WHEN vintage glitz and glamour at The Canberra Hotel was suspended, owner Malcolm Roberts turned to vintage quirky and rare.
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The pause, now back to a trickle of business for The Canberra, allowed time for Mr Roberts to look to the stables to renovate and launch a complementary business. Stables Tea Rooms offers coffee and cafe with antiques, including a vintage Cadbury's cabinet filled with biscuits and slices.
"The hotel is quieter and this offered a chance to see if we can really make the cafe a success now," Mr Roberts said.
By summer, Mr Roberts hoped to have gardens out back as well as the front open for cafe diners, depending on how pandemic restrictions evolve. Like others, lockdown has been a chance for The Canberra Hotel team to get busy in creating a kitchen garden.
Mr Roberts said a big lesson from COVID-19 was to support local and, where possible, Stables Tea Room has partnered with community business including 1816 Bakehouse, Inglenook Dairy and Green Eggs.
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