Brogdale Collections is the home of the National Fruit Collection, our orchards are a living history & heritage of fruit

  My father, son and I took a trip to Brogdale for an early Father’s Day lunch.

What a gem of a place, growing and selling vintage fruit collections... read more with a cluster of shops gathered around a large central courtyard. On view, the place is quaint, inviting and really interesting to mooch around, great if you fancy somewhere a little different.

Moving on to the café....
My family and I went to the on-site café for an early lunch. It was busy but we managed to get a table comfortably and service was really quick and friendly.

Whilst the menu was limited, it looked fresh and appealing with light brunch options and a few more substantial lunch dishes such as ploughman’s, jacket potatoes, sausages and mash.

My son asked for spaghetti Bolognese which only came in a Child’s portion – I asked for this to be served as a larger portion but they were unable to be flexible (possibly because it was father’s day and busy). Disappointing but they were very nice about it. Dad ordered sausages and mash and I chose a mushroom and cheese toasted ciabatta.

Our drinks arrived first, very nice coffee and a raspberry lemonade, delicious and old style but in a very small glass which I felt was a little stingy.

When the food arrived, dad’s looked great, my son’s looked skimpy but tasty, but mine looked like a slightly sweaty half ciabatta with a hint of a side salad - disappointing. My son and my father noted that their food was tasty. However, my mushroom and cheese ciabatta half tasted awful with too much tasteless mild cheddar, which had the texture of rubber and tasted like it had been under the heat lamp a little too long so it was not quite hot enough. It was simply an odd dish, poorly presented and lacking taste. More cellulite than mature cheddar sadly.

I must recommend Brogdale, and really its café is quite pleasant but just be mindful of what you order. There are obviously some great options but toasted ciabattas definitely aren’t a strong point.

  Bought a beef fore rib for £20 from the Brogdale butchers at Ruxley Garden Centre for Sunday lunch.

Cooked it today (Medium) and it was the toughest and... read more chewiest piece of beef that I have ever purchased.
Very disappointed.

  Great day out for kids and adults! Live music performing at three stages, loads of fun activities for kids; especially enjoyed the piglet race, still waiting for my piglet to... read more come in. Ideal Bank Holiday weekend weather, special credit to the bands for performing in that heat! Hullaballoo were awesome as usual, not lost any of their magic! Did I mention the cider? Lots of taste testing of apple, pear and some unusual ciders ie rhubarb. A well organised event, caught the train to Faversham station and practically walked straight on to the shuttle bus to Brogdale. We're tempted to try get tickets for Sunday aswell!

  Took the family to the Cider Festival today, a great day out. Although it was a heatwave, that didn't stop play and all the staff were really friendly. ... read more Had a very interesting tractor ride through the orchards, some tasty local cider and a delicious pizza and hog roast...and some more cider! Live music for all tastes too, and good old fashioned fun dotted around. Looking forward to returning for the next event. Well done all!

  Insect talk was terrific - and quite hands on (literally - except for the centipede!); train wasn't running but looked like a fun thing to do.

  The fruit festivals they hold here at the national fruit collection are really special because you get to sample a number of varieties. They can taste so different - so... read more it's really helpful to sample the fruit before you buy the tree. Great cherries - I bought some Hertford and Napoleon, both really good.