Bosses of a popular bar have U-turned on their decision to go cashless - after dismayed customers said they would “never drink there again”.

Daisy Guy, one of four owners at The Glass House in Ashford town centre, says the controversial initiative will not be going ahead following the backlash.

The venue becomes the latest business in Kent to discover moving to card-only payments can prove more trouble than it’s worth.

The Glass House opened in a former solicitors’ office in Lower High Street in 2018.

Ms Guy says the coffee house, bar and live music venue has been doing well but they have been looking at ways to save money following Covid lockdowns and amid rising energy prices.

This included going cashless during busy periods - such as at the weekend from 8pm onwards.

But when they announced the plans on their Facebook page, it sparked a negative response, with some punters saying it was a “bad move”.

One woman said: “I won’t bother coming anymore then!”

Several people said “cash is king” while another asked: “What happens when the card reader goes wrong ...free beer?”

Ms Guy told KentOnline the cashless initiative was aimed at trying to “make things quicker and easier for us”.

It also followed complaints about how long people were waiting to be served.

“There are a load of issues that come with using cash,” she said.

“Some customers use fake notes and you can have the best bar staff in the world but there is some human error with change and things like that.”

Ms Guy says the owners do not take any money from the business and it all goes “straight back in to make improvements”.

The Ashford resident, who is also managing director of local criminal law firm Reeves & Co, said: “The Glass House means a lot to me and it's very close to my heart.

“Having loyal customers saying they would no longer drink here if we went cashless was quite hurtful.

“I still think we are going to have issues but I would rather that than lose some loyal customers over going cashless.”

Ms Guy, who has worked in the pub industry for more than 20 years, says they are “exploring other options” to help save money.

“We all know that bars and pubs across the country are closing down at the moment and we are just looking for ways to keep our business successful,” she added.

“I expected some reaction to the decision, but not to that extent.

“We are doing everything we can to avoid putting up the prices of our drinks.”

The Glass House is not the first Kent business to have backtracked on plans to ditch cash.

In November, The Royal Albion Hotel in Broadstairs also scrapped its cashless policy after a backlash from some customers who then avoided the business.

It’s not just the hospitality industry where coins are no longer being accepted, with concerns also raised about leisure centres going card-only, such as Tides in Deal.

Cashless parking charges also cause frustration for some, with bosses at De Bradelei Wharf shopping centre in Dover reporting revenues were down 40% after RingGo-only payments were introduced.

In October, our reporter Sam Lennon did not use cash for an entire week for the first time in his life.

From the experiment, Sam concluded that the credit card is a “flexible friend” and a “handy alternative”.

However, he still believes that you can’t cope 100% without cash.