Report this comment
  • "Whist I wish Ms Mills success with her new venture in Brighton, I feel I have to grumble about the 'cafe' in Hove Lagoon.

    We used to take the children down to the Lagoon in the autumn / winter and have a a nice steaming mug of tea & cake and treat the kids to some chips or something similar.

    In the summer when we visited, they looked forward to ice creams. We visited VBites once to give it a chance. It looked very nice, but was very expensive and unappealing - I don't want to pay through the nose for a cup of tea with soya milk. I am not alone, I don't meet my friends there any longer if we are out for lunch. We prefer Hove & Buckingham Parks. Such a shame that this cafe is located in this popular park."
  • This field is mandatory
  • This field is mandatory

  • Please note we will not accept reports with HTML tags or URLs in them.


  • Enter the above word in the box below

Please be fair, courteous and respectful to the views of others so we can build a vibrant community in a safe online environment. You are personal liable for your comments and action will be taken against anyone who offends, ridicules or posts malicious and damaging views. If you wish to complain, please contact us.

Heather Mills to open new café branch in central Brighton

5:10pm Thursday 7th February 2013 in News By Tim Ridgway , Local government reporter

Heather Mills plans to open a branch of VBites in East Street, Brighton Heather Mills plans to open a branch of VBites in East Street, Brighton

Heather Mills looks set to open the second branch of her vegan café in Brighton.

The former model opened the first VBites venue in the former Big Fish Café at Hove Lagoon in July 2009.

Despite the park café not opening in the winter and receiving mixed reviews, it appears Paul McCartney’s former wife wants to spread her wings and expand her fledgling business in Brighton and Hove.

A licence has been issued for VBites to trade in the former Aloka spa and café store in East Street, Brighton.

This means, once refurbishment is complete, the café could freely operate.

According to information presented to Brighton and Hove City Council, the second floor will be converted into a place for live music and educational films.

The restaurant will be restricted to the ground and first floors.

In the Hove Lagoon café, meals range from meat substitute burgers and New York-style hotdogs to Mrs Swirly dairy-free soft scoop ice-creams.

Love affair

Many dishes feature meat substitutes made from plant-based ingredients from Redwood, Ms Mills’ food company.

Within a month, it was claimed between 700 and 1,000 vegan products were being sold at the cafe every day.

When launching her café, Ms Mills said: “I’ve always had a love affair with food, ever since I began cooking when I was nine.”

Aloka spa and café closed suddenly in September when a notice was put up in its window.

Mike Booth, chairman of parent company Aura Soma Products, said he was planning to open a new spa in the city but he was tight-lipped on where it will be and when it will open.

Transferred

Brighton and Hove City Council confirmed that the licence has now been transferred.

There are no restrictions on the opening time. However, recorded music can only be performed from 8am to midnight.

Alcohol can only be sold from midday to midnight, Monday to Saturday.

These are both restricted to 11.30pm on Sunday.

Ms Mills was unavailable to comment at the time of The Argus going to print.

See the latest news headlines from The Argus:

More news from The Argus

Follow @brightonargus

Daily Echo on Facebook - facebook.com/southerndailyecho Like us on Facebook

Google+ Add us to your circles on Google+

Local Businesses

About cookies

We want you to enjoy your visit to our website. That's why we use cookies to enhance your experience. By staying on our website you agree to our use of cookies. Find out more about the cookies we use.

I agree