Community Cafe
The Heart of Our Centre: The Community Café
At the centre of everything we do is our Community Café — a warm, welcoming space run by a dedicated team of compassionate and hard-working individuals. Our café staff are as diverse and vibrant as the community they serve, with many team members living just around the corner. More than just a place to grab a coffee or a bite to eat, the café is one of our main sources of income, helping to sustain the vital services we offer. We serve healthy, affordable food made with care and a genuine commitment to the wellbeing of our neighbours. Our team offers more than great service. Whether it’s helping you pick out a new top from Boatopia, lending a listening ear, or pointing you toward one of the many support services in the centre, they’re here for you. The café team often acts as a friendly first point of contact, connecting visitors to the right support when they need it most. Many of our staff bring years of hospitality experience to their roles, and all receive training in:
- customer service and hospitality skills
- food hygiene and safety
- safeguarding and signposting
“The team goes above and beyond on a daily basis. They don’t just see their roles in the centre as jobs. They see it as an investment in their community and a better way of living and working. They look after each other and actively try to make people’s lives better.”
CEO Reyna Kothari
What's On The Menu?
At our Community Café, the menu changes regularly — but one thing stays the same: it’s always affordable, delicious, and prepared to the highest food hygiene standards.
We’re open 7 days a week from 9AM to 5PM, serving up a rotating selection of hot and cold meals, vegan and vegetarian options, fresh sandwiches, and a tempting range of sweet treats. Our menu often features daily specials.
But our café offers more than just great food. It’s a place where you’re welcome to stay all day. Make it your base while you explore the centre – browse the rails in Boatopia, pick up essentials from the Pantry, read a book from the library, or simply unwind and watch the world go by. Grab a seat outside to enjoy the sunshine while keeping an eye on the kids in the park or take a moment to catch up with friends. There’s no pressure to order constantly or move on — we want this to feel like your space too.
The Menu
Our cafe is open from 9am to 5pm every day of the week, and serves a full menu in that time. You can eat in the cafe area, outside on the patio or take away if you’re in a rush. We also sell ice creams for those hot days! Our menu is not set in stone and does change depending on stock levels or specials. We aim to make all items on the menu affordable and easy so that you can grab a quick bite or relax for a long lunch. There are vegan, vegetarian and meat options and we are open to feedback and ideas to make what we serve suitable to our users.
Our cafe is unlike most others – here, you can spend a day using it as your base while exploring treasures in the charity shop, picking up food in the pantry, reading a book from the library or just chilling out watching the world go by. The seating outside offers a place to relax while keeping an eye on your kids in the park, enjoying the sunshine or catching up with friends. There is no limit to how much time you spend with us – we want you to feel like you can treat this space as your own.
It is in a true sense a community café. Most days you’ll meet someone to chat with, help out or lend a hand with a project. This is somewhere you’ll be welcome and can feel at home.
Optional Extras!!
The Community Café is much more than just a place to eat. Alongside great food and conversation, you’ll find a range of extras to make your visit even more enjoyable. There are often books and puzzles for grown-ups, free WiFi plus a great playlist creating a fun yet relaxed environment. On colder days, blankets are available to keep cosy while you enjoy your time indoors.
One of the best things about the café is that it’s always evolving — there’s usually something new to discover or try out. We’re open to fresh ideas and love experimenting with ways to make the space even more fun and engaging. If there’s something that would make your visit even better, we’d love to hear from you!
Optional Extras!!
The Cafe is not just a cafe! We have an Air Hockey Table and Table Football to keep you entertained, as well as lots of books and other bits and pieces. There is often a box of free toys to be taken away and a good music list playing in the background.
On colder days there are blankets to wrap yourself up in too.
The thing I love about the cafe is that there is nothing set in stone and there is always something changing or something new to explore, We love trying new things and feel that exploring new ideas is fun. We welcome ideas, so do let us know if there is something that would make your visit more fun!
