The Chippenham branch was a former Little Chef restaurant located on the A350 near Chippenham, Wiltshire.
Address and Onsite Information[]
ADDRESS: A350 Cepen Way, Chippenham, Wiltshire, SN14 6UY
ONSITE FACILITIES: BP, M&S Simply Food (forecourt), Wild Bean Cafe (forecourt), Burger King, Greggs, Brewers Fayre, Premier Inn (Book Room)
History[]
Opened in 1998, Chippenham was a landmark Little Chef site. It was the first of a new generation of restaurants developed by Granada in a new look building. The building itself was manufactured off site and then transported and assembled onsite. This not only allowed for consistency of design but led to much quicker construction times, allowing, in theory, Granada to open more Little Chefs more quickly. The buildings themselves were brick finished with pitched roof, wood trimmed gable to front and slate coloured tiled roof. Other restaurants at Bluebell Hill, Kettering East, Kendal and Maresfield opened this year in the same style.
Having been located on the outskirts of the largely populated town of Chippenham and close to the M4 motorway, the Little Chef certainly had all the key ingredients to a successful site. Its attractive building, convenience and location next to a filling station were all surely contributing factors in drawing in custom to the restaurant. There was even a Burger King restaurant on site as well, providing travellers with a fast food option if they didn't want to sit down and dine.
In 2016, the Little Chef at Chippenham unfortunately closed its doors, leaving just the Burger King to soldier on alone. For a while, the former Little Chef dining space was used as extra seating for Burger King customers and the former kitchen was cordoned off by a fake wall. However, in late 2018, Euro Garages gave the building an extensive refurbishment and a brand new Greggs had opened alongside a newly refurbished Burger King, bringing back life to a half abandoned restaurant.
