THE owner of a popular and long-running village cafe has been presented with a prestigious award.

Staff at The Garden Cafe, based at Lawford’s Craft Nurseries, were presented with the Essex Fine Food and Drink award for customer service at a glitzy ceremony.

The ceremony was held at Downhall Country House Hotel, near Bishops Stortford.

Owner Karen Harries, of Church Lane, Brantham, said the award was a “perfect send-off” for her, as she prepares to leave the cafe she has been running for 10 years.

“It was a brilliant ceremony, we had all 12 of the staff and my husband there,” she said.

“We found out about a month prior we were down to the last three, but we didn’t find out we had won until that very evening.

“It was just incredible.

"I wasn't expecting to win at all.

“It is a credit to the staff, who all work really hard.

We have a really lovely group of staff and we’ve always been a bit of a family.

“Many have been with me a long time – some nine years.”

The cafe serves breakfast, lunch, tea, coffee and award-winning cakes, but Karen feels it is time to move on.

“At the end of this year I will have been running the cafe for 10 years,” she added.

“I have given up the lease and will be leaving on December 21, so this was a fantastic end to it.

“I have enjoyed life with the cafe immensely.

“But it is time to move on and find a new venture.

“I will stay local, but I have no idea what the owners of the site will do with it the cafe.

“The staff were informed in July to give them plenty of time.”

Karen also praised her customers both old and new, who were responsible for putting forward nominations for the award.

“We’ve got some wonderful customers, we were only nominated due to them.

“It isn’t the amount of nominations that wins it, but the comments that are made with the nominations – they must have said some lovely things.

"I would have loved to have read some of them.

“Many of the regulars are really sad and asking what I’m doing next.

It is sad, but it is time to move on.”

This isn’t the first recognition the little venue has received.

It also received the Tea Room Cake award at the first National Cake Award competition in 2013.

The Garden Café at Craft Nurseries, in Lawford, is not closing, and a new manager is in place to take over.