Category Archives: Tea Shop

Cream Tea

Abinger Hammer Tearooms

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Post Office House, Guildford Road, Abinger Hammer, Dorking, RH5 6RX

A charming old-fashioned tearoom serving generous portions of food and hospitality

Go there for: Big slices of cake, toasted sandwiches, ploughmans and freshly made scones.

Avoid: Modern coffee-shop mentality; this tearoom is quintessentially English.

Is it worth the calories?: Support this lovely little business and put the tracker away for the afternoon.

Tips: Enter the tearoom via the shop. Book ahead for Sunday lunch.

Sadly the Abinger Hammer post office closed 9 years ago but Annie seized the opportunity to open a teashop. Her desperate action has been a gift.

Jane and I first popped into the teashop after a disappointing lunch elsewhere. We had enough room to share a cream tea (£4.75), which proved to be one of the best! The scone would get a 1980s Home Economics teacher’s approval (just warm from the oven) and the tea came in a lovely big pot with a jug of milk in rose-embellished mismatched china.

Annie says trade is seasonal but she has regular refuelling visits from cyclists touring the Surrey Hills; she’d love to see more people in the colder months. In summer the stream opposite pulls in families with younger children. Fishing nets and cricket sets are sold in the shop for some traditional fun with the kids.

sign_soup_nets

Annie offers a comforting, traditional menu. It’s mostly home made and portions are generous. I chose a full cooked breakfast with scrambled free-range eggs (£7.50 including a pot of tea) – the perfect pick me up after an enthusiastic night’s socialising. One companion chose a baked potato with prawns in a Marie Rose sauce: a retro classic down to the obligatory salad garnish (£6.50). From the same generation a French ploughman’s, this overly generous plate featured a wedge of gooey brie and a generous ramekin of pâté. The bread was oven fresh: when business is unpredictable Annie stocks part-baked bread. I am not usually a fan of this product but here it worked perfectly and other venues could take note as it’s not uncommon for day-old bread to be served. Some tomato and parsley soup arrived piping hot (hooray); intensely tomatoey, it was savoury with just the right hint of sweetness and was accompanied by plus a generous portion of warm bread (£3.95) – perfect for dunking.

abhammer_4

They also serve toasted sandwiches (from £4.50) and, a local seasonal tradition, Watercress Tea: a bowl of watercress from Kingfisher Farm across the road, a slab of cheddar and buttered brown bread (£4.75).

No tea room is worth mentioning without talking cake. Here, they offer a selection including  Victoria sandwich, coffee and walnut, classic chocolate and carrot. A steal at £2.50 a slice (£1.50 to take-away) this is a cupcake-free zone reserved for serious cake consumption.

When I popped in recently I met Paul Baker, chef/proprietor of Kinghams in Shere, having lunch on his day off. I can think of no better recommendation. Cream Tea

01306 730701

No website

Text and images Shirlee
Text and images Shirlee
Rosewater and pistachio cake

The Tea Shop at Watts Gallery

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Minestrone soup with warm breadDown Lane, Compton, Guildford, Surrey, GU3 1DQ

A delightful café in the old pottery on the North Down’s Way with a changing seasonal menu.

Go there for: Scrumptious English nursery classics like Welsh rarebit and generous slices of home-baked cakes.

Avoid: Mondays – they’re shut (and on Tuesdays after a bank holiday weekend).

Is it worth the calories?: Heart-warming soups and salads complement the house specials of rarebits and cakes. Indulging is fine – especially if you walk to the chapel!

Tips: A great stop on the North Downs Way for walkers and bikers – or visit the gallery or astonishing chapel.

This charming eatery is in the grounds of the gallery that celebrates the work of the renowned Victorian artist Frederic Watts. Established 25 years ago, the tea shop was given a facelift when it was taken over by the gallery in 2009.

New manager Agnieszka Czabak started in 2012 and keeps the front of house moving at a crisp pace, tables are cleared efficiently and orders taken swiftly. Head chef Aly Breakwell’s cooking is creative, homely and extremely good. The menu is temporarily smaller than before and the café’s famous rarebits (from £4.95) are on the specials board.

