Two familiar faces are making a welcome return to Beccles to turn a pub into a contemporary cafe/bistro.
Kevin Wainwright and David Little owned the Bear and Bells public house in Old Market before they left to buy and run the Satis House hotel in Yoxford.
Now the duo have decided to combine their expertise at the 18th century country house to transform The Saddlers Arms in New Market into Graze, which will offer breakfast, lunch and dinner for people wanting an informal and relaxed culinary experience.
For the past two years Kevin and David have also run Satis Cafe at Evergreens Garden Centre just outside Beccles, but their real aim has been to come back into the heart of the town.
Kevin said: “Satis Cafe went really well and worked well for the garden centre bringing in about 100 people a day. But we were approached by the freeholders of the Saddlers Arms, which was the White Horse, to see if we would be interested.
“For the last 12 months before this came up we were looking for a space in Beccles as we were desperate to get back. We have some great friends in the town and our hearts are there. We are really excited.
“Graze is going to be a cafe/bistro during the day and during the evenings a bistro and grill. We are going to be doing lots of different things there and the set-up will be quite unique. We also want it to be very affordable. We’re not doing fine dining or pizza as all those things are already covered in the town.
“The decor will be very contemporary, our signature colours are grey and white. The name lends itself to the colour scheme as well as what we are trying to achieve there.
“The previous people have moved on and the handover will take place next week when we will sign the paperwork. We have met the suppliers and we hope to get in on February 28 leaving a month for renovations before opening at the end of March.”
Graze will benefit from the addition of a specialist chargrill oven and open plan kitchen, which will be moved from the upstairs of the premises onto the ground floor.
Patrons can pop in for cocktails, wine and nibbles at the bar, a cafe-style lunch or an evening meal.
Kevin and David first moved to Beccles in 2005 to run the Bear and Bells before selling up and buying Satis House in 2007. They ran Satis Cafe from January 2013 and will be handing back the reins to the garden centre owners to plough their efforts into their new venture.
Do you have a story from the Beccles, Bungay, Halesworth or Loddon areas? Telephone 01502 712502 or email bbj.news@archant.co.uk
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