The Bardon Mill branch is a former Little Chef restaurant located on the A69 near Bardon Mill, Northumberland.
Address and Onsite Facilities[]
ADDRESS: A69, Bardon Mill, Hexham, NE47 7EL
ONSITE FACILITIES: Starbucks
History[]
Opened in 1980/81, the Little Chef at Bardon Mill represented Forte's desire to increase their representation of the brand in the north of England, particularly on the Newcastle to Carlisle corridor. Despite being the only Little Chef to have opened on this major route, it was a site well chosen by Forte. First of all, its location halfway between Newcastle and Carlisle, and also the A1 and M6, meant that it was certain to be a popular, and also attractive stop for long distance traffic. Furthermore, it was situated opposite a filling station, which was good news for the site as it had the potential to draw in additional custom. Finally, its location near tourist hotspots, such as Hadrian's Wall and the North Pennines Area of Outstanding National Beauty, meant that it was also bound to be busy with the seasonal holiday trade too.
Perched on top of a small hill, the Little Chef was housed inside of Forte's new restaurant design of the era, with a pitched roof, wooden gable and large windows, giving diners a view of the Northumbrian countryside which surrounded the restaurant.
Despite being a rural, standalone site, the success of the Bardon Mill restaurant spoke for itself, having escaped from a huge list of Little Chef closures in 2002, 2004, 2007 and 2012. However, the site closed in 2017, when Euro Garages purchased the Little Chef chain and hatched a plan to close them all to replace with their own brands such as Starbucks. This unfortunately resulted in the demise of the remaining 70 Little Chefs in the UK, including Bardon Mill, which closed in the summer of 2017. Many of the reviews stated that if the restaurant stayed open, the restaurant would have had to have been refurbished, but because of the size and type of the building, it would have cost a lot of money. The building was completely changed, with small entrance porch demolished and a small seating area was added outside. The toilets were moved to where the kitchen was, and the facade was painted grey to match Starbucks colours.
