Something very odd happened today... As long time fans of the very yummy New Leaf cafe, we havent had the opportunity to eat there much since opening our own kitchen. With a few moments to spare, one of us headed down there this morning for a famously delicious sweet treat only to be met by the mayor of Murwillumbah and owner of New Leaf, Gary Bagnall, who threatened to call the police if this person did not leave the premises immediately. Despite a shop full of customers, Gary told him he was not welcome in his cafe now or ever again and with an aggressive tone and shaky, clearly furious disposition (there was a moment when our man thought he might actually get punched) Gary all but accused him of being there to steal recipes and repeated the treat to call the police to forcibly remove him. This is the first time they have ever met or spoken. This comes only weeks after another staff member was met with a less than welcoming response of what are you doing here, havent you got your own cafe to eat at?. To which the response was; yes, but I love your food, have been eating here for years and shouldnt we all be supporting each other? The New Leaf staff member insinuated she wasn’t welcome but she repeated her statement of love for their food and said she was very surprised that in such a small town, they wouldn’t want her business. Wed like to state for the record that we in no way seek to imitate any existing cafes. In fact, we strive to offer Murwillumbah something different and as yet unlike anything else in town and to that end, the feedback we’ve had from you guys indicates we are succeeding. We feel its quite sad that we would be unwelcome at New Leaf as we enjoy the fact that there are so many different places in town to eat. We will miss their delicious L.S.Ds and yummy rice paper rolls. Their dahl is perfection and our full bellies have thanked us after many many happy meals there. While its not so often these days that we get a chance to venture down the street for the food there, the rudeness Gary displayed to us today clearly states we won’t be met with open arms there again. Wed love to see the New Leaf staff and owners in our cafe trying our own amazing smoothies - wait until you guys try our Smuices and Acai bowls (available from next week). We warmly extend an invitation to all the other cafes in town to come in and be greeted by our amazingly fun (Nat you know thats you) and friendly staff who will never be disrespectful to you, no matter where you come from. We know first hand that sometimes one feels to step outside ones own menu and with such an awesome team working with us, we are sure you’ll feel welcome and appreciated. We have given Bonsoy to Cenzo’s when they’ve run out and coffee lids to Ju Ju’s. Many of us still regularly take the few short steps next door to enjoy one of Jason’s very fine brews (despite having free coffee for our staff). We will continue to do the same for any other of our friends in town should the need arise to lend a carton of Bonsoy or a sleeve of cups. We have delighted in the fact that other cafes have (mostly) been very friendly and supportive of us. A shout out to the awesome guys at Blue Frog who have been soothing our belly grumbles for years, Mel & Jonno who have never been anything other than a delight to befriend and Jo from the Modern Grocer who despite having the means herself has bought her kids in for a choc mofo every now and then. They have always been kind, friendly and nothing but supportive and we feel the same way…..lets all support each other and make Murwillmbah a wonderful place to be. Coincidentally, weve had someone lodge persistent complaints to council about our outdoor seating, which we have approval for and comply with so all in all its been an interesting week! We feel for the poor council employees who have been sent to us 4 days in a row to check our seating - which is still compliant, they seem less than thrilled to be the worker bees of a more sinister plot to cause us trouble. Wed like you all to know that we in no way share the view of Gary Bagnall. We hope to see more and more awesome cafes in town as it only brings more people, more money and most importantly goes some way to increasing Murwillumbahs reputation as a wonderful, friendly and welcoming place to visit. Plus, we love to try new things so very selfishly we cant wait to see those vacant shops over the road fill up with new and delicious cuisine! Furthermore, weve been considering inviting local cafe and restaurant owners to a community meeting of sorts to brainstorm ways of increasing the towns profile as an amazing food location. Any ideas are so very welcome. We love Murwillumbah and are investing a lot of our time and money into growing its profile and offering the community new, different and exciting businesses. On that note.... Our project out the back is nearing completion and the doors to The Haven Bar & Restaurant will be open from Friday 23rd Jan. Its turning into a very cool place to hang out so we hope all our friends will enjoy our extended range of crafted beer and wines, wood fired pizzas and acoustic music sessions. A family-friendly environment where you can lounge, sit, dance or all of the above is coming very very soon…..oh my…..the beer menu is phenomenal!!! Oh....another exciting adventure is brewing in the vacant shop next to ours too..... Local growers, producers of fine foods, art, music, paper flowers and anything else, please contact us! Thanks to you all for your ongoing support….we are very grateful as we grow and evolve into providers of more of what you want. Shall we tell you now about the new range of amazing food about to hit the menu? No? Ok, we’ll give you a hint….do you know the Wholesome Tart? : )
Posted on: Sat, 10 Jan 2015 04:35:28 +0000
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