The Best Cafes in Alton Pancras, Dorset, United Kingdom (2025)

Beautiful food and coffee with lovely attentive staff who were very friendly and super helpful. Food was delicious and cakes were incredible. Handmade on site too. Beautiful scenery. Absolute 10/10

Waiting for the car to get new tyres fitted at National Tyre (a Halfords Company.....) I stumbled upon this lovely little cafe and all of its quirky contents - staff included. A lovely Americano and a rich, crumbly and packed sausage roll proving to be just the restorative I didn't know I needed - even if it was proffered by the waitress to everyone before finding its way to its rightful consumer... hilarious, as I watched it unfold, and no grudge at all, it should probably write its own travel memoir).

adorable little place next to the green, we sat outside on a little table with our dog and enjoyed some savouries, cakes and coffee. the sausage roll and ham and cheese croissants were delicious! the staff were lovely too, thankyou 😊

Lovely owners. Mum makes the savoury food and her daughter makes the cakes. A choice of vegetarian and gluten free options alongside full English breakfast etc. Not a huge cafe but charming with seating upstairs as well as down. Chairs and tables are also set out on the green. Supper evenings available and the downstairs setting is super romantic.

Amazing service, beautiful food and a really great selection of gluten free cakes and food options. We felt well looked after and well fed! Also, the coffee is on point!

Incredible food, friendly staff and lovely atmosphere. Stopped for lunch with my sister when we were in the area. So glad we did! I had the chicken nourish bowl and it looked as good as it tasted. We look forward to returning to try the gorgeous desserts.

Lovely food and host/wait team! We went for the special barbecue lunch and it was lovely as well as great value. My only comment would be that I'd have loved it if the food had been brought in piping hot but it was delicious nonetheless. Definitely revisiting to try other things on their menu.

An absolutely brilliant cafe with delicious fresh food, friendly staff and very reasonable prices! The South African cuisine was one I had not tried before, but it was presented brilliantly to me with the wide array of inventive yet authentic dishes on offer. The coffee was also brilliant and the cakes were delicious.

If you appreciate good food and banter, look no further! We had never heard of carrot and passion fruit cake before but who knew…..it was absolutely delicious! And to be so well entertained over lunch was unexpected! Thank you for your unrivalled service!

Found this place while visiting the dentist 🦷 Popped in for a cuppa tea while waiting on the better half , when she arrived we ordered breakfast 🍳 this consisted of one poached egg and beans on toast and one full English breakfast. It didn’t take long for us to clear the plates both meals were cooked from fresh no precooked rubbish , so expect to wait just a little bit longer but we’ll worth the wait . It had a very diverse menu and offers a variety of alcoholic and nonalcoholic drinks so can cater for everyone’s needs. Jonathan looked after us and was very good at it, attentive friendly and not over the top 🔝 I’d highly recommend this for any meal time x great looking and clean 🧽 which is always a must xx

Great selection of home cooked food and cakes. As if that wasn't enough, the atmosphere and dedication of the owner surpasses any I have experienced before. If you haven't been, go!! Book a table as this little gem is popular and rightly so!

Saturday in December. Quiet and slightly out of town but excellent service. Not a huge range but the paninis we had were tasty, hot and well prepared.

We had a wonderful evening, food was amazing! The service was fantastic with personal touches and recommendations. Could not recommend enough for a special, intimate evening.

I took my Aussie Mum for brunch today. We were blown away by the portion sizes for the price, and how unique and flavoursome the food was. The service was super friendly and attentive. We will definitely return.

What a little gem in Alton! We had a fantastic time visiting dill. We were very late to our reservation due to traffic and the staff were very understanding, which we appreciated. The atmosphere was very relaxing. We had the tomato and mozzarella sourdough special, the hog father (pork belly burger) special and the sweet corn fritters. We very much enjoyed everything!

Very nice food and very importantly, a great coffee. I couldn't have most of the items on the menu but what I did have was very nice indeed, great bread and dressing with fresh ingredients. Would recommend.

Had a nice egg baguette and a coffee. Unfortunately a seagull got half of it! A warning would have been nice, but the gull enjoyed it eating it in front of me.

A food stall at the end of the beach, about a 5min walk. Outdoor seating but sometimes not enough as it gets busy, beware of the gulls!! A great view out over the beach & water. We had a bit of wait because they were flat out. It provides breakfasts up to 11am but you can still buy baguettes. Usual hot n cold drink, & other food, not cheap but you’re paying for the location.

Perfect breakfast experience. Very nice staff. Great food. Couldn’t be better

Highly recommend! Wide variety of burgers, seafood, and bites, as well as beers and local ciders available. Beware their hot food service ends at 3pm but if you're a few minutes late they're really nice and can make select menu items. Loved the chicken burger here after finishing a long hike from Studland

Amazing. The food never disappoints and the staff are so kind. The cafe is kids friendly with a good kids menu. The soup is amazing too. I would definitely recommend this!

