Carlisle's newest coffee shop is bringing tasty bakes and high-quality coffee to the city.
Smillie's Coffee Bar, based on West Tower Street in Carlisle, has hit the ground running following its opening last weekend with a menu packed full of locally sourced produce.
The coffee beans are roasted in the borders, some of the products come from Dough-Luxe which is based in Carlisle Market, and the ice cream comes from award-winning north-East business Giacopazzi.
READ MORE: Dough-Luxe offers artisan sweet treats and gourmet bites to Carlisle
William Smillie, managing director, said: "It's been brilliant.
"Last week we had a soft opening, so we were open, but we weren't officially open, so we were getting the hang of everything.
"And then we had the official opening on Saturday, which went down really well.
"We got a lot of people in and the feedback has been brilliant."
There are a lot of perks to owning your own coffee shop but Mr Smillie enjoys the easy access to some of his favourite things.
"I love coffee and I love cakes, so the fact that I've now got a source of specialty coffee, which is outstanding, and also a source of homemade cakes at my disposal - it's amazing, to be honest," he said.
Smillie's Coffee Bar can be found on the ground floor of the BE Uniforms shop which sells work wear, school uniforms, and team wear.
READ MORE: BE Uniforms opens first shop over the border in Carlisle
The clothing side of the family-run business is seasonally popular which led to the team wondering how to make the shops work year round.
The idea of opening up a coffee shop has been on their mind for a while now but it wasn't until this year that they decided to take the leap to open it.
The team completed the majority of the work themselves, with support from local tradesmen, in just a month to ensure that Smillie's would be up and running in time for the summer holidays.
Mr Smillie said: "It's something slightly different to what we usually do, and it's getting good reviews as well.
"That's probably the pleasing bit because, with the uniform side, you don't get a lot of reviews.
"They'll not give you feedback on how nice your school jumper is, but somebody will give you feedback on how nice their coffee is. It's great to be hearing loads of positive stories."
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel