xmas update

Well, it's been an eventful few weeks; been a bit too busy to update this page what with all the turkey and roast potatoes, so here goes... we have had a major funding application approved by the Big Lottery which guarantees the cafe's existence for the next three years. Rosie, who is one of our fundraisers in Innovate Trust, had spent six months on the application, and we found out that it had been approved last week; big thanks to both the Big Lottery and Rosie for making this happen!
Other news: thanks to everyone who came down for a Christmas lunch this year, it had a lovely festive atmosphere in the cafe. We are also now have a Facebook page as Parkview Cafe; if you are into that sort of thing please have a look - it's still under construction at the moment, but I am on a mission to accumulate as many fans of the page as possible, so if you become a fan that would be great.
We will be closing over the Christmas break from Christmas Day to the 4th of January and reopening on Tuesday the 5th of January as normal.
Lastly, a massive thanks to all the staff and trainees, and to all the customers that have supported us over the last year - have a very happy Christmas and see you next year!

Real Radio

We had Chris Moore and the team from Real Radio in the cafe on Tuesday to do a piece on how the National Lottery spends its money on good causes. We have had funding from the Lottery which has helped in all sorts of ways with the cafe (and Baltic Cafe as well) and without which we probably wouldn't be here now... they interviewed some of the staff and trainees and did a bit of filming as well, which will be broadcast from their website . The radio broadcasts should be going out next week.

Early evening opening

We are now open until 8pm on Thursday and Friday, and 12pm to 8pm on Saurdays as well, with a brand new menu for those times - burgers, steaks, tuna and salmon, chips and some new desserts too. Or if you just fancy popping in for a latte and some cake that's fine as well. We're going to develop the menu over the next few months, so we would love to hear your views on what we're doing, and any suggestions that you might have. We don't have an alcohol license, but you can bring your own wine for a modest corkage fee, and we will have the ability to take card payments soon as well.

Maker's market pictures

Next one is going to be on the 27th September; the last one went really well, Tracey transformed the cafe into an Aladdins cave of wonderful handmade crafty stuff; here's a few pictures.

Makers' Market Roadshow

There's going to be a craft fair in the cafe on Bank Holiday Monday - there'll be pottery wheels, jewellry making and all sorts of local makers displaying their wares. There will be tea and coffee available, but no food, I'm afraid. We'll be closed on the Tuesday after that, and open as usual again on Wednesday.

A small victory...

... but one that's made me very happy. If you've ever visited the cafe you will probably aware of the problem that we have with cars being parked outside on Cowbridge Road with For Sale signs in them, which stop customers and local residents from parking. After 4 (!) years of going on to various parts of Cardiff City Council, something positive has actually been done: click on the letter to make it bigger.

Lunchtime menu

Just changed the lunch menu, here's a copy of it (click on it to make it bigger). The steak baguette is a particular favourite, lovely with a bit of horseradish sauce.

Evening opening (and Saturdays!)

From the middle of September, we are going to start to open later into the evening - at first we will be serving hot food until 8pm on Thursday and Friday evenings, and from 12pm to 8pm on Saturdays (hopefully we will be able to open a bit later if we get planning permission). There's going to be a proper grown up evening menu - gourmet burgers, steaks, chips, big salads and some wonderful new desserts, with everything make from fresh ingredients as usual. There will also be some sharing platters and kids portions as well, which will make it a great venue for families looking to eat out. Menus and more details to follow shortly...

Other news: we are going to have a new chef starting any day now (he's just become a dad again so we're not rushing him!) called Adam; he's a great chef with lots of new ideas for the menu. In the meantime, try to enjoy the "summer" as best you can; if it's too wet for the beach or the park we would love to see you in the cafe.

Position now filled

Vacancy now filled, many thanks to all that applied.

Staff required

Rowell's leaving... and we're all going to miss him loads. This is going to leave a vacant post to fill in the cafes, so if you fancy applying, have a look at this advert...

Make A Difference!

Project Worker Catering, 39 Hours

£13,436 - £15,146

Innovate Trust supports people with learning disabilities to live valued lives within their communities.

We are looking for a person with cooking experience who can carry out all aspects of running a catering enterprise. You will also be required to assist people with learning disabilities to learn these skills. You will need enthusiasm and initiative to carry out this varied role.

A driving licence is desirable.

An Enhanced Criminal Records Bureau disclosure is required.

The closing date for this position is Monday 8^th June 2009.

For an application pack please e:mail

christine.cousins@innovate-trust.org.uk

Alternatively call Christine on (029) 2039 1951.

If you would like more information about the role, please contact Rob Khoo on 07984421808 or rob@parkviewcafe.org.uk

Please note CVs are not accepted.

INNOVATE TRUST is committed to

becoming an equal opportunities employer

Dragon Coffee

Many thanks to Robin at Dragon Coffee for supplying us with some rather nice Vietnamese Trung Nguyen coffee beans. There's a website here if you would like to know some more about it.

More Big Lottery cake stuff...

South Wales Echo Article here, and a BBC news one here.

Big Lottery giant cake!

Well, it was huge! Innovate Trust and Parkview have been receiving funding from the Big Lottery Fund for the last few years, and they chose us to show to the public how their money is spent on good causes. To publicise this, we had a five foot wide lottery ball themed cake built in the cafe, which was decorated with the help of our trainees. It was a great day, something we'll remember for many years to come! Here's a few pictures...

The sun is out...

... and it feels positively spring-like round here. We've had Baltic Cafe renovated in the last couple of weeks if you happen to be in the WCVA building in Cardiff Bay; and the menu has changed again in Parkview (check it out on the menu pages). We're going to be having a bib publicity event for the Big Lottery, who contribute a lot towards the funding of Parkview - this will be happening on Tuesday April 21st in the Cafe (and hopefully outside it as well), with all sorts of stuff (tbc) going on. Lastly, we will be closed for a few days over Easter - Good Friday, Easter Monday, and the following Tuesday. Cheers all!

Park View Restaurant.

We're currently in the process of applying for funding from the Big Lottery so that we can open the cafe for longer - in the evenings and on the weekend. Part of our application is getting as many views and opinions from as many people as possible; the more the merrier really! If you would like to be involved in the consultation process, or if you would just like to let us know what you think about these ideas, then we would love to hear from you. You can either speak to Rob in the cafe, or email us on rob@parkviewcafe.org.uk. Cheers!

Winter's here...

Well there's snow swirling around outside at the moment... hope everyone is managing to stay warm. Lots of warming winter food on the menu at the moment, our homemade soups are selling by the bucketload! Vanessa has managed to break her ankle falling off her bike on some icy roads, in case you were wondering what we've done with her; hopefully she should be back with us fairly soon. And we've had a new trainee start on Thursday as well, Emma Stokes, so say hello if you see her. And take care on those icy roads!

Happy New Year

Happy New Year everyone, we're open again now so it's business as usual. We've got a new member of staff as well, Pam, who is doing a fabulous job. We hope you all had a lovely Christmas and hope to see you in the New Year.