Bampton Garden Centre Plants Cafe (BGCPC)

It sounds vegetarian doesn’t it? Well it’s not. However it does a fantastic vegetarian breakfast – big enough for two people to share – as my kid pointed out when mine arrived. I wasn’t so sure about that, but as it was my breakfast, my spawn grabbed it’s fork and helped itself. I say “it” because I have kids of all genders, none of whom want a mention in anything I write.

Back to breakfast, it was amazing, it even had half an avocado thrown in for good luck, perfectly ripe. No joke, a free avocado with your bangers and beans.

The decor is lovely, like almost Cotswold yummy mummy. By this I mean, it’s not pretentious or uncomfortable (cough, unlike another well-known local garden centre who over-charges it’s customers, can’t bake and pays it staff badly…..).

BGCPC have filled the cafe with all the expensive large trees they sell, I for one, really appreciate that. It gives beauty, privacy and atmosphere. Dotted above some of the tables are brightly coloured Indian parasols, (shading your eyes from the industrial lighting), it really is strikingly attractive, when you walk in.

They’ve recently opened their own bakery and anytime my kid has ordered a cake, which I’ve helped myself to, it’s been great. The problem with BGCPC is they stop serving for half an hour, each day. Between 11:30am and 12 noon, they change their menu from breakfast to lunch – and probably clean up the kitchen. Of course I know this because anytime I’ve been, I’ve arrived at 11:28am. Now ordinarily, in this situation a waitress would let you know the “rules”, probably with a passive aggressive implication that you are a pain in the arse and punish you accordingly, with bad service. Totally expected, it’s the English way. But, not so in BGCPC! Here the waitress anxiously tries to get your order in, even giving you extra time to fight over who is going to get the avocado. No malice, just genuine anxiety that you might miss your brekkie. Even putting it through at 11:34am – bending the rules to help the customer. What is this Witchery?

I have to say, with the trees, umbrellas and helpful service, it crossed my mind that perhaps I’d been abducted by aliens on the Bampton Road and accidentally dropped off in the wrong country. How else could I be experiencing such a great times, in a garden centre in Bampton? Yes, maybe my life has got a bit small during lockdown, I’m easier to please, just leaving the house has become something I appreciate. Hey, we’ll never know for certain, but I’ll risk another alien abduction to go back to BGCPC.

Bampton Garden Centre
Buckland Road
Bampton OX18 2AA

Café

The Rules:

Breakfast: 9:00 – 11:29am

Hot lunch: 12 – 1:59pm

Cold lunch: 12 – 14:59pm

Afternoon tea: No times on website yet. be careful.