TWO popular cafes in Coventry’s War Memorial Park will be transformed as part of a £300,000 investment that will create between 20 and 25 part-time jobs.
City-based No Ordinary Hospitality Management (NOHM) has taken over the two eateries and plans to complete the revamp by early summer ahead of Radio 1’s One Big Weekend.
The company, which owns a host of venues and attractions in the area, will create a new ice cream kiosk in the centre of the park by repurposing a current storage unit.
The ice cream parlour’s counter. s
The cafe adjacent to Kenilworth Road will become a bistro operating from 9am, through to early evening offering light lunches, afternoon tea and suppers.
The current cafe in the visitor centre will become The Sundae Club, a 50s-inspired dessert diner. NOHM opened the first Sundae Club at Coombe Abbey Park, as part of its development of the site and it has proved highly successful.
Ron Terry from NOHM, said the plans would significantly widen the food and drink options available to park users.
“The War Memorial Park is a wonderful place for local people and visitors and is a hive of activity throughout the year.
“People visit for a huge variety of reasons – sport, recreation, exercise, family time, dog walking, meeting up with friends – we want food and drink available to them to reflect that diversity and we have devised an offer that will have a very broad appeal.
An artist’s impression of the inside of the bistro. s
“We are very aware that the park is a much-loved resource, so while we want to improve the quality and choice available to everyone and to help attract more people to visit, we will do it in a way which benefits the area and its users, whilst respecting its history.”
The Sundae Club at Coombe Abbey Park opened just before Christmas and has been really well received by everyone who has visited. NOHM believes the concept will fit the park perfectly.
Ron added: “We have met with the Friends of the War Memorial Park and talked through our plans, and we will continue to liaise with them while we undertake the work, and then going forward.”
The 12-acre War Memorial Park was opened in July 1921 as a tribute to the 2,587 Coventrians who died between 1914 and 1918 fighting in the First World War.
It boasts 10 floodlit tennis courts, 12 football pitches, flat green bowling, an 18-hole FootGolf course, a cricket pitch, and skate park.
Visit https://www.instagram.com/the_sundae_club/ to find out more about The Sundae Club.
