Visitors to Valentines Park can now enjoy a light lunch in luxurious surroundings thanks to a new café set in the grounds of Valentines Mansion.

The new Gardeners’ Cottage Café, in the walled gardens at Valentines Mansion in Ilford, opens on Saturday 8 August.

The café will be serving a range of light bites including cakes, salads, paninis and soups as well as hot and cold drinks.

The café has indoor and outdoor seating and is located in the Kitchen Garden, one of two walled gardens in the Mansion’s grounds along with the Old English Garden. These, together with the Victorian Rose Garden, were all replanted when the Mansion and its Historic grounds were restored in 2007 and 2008.

The cafe will open every day between 10am and 6pm.

The Mansion is open on Tuesdays and Wednesdays between 10am and 5pm and Sundays between 11am and 4pm.