A new menu is about to be launched and Aly has been testing innovative dishes like confit of duck and cabbage leaves stuffed with barley, walnuts, sultanas and dill. Buying local foods where possible is high on the agenda here and drinks such as cider are sourced locally. They also use an ethically sourced coffee and have their own blend of ‘Potters tea”.

Butternut squash and feta tart, table flowers and chicken and mango sandwich

I was sad the celeriac soup with walnut and parsley pesto had run out but the minestrone was thick and hearty, using barley and red kidney beans instead of pasta (£5.50). Packed with vegetables and garnished with fresh Pear & custard tart with cinnamon and clotted cream herbs and local rapeseed oil, it was the best I’ve had in a long while. My daughter ordered a grilled chicken and mango sandwich on white bread (£5.50) the chicken succulent and the mango delivered a  tangy sweet finish . My butternut squash and goat’s cheese tart (£7.50) had crisp thin pastry, the squash was soft and buttery, and the cheese added a deliciously salty kick. It came with a generous selection of salads. There is also a pudding on the specials board each day and we sampled a complimentary slither of pear and custard tart with cinnamon, clotted cream and toasted walnuts, it was gorgeous (£5.25).

Aly said they can’t bake enough cakes on site to meet demand but she does as many as possible. On display was a handsome Victoria sponge, a coffee and walnut and a gluten-free chocolate all at £3.00 a generous slice. But what caught our eye was a spectacular rosewater and pistachio cake; a creamy sponge topped with rose-scented icing and a sprinkle of pistachio and rose petals – and it’s gluten free. It lived up to its enticing exterior and was meltingly light and delicate.

Rosewater and pistachio cake

The tea house has big plans for the future, with an extension to the café planned for spring 2013. Aly is keen to add more vegetarian options and experimental specials to the new menu. The cooking we sampled was great, so expect good things here in the future.

www.wattsgallery.org.uk

Phone:01483 813590

Tanhouse Farm Shop

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Tanhouse Farm Shop, Rusper Road, Newdigate, Surrey, RH5 5BXOutdoor covered seating area

 A stylish little farm shop and café selling their own cakes and pies alongside select groceries.

 Go there for: Lovely savoury pies, cakes and soups made with local produce and their own free-range meat.

Avoid: Ignoring this venue: even if it’s off your beaten track this little gem won’t disappoint.

Is it worth the calories? Pies are a sensible size and salads generous so they have the balance just right.

Tips: The farm sells its own jams and honey: great for unique foodie gifts. Or call in for a takea-way pie and coffee.

What a treat to find this farm shop and café just as my internal lunch bell rang. The vibrant covered outdoor seating area overlooks over the playground so you can keep an eye on your brood while they play. Inside, you can peruse the shelves while enjoying a home-cooked treat or two from the kitchen. They are big on traditional cooked breakfasts here and serve delicious pies and pasties for lunch, complemented by a selection of salads.

Their chicken and wild mushroom pie (£6.50) is a world away from commercial imposters with pale gloopy middles. Here a handsome pastry encases free-range chicken chunks and flavour-packed mushrooms in a light creamy sauce. A portion of roasted Mediterranean vegetable salad and some green leaves turns the meal into a balanced plate. Home-made soup with bread (£4.85) also makes a delicious lunch.

Wild mushroom and chicken pie, play area and tea with florentine slice

The cakes were all saying ‘eat me’ but I was tempted by the lovely Florentine slice (£2.50), a layered affair of shortbread topped with caramel, fruit and nuts.

Sausage rolls and pasties, scotch eggs, meat from the freezer and carrot cakes

All the food served here is made by a team of chefs who also manage outside catering events such as weddings plus preparing hampers for those enjoying the local fishing.

