Heydon Village Tea Room
Perfect for morning coffee, light lunches, afternoon teas or a rest stop while out walking or cycling, Heydon Village Tea Room is no ordinary café.
Now under new management, the Tea Rooms are located in the charming village of Heydon, which is about 12 miles north of Norwich. Other than being very pretty, surrounded by quiet country lanes that are ideal for a bike ride, Heydon is also one of only a handful of privately owned villages in Great Britain. The last construction in the village, which has only one road in and out, was built over 100 years ago to commemorate the Jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1887.
Sympathetic in character to the bygone feel of the village, the Tea Room is a lovely place to relax and forget time for a quiet moment. Indulge in scrumptious home made cakes, home made soup or a light lunch from the specials board.
Traditional Cream Tea is a speciality at Heydon. Layer your butter and jam on delicious Lavender scones (made with genuine Norfolk Lavender), Spicy Fruit, Fig & Apricot and good old plain varieties.
Sit inside and enjoy the white tablecloths and real china like your Grandma used to use (sugar cube tongs included) or take your tea or coffee outside on warmer days and relax amidst the serene, slow-paced setting of Heydon Village.
See the Menu.
View the Scone Menu.
See the Heydon Drinks Menu.
Opening times:
Open all year round. Summer Opening Tues-Sun 10am-5pm. Winter Opening (November-March) Tues-Sun 10am-4pm. Closed on Mondays.
The Owl Tea Rooms & Bakery
The Owl Tea Rooms & Bakery.
Church Street, Holt, Norfolk, NR25 6BB.
Tel: 01263 713232.
Dating back to Victorian times (making it one of Norfolk’s oldest tearooms), and presently a family run business for some 25 years, The Owl Tea Rooms in the centre of Holt is a delightful place to sample scrumptious homemade food all day long. Traditional in feel, The Owl resembles a large country cottage kitchen, with wooden booths and tables, earthenware condiment pots and fresh flowers on each table. There is a warm touch of nostalgia throughout.
Values too are traditional in that all food is freshly made from local ingredients, service is attentive and friendly and everyone is most welcome.
The menu, however, may surprise you. It is forward-looking with one shared theme: deliciousness. On the Specials board, classic British indulgences such as Local Norfolk Lamb Hotpot or The Owl Special Steak & Kidney Pie can be found alongside Moroccan Chicken Tagine with Fruit Infused Cous Cous and Roasted Butternut Squash stuffed with Cranberries and Chestnut Puree.
Lunch options include a number of lighter dishes – jacket potatoes, sandwiches and hot buttered crumpets. For the sweet tooth or to complement a tea or coffee, The Owl does a positively dangerous line in Cream Teas and homemade cakes.
There are options for all tastes and persuasions, including vegetarians, diabetics and those avoiding gluten. There is also a Children’s Menu.
For warmer days, The Owl boasts a hidden walled tea garden, tucked behind the Tea Rooms. A sheltered, tranquil spot to enjoy your yummy goodies, this really is an experience worth savouring on sunny days. Dogs are allowed in the garden and there is wheelchair access.
After you’ve enjoyed your meal or cream tea, the adjacent bakery and shop selling all manor of freshly baked bread and scrumptious cakes will enable you to take a little taste of The Owl away with you. Our personal favourite temptation – the fat, homemade donuts just bursting with jam. There should be a law against something so naughty.
As well as food, The Owl shop stocks a great range of wooden toys (perfect gifts and stocking fillers) and handmade greeting cards. You can also hire cake moulds.
Open Mon-Sat 8.30am-5pm (last orders 4.30pm) including Bank Holiday Mondays.
Lunch is served 11.45-2.15pm.
The Hat Shop
The Hat Shop.
Pentney House, The Green, Burnham Market,
Norfolk, PE31 8HD.
Tel: 01328 738267.
The Hat Shop at Pentney House in Burnham Market is a North Norfolk institution that deserves a visit whether you’re in the market for headwear or not.
