Team behind Wooburn Green pub open new cafe and bakehouse in Cookham

The team running a 16th century pub in Wooburn Green have embarked on a new adventure and opened a café in Cookham.

The Local Café & Bakehouse in Station Hill opened its doors on Thursday, featuring a menu packed with homemade food items and a variety of drinks to choose from, including organic coffee.

The new café has been opened by husband-and-wife duo Marius and Daniela Matei, who have spent the last six years running The Old Bell in Wooburn Green.

Daniela said the pair, who took over the pub in July 2020, had been thinking about opening a coffee shop for ‘a while’.

“We’ve always been very community focused, she said.

“After running hospitality businesses for years, we felt like Cookham is the right opportunity for us.”

With their contract at the pub finishing in April, Daniela has shared fond memories of the pair’s time at the pub.

“It’s very heartbreaking because it’s a very nice community,” Daniela said.

“Our neighbours, honestly, they’re so, so nice.

“Because we’ve been there for six years – you meet the kids, you meet the parents.

“We wanted to create a family pub.”

Customers have spoken highly of the pub and particularly its food in online reviews, Daniela added.

She said that everyone was ‘so happy and pleased’ for the pair when they heard of their new café venture and said they would come and show their support.

Daniela said she has been ‘amazed’ with the support the pair have had from those passing by the cafe.

“This was the perfect location for us,” she added.

The decor of the new café is ‘very warm’ and features a cream and beige colour scheme.

The café provides a variety of drinks and homemade food by Marius, who is a ‘really, really good chef and baker’, Daniela said.

Customers can enjoy breakfast, brunch, lunch and sandwich options as well as homemade burgers and salads.

Breakfast specials include a scrambled egg, bacon and cheddar cheese croissant, while the breakfast and brunch menu offers a full English breakfast and shakshuka.

Visitors can tuck into a grilled steak bowl from the lunch specials menu and enjoy a grilled chicken, pesto, mozzarella, and rocket house focaccia sandwich.

The homemade burger menu features a spicy grilled chicken burger, and guests also have a choice of salads, including a chicken Caesar salad.

Cakes and pastries, handmade and baked on site each day are also available.

The café also focuses on providing organic coffee, as well as freshly pressed juices, smoothies, matcha, waters, soft drinks, mocktails and other hot drinks such as hot chocolate.

“It’s a place where people can relax for a little bit, just to leave their problems by the door and just relax.

“Meet their friends, have some great coffee, great food and just relax,” she added.

Daniela said it is ‘very exciting’ to open the new café.

The café is dog friendly and welcomes well-behaved dogs into the premises.

It is open from 6am to 4pm Monday to Friday and from 8am to 4pm on Saturdays and Sundays.