THE couple behind Bowness’ newest cafe is hoping to bring a slice of the city to the Lake District town.

Paul Jones and Georgia Forrest are the duo behind the new Folk Cafe, located at 4 St Martins Parade.

Paul explained that he had helped set up bar and cafe Common, in Manchester’s Northern Quarter, in 2006 before moving to Hong Kong with Georgia for five years.

Returning to the United Kingdom at the end of 2016 the couple stumbled upon what was then named St Martin’s Tea Rooms while visiting Georgia’s family in Kendal.

Having officially bought the premises in March, the couple entirely stripped it out and completely renovated the space to turn it into a ‘craft coffee and tea house’ and give it a more modern feel.

“We had always had the idea to do our own thing once we got back from Hong Kong,” Paul said. “We wanted to modernise what was here before. Through being in Manchester and Hong Kong, we wanted to bring a bit of that to Bowness. We’ve gone for a more modern feel.”

He said that renovating the space had been a ‘struggle’ but a ‘good struggle’, with family members chipping in to help out with the work.

He said that it was still a tea room but ‘with a twist’, offering craft coffee and food that he hopes is a little bit different from the rest of the offering in Bowness.

Paul is hoping to constantly be able to offer different specials on the menu but said examples of what might appear are club sandwiches, daal, cakes and vegan-friendly sweet treats.

Food is prepared fresh daily and the cafe operates on a ‘once it is gone, it is gone’ basis.

He also emphasised the importance of using local produce, saying that he was sourcing meat from a butcher in Kendal, using local dairy farms and the coffee was coming from Atkinsons in Lancaster.

“It’s relaxed,” Paul explained. “It’s good service. It’s personal, not robotic. We want to keep the locals happy but also getting out there and talking to tourists.”

The couple, who are engaged and expecting a baby at the end of July, have plans to hold exhibitions in the space and have pieces on the walls from local artists that would be available to buy.

And with plans in the not too distant future to obtain an alcohol licence, Folk Cafe also looks set to become a night spot.

“But mostly I just want to get to know people,” Paul said, emphasising the family feel of the establishment. “It’s bar service with a bit of table service but there’s no right or wrong to it as long as the customer is getting the right service I’m happy.

“I just want it to be a relaxed atmosphere. I want to really advertise that it’s more about bespoke stuff. Bespoke art, the music that we play is not just the usual top 40 stuff.”

Folk Cafe is currently open Tuesday-Sunday, 10am-6pm. For more visit: https://www.facebook.com/folkcafebowness/