Dobbies Garden Centres Reviews 32.077

Wow! Took my 90 year old mum to Dobbies Gillingham today. We are regular customers as mum likes to look around and have something to eat and drink after a busy shopping spree.
The restaurant is always very busy and the small amount of staff are usually run off their feet trying to serve everyone, you can always expect a fair wait to be served and food to arrive!
NOT TODAY….. the restaurant was packed but the service was SUPER quick, it was LOVELY to see more serving staff present to cope with the amount of people sitting waiting for food.
Just one request…. Please could you make the service quicker at the crowded coffee Shop too, there is always a massive queue there.
Well done Dobbies please keep it up.

Bought a growhouse from them just before christmas. Moved it outside in February and the first minor storm snapped the plastic that holds it together. Took it back and was refused a repair or replacement and told that without the original receipt i might have stolen it. Disgraceful customer service.

Visited Dobbies in Birtley, wouldn’t normally have made the trek but had been given gift voucher. I also squandered £15 to join Dobbies club to maximise the voucher. Reasonable selection of plants and gardening equipment although some of the plants looked a bit ratty. Oddly they had a selection of Klass women’s clothing … like I’d drop in for bulbs and suddenly need an evening dress. The allotment isn’t that formal. The reason I’ve. Taken to Truspilot was the state of the lavatories. Disgusting. Dirty toilets, used lavatory paper on the floor, overflowing sanitary bins, toilets that didn’t flush properly and the whole area looked desperate for refurbishment. We were going to make a day of it and visit the cafe but after that, I was very reluctant to eat there. It’s a shame. The staff were helpful and cheerful. Spent the voucher and will chalk the £15 membership to experience! .

Been so many times and been told they arent doing hot food for various reasons. Been Wednesday this week...waited in the queue only to be told the chef was off. Tried again today...2 days later. Ordered a brie and cranberry pannini...no brie. I give up! Waste of mine and my husbands time. Not worth going.

My visit to the restaurant unfortunately left a very bad impression. The tables were dirty, which immediately affected the comfort of the meal. The customer service was below expectations – there was a clear lack of interest in the guests. The prices turned out to be definitely inadequate compared to the quality of the food served. Additionally, the plate on which the dish was served had a very unpleasant fishy smell (I did not order fish), which is absolutely unacceptable. Unfortunately, I cannot recommend this place.

My wife and I popped into the cafe today for coffee and cake. They ask £4.50 for a slice of cake yet half of the tables were dirty and hadn't been cleared (even though it wasn't busy), the carpet /laminate flooring is gaffer taped down so you don't fall over it! How about you invest some of the huge profits into the cafe environment?! Not good at all.

Very disappointed, they cost themselves over £100 of business today as they do not do delivery now, although there web site says they do.

It’s very rare that I complain, but the young lady who was preparing the coffee at about 3.30pm completely let the other team members down.
Firstly, the teapot she presented us with, not only was horribly stained, it looked dirty. The person behind me in the queue mentioned this too.
I asked her if it would be possible to change it. No words. No smile. Nothing. Just snatched it and made another one.
I then waited for the milk. Another team member brought a jug and I simply asked if it were mine. She huffed, and literally slammed it on my tray, then poured another one, as the one I claimed was apparently for the people behind me.
I asked if I could have a teaspoon. She said very sarcastically “ sorry honey we haven’t got any, if you give me a chance I’ll get some’.
I asked if there were any on the tables and she said no.
I waited and waited. Hot drinks going colder. I asked again, to be met by the same patronising attitude and being called honey again.
Her attitude was literally appalling.
In the end I went to my table, found another member of staff and explained what happened. She was a credit to the team. Went and found some spoons, asked if we needed our drinks refreshed, which we declined and was very apologetic.
Fortunately we come to this branch weekly, and apart from the odd tepid coffee, we know the staff are lovely.
If this was my first visit, it would definitely have been my last.
This young lady needs customer service training urgently!!

Dobbies Atherstone - Long queues in the restaurant but got served very quickly by a very professional and speedy young man called Glenn. Coffee was lovely and hot and very nice. Glenn is a credit to the team

Waited 25 mins for food. Not the staffs fault. There was a shortage of staff and guys who were working were running from side to side to order, serve and deliver food.
WHY DONT DOBBIES ADD A QR CODE SO THAT YOU CAN ORDER AT TABLE. ESPECIALLY THE DOG AREA WHERE SERVERS ARE VERY RARE.
Food was good but service time made it unacceptable. Soup and sandwiches, and kids lunch box. Coffee and coke.

