Cosy tea room is a hidden delight
THE future of a unique tea room in one of the county’s most attractive and historic buildings is safe with a new owner at the helm.
With its distinctive medieval black and white design, the timber-framed Old Bakery Tea Rooms is back in business after a brief closure.
The characterful building – only one of three to survive when the area was redeveloped in 1961 – has been hailed quaint, charming and cosy by visitors past and present.
New owner Glenda Casteloes has had to do very little in terms of a makeover before reopening the doors of the Grade II listed property in Newark that’s known for mouthwatering breakfasts, lunches and cakes.
“This building is quite unique. I think it’s one of six in the town that are the original timber-framed buildings.
“It’s got a lot of history to it. I think you can feel it as you step in,” she said.
“You can’t really do anything structurally to it. It was just cosmetic stuff like the fairy lights. What I wanted to do was get it back to as basic as I could do.
“There were a lot of pictures and photographs on the walls and I felt you couldn’t see the beams and couldn’t get the feel of just what a lovely building it is.
“We changed the lighting - just having warmer lightbulbs made a difference because it was really bright. There are candles in wine and gin bottles. I wanted a cosy vibe.”
A new menu has been launched, starting with sausage, bacon and egg sandwiches and eggs any which way on toast along with enticing dishes that you don’t always find on breakfast and brunch menus such as potato, cheese and chive frittata, grilled cheese brioche, blueberry breakfast bake with Greek yoghurt and honey, and baked raspberry French toast with custard.
Under the heading “Winter Warmers” is a hearty beef stew and dumplings – or a vegan vegetable alternative.
A choice of homemade soups is served with buttermilk cornbread freshly baked by the tea rooms’ new chef Ian Greatorex.
Sandwiches with classic fillings of egg mayonnaise, cheese and onion, and ham and mustard are presented on white, wholemeal or brioche bread on pretty mismatched vintage plates.
If you want to be healthy you can have a kale and cranberry salad – or to hit that sweet spot check out the chocolate brownies, lemon drizzle cupcakes, marmalade ginger tea
loaf, scones and ice cream sundaes.
The tea rooms are sandwiched between two pubs, the Queens Head and the Old Post Office, tucked away in Queen’s Head Court.
Yes, it is a cliché but there’s no denying it is the absolute definition of a hidden gem. Inside is space for 45 customers over two floors – and the seating outside is sure to be popular when it warms up.
Glenda was a self-employed occupational therapist in mental health for many years before her foray into the world of hospitality – and despite the struggle some cafes, restaurants and pubs are now facing, she is very positive about the future.
She said: “It’s probably naivety as I’ve never been in it so I just feel optimism.
“I’ve done OT for a long time and just wanted something completely different. I think the building sells itself. It’s so pretty and so nice.
“Touch wood there’s been a lot of interest. We have had a lot of customers.
“I like the challenge of creating that little spot of something special in the middle of Newark. And I think it is. There’s something really special about the building. It’s really charming.
“I think the food we are serving is fantastic. Everything is cooked from scratch.
“I do feel really proud about it,” said Glenda, who has kept on staff members Dawn Lamb and Chloe Wright, who worked for the previous owner.
“They have been fantastic. I couldn’t have done it without them. They know the ins and outs of it which is fantastic.
“Everybody is really enthusiastic and has the same vision as me that it could be turned into something that is special – things like wedding receptions and having that spot where people hold their special occasions
“I’d like people to come here for their baby showers or their birthdays.
“We’ve afternoon teas this weekend for Mother’s Day. I’m trying to create a place that would be top of my list of somewhere I’d want to come to.
“A lot of people who come through the door are people who are visiting Newark for the day which surprised me. They come from all over from the Midlands or Lincoln. So far so good. I’m loving it.”
The tea rooms are open Tuesday to Saturday from 9.30am and for special events on Sundays, such as the antique fairs, the Steampunk Festival in May and, one of Glenda’s personal favourites, the All About Dogs Show, next month.
Dogs are welcome in the tea rooms at any time. Another vision for the future includes special monthly evening events during the summer such as cheese and wine or tapas and sangria.
Dawn, who has worked at the cafe for just over two years, said she’d been worried about the future, describing it as an “amazing” location to work, but she’s relieved now. “I like seeing the regulars. As soon as they walk in the door they smile and you know what they want. It’s lovely. It’s amazing. It attracts everybody. You get all the visitors who have never seen anything like this.” The building has been tea rooms for 20-plus years, and before that, it was a dress shop and an insurance broker.
Originally it is believed to have served as the bakehouse for the Queen’s Head. It was the inspiration for Lilliput Lane’s Christmas Pantry model in 2005.
Long-term customer Carol Beba visits from her home near Spalding in Lincolnshire. She said: “We’ve been coming here for around 18 years. We come to Newark for the shops and this place.
“We always start with coffee here and then come back for lunch. It is so lovely and quaint and cosy.”
There’s something really special about the building. It’s really charming.
Glenda Casteloes