The Kendal branch was a former Little Chef restaurant located on the southbound side of the A591 near Kendal, Cumbria.
Address and Onsite Information[]
ADDRESS: Prizet View Services, A591 Southbound, Helsington, Kendal, Cumbria, LA8 8AA
ONSITE FACILITIES: Shell, Mace (forecourt), Costa Express (forecourt), Rollover Hot Dogs (forecourt), Pure Stone Flooring
History[]
Prizet View service station dates back to the 1960s when a petrol station was built on what used to be a single carriageway section of the A6 (now A591) near Helsington. The services was named after a building known as Prizet View, which was built to the west of the A6 after the road was straightened in the 1930s. During the 1970s, the road was upgraded to dual carriageway and as a result, a new southbound petrol station had opened, thus creating a dual sided site. The southbound services was later joined by a Little Chef in 1998, known as the Kendal branch.
The Little Chef at Kendal was considered to be a landmark site as 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. However, Kendal proved to be an exception here as the building was constructed using some form of stone, instead of brick, in order for it to fit in with the surroundings. Other restaurants at Chippenham, Kettering East, Bluebell Hill and Maresfield opened this year in a similar style.
Unfortunately, despite being one of only four Little Chefs to have opened on the A591, the restaurant closed its doors in 2005. The building is now operated by a flooring business known as Pure Stone Flooring.