If you are looking for a hat, then you’ve come to right place. Pentney House has thousands of ladies and men’s hats on display at any one time, along with a fabulous array of fascinators, handbags, shoes and other accessories. Be it for a formal occasion, such as a wedding or Royal Ascot, or a more casual style for holidays or everyday wear, you’ll find it all here. The Hat Shop stocks leading brands including Olney, Stetson and Bailey as well as many other exciting names.
The Hat Shop staff are friendly and helpful and will be happy to assist and advise with any aspect of your search for the perfect hat – bring your outfit or a swatch with you and they will help choose a hat and accessories that will match perfectly.
If you’re not strictly hat-shopping, go along anyway – the ground floor features a Candle Room, a Greeting Card Room, a Preserve Room and a host of excellent items at reasonable prices, which make ideal gifts and souvenirs. Within the Craft Room, you’ll find plenty of items for the craft maker, many of which start at just £1.
In case you can’t get to Burnham Market, you can now purchase many items from The Hat Shop online via their web shops, menshatshop.co.uk and ladieshatshop.co.uk – with free UK delivery on all items, looking stylish has never been so tempting!
Summer Opening Times:
Monday-Saturday 9am-5.30pm.
Sunday 11am-5pm.
Winter Opening Times:
Monday-Saturday 9am-5pm.
Sunday 11am-5pm.
The Hat Shop is open on Bank Holidays.
EnjoyMent Offer:
- Ten per cent discount off all full-price hats, bags & shoes from the Burnham Market shop (excludes sale items) with an EnjoyMent Card.
Click here to become a member.
Pretty Corner Café & Tea Gardens
Pretty Corner Café & Tea Gardens.
Pretty Corner, Upper Sheringham, Norfolk, NR26 8TW.
Tel: 01263 822766.
As the name implies, Pretty Corner, found en route to Sheringham in Norfolk, has been a renowned beauty spot for decades.
Pretty Corner Café and Tea Gardens first opened in 1926 in a wooden pavilion that had no running water or electricity. The owners of the time became widely known for their homemade chocolates and sweets, which won a number of awards. While it has evolved, it is still as popular today as it was back then, with walkers, cyclists and holidaymakers enjoying the peaceful woodland setting.
Inside, the modest flint and brick Café is airy and homely with pictures by local talent decorating the walls, flowers on every table and gently padded chairs. There is a wood burning stove for cooler days and an outside patio and garden, flanked by many shrubs and flowering plants, for warm weather.
Pretty Corner Café and Tea Gardens pride themselves in using fresh, locally sourced ingredients throughout their menu, supporting local producers as well as growing their own.
The menu includes lunchtime favourites such as Panninis, Jacket Potatoes, Salads and Sandwiches, as well as homemade daily specials. There is a mouthwatering selection of homemade cakes, scones and desserts.
As you expect from a self-respecting Tea Gardens, Pretty Corner Café and Tea Gardens offers a selection of speciality teas (as well as coffee and soft drinks) – perfect with a homemade scone in a Pretty Corner Cream Tea.
Vegetarians and children are well catered for, and there are gluten-free options on the menu.
See an example of the Pretty Corner Menu.
View a sample Pretty Corner Cakes & Desserts Menu.
Pretty Corner Café and Tea Gardens is child-friendly and welcomes dogs.
Pretty Corner Café and Tea Gardens cannot accept credit or debit cards.
Open April-October 10.30am-5pm (Closed on Tuesdays except during school holidays).
Norfolk Motorcycle Museum
Norfolk Motorcycle Museum.
Station Yard, Norwich Road, North Walsham, Norfolk, NR28 0DS.
Tel: 01692 406266.
Situated in North Walsham Railway Station Yard, the Norfolk Motorcycle Museum is a unique and wonderfully authentic display of motorcycle history dating back over the past 100 years.
The museum is family run by enthusiasts whose passion for and knowledge on the subject of motorcycles is immediately clear.
Inside, the collection includes over 100 motorcycles, dating from the 1900s to the 1980s, with examples covering almost every significant part of motorcycle history. There are also scooters, mortised choppers, pushbikes and all manner of motor biking accessories and memorabilia. There is also a display of early Dinky and other die cast toys dating from the mid-1940s.
