021 on the third day of our holiday in Lynmouth. We decided to complete the Watersmeet Trail, from Lynmouth to Watersmeet & back on this day. A wonderful walk that inspired this holiday having seen Julia Bradbury walk it. We...

Great little tea room in National Trust Watersmeet. Some lovely cakes, and savory foods and nice beer garden. After a lovely walk this was just the end we needed. Great for dogs too.

The tearoom is situated in a fishing lodge built in the 1800's at the bottom of the gorge where the two rivers, East Lyn and Hoar Oak water meet. There is lots of outside seating and can be reached by a tiered walk down from the main road with a car park. The NT staff were as welcoming as normal and we had a coffee sat out in the grounds. So worth a visit if in the area

It's worth the effort to get to such a wonderful spot. Even though the cafe was closed you can still enjoy the great garden with a fabulous view of the waters.

Fantastic walk from lynmouth along the river to waters meet and the national trust tea room, beautiful scenic walk and a well deserved cream tea before heading back to lynmouth, was a good walking trail but some ups and downs which helped us walk up an appetite. The tea room was busy as expected, we had a couple of cream teas and the scones were lovely. It was all in a takeaway bag and a takeaway cup as they were short staffed.

Had visited here some years ago and remembered the amazing cream tea with their own jam and the lovely setting.Something has clearly changed here.I understand covid rules but serving tea in paper cups, food in cardboard boxes with wooden knives?Come on National Trust other places use proper crockery which is much better for the environment and makes for a better experience for the customer.As for the cream tea the scone was small and very dry, clearly not made the same day .The jam is served in separate jars and the cream in a small plastic pot. Tea in a paper cup with the tea bag left in and no spoon provided. Priced at £5.50 this is over priced and poor quality and not what I expect from the N.T.Will not be visiting again in a hurry

We did the walk along the river from Lynmouth and were mightily relived to find the tea shop open. Staff very friendly and helpful. Sat at one of the picnic tables outside.

We followed the West Lyn River to here using the path from Lynmouth. About two and a quarter miles of undulating path, quite uneven in places. Well worth the walk on a sunny day, then enjoyed coffee outside on the picnic tables. We really love the way the birds fly down for leftover crumbs. We had a Nuthatch on the table right in front of us, plus Blue Tits and a Robin. We returned to Lynmouth on the road as the walking was easier, but mind the traffic as no pavement.

We regularly visit this beautiful location on our holidays in this area and have always been highly complimentary of the service, food and, well everything in general. I know we are in unusual times and that safety is paramount but why has the National Trust taken to serving food and drink in disposable containers? Cream Tea in a paper bag, drinks in paper cups, all the food individually bagged such as sausage rolls and pasties. Nowhere else we have visited have done this. I’m sure that the use of proper crockery well washed in an industrial machine is far better than huge numbers of disposable items, even if they are recycled. Come on NT, take a look at other businesses in the area. You’ll learn a lot

National Trust provide refreshments in this former fishing lodge. The setting is lovely by the waterfalls. Highly recommend

Very disappointed. Last visited 35 years ago. Still remember amazing cream tea with hot home mad scones and pots of jam and cream. Today it was a cold hard scone with pre pack cream and jam. Totally appreciate Covid changes things but so disappointed. After walking back stopped at the Rock House for a glass of wine. Even more sad when noticed diners being served proper cream teas.

people visit Watersmeet for the natural beautymile after mile of a crystal clear river, with many waterfalls and gorgeous woodlandto top things of, a very nice tearoom is available and even though the menu is limited at the moment, there is enough choice to fit your needswe loved the cream teas and scones which are very tastythe sun was out so we were lucky enough to be able to sit on a huge boulder by the river and eat

We arrived about 3pm and parked our car in one of the spaces at he top of the steps on the road. A few yards down the path is a helpful sign reminding you to Pay and Display. So I returned and paid £2.50 for 2 hours. But then, at the Tea Room, was a CLOSED at 1.30 sign. How disappointing. Perhaps they could consider putting an Open/Closed sign at the top ???

Tea in plastic cup, cafe closed, couldn’t use the outside tables apparently not sanitised ???????? Yet the NT staff WHERE sat there. Food didn’t look great and bogs were dirty. Not what it was a few years back disappointing for the NT especially considering the beautiful location

We visited here on the 22nd July, we had a beautiful day and stopped here for lunch. They have a lovely garden area which was managed in accordance to social distancing and the tables sprayed between each person using them. We had quite a long queue to get severed in the cafe, and we did think it was a little over priced, but we apprechiate that you have to pay for the surroundings aswell as the food.Good friendly staff, and we felt very safe with all the systems they have in place for the covid. Stunning place and surroundings, definitely one not to be missed.