A fantastic cafe, serving delicious, well priced food. We stopped for lunch and enjoyed sandwiches, soup of the day, and the crab bisque, followed by treacle and ginger tart and Bakewell tart. All of this was homemade and the portions were excellent. This cafe is not to be missed!

Had the best Greek salad outside of Greece and my husband had the best Dorset Ploughman's lunch. Really delicious and well-presented food in a small, friendly café. Generous portion sizes too. You can't see the huge chunk of cheddar in the pic as it was behind the huge hunk of wholemeal bread! Highly recommended.

Stopped for lunch at 'The Posh Partridge' when visiting Dorset on a combined business / leisure trip. It was a relaxed and pleasant place for lunch and both the service and the food was quality and nicely presented. The hot Pastrami sandwich I had was very tasty, as was the toasted Brie and Cranberry Panini. The cost for two toasted sandwiches and two diet cokes was £20.80

Finca. Coffee only. I chose this café based on their Google reviews as I’m only passing through so my expectations were raised. Well, I wasn’t disappointed as my cappuccino was totally delicious. Strong, smooth, rich and hot. With chocolate sprinkles added without having to ask. Perfect! You can smell the coffee as soon as get to the front door! 😁 It’s only a small shop but I really loved the decor with the lady serving being very personable. A great location for the Dorchester West train station. Parking nearby Card only

Popped in for a proper coffee on our way through Dorchester and this place exceeded expectations. The owner couldn’t have been more happy to go the extra mile for us (filled up our water bottles, showed us the equipment he uses etc.). He is super passionate about coffee and truly knows his craft, which shows.. the coffee is INCREDIBLE. A lot of care goes into each and every cup. Highly recommend checking out this little gem, lovely vibe to the place too, the sweet treats also looked great. Thank you for the great coffee and inspiring chat. We will definitely be checking out other locations and returning to this one!

Great coffee place in Dorchester, it has not lost its touch despite opening more shops and becoming a mini coffee chain. The carrot cake was delicious too.

Lovely coffee. We always have oat milk lattes and they are delicious. A little on the small side for me, I like a big coffee. But, very nice. Nice selection of cakes and treats too. It overlooks a road, which is hard not to in a town center for the most part, however the other side of the road is green with trees and not just other shop windows which is nice.

Absolutely adorable little cafe with the sweetest service, great prices and really yummy food! Forgot to take a picture of my BLT but my partner had mushrooms, eggs and avocado on toast and we both loved every bite! Will definitely be back :)

Friendly staff. Very accommodating with dietary needs. Service was relatively quick considering it was a busy lunchtime. Would recommend.

Had some delicious food here for brunch , made by chef Maria. Was extremely tasty!

Cosy, licensed café restaurant offering everything from coffee and cake, a quick bite or fine lunch. Confit duck in Cointreau sauce was very good.

This place takes you by surprise as it looks small from the outside but there is a lot of seating inside, plus upstairs. The service was really welcoming and friendly. The scones were amazing! The menu had lots of choices including sandwiches and jacket potatoes.

What a little gem of a cafe/restaurant!!! We popped in for lunch today, Sunday, for 16.95 each had sirloin beef roast, generous portion, toasties, potato gratin, plenty of veg, Yorkshire pudding, just the right consistency of gravy. And a side of horseradish. Best roast we've had in a very long time.... I normally save room for a pudding... but no... I ate every mouthful...and at 6pm was still not hungry. Staff so pleasant . I almost didn't want to leave such a good review in case I can't get a table any time soon!!

Excellent service, food was incredible. I got the eggs Benedict with salmon and it was probably the best I’ve had. Yolk was perfectly runny n was well presented. Will be returning in future.

I meant to review this amazing place as soon as I left! We went in the beginning of November, I’d just missed the Halloween decorations apparently. It’s such a beautiful tea room, I hoped it was haunted and yes! Wasn’t disappointed, the lovely owner had lots of stories to share, such a sweet, wonderful lady who couldn’t have been any nicer. I wish she would adopt me, even asked if she’d consider it!? xxx Please visit and support the sweetest and most charming of places and please do pass on my love, from Tania from Bournemouth xxxxxxxxx

Sensational afternoon tea with amazing scones. We also really appreciated having several gluten-free options too. But best of all was the service. So friendly and chatty with plenty of history about the building and town. Can't wait to return!

What a lovely and welcoming tea house in the heart of Dorchester. Whether you‘re stopping to sleep, or just for tea / breakfast / food (we did both, one year apart! 😃) , Debbie will make it a memorable experience! The house has extensive history and Debbie is well versed in it, so ask what interests you! We will stop here every time when we‘re passing nearby!

I meant to review last wkd after we left. Lovely tea rooms and the lady serving was so friendly. Another customer was chatting to me and it felt so cosy. The poached eggs were perfect. I will be bringing my family for a cream tea very soon.