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You are here: Home / Food / Cream Teas – 10 Best Tea Rooms

Cream Teas – 10 Best Tea Rooms

By Helen Page 5 Comments

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Cream tea is to Devon what Cornish Pastie is to Cornwall:

Cream tea

Devonshire Cream Tea

Devonshire cream teas are a specialty of Devon, however this dish is world-famous, especially in the Commonwealth countries.  With their delicious scones thickly spread with fresh butter, fruity strawberry jam and topped with thick Devon clotted cream, the best are still to be found in the south-west of England.

So, on any holiday in Devon and Cornwall, one of the must-do’s is to indulge in some Devonshire cream teas. Be warned though that addiction to this food can be a danger to the waistline.

My personal belief is that if I’m going to be piling on calories from any food, I’d want those calories to come from the best quality of that food type.  So, if we’re having cream teas, we might as well enjoy them from the Top 10 places for cream teas in Devon and Cornwall, a list which was compiled by Dorling Kindersley.

Tea Rooms
Description
Otterton Mill
Otterton, nr Budleigh Salterton
Devon, EX9 7HG
Tel:   01395 568521
Fine organic scones are made in this ancient mill.  They have a restaurant, bakery and food shop at the mill, including cookery and bakery courses and food events.  There’s a lot happening at the Mill and you can find out more about it on their website www.ottertonmill.com
The Falmouth Hotel,
Castle Beach,
Falmouth,
Cornwall, TR11 4NZ
Falmouth
Tel: 0844 50 ASKUS (27587)
The Falmouth Hotel is situated on prime sea front location, overlooking the headland, with Pendennis Castle and the sea on one side and views over to the famous port on the other.  Having cream tea on the terrace of this Victorian hotel is really like icing on the cake.
New Yard – Trelowarren
Mawgan, Helston
Cornwall TR12 6AF
Tel: 01326 221224
Cream teas are served in this estate’s stableyard
Charlotte’s Victorian Tea House
Coinage Hall
1 Boscawen Street
Truro
Cornwall TR1 2QU
Tel:  01872 263706
This lovingly-restored Victorian tea house in the centre of busy Truro.  Delicious set teas – cream teas with scones and high teas with sandwiches and home-made cakes – are served all day.
Primrose Cottage Tea Rooms
Lustleigh
Newton Abbot
Devon
TQ13 9TJ
Tel:  01647 277365
Primrose Cottage has a long standing reputation for serving the best Cream Tea in Devon, but unfortunately the tea room is now closed as the owner has retired and the business is up for sale.
Southern Cross
Newton Poppleford,
Near Sidmouth,
Devon EX10 0DU,
United Kingdom.
Tel: 01395 568439
A walled garden provides the perfect setting for tea where you can enjoy “mountains of delicious clotted cream and locally produced jams”
Georgian Tea Room
35 High Street
Topsham, Exeter
Devon EX3 0ED
Tel: 01392 873465


Choose from the selection of home-made cakes
Stoke Barton Farm
Stoke, Hartland
Bideford
North Devon EX39 6DU
Tel: 01237 441238


The farm is a working livestock and arable farm so you can be sure that you’re getting the freshest of creams here.  This tea room offers fresh scones and cakes
Trenance Cottage Tea Rooms, Newquay
2 Trenance Lane
Newquay
Cornwall TR7 2HX
Tel: 01637 872034
Secluded tea gardens and traditional tea room – Nostalgia is the keynote here
Rectory Farm and Tea  Rooms
Morwenstow near Bude EX23 9SR
Tel: 01288 331251
This working farmhouse dates back to 1296, when it belonged to an order of monks. Feast in a 13th-century farmhouse beside an open fire

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Filed Under: Food Tagged With: best afternoon tea, Charlottes Victorian Tea House, clotted cream, Cream tea, devon cream, devonshire cream, Georgian Tea Room, New Yard Trelowarren, Otterton Mill, Primrose Cottage Tea Rooms, Rectory Farm and Tea Rooms, Southern Cross, Stoke Barton Farm, tea rooms, tearooms, The Falmouth Hotel, Trenance Cottage Tea Rooms

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About Helen Page

Helen Page is a prolific blogger and ardent traveller; she runs Travelsignposts with her professional writer and photographer husband Tony.

Comments

  1. avatarNeil says

    August 1, 2011 at 4:48 am

    Helen thanks for sharing this list very useful as I head to Devon in a few weeks. From past experience Primrose Cottage in Lustleigh is definitely the best Cream Tea I have ever had but I hear they have new owners so I will have to see. One thing I would take issue with though is your description which suggests that you put the jam on first!!! You absolutely have to put the clotted cream on first for it to be considered a Devon Cream Tea as shown in your picture! Having lived in Devon for 19 years I consider myself to be somewhat of an authority on Cream Teas 😉

    Reply
    • avatarHelen Page says

      August 4, 2011 at 4:52 pm

      Hi Neil, Yes, I should have clarified that in in Devon you put the clotted cream first and then the jam on top, whereas in Cornwall the “proper Cornish” way is to spread the jam first and then the clotted cream as its crowning glory! I actually discussed this with Tony before writing the post and we both like jam first as the jam on top gets a little messy. But next time we’re in Devon, I’ll make sure the clotted cream goes on first.
      I would love to hear your opinion as to whether the Primrose Cottage in Lustleigh is still the best Cream Tea, and, as an authority on Cream Teas, what other places you would recommend.
      Enjoy your trip back to Devon!
      Kind regard,
      Helen

      Reply
  2. avatarSarah Greep says

    July 19, 2012 at 7:13 pm

    Interesring article thank you! On way to Lustleigh now to check out how their cream teas compares with the finest Devonshire Cream Teas in historic Barbican & Hoe, Plymouth and Devonport ! Check out my website to see mine so far! We have more exciting things to come! Thanks Helen! 🙂

    Reply
  3. avatarDianne Frost says

    April 8, 2020 at 6:01 am

    I can thoroughly recommend the cream tea at the Rectory Tea Rooms in Morwenstow, served in a delightful garden on a sunny afternoon. The scones are fresh and light, the jam homemade with generous portions of clotted cream. All served on pretty crockery with good quality tea.

    Reply
    • avatarHelen Page says

      April 12, 2020 at 12:11 pm

      Thanks very much Dianne for sharing your experience at Rectory Tea Rooms. The place looks charming and the food looks delicious. For the time being, we can only salivate at the website photos. Although, I must say that our neighbour upstairs makes very nice scones and she very kindly sends us boxes of her scones, with home made jam and cream. We are spoilt!

      Reply

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