Watersmeet is our favourite family place, however we were left disappointed when we turned up to a cafe with no seating available whatsoever. This meant people were crowding under a small shelter making social distancing minimal and making me feel unsafe. The walk is fairly challenging and there was signs all the way along stating that the cafe was open, which wasn’t strictly true. Don’t do the walk if you are looking to go to the cafe at the end.

This location can't be beaten and is a must halfway through your walk up the valley.Good choice of food and drink and friendly and birds always happy for some crumbs. Idyllic.

This place always seems to be open, no matter what the weather. I recommend a hot bowl of soup and bread, well worth it.

We visited on a very wet day in October. Seating under cover is very limited so we only stopped for a quick cup of tea before continuing on with our walk. Thoughtfully, blankets were left out available for placing on the wet chairs to stop you getting any wetter. There is a lovely garden to sit out in if the weather is fine. It is a beautiful location for a spot of teaand there is a small NT gift shop and toilets available.

This is a lovely spot, and well worth the walk up from Lynmouth enjoying the autumn colour. The spicy pumpkin soup warmed us up, and after a further walk up along the East Lynn we returned for a pot of tea here before returning to Lynmouth. A great day out.

We walked through the woods along the river to the tea-rooms on a damp day. The tea-rooms proved a good spot to stop and have a cuppa and some cake before we headed back to Lymouth.

On a sunny day this place is ideal for your cream tea award after a long walk in this beautiful area of Devon. I thoroughly enjoyed my locally made jam with delicious scones. The garden is lovely and you can hear the river rushing by as you relax in the sunshine.

Watersmeet is a lovely location for couples, families and dog walkers. Rather a steep climb down a gravel path but worth the effort. Great walks from here in both directions following the two rivers. The tea rooms are a great place to rest and take refreshments or indulge in a tasty Devon cream tea!

What a beautiful place to find at the end of a fabulous walk by the river and through the woods from Lynmouth. Stunning scenery made all the more spectacular by the raging water after lots of rain! Great coffee and great cake!

Do the walk from Lynmouth not easy but you build up an apertite for one of there cream teas sitting in the garden on a sunny day feeding the birds and listening to the roar of the river special place.

Beautiful place lovely tea room we sat outside in the sunshine. Had a cream tea it was fantastic, staff friendly and helpful. Great place for walking, great for dog walkers. Lots to do. Waterfalls where fab. Great place to visit. Would come back again.

Treated ourselves to a cream tea during our circular walk before walking back up the Countisbury Hill.

As previous ly stated this was the worst cream tea we have ever had and probably the dearest. Very disappointing with the standard. Lovely walk up watersmeet such a shame about the scones which were stale. Several other people were of the same opinion. National trust rubbish.

You have to visit the national Trust tea rooms at Watersmeet, a good excuse to enjoy tea and stickies before climbing through the woods to Countesbury hill, the best walk in Christendom as recommended by slightly scary Julia Bradbury.

Adequate in every way but does not now have the homemade food that was on offer years ago, slightly better than average, just!

The building is in a wonderful location, but the ordering area of the tearooms is overly cramped, even when it is not especially busy. The main problem is that there is a large grassy area out front (a superb location) that a surprisingly small number of tables. This needs to be rectified.

Visited recently and walked to the waterfall. The walk was a little challenging for a walking stick user. Coffee shop lovely but seating was challenging, as so busy.

This cafe made a great stopping off point on our walk down the valley. It has a very nice garden with tables by the riverside. You need to get here early to avoid the queues

It's a good down-hill walk from the car park on the A39 but it's a great place to start a riverside walk. The tea rooms make the perfect was to finish the trek with typical tea room fayre.

Watersmeet is one of the most beautiful National Trust sites there is, and the catering is well up to the usual NT standard.

You get here by parking above and strolling down a small trail to a beautiful valley with small waterfalls. It’s a lovely setting.

Very steepdecent went for cream tea paid over the odds for it only plain scones very plain bland tasteless tea in a paper cup no pot of refill and had to beg for butter for scones traditional ha ha er no ! Nat trust should be ashamed of this will need to change drasticly before I recommend it also no warnings to dog owners and parents of young children about TICKS!! The area is full of them BEWARE!!!

We enjoyed coffee and cake sitting in the outdoor seating area. We enjoyed watching the birds feasting on crumbs. The children paddles in the water nearby.

Lovely views and great coffee. Dog friendly and a really nice spot to sit and take in the views. We started at Lynmouth and had a coffee here before heading back into the village. Tea (£2) and cappuccino (£2.75) reasonably priced.

