Experienced catering team take on Cantley Park café

Wokingham Borough Council is delighted to announce that a familiar team will be taking over the café at Cantley Park in Wokingham.

Cleverchefs have run three catering outlets at Dinton Pastures Country Park in Hurst for more than two years and will look to build on this success, opening to the public at Cantley Park’s pavilion from Saturday 1 June at 8.30am. The café will be closed from 12 noon on Friday 31 May and reopen the following day.

The café will be open from 9am to 4pm on weekdays and 8.30am to 4pm at weekends.

The council worked extensively to determine the most appropriate future use for the site, taking into consideration the public’s desire for a café at the park against the need for a viable business venture, while making the best use of assets to generate income.

The experience provided by Cleverchefs gives the council confidence that the site will run successfully and provide residents with a service that they have become accustomed to.

A proven track record

Cllr Imogen Shepherd-DuBey, executive member for finance, said: “I am delighted to see Cleverchefs will be taking on responsibility for the café at Cantley Park.

"With a fantastic reputation for the work they have done at Dinton Pastures Country Park, we have every confidence that they will bring a high-quality service to residents and build on their already strong track record. We look forward to working with Cleverchefs to establish a longer-term approach that works best for our community.

“We had to ensure we explored all options and found a solution that worked for our residents and provided a practical way forward. We have got to make the most of our assets and protect frontline services, but we also want to ensure residents are heard in a process such as this. I am sure many families and users of the park will be pleased to see a café provision will continue here and wish Cleverchefs the very best.”

Passionate about every dish

Cleverchefs started back in 2015 and prides itself on being an independent business led by a team of passionate chefs, serving handmade produce. It also uses alternatives to plastic – and other materials that cannot be recycled – to help reduce the impact on the environment.

The team has run The Coffee Deck on the upper deck of Dinton Activity Centre, The Coffee House located next to the main car park and The Coffee Pod successfully since March 2022.

Founder director Nick Collins said: “We are delighted to be adding to our growing portfolio in Wokingham Borough and look forward to offering the locals a variety of flavoursome and exciting treats. We know how much people enjoy going out for a good cup of coffee and we are proud to offer our very own Ground Control Coffee and a selection of sweet treats, produced by our own team of creative chefs.

“We are passionate about each and every dish we produce and firmly believe good food and drink should be the highlight of everyone’s day. With that in mind, we look forward to feeding those visiting Cantley Park.”