Offering a fascinating visual (multi-sensory in fact – the heady and somewhat addictive fragrance of leathers and engine oil is all around you) journey through the history of the Motorbike, Norfolk Motorcycle Museum is a must for anyone with an interest in these impressive and often beautiful machines.
Alongside the exhibits you will see bona fide restoration work going on. The museum undertakes private restoration work, supplying both original and replica spare parts from wheels to forks for all makes of early motorbike.
Entrance £3.50 (Snr Citizens £3), Children £1.50.
Open 7 days a week 10am-4.30pm (Closed on Sundays October-Easter).
Made In Cley
Made In Cley.
High Street, Cley-next-the-Sea, near Holt, Norfolk, NR25 7RF.
Tel: 01263 740134.
Made In Cley is a veritable gem on the high street in Cley-next-the-Sea, one of the most authentic and charming North Norfolk coastal villages you’re likely to encounter.
Established in 1983 with 3 potters and 1 jeweller, Made In Cley occupies a gorgeous double fronted Grade II listed regency shop building that used to be the Village Store (so nice that it is still operating as a purveyor of local wares). Now with a team of 8 resident potters and a jeweller, Made In Cley exists as a high quality gallery, showcasing work made in the on-site workshops.
Inside, you’ll find a wide selection of stoneware pottery for the kitchen and dining table, ranging from the very functional to the highly decorative. You’ll also find a few one off ornamental pieces. Not only beautiful to look at, the pots, plates and bowls produced here are ovenproof and dishwasher safe. No wonder then, that restaurants in London, Dublin, Paris and Amsterdam use tableware by Made in Cley. Bowls from Made In Cley have been spotted on Simon Hopkinson’s ‘The Good Cook’, shown on BBC1.
In addition to functional pottery, there is an inspiring range of sculptural and decorative ceramics to admire and buy, including tile panels and garden pots.
As well as pottery, Made In Cley sells exquisite contemporary jewellery in silver and gold, often incorporating precious and semi-precious stones and pearls. Each piece is individually designed and handmade and commissions are welcome.
Stunning photography and art prints, predominantly of North Norfolk coastal scenes, by Wolfgang Altmann are also for sale at Made In Cley.
Gift vouchers and wedding list service available.
Open all year round: Mon-Sat 10am-5pm, Sun 11am-4pm.
Doric Arts
Doric Arts.
Gallery:
4 Albert Street, Holt, Norfolk, NR25 6HX.
Framing Studio:
1B Market Place, Holt, Norfolk, NR25 6BE.
Tel: 01263 711084.
If 20th Century Contemporary art is your thing, or if you’re looking for inspiration for a great piece to enhance your home or give as a gift, then a visit to Doric Arts in Holt is essential.
Packed with a wide selection of international 20th Century prints, paintings, photography, sculpture and design classic furniture, you’ll find the well-known (the last 3 exhibitions have featured Matisse, Eric Gill and David Hockney) alongside new and up and coming artists. We love the stuff by designer G. H. Holt.
Over two floors, this light, open gallery is deceptively concentrated with a feast of 20th Century fine and modern art. The index of gallery artists quite literally ranges from A to Z. You’ll be amazed at what fabulous pieces you can find within.
Doric Arts also operates a professional framing service, for both contemporary and traditional work and a restoration service of frames, artwork (oil or work on paper) or both.
Doodle Pots Ceramic Cafe
Doodle Pots Ceramic Café.
1A New Street, Holt, Norfolk, NR25 6JJ.
Tel: 01263 713135.
Imagine a place open to everyone – the very young to the very old, that combines the relaxed vibe of a café with the facilities to let you unleash your most artistic tendencies. Doodle Pots is such a place.
Located just off the main High Street in Holt, Doodle Pots Ceramic Café is based on a simple, but appealing philosophy: choose a piece of pottery, decorate it with your own design (go on, go wild!) and then once it is fired and glazed (process takes 3-4 days•) you can take it home to display in all its glory. Remember when your Parents first hung a picture you did on the wall when you were 4 years old? Well imagine recapturing that feeling now. And if you have your own 4 year old, let them unleash their inner Bernard Leach so you can display their fabulous creation with pride. All while sipping a delicious Lavazza cappuccino (you, not the child).
