The former Hawkins garden centre got a new lease of life when acquired by Marni and Dave Robertshaw in 2021. Sprawling over four hectares opposite the Sleeman Sports Centre on Old Cleveland Road, the Nurso is notable both for the large indoor/outdoor café and the bohemian vibe. There's more than a hint of abandoned amusement park about the place, with hip murals depicting everyone from the cast of Pulp Fiction to Astroboy and Obelix, and speakers pumping Fleetwood Mac and Sheryl Crow.
The Robertshaws' project is nothing less than to be a centre for the community, and indeed on any given day there are more pram-pushers meeting up for coffees on the astroturf than there are garden shop patrons fossicking for ferns from the southside's largest range. A chaotic kids' playpen gives the little terrors somewhere to raise havoc, and there are plastic trikes for their transport convenience. On weekends there's live music, and regular classes for kids and adults cover such topics as succulent gardens and building bird feeders.
You can get everything you need here for a thriving green space, from terracotta pots and fertilisers to statuary and more, and the café does bagels, burgers, tartines and sandos. Keep and eye out for Dusty, the resident border collie, always happy for a sratch behind the ear.