A NEWTON Abbot café will celebrate its 29th year of trading in the town at the end of the month.

A popular haunt among residents and visitors alike, The Country Table Café opened its doors for the first time in March, 1996.

And twenty-nine years later the Bank Street café is still going strong, with owner Karen Brady employing 14 members of staff.

The Country Table Café will celebrate its 29th birthday on Monday, March 31, with balloons, banners and teas and coffees at 1996 prices too!

While others have come and gone, it is perhaps not surprising that The Country Table Café has been going strong for close to 30 years, given Karen’s passion for traditional, affordably priced food using fresh quality ingredients from local producers and suppliers.

‘Some people say oh its 29 years and not think it a significant, but I think it is significant because we are still here!’ Karen said.

‘We have real traditional, home-cooked food, some of the recipes are unique to us, the corn-beef hash, the bubble and squeak and so on - they are recipes that we have devised’ Karen said.

‘You can't get them anywhere else’ she added.

And it is not just the classics, Karen is especially proud of her business’ gluten-free and vegan menus, both of which include the Country Table’s signature home-cooked dishes.

The café has come a long way since the late nineties, expanding its floor space in 2003 and running two, smaller satellite cafés for a time, one at the library and the other at the hospital.

‘I think it is only us and the Pizza Café that have had the same owners since the beginning’ Karen said.

Before launching the Country Table with husband Alan, Karen worked at Wolborough School in the kitchen.

‘Some of the children I used to cook meals for come in... with their kids, it is really lovely!’ Karen said with a smile.