Bellgarth · Tea house and supper room in the old school garden

Floured hands twisting cardamom bun dough on a worn oak bench, with two shaped buns and a bowl of flour beside them. — 06:45 The first tray, shaped on the oak bench by the kitchen window.

Before the door opens

Shaped at six, gone by ten

We twist every bun by hand on the oak bench before the garden door opens. There is one bake a day, and when the last tray is gone we do not make another.

Sourdough and rye
The oven is lit and the first loaves go in.
06:00
Cardamom buns
Knotted on the bench, then proved by the window.
06:45
The breakfast blend
Pots warmed, and the first blend weighed out.
07:45
The schoolroom
The old bell rings and the garden door opens.
08:00
The last bun
Usually sold by ten, and by half past nine on Saturdays.
10:00

The day’s board walk in

From porridge to scones

1 / 3

Oat porridge with dark stewed plums in a stoneware bowl and two buttered crumpets under scrambled eggs and chives, on linen by a window.

Breakfast

08:00–11:30

Porridge and eggs by the east window. Buns until they run out, usually by ten.

A pot and a cardamom bun
Breakfast blend brewed strong enough for two, the bun warm from the tray.
- Vegetarian
- Until it goes 14 left
£7.50
Porridge with stewed plums
Oats cooked slowly in milk, with plums from the garden wall.
- Vegetarian
£6.50
Eggs on buttered crumpets
Two soft-scrambled eggs, chives and black pepper.
- Vegetarian
£8.00
Toast and marmalade
Thick sourdough, salted butter and our own Seville marmalade.
- Vegetarian
£5.00
A kipper and brown bread
Smoked on the quay, with lemon and a pat of butter.
- Until it goes 5 left
£9.50
Rhubarb and yoghurt
Forced rhubarb, thick yoghurt and toasted seeds.
- Vegetarian
- Gluten-free
£5.50

Bellgarth last orders 11:15

Today: plums from the garden wall

A stoneware bowl of orange soup with a heel of bread and a small green salad on an oak table in midday window light.

Lunch

11:30–15:00

What the walled beds and the quay gave the kitchen this week.

Soup and a heel of bread
Ask at the counter. There is always a vegetarian one.
- Vegetarian
£8.50
Smoked mackerel on rye
Pickled cucumber, dill and crème fraîche.
£11.00
Leek and cheddar tart
Short pastry and a green salad from the walled beds.
- Vegetarian
- Until it goes 6 left
£10.50
Rarebit with ale mustard
Strong cheese on toast, grilled until it bubbles.
- Vegetarian
£9.00
Beetroot and lentil bowl
Shaved beetroot, leaves and a sharp mustard dressing.
- Vegan
- Gluten-free
£9.50
Crab on toast
Brown and white meat, lemon mayonnaise and cress.
- Until it goes 3 left
£13.50

Bellgarth last orders 14:45

Today: crab landed at the quay at seven

Two scones with strawberry jam and clotted cream beside a cup of tea on a wooden tray in gold afternoon light.

Tea

15:00–18:00

Scones come out at three. Get here before they go.

Scones, jam and clotted cream
Two scones, still warm, with strawberry jam from June.
- Vegetarian
- Until it goes 11 left
£6.50
A pot and a slice
Any tea from the tin shelf, with today’s cake.
- Vegetarian
£7.00
Lemon and poppy seed loaf
Sharp icing, cut thick.
- Vegetarian
£4.00
Almond and plum cake
Made without flour, so it keeps moist for days.
- Vegetarian
- Gluten-free
£4.50
Cheese scone and chutney
Mature cheddar and a spoon of apple chutney.
- Vegetarian
Gone today
Iced milk tea
Strong black tea shaken with milk and brown sugar.
- Vegetarian
- Gluten-free
£4.50

Bellgarth last orders 17:30

Today: the jam is June’s strawberry

A fictional menu with sample prices and counts.

Supper has its own short menu, served in the garden from half past six.

The brick-walled garden at Bellgarth in late morning: a gravel path between planted beds, a wooden bench against the far wall, a lime tree, and the harbour beyond. — 11:00 The walled garden from the schoolroom steps. The lime tree is older than the school.

The old schoolroom

Forty seats by the tall windows

The desks went years ago. The tall windows stayed, and so did the bell over the gate, which we still ring at eight. Come in when you like and stay as long as the pot lasts.

The old schoolroom at midday, empty and ready: worn oak tables and plain chairs, tall windows on the left and a counter with a cake stand and tea tins at the back. — 12:00 The schoolroom before the lunch queue.

40
Seats inside
Tables for two to six, by the windows.
24
Under the covered walk
Dry in the rain, heated from October.
08:00
The first pot
Breakfast blend, brewed strong.
22:30
The last pot
Mint or chamomile, after supper.

Before you come

Walk in: for breakfast, lunch and tea
Book: for supper under the lime tree
Bring: the dog; there is a water bowl by the gate

Three o’clock and after

Kind words, mostly about the scones

We came for a pot at three and stayed under the lime tree until the lamps went on. At five they brought a second pot and scones still warm from the oven.

Ruth PellowCame for tea, June 2026

Guests mention

Warm scones
Unhurried
Dog-friendly

Their cardamom bun is the reason we take the coast road. Get there before ten or watch someone else eat the last one.

Tomasz WrenSaturday breakfast, most weeks since March 2026

Hands in a linen apron pouring tea from a speckled stoneware pot into a cup, one hand steadying the lid, in gold afternoon light. — 15:00 The first afternoon pour, from the counter pot.

Listed in these guides. Guides and guests are invented for this showcase.

The walled garden at dusk: wall lamps lit along the brick, a table for two set with a candle under the lime tree, and the harbour under a deep blue sky. — 18:30 The same garden when the wall lamps go on.

After half past six

Supper under the lime tree

Evenings: Tuesday to Sunday
First sitting: 18:30, last at 21:00
Where: Under the lime tree, by the quay gate

When the cake stands go back to the kitchen, we light the lamps along the walk and lay forty places in the garden. There is one short menu and a few good bottles. Most nights every table goes, so book ahead.

Tonight’s supper

Four dishes and a glass. They follow the catch and the walled beds, and bread for the pot is on the house.