Orchard Cafe: Your reaction to closure of Scarborough’s last remaining Cooplands cafe

The reaction follows an article in The Scarborough News last week after it was reported that Cooplands are set to close their Hull bakery and all cafes.

It is also understood that 41 shops will close, but the eight shops in Scarborough town centre are unaffected.

The announcement of the cafe's impending closure has provoked widespread upset amongst residents and loyal customers.

One resident, who spoke to The Scarborough News outside Orchard Cafe, said: “I’ve had chips and gravy from there since I was a child at school. I’m 37-years-old and I remember going there since primary school.

“It's just gutting really, it’s somewhere where everyone in town goes and it’s a real shame.”

“I remember it was once a huge cafe on the top floor,” said Michelle Richardson. “Passing the big picture of Scarborough's South Bay on the way up the stairs.

“To sit in the window with a cuppa and watch everyone in Scarborough go by … end of an era for sure.”

The Scarborough News understands that Orchard Cafe above Heron on St Thomas Street will shut and that staff were told shops and cafes will close at the end of June.

Mobile food trucks, currently based in Hull, would in future be stationed in Scarborough, as part of the plans.

A taxi driver outside the Orchard Cafe said: “People come out of the cafe straight to the taxi rank here so we’ll be losing business. It’s a big loss as well and it’s very popular.”Cooplands opened their first cafes in the 1960s and Orchard has been a part of Scarborough families’ lives for decades.

Many residents have grown up with the cafe, going for meals at the weekend and now taking their own children and grandchildren.

Ruth Bagley said: “That’s a shame, been there as long as I can remember!“Used to work there as a young teenager, a lovely place although I noticed it’s much quieter there than in years gone by.”

“Can’t understand it, always packed when I pass or go in, “ said John Frankish

Helen Blackburn added: “I’m really saddened to see how things that were good are being destroyed.”

Cooplands’ The Secret Garden Cafe on Westborough closed in May last year, before being turned into an Eats & Seats shop.