A Beverley deli and cafe is looking to establish a reading room where customers can dip into a selection of books and even take them away to finish at home.
The “literature with your latte” plan is the idea of Vanessa Barker, owner of Vanessa’s in Saturday Market.
“We already provide newspapers for customers to read, so it just seemed a natural extension to that. For some people a coffee shop is all about grabbing a quick drink and a bite to eat and then getting on with their busy lives. Others like to linger longer and enjoy a more leisurely experience,” she said.
With three rooms upstairs, Vanessa wants to brand one of them as the Reading Room and is currently in talks with a local second hand book store to acquire her “library”.
“People will be able to browse and even take a book home, returning it later. I’ve travelled extensively and seen this in operation on the Continent. I’d like to think it could lead to other things, like poetry or literature evenings; perhaps even a little acoustic music,” she said.
Vanessa is continually adding to what’s on offer at the deli and cafe, with a series of Saturday “Meet the Producer” events which, in recent weeks, has seen tastings of meat and pork pies from Garton-on-the-Wolds based Rose Cottage pies and curries made with Twisted Chilli mixes supplied by Steve and Gillian Woolaston, of the Wetwang-based Twisted Chilli company.
“This is all part of our philosophy of showcasing as many local products as possible. East Yorkshire has some tremendous food producers and our deli is proud to have so many of them represented,” said Vanessa.
The upstairs 51-seater cafe has already run two restaurant nights and more are planned for the future.
“Whether people are eating in the daytime or evening they are becoming more and more demanding about the quality and provenance of the ingredients. I think the secret of our success is that we seek out the best of local produce and then prepare and cook everything on site,” Vanessa said.
“We also offer somewhere to relax, to sit and savour. And the idea of a reading room complements that perfectly.”
