Al fresco dining comes to converted mill complex
A radical remodelling of space at Sunny Bank Mills, in Farsley, has created an al fresco dining area outside two of the town’s most popular cafes and restaurants.
An £100,000-plus investment in the area outside the historic Old Combing building has enabled the popular Mill Kitchen and Grumpy’s to offer an atmospheric continental-style eating area to their customers.
An attractive pedestrianised area now leads to the heart of the mill, where Yorkshire Television’s Emmerdale and Heartbeat were filmed.
This investment by Edwin Woodhouse and Co, the owners of Sunny Banks Mills, follows hard on the heels of the regeneration of the historic Old Combing, which has allowed both the Mill Kitchen and Grumpy’s to expand within the building.
John Gaunt, co-managing director of Edwin Woodhouse, said: “The Mill Kitchen and Grumpy’s have proved tremendously popular members of our Sunny Bank Mills community in recent years. We are delighted to help them build on the success they have already achieved.
“Indeed the Mill Kitchen hit the national headlines last month when it hosted Emma Barnett’s Election Show on Radio Five. Emma was impressed by the Mill Kitchen, and indeed by Sunny Bank Mills itself, and we were delighted to show her around.”
William Gaunt, co-managing director, added: “One of the key aspects of our strategy at Sunny Bank Mills is to help our tenants if we possibly can. The regeneration of the Old Combing building, together with the creating of an outdoor eating area, has allowed us to do exactly that.
“We look forward to the Mill Kitchen and Grumpy’s going from strength to strength. That’s not just good news for everyone who works here, but for Farsley as a whole.”
The investment in the Old Combing has taken place alongside a much wider regeneration of the mill complex. At the moment work is currently underway on a £2m project called Weaver’s Yard, which will transform the mill.
The central part of the flourishing estate is being re-modelled to create open spaces and to re-establish the prominence of historic mill buildings. There are now 70 companies, and more than 355 employees, at Sunny Bank Mills.