Doodle Pots has heaps of colours, brushes and stencils to select from, as well as books and, of course, the friendly and enthusiastic Café staff.
If you’re visiting the area briefly or want to make something you can take home the same day, you can ‘Make and Take’. Try your hand with mosaics or use acrylics on pottery. The technique of Decopatch allows you to revamp any old object (furniture, photo frames, dishes, trinket boxes…) by covering it with beautiful paper and varnish to create a stunning, long-lasting finish. Recycling never looked so elegant.
Doodle Pots also hosts Children’s parties, Office/Corporate sessions and Hen Parties. Doodle Pots can come to you for parties, youth groups or fund raising events. Please contact Rachel on 01263 713135 for more information.
Doodle Pots also offers a Baby/Toddler Hand and Footprint service to capture those tiny baby hand and footprints forever. The perfect gift for Mothers/Fathers Day or for adoring Grandparents.
Open Mon-Sat 10am-5pm (plus Sundays during the summer).
Group booking at other times.
Closed Thursdays Sept-May during school term time.
Booking is advised during school holidays to avoid disappointment.
*don’t worry – Doodle Pots can also post your creation safely in enough bubble wrap to keep your kids entertained all year!
Bircham Windmill
Bircham Windmill.
Great Bircham, Norfolk, PE31 6SJ.
Tel: 01485 578393.
Found only a few miles from Sandringham and Hunstanton in North-West Norfolk, Bircham Windmill is considered to be one of the best remaining examples of a British Windmill. It is also the only working windmill in the area to be open to the public. Brave visitors can ascend the five floors to the fan stage and, on windy days, you can see the sails and milling machinery turning.
Carefully restored to look just as it did over a Century ago, a visit to Bircham Windmill offers the rare opportunity to experience the history and character of a Norfolk Corn Mill – a phenomenon that was once prolific in this region.
On site is also the original bakery and a baking shop, from which the inimitable smell of freshly baked bread will welcome you if you’re lucky enough to visit on a baking day. The baking shop sells various flours, fresh bread, scones and cakes as well as baking paraphernalia, recipe books and much more. ‘Children’s Baking Corner’ enables children to bake some bread to take home for tea (£2 per child).
Also for Children (and grown-up animal lovers of course!) are the adorable Falabella miniature horses, sheep, pygmy goats, chickens and guinea pigs. With the opportunity to meet the animals and an Under 7’s play area, you can relax in the Mill garden while your kids play.
Bircham Windmill also has Tea Rooms (serving home made cakes, scones and light lunches along with their famous Clotted Cream Teas), an Art Gallery (with a different artist each month), Gift Shop, Family Cycle Hire Centre and trails and walks around the Mill for cyclists and walkers.
With so much to do and enjoy, most of which is free and can be accessed separately to the Mill itself, Bircham Windmill is a novel day out in Norfolk that will appeal to all members of the family.
FREE ENTRY into Tea Rooms & Gardens.
Entry to Windmill: Adults £3.85, Retired £3.10, Children 4-15 yrs £2.00. Season tickets also available.
Open daily from April 3rd 2012 – September 30th 2012 10am-5pm.
Dogs are welcome on leads.
Disabled parking & toilet facilities on site. All ground floor areas are wheelchair accessible.
The Old Custom House
The Old Custom House.
East Quay, Wells-next-the-Sea, Norfolk, NR23 1LD.
Tel 01328 711463.
As the name suggests, this fabulous 4-star B&B on the North Norfolk Coast is housed within the former Custom House. Built in 1560, it was from here that the authorities attempted to rein in the activities of smugglers and pirates (most of whom were busy frequenting The Royal Standard Inn, which is now a Chandlery and just next door!).
As if that weren’t historically important enough in itself, the garden boasts one of the only remaining original spring wells that gave Wells (later Wells-next-the-Sea) its name.
The Old Custom House has three lovely en-suite rooms, all unique and furnished to an exceptional standard. Each has digital TV, WI-FI, tea and coffee making facilities, hairdryer and plenty of books and magazines to make you feel at home.
