HollieBerrie At The Tearooms

A lively village tearoom in Scarva known for big breakfasts, brunch favourites, colourful homemade-style traybakes and an easy stop for walkers, cyclists and families exploring the Newry Canal.

HollieBerrie At The Tearooms sits at 8 Main Street in the small village of Scarva, County Down, close to the Newry Canal towpath and right on the boundary with County Armagh. It has grown into one of those local cafés that people often travel specifically to visit rather than simply discovering by accident, with a busy daytime trade built around breakfast, brunch, lunch, coffee and a famously eye-catching counter of sweet treats.

The menu is deliberately generous and informal. Breakfast and brunch are a major part of the offering, with everything from filled baps and cooked breakfast combinations to pancakes, French toast, bagels, burgers, wraps and regularly changing specials. The approach is designed for everyday appetite rather than formal dining, making HollieBerrie particularly well suited to families, groups of friends and people looking for a substantial stop during a day out.

Sweet baking is one of the strongest parts of the HollieBerrie identity. The Tearooms frequently showcases its “traybake factory” across social media, with brownies, cookie-dough creations, cakes, scones, doughnuts, pastries and other sweet treats forming a colourful part of the counter. The range changes regularly, so there is usually an element of discovery rather than a completely fixed selection.

Little Lottie’s adds a useful takeaway side to the business. The takeaway cart operates alongside the Tearooms and is used for drinks, ice cream, breakfast baps, sausage rolls, traybakes and seasonal specials. During major Scarva events and busy summer days it becomes an important part of the business, helping cater for visitors who want something to take away rather than waiting for a table.

The location is a real advantage. Scarva is a small historic village with the Newry Canal towpath passing close by, making the Tearooms a natural coffee and food stop for walkers and cyclists travelling between Portadown and Newry. The combination of village atmosphere, canal-side activity and easy access from both County Down and County Armagh gives HollieBerrie a wider catchment than its rural setting might suggest.

The atmosphere is relaxed and busy rather than formal. At peak weekend and holiday times there can be queues for tables, which is a reflection of the Tearooms’ popularity and the limited scale of a village venue. For visitors who prefer to keep moving, Little Lottie’s offers an alternative way to pick up coffee, food and treats.

HollieBerrie’s social channels are also an important part of the experience. New specials, oversized desserts, themed treats, seasonal menus and one-off opening arrangements are regularly shared on Instagram and Facebook, so repeat visitors often find something different from their previous visit. This makes it worth checking the latest posts before travelling, particularly around Scarva Day and holiday periods.

The Tearooms currently opens Tuesday to Friday from 8am to 5pm, Saturday from 8am to 4pm and Sunday from 10am to 5pm, with Monday not listed as a regular opening day. Little Lottie’s opening can vary around events and special trading periods, so current social updates are the best source for day-specific changes.

Why W.ie chose HollieBerrie At The Tearooms: HollieBerrie is a good example of the kind of independent local business that makes W.ie useful beyond major tourist attractions. It gives visitors a reason to stop in a small village, has a clear personality of its own and combines substantial brunch food with a distinctive sweet-baking offer that has developed a strong local following. Its position beside one of Northern Ireland’s best-known canal routes also makes it particularly relevant for cyclists, walkers and families exploring the area. It feels local, energetic and memorable — exactly the sort of place someone should be able to ask W.ie to find when travelling through Scarva and the wider Armagh–Down area.