Local coffee hits the spot for tourists
FRESH coffee and tasty treats kept hungry visitors to Dubbo satisfied during the Easter long weekend, with café owners reporting a busy holiday period.
Julie Cross, owner of Cross Coffee House, said her small family-owned business opened on Good Friday, Easter Saturday, and Easter Sunday.
“It was a very busy weekend and for us, it was definitely worth opening,” she said.
Julie added 90 per cent of her customers on the Easter weekend were from out of town.
“Most people who came in were not from Dubbo,” she said.
“They were here to go to the zoo or the gaol, or they were passing through on their way to somewhere else.
“The lovely thing was we had so many positive comments from people about Dubbo.
“Lots of people said they didn’t realise how big Dubbo was, or they told us how much they loved the zoo, and they were generally really impressed with everything.
“We liked to help people by telling them about the gaol or day trips they could do, and just all the different things they can see around Dubbo.
“The general consensus was that they were so impressed with Dubbo, and that’s always good to hear.”
Julie said while it was “worth it” for her business to open – with
herself, her husband and two staff members working – she understood how hard it could be for bigger businesses.
“If you’ve got a staff of 10 or 12, the cost (for penalty rates) can be too much,” she said.
“And if you have a lot of junior staff, they might be away for the
weekend with their families.
“For us, we don’t offer table service or anything like that, and the four of us coped with how busy we were. But for bigger cafes, I understand it can be hard.”
Cross Coffee House was closed Easter Monday, but Julie said she spent that day baking ready for another week.
“It was great to have some normality back and we were so lucky with the weather,” she said.
“Lots of people coming from Sydney just said how good it was to get away from the rain and it was lovely to see everything so busy.”