West Stow Country Park — Attraction in West Suffolk

The country park itself is really good and has good facilities, however this is a review of the cafe that does not reflect the standard of the rest of the country park. We have visited the cafe on several occasions after walking our dog in the nearby woods (one big positive is the cafe is dog friendly) for a coffee and something to eat. There is frequently a limited menu compared to the full menu displayed which is rather annoying when you only want something simple like a sausage roll. On our most recent visit I asked for 2 sausage rolls, however I was told they had cooked 34 already which had all sold out and it would take an hour to cook some more because "the oven is ancient". It was only 2pm and all hot food had sold out, leaving only 3 sandwiches in the chiller. The person who was serving me then went back to her phone as she does every time we visit. This is so disappointing as this would be a great place to stop for lunch but with the unreliable menu we won't bother in future. Perhaps the girl who pays so much attention to her phone should pay more attention to the customers and amount of food that is...

Offers a good all round day out. The location is a little odd the beaten track but worth a visit if you are nearby.

The country park is also home to the Anglo Saxon village. This is extra and you do pay entry for that. The country park is free however car parking is paid for (£3 all day and lovely surfaced car park).

There are toilets at the entry, a cafe next to the Anglo Saxon village entrance and a trail to follow for kids. We did buy the trail but frankly we didn't need to as there are signposts to show you the way around the site. There is longer walks too - download the leaflet online or pick one up. Also signs at the entrance.

There is a great little playground at the entrance with picnic benches out the front. This playground is not accessible due to the location (on a slight hill) and also the surface, which is deep sand.

There are more benches near the cafe.

There are a few walks but the small ones are lovely for little legs and take you near trees, a river, a lake and some heathland. Lovely...

The country park and the trails are great, our son loves the Grendel trail. The Anglo Saxon village is very good, and the annual LOTR Ring Quest event is fantastic. The kids play area is quote big and varied. Knocking a star off for the cafe, as the last three visits have been very disappointing and the prices are quite high. They struggle to keep up on a busy day and quickly run out of menu items. Even this morning going in at 10:05 to an empty cafe my son and I were told that they weren't doing egg baps at all, sausage baps wouldn't be ready until later, all they had was bacon. The hot counter was completely empty, sausage rolls wouldn't be ready until later. I'm not sure why they offer a breakfast menu if it's not ready for when they open. We settled for a basic pre-packaged cheese sandwich, a small carton of strawberry milk, a slice of cappuccino cake and a black coffee, which came to £12. I'd strongly recommend bringing your own food, there's ample shaded picnic area...