Travelling a long way to visit the Garden Centre so needed to know the online information was corrects I tried phoning. I stayed on the phone for more than 5 minutes with no answer so I redialled trying the other options eg restaurant .No one answer after 10 minutes .
Needless to say I shall take mu business else where.

What a dreadful place this is ,get your supposed hot food then wait ages in a queue to pay for it next task find a clean table to sit , one that's not filthy and full of dirty pots ,virtually impossible. Staff who clearly aren't interested in the job 🙄. It's a pity because the garden centre itself is pretty good, but won't be eating there again, Darfolds is far better and cheaper

I have to wonder if Dobbies are trying to run this particular store into the ground?

It’s a dump! Tired, rundown and neglected - gaffa taped floor at the entrance, really gives a good first impression!!!!
It’s untidy and unclean - especially the loos (disabled loo is a health hazard)!
Stock is woeful}
Cafe is absolutely dire!
Food hall is pathetic!

You want to stick expensive garden furniture in a dump and expect people to come and buy?

We went 17.02.26 and a large area of floor space was like a rubbish tip…I’m assuming some part of a valentines display??? 2.5 days on from the event, it’s inexcusable that it was left like that…a dog/child could have picked something up and choked, aside from the fact it looked a mess!

I don’t know if the manager was sent to run it down, has given up or just doesn’t have a clue what he’s doing? What is clear, is that staff are totally lacking in direction and have no pride in their workplace at all.

It used to be fantastic, a great place to grab gifts as well as garden stuff and the cafe was always buzzing - now it’s like a morgue!

Dobbies, your customers deserve better than this!

Visited the store at Braehead for the Paw-perfect experience on Saturday 14 February 2026 which was prebooked.
A total shambles, the sniff experience for the dog was a non event as all the tins of treats were empty.
There was only one member of staff who was totally inexperienced resulting in the photographs being terrible.
In addition the queue of people waiting was unmanaged.
To be fair he should have had assistance.
A very disappointing experience and not worth the £15 paid.
I did contact customer service who were not in the least helpful or sympathetic.

Have been going to dobbies at Chesterfield for many years. But my last two experiences in the cafe have not been pleasant. On both times staff were rude. The area were you sit with dogs was disgusting, all tables dirty, food on floor and the area by window has been taped off since before Christmas. It is very sad to say I won’t be returning

The staff seemed overworked and not really very happy in the cafe which is a shame. The plants are nice. But £1.55 for a 20p freddo, or £1.55 for a small penguin bar.. whaaaat!!!!!

Well stocked with good quality products. Staff helpful. Good service.

We came to the Lisburn Dobbies for lunch today. What an improvement! We waited (with a buzzer) for our meals but only a few minutes and when we got it, both meals were fresh, hot and very tasty! We also got a lovely slice of cheesecake and two coffees. The coffees were both lovely and hot. The friendliness of the staff and the service would challenge any more expensive restaurant. I think probably hygiene in the restaurant has also improved. We have visited this garden centre and cafe frequently since it opened and this has been, by far, the best experience of all. Well done to the management and of course all the staff!

We ordered two pots of tea and sat right beside the area where they were being made. I took the two pots back as you could taste that they had not been made with boiling water. Yuk! The girl proceeded to argue with me that the water had been hot - although she could put her hands on the pot without being burned. She did make fresh pots complaining to the other girl the whole time. She tried to put her hands on the pot and swiftly lifted her hands back.
She and the other girl continued to moan about dissatisfied customers. A few minutes later I assume out of pure spite she slammed a tray on the counter right beside us. From the noise level she held it at one edge and using both hands struck the counter for maximum impact. Do you train your staff
1. How to make a pot of tea with boiling water.
2. How not to speak to customers or disparage them to other staff.
3. Not to have a temper tantrums if someone does complain.
I was totally disgusted with this behaviour and will never go there again and will advise all my family and friends likewise.

Awful place, if you like waiting, and then waiting some more then this place is for you!