Located near Sywell in Northamptonshire is Beckworth Emporium, a garden centre with a huge food hall specialising in local products, restaurants, gifts, homeware, and of course, lots of plants. Chris works around the corner, so occasionally on his half-day, we’ve met here to visit the restaurant, and to have afternoon tea at Beckworth Emporium.
Afternoon tea at Beckworth Emporium is served daily between 2 – 4.30 pm in the restaurant, and you don’t need to book beforehand. Beckworth Emporium restaurant can get quite busy, so we had a small wait while there was space. While you’re waiting you’re given a buzzer so you are free to wander around the rest of the garden centre until it goes off.
The Beckworth Emporium restaurant was refurbished back in May 2021, expanding the area and number of tables which has helped to reduce the waiting times. The restaurant has been refurbished with loads of plants, and greenery making it feel calm. There are large windows, and a conservatory dining room, helping to make the space feel airy and bright. I really like the refurbishment and addition of the plants, and feel it fits in really well with being inside a garden centre.
Once we had our table in the restaurant, we went straight to ordering the afternoon tea option. The afternoon tea for two comes with a selection of sandwiches with salmon and cream cheese, sliced ham, chicken and black pepper mayo, cucumber and mayo, cheddar cheese and tomato, and egg mayonnaise, with plenty of crisps. There are two fruit scones served with Cornish clotted cream and strawberry jam, lemon tarts, red velvet cake, and two chocolate caramel desserts. All of this comes with the option of hot drinks or soft drink from the menu for £32.
I’m never bothered about the sandwich part of afternoon tea, and I’ll be honest Beckworth Emporiums sandwiches weren’t anything to write home about. Don’t get me wrong, they were lovely – but nothing overly special about them. I was more excited about the cakes – specifically the scones. Scones with proper clotted cream and jam are my favourite thing ever, even better when they are large fruit scones like Beckworth offering.
After filling up on scones, we moved on to eating the cake selection. The red velvet cake was beautiful and moist, and the cream cheese frosting was perfect. The lemon tarts were lovely – I’m not the biggest fan of pastry, but I really enjoyed these. My favourite of the desserts was the chocolate caramel desserts, with layers of chocolate, caramel and topped with a brownie.
I really enjoyed the afternoon tea at Beckworth Emporium, I think it’s great value for money and the new restaurant is beautiful. You can also buy afternoon tea vouchers online or in-store, which will make a great treat for a loved one!
How to Find it
Beckworth Emporium can be found at 120-140 Glebe Rd, Northampton NN6 0DL, use the map below for directions. There’s plenty of free parking outside Beckworth Emporium.
Good to Know
- Afternoon tea at Beckworth Emporium is served between 2 – 4:30pm daily
- It isn’t possible to book at the resturant – it’s best to queue for a table once you arrive, and you will be given a buzzer to tell you when your table is ready so you can go for a wander around while you wait!
- Beckworth Emporium can also provide a vegetarian sandwich selection, along with gluten free, and vegan options
- Beckworth Emporium restaurant also serves, breakfast, light lunches, specials, desserts, treats and drinks
- The restaurant at Beckworth Emporium is open daily from 8.30am – 5pm, with last food orders at 4.30pm.
