Clissold Park cafe contract awarded

Eighteenth century Clissold House. Image: Hackney Council

Hampstead-based catering firm Company of Cooks has been awarded a five-year contract to run the Clissold House Café and Pump House Kiosk. The refurbished café is part of the park’s £8.9 million makeover.

Hackney Council’s decision to restrict bids to run the café to enterprises with turnovers over £1 million sparked outrage among local businesses, many of whom felt they had unjustly been priced out of the competition.

The café, which will boast improved access for the disabled as well as rooms for private hire, will open its doors this autumn.

Company of Cooks manages cafés at Chiswick and Kenwood houses as well as Regents, Hyde and Greenwich Parks and the Imperial War Museum.