Northern Ireland's only Narnia themed cafe facing closure - so get down there

Sadly, Belfast’s only Narnia themed cafe is facing an uncertain future, amid fears it could only have six more weeks to trade.

I finally paid my first visit to The Lamppost Cafe on the Newtownards Road last week, treating my five-year-old to a glass of milk and a coconut slice in the entrancing icicle-hung winter atrium at the rear. We were presented with a pink rose as we left.

I was shocked to read on Facebook later that day that the cafe’s days are numbered, even as work draws close to completion on the nearby CS Lewis Square, an ambitious landmark on the new Connswater Community Greenway which will feature statues of characters from The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe.

The plaza will be dotted with characters such Aslan, the White Witch and Mr Tumnus and, sited as it is at the intersection of two greenways, is sure to become a hub for CS Lewis fans, families and more - which will make it very sad indeed if the Lamppost Cafe has closed its doors by then.

According to Belfast Live’s Jilly Beattie, the Lamppost Cafe is a favourite of legendary East Belfast musician Van Morrison who is partial to their hash brown breakfast.

She reports that the cafe faces closure next month after battling to get customers past bonfires, traffic jams, roadworks and a new bus lane that has swallowed up parking spaces.

Stuart Leitch, who opened the CS Lewis inspired cafe just over a year ago, says it has been repeatedly hit by problems outside his control. The cafe hosts supper clubs, music sessions and parties and is open seven days a week.

“When I was a child my mum always read me stories by CS Lewis and being in east Belfast was the perfect opportunity to honour him and offer our customers a bit of magic,” he said.

“This was my dream and now it looks like it’s going to be shattered. We offer amazing food, beautiful surroundings and a lovely atmosphere but it seems like month after month we’ve faced another problem outside our building,” he said.

“We were so pleased when Van Morrison came in that there was a lot of excited, silent screaming in the kitchen and then I pretended it was perfectly normal to have a global star drinking tea three feet away from me.

“He has the hash brown breakfast and was very quiet and we left him in peace to enjoy it, and I thought that was that.

“Then he came in again and again and now we count him as a regular and we are very grateful.

“Sadly the new customers we’ve been hoping for have not come in the numbers we’d like, and our regulars still keep coming back but maybe not as often because they’ve been put off by a number of problems I can’t control.

“The traffic jams outside the building have been nuts because of the road works, the road works were noisy and made parking tricky.

“Then the parking we had outside the cafe was swallowed up by a bus lane.

“Every time we came up for breath it felt like someone was pushing our head under again.

“And customers can only be expected to put up with so much and now that things have settled down, I’m worried we only have about six weeks left to trade and let people know we are well worth a visit.”

So, if you think a CS Lewis themed cafe might float your boat, get down there and support them - before it disappears forever.