Tea at Tapps

There’s always a warm welcome at Tapps, a plant nursery housed in a long barn overlooking a patch of allotments and Hertfordshire countryside. Tea at Tapps is off to the right, a roomy, rustic café with floor-to-ceiling windows, decorated with greenery and local artwork.

Teas are loose leaf, coffee is strong and the atmosphere is relaxed. Owner Louise is a maestro in the kitchen, priding herself on home-cooked food,. She conjures up lip-smacking cakes from the oven every day: warm scones slathered with clotted cream and jam, passion fruit and white chocolate loaf, vegan fruit cake with cherries, macaroons and orange and poppyseed cake.

Lunches are hardy and filling: quiches from the oven, jacket potatoes, stuffed sandwiches and Gardener’s lunches. Parking is plentiful and muddy walkers are welcome, so you can work up an appetite exploring the many footpaths that thread through the fields in front.