Additionally, the lavish ‘Four-poster’ Room has a King-sized four-poster bed and fantastic views out onto the quay and beyond.
The ‘Captain’s Quarters’ (once the Customs Office) is a King-sized double with its own spacious private bathroom. East- and West-facing windows offer lovely views over the creeks and marshes towards the sunrise (if you’re up early enough!) and along cobblestone cottages with pantile roofs, respectively.
The ‘Queen’s Warehouse’ twin room is conveniently located on the ground floor and has its own access straight to the front yard. This makes it ideal for wheelchair users. More a ‘suite’ than a ‘regular’ room, The Queen’s Warehouse also features a dining area with fridge, sink and microwave and a bathroom with a large shower cubicle. Pets with well-behaved owners are also welcome in this room.
Off-road parking is available.
As if the history, location (as beside the sea as you can get without waking with wet feet) and views aren’t enough to tempt you into visiting The Old Custom House, they also have the coveted Breakfast Award (enjoyEngland.com), a testament to the tremendous breakfasts, cooked to order from local produce. It really is a very, very special B&B.
Tariffs: from £70 weeknights/£90 weekends (Bed & Breakfast, based on two people sharing). All major cards accepted.
EnjoyMent Offer:
- £10 off the normal room rate each night of your stay between 1st December and 31st March (upon production of an EnjoyMent card – please mention when booking. Cannot be used in conjunction with any other special offers).
Click here to become a member.
The Mo – Sheringham Museum
The Mo – Sheringham Museum.
Lifeboat Plain, Sheringham, Norfolk, NR26 8BG.
Tel: 01263 824482.
Fittingly located on the seafront in Sheringham’s east end, The Mo (named after a girl called Morag who lived over 130 years ago) is a commentary and celebration to the extraordinary heritage of this coastal town.
Looking very ‘new’ and modern – The Mo opened in March 2010, it offers a glimpse into the past with a display about the towns history, including the growth of its popularity as a seaside resort in late Victorian times.
Obviously, the town’s history would be very spartan without a nod to the sea, and the fishing industry that has played a huge part in the development and continued growth of Sheringham. The need for lifeboats became important to a community so reliant on the sea, and Sheringham is the only community in the world to possess four of its original lifeboats. The Mo houses a collection of lifeboats and fishing vessels among other displays that reflects the town’s origins as a fishing village that specialised in crabs and whelks.
From the circular viewing platform, enjoy fantastic views over Sheringham as it is now and beyond. There is also a museum shop well stocked with gifts, souvenirs and works by local artists and craftspeople.
There is ample parking nearby.
Open February Half term 11th-19th February. Main Season 19th March to 4th November 2012, Tues-Sat, 10am-4.30pm; Sun, Midday-4pm.
Admission: Adults £3.70, Conc. £3.20, Children (5-16) £2, U5’s free.
Sheringham Little Theatre
Sheringham Little Theatre.
2 Station Road, Sheringham, Norfolk, NR26 8RE.
Tel: 01263 822347 (Box Office).
Located in the centre of the popular North Norfolk seaside town of Sheringham, Sheringham Little Theatre is aptly named since it features the smallest stage in a professional theatre in the country. With only 180 seats this much loved Sheringham institution offers a refreshingly intimate experience in these times when most theatres, cinemas and auditoriums are adopting a ‘bigger is better’ approach. Formerly a library and then a Town Hall, the building saw its first arts and craft exhibition held in 1902, in aid of the fishing boat disaster fund. This opened the floodgates for all manner of concerts, receptions, lectures, dances, political meetings and fund raising events. Operating as a cinema throughout and after World War I, the stage was built up in the early 1960s and the theatre started to become the establishment it is today.
Lottery-funded modernisation in the mid-1990s, exterior makeovers in 2004 and 2005 and, most recently, refurbishment to The Hub coffee bar in 2007 have ensured that the Theatre remains a popular and essential treasure within the community of Sheringham and beyond.
Today, Sheringham Little Theatre hosts one of the last surviving summer repertory seasons, along with live music events, musical theatre, workshops and courses, comedy, films, art exhibitions and drama groups throughout the year.
