Macknade Fine Foods to open new restaurant and shop at Folkestone Harbour Arm later this year
Published: 09:20, 09 June 2022
Updated: 16:29, 09 June 2022
Macknade Fine Foods is to open its latest restaurant and shop at a new seafront location later this year.
The venue, in the Harbourside development at the Folkestone Harbour Arm, will seat up to 120 people indoors and out, and will also have a range of local produce on sale.
Similar destinations already operate in Faversham, where the firm was established, and in the Elwick Place complex in Ashford.
Shane Godwin, managing director of Macknade, said: "Folkestone represents an incredibly exciting phase for us, and our new space forms a key part of the development and regeneration that is taking place across the town.
"The harbour arm itself is a thriving community, and together, we can have even more impact on how people are consuming and engaging with food and drink.
"In true Macknade fashion, we will be showcasing the abundance of fantastic growers, producers and farmers on our new Folkestone doorstep through our menu and on our shelves."
It comes as Macknade announced its decision to decision to pull out of the running of a restaurant at Hoopers department store in Mount Pleasant, Tunbridge Wells, which opened just nine months ago.
The Faversham-based firm says it is "stepping back" to focus on solo projects it is working on around the county.
It will hand back the space to Hoopers to run itself, and all staff will remain employed and there will be no job losses as a result of the changes.
Since opening in 2015 following a £3.5 million refurbishment, the Arm has become a centre-piece of the regeneration of Folkestone's harbour area.
The Goods Yard, which is home to the Harbour Screen, has seen its capacity increased and this summer it will host sports and cinema screenings which will be free to attend for the first time.
Planning permission has also been granted for a new miniature golf course alongside the Little Rock restaurant and Pilot beach bar, while new restaurants with a view of the Channel and famous White Cliffs will open in a complex of shipping containers.
A number of the traders who have started with pop-ups have gone on to establish permanent restaurants in the town.
Paulo Kingston-Correia, general manager for Folkestone Harbour and Seafront Development Company, said: "We are delighted to welcome Macknade to Folkestone as we continue to reinvent the English seaside experience."
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