The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Cafe couple in refresh
After closing during the pandemic, a popular cafe is now reborn in a stylish new venue. Mariam Okhai pops by...
t has been a long time coming but Alison and Robert Abercrombie can finally breathe a sigh of relief after opening their new cafe in Errol.
The Perthshire couple, fondly known to their customers as Ali and Bob, fought against eviction, the pandemic and Brexit trade delays to open their new venue, The Lass O’Gowrie, a few weeks ago.
Based at Errol’s old Victoria Hall, which has been unused for eight years, the couple have spent the past year and a half renovating the space after they had to close their former venture, Alibob Cafe, due to their landlord giving them short notice mid-pandemic.
The couple had built up a strong community after running the venue for six years, so when they were forced to take their business mobile and offer food deliveries in Perth and Tayside in December 2020, it was well received and booked out.
They delivered everything from vegetable boxes and food supplies to home baking and soups.
The efforts made by the team paid off with the business surviving into 2021.
Ali and Bob also smashed their £10K Crowdfunder that they launched at the tail end of last year to help support their dream of opening The Lass O’Gowrie.
And with the help of Perth and Kinross Council, the duo managed to secure the historic hall owned by Errol Park Estate and haven’t looked back since it opened.
Aptly named The Lass O’Gowrie after the variety of apple found in the village of Errol, the venue focuses on providing sustainable, local and seasonal produce.
Ali said: “The apple tree itself is about putting roots down into the community, supporting and branching out into the community, and then eventually feeding the community.
“It is central to the branding of our business.”
Open seven days a week from 10am to 5pm, a mixture of soups, sandwiches, salads and toasties is available, as well as cakes, scones and traybakes that are all made in-house.
“We have kept it simple and focused on what we do best,” said Ali.
Three soups of the day are served, which change daily, as well as a unique soup mezze offering where customers can enjoy smaller portions of all three in a tasting platter.
Seating a total of 40 covers indoors, the duo have plans to add another 30 seats outdoors once they have the facilities in place.
There’s no denying The Lass O’Gowrie has been a labour of love for Ali and Bob.
They have crowdfunded and used money from their pension by selling their home to be able to bring their dream to life and create jobs for the former AliBob cafe staff again.
Ali said: “We sold our property, which was our pension, and invested it into this business to fund it.
“We also had £35,000 of grant assistance from Perth and Kinross
Council with the Vacant Property Fund that specialises in vacant historical buildings, which is what the Victoria Hall was.”
And Ali says had it not been for their loyal customers’ support with the crowdfunder, their business not may look how it does today.
Having had a successful first few weeks, future plans for the venue include a retail section in Victoria Hall for local artisan gifts.
There are also plans to boast a farm shop where The Lass O’Gowrie will work with local organic producers to sell seasonal produce.
This includes local berries from Arnotts and Arbuckle’s Farm Shop, and artisan bread from Wild Hearth Bakery.
Additionally a chilled section for small beverage producers would include the likes of Lost Orchards Cider.
And with the venue being fully licensed, the team have plans to host gin and whisky tasting evenings.
THE APPLE TREE ITSELF IS ABOUT PUTTING ROOTS DOWN INTO THE COMMUNITY