Toad Hall Garden Centre has a cafe inside it, as all good garden centres do, and that cafe is Café Jessecco. It’s a friendly space surrounded by plants and when I visited in November it was already fully embracing the Christmas season.

I try not to include people in my photos for this blog unless I’ve asked them if it’s OK first. This might make it look like I only visit empty cafes, but rest assured Café Jessecco was doing a brisk trade when I visited and I had to wait a while before getting this interior photo for you. Seeing the sky and the tree from inside the cafe was particularly pleasing, I’d like to go back again on a day with a bright blue sky and see how it changes the feel of the space. The greenhouse style roof did have a few drips coming through when I was there, but they weren’t in the main cafe area and were being caught in buckets.

They warned me when I ordered that tea would be in a takeaway cup as they were so busy and that was fine (always good to be warned). It was a pleasant surprise to get a ceramic teapot and milk jug along with the paper cup and box. And extra festive points for a takeaway cup looking like it was wrapped in its own mini Christmas jumper.

I ordered a pot of decaf tea and a mince pie flapjack. Mince pies are great, flapjacks are great – combining the two seemed like a winning combination. It was basically a flapjack with a layer of mincemeat in the middle, chocolate topping and a sugar Santa. When it arrived I was initially disappointed it was small, but it was rich, spiced and fruity and the size was just right. I’d order it again.

The tea was not loose leaf but a Clipper decaf teabag. It’s my fault the tea looks watery – I added it to the pot but was a bit impatient and didn’t let it brew long enough.

If you’re in the area and fancy a wander round a garden centre then this is a good place to go. Toad Hall Garden Centre has a good selection of tools, plants and pots and when I went it was full of Christmas decorations and poinsettias too. Café Jessecco is a nice addition to some garden centre browsing.

• Teapot? Yes, in festive red.
• Leaf tea? No, a Clipper decaf teabag.
• Milk jug? Yes.
• Price? £6.60 for a pot of decaf tea and a mince pie flapjack.
• Cake? Yes, a selection of cakes and tray bakes. Also sells sandwiches.
• Toilet? Yes, near the entrance to the garden centre rather than by the cafe (but it’s not far). Male, female and disabled.
• Go again? Yes.

Cafe Jessecco, Toad Hall Garden Centre, Marlow Road, Fawley, Henley-on-Thames, RG9 3AG.

Visited on: Saturday 22 November 2025