Cathedral café announces closure...

[dutchman]

Rising Cafe has been in the city centre since 2015



A much loved Coventry cafe has called time on its city centre venue.

The Rising Cafe, which was based in Coventry Cathedral but run by an independent charity, have cited "structural changes" as a reason for their departure.

They were famed for their afternoon tea, which included home baked cakes, fresh smoothies and hot drinks.

Rising Cafe was always bustling, it catered for the many coach loads of visitors to Coventry Cathedral, as well as hungry locals after a reliably good bite to eat.

It opened in 2015, and is run by Christian charity Betel UK, which runs independently from Coventry Cathedral.

All of the staff apart from the manager were volunteers.

Writing on the Rising Cafe Facebook page, manager Phil Colbourne wrote: "To all our loyal Rising Café customers ...

"It is with sad hearts we must announce we will not be reopening Rising Café at Coventry Cathedral due to structural changes inside the Cathedral.

"But there is good news too! We are excited to be re-opening this summer in newly renovated premises at 58 Chester St in Aston, Birmingham.

"Please plan to join us this coming August, and relax on our lovely outdoor patio or dine indoors in a comfy industrial decor.

"Our menu will continue with all your favourites, but we’ll also be offering an exciting array of home-baked goods and new, mouth-watering savoury dishes."

He went on: "We take with us from Coventry wonderful memories of a beautiful atmosphere created by you, our loyal supportive customers. It was our pleasure to serve you. For all of our staff, recovering from broken lives and addiction, the café gave them a wonderful sense of purpose. For this we are very grateful.

"Thank for you kindness and support over the years."

Manager Phil Colbourne, who has worked for the charity for 16 years, told CoventryLive: "It was busy from the start, busy our whole way through, we're going to really really miss it."

He added: "It was so rewarding for the people working there, they took a real sense of purpose and ownership over their roles there, it was almost like giving something back and taking a real sense of pride in what they did."