I went to the Lavender and Berry Farm for morning tea and thoroughly enjoyed the peaceful surrounds that were rich in flora and fauna: there were ducks wandering about the cafe and squeaking when we arrived as well as many little birds eyeing our food.
Tom and I ordered tea and two different scones – the scone with berry jam as well as the lavender scone with honey, both of which came with a large helping of whipped cream. Both scones came out warm and were obviously baked that day. There was only one scone on each plate but they were of a large size so we didn’t have to fight over the scones.
The berry jam had a tart, very concentrated berry flavour so we did not need to use much of it atop of our mouthfuls of scone. I thought that the scone was nice but unfortunately I don’t know enough about scones to describe them!
The lavender scone had a subtle flavour of lavender – perhaps too subtle for my palate as I could not really taste it. However, that could be a failing on the part of my taste buds rather than the scone. The honey it came with was rich and smooth – it all went down nicely with whipped cream!
The tea was a nice counterpoint to the meal, providing extra warmth on a winter day and it did not compete with the flavour of the scones. I had chamomile tea, I used it as a sort of palate cleanser between the different types of scones.
The family at the table across the room from us ordered three plates of the signature dish – pancakes with icecream and hot berry sauce. The pancakes were huge and looked more like cakes than pancakes! A dish that is best shared between a few people, as it looked very tasty but quite rich – the family ordered one each and only ate half of what they ordered.
The little birds really enjoyed it, a swarm of about thirty of the cutest tiny birds descended upon the pancake leftovers after the family left the cafe. The birds were skittish around me and my camera, quickly flitting in and out of the plates. It was hard to capture more than a few at a time!
The birds are quite bold – one fat little bird came up and ate plain whipped cream out of my saucer while I was sitting right in front of it! Sadly he was in and out too quick for me to snap a picture.
Here’s a little shot of the store where they sell their jams and a variety of other things.
I really enjoyed this visit, the atmosphere in the cafe was really nice – especially with the cute little birds, rich plant life and decorations that gave the place a comfortable, country cottage feel. I would recommend this place to anyone who wanted a relaxing morning tea near Pemberton! Have a look at the Lavender and Berry Farm website if you want to find out more :)
