Café bar in County Durham for sale

A café bar in the centre of Darlington, County Durham, that has been run by the same family for 73 years has been put on the market.

Crombie’s Café Bar is a 75-seat licensed café bar and restaurant that occupies the first floor of a three-storey building in Tubwell Row, opposite the Cornmill Shopping Centre.

The second floor is used for storage but could be converted into extra trading areas, owners’ accommodation or office space.

One of the oldest businesses in Darlington, the café bar was founded in 1933 by Jamie and Katherine Crombie and has passed down two generations to the current owners, grand-daughter Maureen Stehr and her husband Frederick.

It is a regular haunt for performers at the Civic Theatre and will benefit from the on-going redevelopment of the town, including the pedestrianisation of the centre.

Crombie’s won the local Herald & Post Restaurant of the Year award in 2002

The Newcastle office of Christie + Co is seeking £315,000 for the ‘virtual freehold’ on the property, which is hold on a long, 999-year lease.

By Angela Frewin