A CAFE which was forced to close as the Covid pandemic hit has re-opened on Southend seafront and is aiming to become a hit for years to come.

The Attic cafe, on Eastern Esplanade, was once hugely popular for fry-up breakfasts and serving delicious, fresh and locally sourced food to diners.

Owner, Carol Carr, ran the cafe for four years prior to the Covid pandemic and was heartbroken to close after business took a huge hit when people were ordered to stay home.

Since, the building was re-opened as a tapas and cocktail-style cafe but it later shut at the end of last year.

Carol has been joined by new manager Jo Buzer, and chef Richard Haye, and the team are confident of once again making the cafe a big hit.

Jo said: “We are so excited to open.

“Attic has been completely relaunched with a revamp, and whole new feel about it.

“We still want to be known for our great fry-up breakfasts, however there are a variety of different lunch options.

“We are back, but with a new revamp and a new feel.”

Attic was previously also used as a training cafe for people with special needs, giving them the opportunity to obtain new skills to work towards paid employment.

Bosses hope to soon continue its community work and carry on what was done at the business previously.

Alongside the “full attic” breakfast, the café also offers lunch options such as tacos, tortillas, jerk chicken, tiger prawns, and more.

Jo added: “It has been a really positive response from the community since opening.

“The weekend was really, really busy, and the weather was lovely too.

“We wanted to open before the summer so people can come through and see that we are here and back.

“We are open until 3pm at the moment, but going forward we hope to do some weekly evenings, and pop-ups too.

“But it has already been so positive, which is great.”