Many a walk is improved by the guarantee of a coffee and cake stop en route or at the end. And in the middle of some Vale of Glamorgan farm land there's a new café and patisserie which is now the highlight for many locals and walkers keen to have some refreshments while out on their daily hike.
Fredwell cafe was opened by business partners Chris Birch and Jak Bjornstrom who in their other professional life manage holiday properties on the land just outside Cowbridge. It was after feedback from guests who thought a nearby café would be welcome that they had the opportunity to renovate what Chris calls an "old muck heap with a lid on" into one of the most stylish cafes in the area.
Work on the venue, which is found at Pant Wilkins Stables' land near Aberthin, began last July and the pair have finally opened up, serving coffees, locally-made cakes (by a baker in St Hillary), macarons, and tarts as well as pancake breakfasts and pizzas, platters, and baguettes for later in the day.
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Jak, who by trade is an interior designer for TV productions, took on the design duties and the 25-seat café is filled with tables made out of reclaimed scaffolding and sit on vintage rugs in front of big French doors which look out onto a patio where more tables sit and look out onto rolling hills.
Chris, who is originally from Bargoed, explained how the café came about. "One of the main bits of feedback constantly was: 'It's lovely, but there's no where to walk if you want to have a coffee or something like that'. We get on really well with the landowner here and he said as soon as something becomes available he would let us know. We then had the opportunity to renovate this tiny unit just to see what we could do with it and it was basically a muck heap with a lid on it."
They finally completed the renovation and modestly had minimal outdoor furniture which they soon expanded on as the Welsh weather worked in their favour. "We had a bit of nice weather on the Saturday we opened so we just put a little two-seater on a tiny little bit of patio slabs outside and people around," Chris continued. "We had eight people sat around a little two-seater outside and I thought: 'Blinking heck we've got to sort something out.' So we extended the patio almost instantly within the first two weeks of opening. And then obviously it rains because we're in Wales.
"But then it started getting a bit nice and every Saturday and Sunday this place is packed, absolutely jam-packed, from morning to night. It's unreal. And to be totally honest with you I say to most people coming in through the door: 'I thought it'll do £50 a day. It'll keep the lights on. And it'll be mostly for the holiday guests when they come here.' But people make it their business to come and find it. We're pretty much in the centre of 103 acres of the farm."
With an eye on extending the café to seat more customers at the Pant Wilkin site and plans to open more cafes Chris and Jak are also hoping to get an alcohol licence for the evenings for the venue, which is open until 9pm from Thursday to Sunday, and until 3pm on Mondays and Wednesdays. For more information about Fredwell and how to get there click here. For more food, drink and what's on option in Wales sign up to our newsletter here .