Tanhouse honeyThey serve Higher Nature tea and single estate coffee from Coffee Real, craft roasters situated just behind the farm. Luckily you can buy their ethically sourced and expertly roasted coffee in the farm shop to take home too. They sell a small range of jams, chutneys and marmalade produced on site plus honey from their own hives. A bank of freezers house their free-range Aberdeen Angus beef, lamb and Gloucester Old Spot pork; I made a gutsy cottage pie from their minced beef (£5.13 for 750g). Potatoes and seasonal vegetables from the farm are on sale when in season. They also sell old-fashioned sweets in jars and a few really useful items like liners for food-waste bins.

Located in some of the prettiest Surrey countryside, it’s a joy to travel to this lovingly thought out little café.

01306 631 891

www.tanhousefarmshop.co.uk

 

Croissants chalk hills

Chalk Hills Bakery Shop and Cafe

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 75 Bell Street, Reigate, RH2 7ANChris & Rosie owners of Chalk Hills Bakery

A bakery and café delivering artisan bread and pastry magic to the lucky folk of Reigate.

Go there for: Handmade artisan bread, gorgeous pastries, tarts, and a bacon sandwich to shout about.

Avoid: Trying to resist anything in this café; it’s futile.

Is it worth the calories?: I should say so: this is the ultimate good food experience!

Tips: The sandwiches on the menu are fantastic but if you want a bespoke combination just ask.

Walking into Chalk Hill Bakery on a rainy autumn day to the smell of toasting bread and aromatic coffee is a truly uplifting experience.Chalk Hills Bakery shop front

Chris and Rosie Robinson sold their gastro pub, The Stephen Langton in Abinger Hammer, to start a proper artisan bakery. Coincidentally, Priory Farm had a kitchen to rent in the old tractor shed and in November 2010 the first loaves were sold in the Priory Farm shop.

Chris and his team make sour-dough bread by hand the old-fashioned way and let it rise naturally over a 2-day period to develop flavour and texture ­- don’t think of muttering Chorley Wood, dough improvers or high-speed mixing here. Sourcing fine ingredients such as Shipton Mill organic flour gives added provenance to their products. The long fermentation process means the bread stays fresh for longer and is easier to digest.

Chalk Hills Bakery produce 17 different loaves, including fig and walnut sour dough (£3.65), large rye (£2.75), and other classics such as ciabatta (£2.50) and focaccia with a selection of toppings (£3.95). They also make a Surrey bloomer (£1.75) and Italian sticks (£2.10). Even the yeasted breads have a flavour boost of sour dough starter and are slowly proved in a refrigerator. The full range of products is on sale at Priory Farm and at Chalk Hills Bakery every day. They sell wholesale to a handful of local businesses.

Artisan bread selection at Chalk HIlls

Chalk Hills Bakery has definitely got the X factor (but with classier music). It’s modern yet rustic, charming and friendly, and has a simple but innovative menu. They cleverly match their bread to the sandwich fillings so you get the best texture and flavour combination. In addition they make croissants, scones, sausage rolls (with free-range sausage meat from Bowles farm in Ewhurst). Ham and beef for their sandwiches are cooked in the bakery; meat comes from Robert and Edwards of Reigate. In fact everything on the menu is made at the bakery, even the soup.

The bread menu, sweet tarts and bacon sandwich on white bloomer

I tucked into their classic bacon sandwich made from Gloucester Old Spot free-range bacon on toasted Surrey Bloomer (£3.95). What a triumph! Crisp, salty bacon, sweet herb jelly and perfectly toasted bread. The Sage Jelly from local producer PickleCake Parma ham and mozzarella with sage jelly (produced locally by Picklecake) also caught my eye – next time! I rounded this off with a pot of Barry’s Irish tea. I’ve never heard of it but apparently if you are from Southern Ireland it’s the only tea to drink and Chris (who’s from Dublin) won’t sell anything else. Coffee comes from Union, a craft roaster in East London, and soft drinks from Luscombe organics in Devon.

Business has been booming ever since the bakery opened and they plan to open another shop. Just make a wish that it’s on your doorstep: I have.

www.chalkhillsbakery.com

01737669116