English Tea House & Restaurant

Walked from the town, about 15 mins by taking the Heritage Trail 100 steps. Beware there are 192!! Shaded but still a climb. Well worthy the effort. Spectacular views from pagoda areas in garden, or seating in the restaurant itself. Varied menu, Asian dishes, English club sandwich and chips to cream scone teas. Excellent service, friendly and helpful staff. Fully recommend a visit, parking available or get a Grab, or as I did, walk up.

Only downside is they have had water problems with the wash rooms,for some time. No toilets, which could be a problem after a meal and leisurely time there. Can wash hands by using bottles of water. Surprised the owner has not got this fixed as someone on here mentioned this 3 months ago!!

The environment is very neat, green and comfortable. You can choose to eat inside or outside. The waiter was really polite and thoughtful when I mentioned I wanted to sit outside but a little afraid of heat and mosquitoes. He went extra mile and put Joss sticks to shoo off the mosquitoes.

Scones were alright. Alittle big in size and very solid. This place is purely for the environment for me. Too bad their chair isn't well maintained but all good! I would definitely love to be back

Lovely garden setting for afternoon tea. Menu is varied but, we opted for the afternoon teas. Nice scones with jam & cream, selection of sandwiches and cakes. Good service & good views over the bay. Very reasonable price of cRM80 for the afternoon tea for 2.

Had such an amazing tea time at the lovely English Tea House!

Even with the smothering afternoon heat, it didn’t ruin the atmosphere and serenity of the synergy between the food, the view, and the garden landscaping atop of the hill overlooking the Sulu sea.

Managed to have a chat with the Owner and kudos to him to have the vision and dedication to restore the place from an abandoned state to its current state for everyone’s enjoyment. Keep up the good work!

Parking - easy
The view was amazing. Got to see sunset (came around 540pm)
Price is reasonable
Food was okay. Royal tea set was suitable for couple. Unless you are really hungry, order for something light.

Interesting ionic tea cage in sandakan

A good to visit if time permits...

The sons are good. Environment is relaxing.. Cafe overlooking the blue sea

Best view, great food, friendly staff, Worth price. But no wash room. Overall still okey.

Highly recommend this restaurant but do not recommend walking there since it is up a hill. The view was worth it! It’s on the same grounds as the Agnes Keith House. We loved the tea set and the food we ordered. The service was also great and attentive!

Heard about this place from a helpful taxi driver. Went here and was amazed by the attention to detail and quality of service and food!. We had English tea with cucumber sandwiches and bruschetta. The tea was proper English tea and the food was absolutely amazing. The scones were warm and the cream and jam were so good!. Anyone who wants to feel like they are in Cornwall for an hour must go here. Even down to the details such as the cutlery and mugs were outstanding! A must if you are a fan of English tea and scones. The price was very reasonable and if I am ever back in Borneo this will be my first stop.

We ordered afternoon tea set RM50 for 2 pax. I like the scone but sandwiches & cakes were too dry. Service was great. Outdoor siting with sea view is enjoyable.

Amazing views and defintly worth climing up the 100 steps to get there. I only had an ice team coz it was a really hot day, also the outside seating are has fans. The food looked really good though. Make sure you bring cash, coz they don't take card.

Everything was to my satisfaction, the cold drink refreshing, the tea a lovely brew of Sabah Tea and the scone was huge and the cream was the best clotted cream I had ever experienced. The staff are excellent and the high tea was very tasty too. I was informed that the chef was trained in New Zealand. Another bonus was the wonderful views from the spot and also the cooling sea breeze.

Amazing location for an afternoon tea. Set up on the hill next to the Agnes Keith house the restaurant is in an old colonial government building. Amazing view and the grounds are well taken care of very pretty. The food and service were both wonderful. Definitely a great spot to sit outside under their huge trees and enjoy the afternoon or evening. Highly recommend visiting here when in Sandakan.

Excellent restaurant. Had everything I wanted from ambiance to style to service to food to tea.

It's on a hill right next to Agnes Kieth house. Service is wonderful, food is very British colonial, don't expect local cuisine here, but it's also very good. Seafood chowder was amazing. The style of the place is also very old fashioned and lovely. Great place to have tea and watch the rain.

One of the most historical places located in Sandakan that people can visit and enjoy the peaceful English styled dining after visiting the Historical Agnes Keith House nearby.

Service staff are wonderful, beautiful ambience, nice decoration & lawn

The waiter forgot to ask his name was so kind and considerate as my kid spilled our drink. He assisted us cleaning and offering three glasses of cold water to replace the spilled one. Thanks for your kindness 😭🥰🥰🥰

Excellent food and drinks. I would suggest the Fried Rice (Seafood), quite fascinating with strong wok hei smoky fried taste. And not forgotten the Fish N Chips, and the Chicken Chop, taste awesome 👍

The view of the teahouse is awesome. Delight tea set is recommended, there is scone, sandwich and cupcakes. Fish and chips is good. It comes with a pot of tea with a choice of earl grey or sabah tea.

After climbing the 100 steps to reach the peak, discovering an English Tea House was a moment of Salvation. The restaurant was empty and I was promptly served.
The ambience transported me back to Colonial British times. We could have been in the Highlands of India or Sri Lanka in 1939.
I enjoyed the Tea set for RM33, which was more than enough for 2 people.
I will return again for the Tea, the View and the Ambience.
Highly recommended for any first time visitor to Sandakan.