We walked from Lynmouth by the East Lynn to our favourite destination. To sit outside this picturesque building and wolf down a dream tea is heaven. The gift shop is a good idea for Christmas presents too. Disabled toilets alright. Then it's a walk back to Lynmouth.

We stopped off at Watersmeet as part of our walking trip along the river. The setting is very beautiful and there was plenty of room outside to sit... there needed to be with the amount of people there at lunch time, including school parties and walking groups.

This has got to be the best located tea room, surrounded by trees with lots of wildlife waiting for your crumbs. The cake is delicious and the staff friendly and helpful. We always stop here after walking from Lynmouth and it never disappoints.

This a delight to find a the end of a lovely walk from Lynmouth to Watersmeet. A cream tea in the garden on a sunny day is a must when visiting Lynton and Lynmouth.

A wonderful cafe in a magical setting. Wild birds everwhere, the river running through it, Hansel and Gretel cottage and wonderful food. I live on Exmoor and this is the best place to go for a proper flat white. I'd move in if they'd have me.

Beautiful location. Cream tea was good other cakes looked appetising. Wouldn’t want to be here when busy as service very slow.

Fabulous little tea room with lots of outside seating. Good coffee and the food looked excellent (although we only had shortbread) Despite the longish queue the staff were unfailingly polite. There are lots of chaffinches and other birds hopping around outside, hoping for crumbs!

Having walked along the river from Lynton we were pleased to find the tea rooms. We had a delicious cream tea in a beautiful garden by the river. The access to purchase food is very tight and the queues can be long but not sure how this could be remedied!

Delightful tea room ,plenty of seating and shade where needed .Set on a green so great for children to play .

what a wonderful setting where the waters meet and great food and a friendly staff just what you need after a walk from either down the gorge or up it

This is possibly the most beautifully set tea rooms anywhere. And because you have to walk to it, even if only down from the car park, there is a lovely tranquil air about the place. Good tea too.

After a wonderful walk along the river it’s great to be able to rest with tea and cake A good national trust shop I can recommend it

Lovely walk by the river to arrive here. It is in a really lovely spot. The area inside where you are served is very small. Seating is all outside. Had cheese scone and coffee both very good. It belongs to the National Trust so there is the usual shop as well.

Staff here are always pleasant, cake selection is good, a little pricey but it is national trust! Toilets aren't always the cleanest, but it is always busy so I don't find this surprising! Lovely location, full of wildlife and is perfect to sit and enjoy the view.

This is a lovely area with beautiful walks in stunning scenery. The tea garden is great but as with many NT places, space has been given over for the shop that really could have been used for the tea room, and therefore getting refreshment was a cramped experience with allot of waiting and queuing. The cafe area where you are served was far too small for the number of people going through it, and this was In April. I dread to thing how crowded and hot this would be in the height of summer .

We were walked a route which we had seen Julia Bradbury walk on TV and she visited this tea room. It was a lovely location and the food and drinks were wonderful. It was a little pricey but ok when you take into account getting there and the upkeep of this very popular area. We were pleased to find a table for all six of us as some others who came after did need to wait. It’s a lovely tea room and definitely worth a visit. The grass area is currently out of bounds giving it a chance to recover but this does slightly reduce seating as of April 2019.

This tearoom is in a spectacular setting by the river.

Pretty cafe with lovely garden next to the rivers at watersmeet, we stopped for tea and a giant shortbread biscuit on our way from Lynmouth to Rockford. Clean public toilets and lovely surroundings

We walked The Watersmeet Walk from Tors Road in Lynmouth to Watersmeet Tea Rooms & were ready for a sit down & cuppa in the surprisingly warm March sunshine.

Well worth the effort of walking there or parking above the gorge. We felt their menu choice was much more limited in our September visit than previously & we have visited many times, including when we lived in same area.

My now wife and i went here in our courting days...very apt as she is called Lyn.I had been there untold times before now we both love the place and the food.

These tea rooms at the top of Watersmeet are well worth the walk. Your feet will take you on a 20-minute (or so !) walk up through the gorge alongside rushing water. Not for the faint-hearted but my mother-in-law made it when she was in her 90s ! When you reach the tea rooms, opt for the cream tea but watch out for the myriad birds who will try to join you at your outside table !

Lovely spot right by the river. We were able to sit outside, amazing in November. There was a large basket of knee rugs for the less hardy! We were lucky to arrive as the cheese scones were coming out of the oven, can certainly recommend these, delicious!

Went for a lovely walk along the river, and decided to treat ourselves to a cream tea. Well, the scones were HUGE and plenty of jam and cream. Separate jug of hot water given on request, and we were joined on our table by blue tits and chaffinches, who waited politely for crumbs! A lovely place to go....there's a little shop with touristy stuff-tasteful not tat. Will definatley go again!