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Wales Online
Wales Online
Entertainment
Nino Williams & Demi Roberts

One of Swansea's most popular breakfast diners is going takeaway only

It's been here for 30 years and is something of a Swansea institution. The Uplands Diner has seen generations of families, students, and revellers looking to shake off a hangover tuck in to its no-nonsense fry-ups.

And it's tasty grub hasn't just been a hit with punters - it's also won a stack of awards in its time too.

It also managed to survive the pandemic unscathed, owing to its loyal customers.

However, despite all this the days of sitting down in the Uplands Diner are over - as manager Lance Pardoe has made the decision to convert the cafe into a takeaway only affair.

While it's disappointing news for many, Lance said he had to make the change to focus on his health after tragically losing two brothers within the space of three months.

He said: "I've been here for 30 years now - I'm knackered and I'm certainly not getting any younger. I haven't taken a real break or holiday for about four years now, and I work 90 hours a week.

"We were one of the lucky ones who found we got busier during the pandemic, because we have a great online customer base."

"But my brother died of a sudden heart attack in late September, which was a big shock. A few weeks later, my oldest brother, who I was extremely close to, died unexpectedly of a cardiac arrest. Tragically, a week after we buried my oldest brother, his partner also died."

Lance said that facing such loss and grief has made him re-evaluate his own life.

He said: "Losing my brothers has made me look at life very differently, because I was always working. My older brother would always tell me I was working far too much. It's no good for anybody to work 90 hours a week - I felt tired all the time and gained weight. I've got to look at my own life and my own health, which is the main reason we decided to shift to takeaways."

The newly transformed takeaway bar inside the Diner (Uplands Diner)

"I felt very guilty about closing the seating area, because some of my customers have been coming here as school children, and they're now coming here with their kids. It wasn't an easy decision to make, but I knew that something had to change.

"There's a little bit of space at the front for those who want to eat their takeaway inside. There are 10 seats still at the front, so we can still see the familiar faces. We're still feeding the homeless twice a week, too.

"We've had some generous offers from people interested in buying the cafe, but I'm not ready for that. I'm 52 now - I'll call it a day at 60. What would I do after 30 years of being here? I wouldn't want to do anything else.

He added: "We've got a fantastic, loyal customer base that have stuck with us through thick and thin. Without those, we'd have gone through a couple of times."

"We've managed to hold on to most our staff too, which is great. We have a brilliant team, most of whom have been with us for years."

There is still some limited seating at the front of the former cafe for those wanting to eat their takeaway inside (Uplands Diner)

Known for its fry-ups the diner is also renowned for its signature dish - the Mega Beast, consisting of 10 rashers of bacon, eight sausages, five eggs, chips, two hash browns, bubble and squeak, mushrooms, tomatoes, beans, two slices of black pudding, four slices of toast, four slices of bread and butter, four slices of fried bread.

In future, the business will operate online between 9am-8pm, Monday-Sunday, and between the same hours for its takeaway service, except Sunday which will be between 9am-6pm.

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