BUSINESS is booming for the Sedbergh-based restaurant and cafe that is offering residents comforting bakes and hearty fare.

Run by couple James Ratcliffe and Nina Matsunaga, the Three Hares was set up less than two years ago but is consistently enjoying booked-up evenings and busy afternoons.

The ever-increasing popularity of the bricks and mortar business that they set up less than two years ago is both a blessing and a curse for the duo.

“A bigger space would be good,” Nina tells me, adding that at the moment they are regularly having to turn people away due to space constraints. It’s a nice problem to have, but not one that they want to become known for.

When I visit, it is a rainy afternoon and it is easy to see why customers are keen to come through the door - the hot chocolates and generously-filled doughnuts would be enough to tempt anybody.

However, it is the couple's commitment to offering fresh produce and locally sourced ingredients, sometimes with a twist, that has really kept customers coming back for more.

James, who grew up in Ireby between Kirkby Lonsdale and Ingleton, believes the couple are offering something a little bit different to the usual Cumbrian fare.

“Our focus as a restaurant has really been the local trade and I think people in the area haven’t really been catered for in the past,” he said. “They wanted something a bit more high-end and experimental.”

With Nina’s Japanese parentage and James’ childhood spent foraging for raspberries, it would have been difficult for the couple to offer their customers a cookie cutter restaurant experience.

“We do a lot of traditional but we do stuff that’s a little bit unusual,” said James. “We don’t do things to be different, we’re just a bit bored of what is out there.”

Nina agrees that it isn’t a case of pushing boundaries for the sake of it; but, instead, using locally-sourced produce and combining it with flavours that are less familiar.

“We pair a lot of curries with game, which people don’t really think about,” she said. “Things that a year and half ago nobody would have chosen. But bit by bit, especially the local community, when they know what you do is good they’ll be happy to try something else the next time.”

This proximity to the produce that they love to cook with, the couple say, is one of the key differences that living in the Lake District makes in comparison to their previous city home.

It was Manchester, in 2011 where the couple met and started working together, first cutting their teeth with ‘The Moocher’ – a market stall that started life in Levenshulme and quickly developed to offer street food.

And although they enjoyed the flexibility that the line of work offered, the birth of their now two-year-old son meant that they needed to cut down on the travelling and think about securing a more permanent base.

“One of the big reasons that we moved up is that we felt there was such an opportunity in Sedbergh,” said James. “Sedbergh is such a unique place. It’s on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales and very close to the Lake District and in terms of produce and everything you’ve got so much on your doorstep.”

This connection to the land and the community, something that James felt was missing in Manchester, is at the heart of the Three Hares philosophy. Look at the constantly changing menu and you’ll see wild garlic, handpicked by James, Kendal Rough Fell lamb, and potatoes from Tarleton.

And then there’s the bread. Nina bakes fresh bread every single day, often getting up at three in the morning to ensure that the bakery is well stocked with wholemeal, rye and sourdough (to name but three of 12) loaves.

This sense of industry - that must, in part, come from those days spent living and working in Manchester – is what is most striking about the couple and their unspoken ambition to be a must-visit destination for tourists and locals alike.

The couple is remaining tight-lipped about the plans for the future - but looking around the small space and its full tables, it seems that the only way is up for the ambitious pair.