Box Office open Mon-Sat 10am-6pm.
The Studio (Helen Herbert)
The Studio (Helen Herbert).
23 Holt Road, Sheringham, Norfolk, NR26 8NB.
Tel: 01263 821333.
A visit to Helen Herbert’s Studio in Sheringham presents a rare and precious opportunity to get ‘up close and personal’ with an inspiring Norfolk artist in their own creative environment.
Helen has enjoyed a rich and successful artistic career, studying for four years at the Cambridge School of Art before spending some 15 years as an illustrator for children’s books. In 1998, Helen gave up illustration to concentrate full-time on her painting, inspiration for which she finds from travelling to exotic destinations and also on her own North Norfolk doorstep.
Helen says that she is “an observer of people and places” and it is the relationship between individuals and their surroundings that interests her. Through her paintings, she attempts to capture the atmosphere, mood and connection between the sea, sky and people, often with heightened colour.
Truly an artist driven by love rather than commercial gain, Helen’s work shows distinctive themes as she develops and changes in the focus of her interest. Currently she says she is “intrigued by dark against light”.
A visit to Helen’s Studio is by far a richer and more interesting experience than simply seeing artwork in a gallery or exhibition. Helen is only too happy to chat about her work and you can see examples of her paintings at various stages of completeness – a luxury rarely afforded to the public. Naturally, the majority of Helen’s work is for sale, so if you are taken by a piece you can buy it for your own walls.
Helen’s paintings feature in many collections around the world and she exhibits in solo shows around Britain as well as in mixed shows in the UK and abroad.
As well as being on view at The Studio, Helen’s work is on display at Crayford and Abbs Garage in Bodham, Norfolk.
Open 10am-5pm (or later by appointment). To visit The Studio please ring first to check Helen is available!
Norfolk Wildlife Trust – Cley Marshes Nature Reserve
Norfolk Wildlife Trust: Cley Marshes.
On the A149 coast road, 1/2 mile east of Cley-next-the-Sea,
4 1/2 miles north of Holt.
Postcode: NR25 7SA.
Tel: 01263 740008.
The original Norfolk Wildlife Trust reserve and a blueprint for nature conservation that has since been replicated across the Country, Cley Marshes in North Norfolk is regarded as one of the UK’s best bird watching sites. Deservedly so, with pools, scrapes, trails and hides, this nature reserve attracts water birds in the thousands throughout the year (more than 300 species of birds have been recorded at Cley Marshes, with regular visitors including Avocets, Kestrels, Bearded Tits, Cormorants and Oystercatchers).
The Reserve boasts an inspiring and award-winning ‘eco-friendly’ visitor centre that employs a wind turbine to generate its power and harvests rainwater to flush the toilets, among other fascinating green innovations. Inside, the café and gift shop provide protection from the elements on chillier days, whilst still allowing a fabulous view of the Reserve through a vast observation area along one side of the Centre (complete with telescopes and audio-visual presentations).
Nature Reserve and visitor centre open all year (except Christmas Day) 10am-5pm (10am-4pm 1st Nov-1st Mar).
There is a small charge for entry to the Reserve (about £4) but entry is free for children and members of Norfolk Wildlife Trust.
Boardwalks provide access for wheelchairs and pushchairs throughout the reserve and the visitor centre is accessible to wheelchair users via a lift.
There is ample parking in front of the visitor centre.
Other Norfolk Wildlife Trust sites across North Norfolk that are well worth a visit include Salthouse Marshes (just along from Cley Marshes), Foxley Wood, Thursford Wood, Ringstead Downs (near Hunstanton), Syderstone Common and Booton Common.
The Real Ale Shop
The Real Ale Shop.
Branthill Farm, Wells-next-the-Sea, Norfolk, NR23 1SB.
Tel: 01328 710810.
Recent accolades include ‘Off Licence News Independent Beer Retailer of the Year 2009’ and ‘CAMRA Bottle Online Sales Awards 2008’, so if you’re a Real Ale fan, you must take the signposted detour on the Fakenham-Wells road to visit this unique off-licence.
