A PREREQUISITE of any garden centre, out-of-town emporium or shopping village these days is a decent cafe.

You can have massive amounts of stock, unusual items and helpful sales assistants but without somewhere for the weary shopper to take a break and it counts for nothing.

The Pavilion Cafe, attached to Shackleton’s Garden Centre in Chatburn, is a great example of how a well-run eating establishment can enhance a visit.

In what is a very posh and large conservatory, there are heavy wooden tables and chairs plus a few comfy sofas.

The menu works whether you just want a quick cuppa or a substantial main meal. The choice of mains is fairly limited but there should be something to tempt.

With rain threatening to turn into snow when we visited the homemade soup of the day looked the ideal choice.

I opted for the carrot and cumin soup while my dining companion, a time-served connoisseur of cafes (my mum) went for the wild mushroom soup. At £3.95 and served with a hot fresh bread roll it represented great value with a large steaming bowl of soup tasting as good as it looked The cumin in the carrot soup added an unusual and exotic spicyness I’d advise anyone visiting to leave enough space for one of the home made pastries. I could have eaten my way through the entire stock.

In the end it was chocolate caramel shortbread for mum and a chocolate tiffin for me (£1.95 each) which were just as good as they looked.

Chatburn may be a bit far out to go just for a bite to eat for some but the Pavilion Cafe might just tempt you.

VERDICT

  • Food: 8
  • Drink: 8
  • Service: 8
  • Atmosphere: 7
  • Value: 8