Cindy Smit is happy that her daughter Stacey is up to monkey business, launching Yellow Monkey Coffee in the Bundaberg CBD.
Stacey Smit will realise a dream 15 years in the making when Yellow Monkey Coffee opens its doors at 90A Bourbong Street to the Bundaberg Region public in early March.
And when the day arrives, she will have Cindy working right beside her – just as she did when the pair operated the popular Yellow Monkey coffee van throughout the region over the past year or more.
The pair are co-owners of the business alongside Stacey’s partner Luke Johnston and are eagerly awaiting the outcome of Stacey’s plans which have been slow brewed over the past 15 years.
Stacey said she had enjoyed the coffee van ride while it lasted but a more grounded option had always been the goal.
“We just decided that we needed a permanent location for our coffee,” Stacey said.
“We had the van, and I just loved it, but it was just moving around, and it didn’t feel like home – and that’s what I want.
“I want my customers to feel like they’re coming home, so we needed to find a solid location.”
And the additional good news for coffee and breakfast lovers is that the café, located at the site of the former Rosie-Blu cafe, will be open on Sundays.
Stacey said her team intended to create a family-friendly atmosphere that would provide a welcome Sunday morning coffee option for shoppers and those looking for a relaxing coffee, breakfast or lunch.
Stacey has been making coffee for a living since she was 16 years old and is excited to be bringing that experience to the new café, along with an old school menu she hopes Bundaberg Region residents will love.
“We've got the big brekkie, smashed avo, brekkie wraps, and for lunches we have club sandwiches, quiches, lasagnes, fish and chips – just the old school café type food,” she said.
The only sad note for Stacey as she awaits the opening is the fate of Yellow Monkey van which coffee lovers are likely to have seen operating at events and locations throughout the Bundaberg Region.
“We’re selling it,” she said with obvious regret. “We've just got to get the coffee machine out, it’s the last thing to go, and then we're going to clean it up and say goodbye.
“We put a lot of money and a lot of work and time into that van to get it up and running, so it will be a bit sad to see it go.”
Cindy said she was proud of her daughter’s drive to realise a long-held dream to manage her own café and looked forward to working together in what she hoped would be a busy kitchen.
“It means the world to me, helping my daughter succeed in a lifelong dream and always being there to support her,” Cindy said.
“I’ve always being proud of everything she's done, and she's come a long way.”
Yellow Monkey Coffee at 90A Bourbong Street will open early in March and operate Tuesday to Friday from 7am to 5pm and weekends from 7am to 2pm. It will be closed on Mondays.
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