Meet N Marrow Darlington to open café in new venue

Meet N Marrow is the brainchild of childhood friends Nicola Patterson and Axel Tucker. The café was due to open on Saturday, September 20 at Firthmoor Community Centre following a successful soft launch.

However, this did not happen.

Now, Nicola has revealed the café has found a new premises in Darlington. She told The Northern Echo: “I am feeling very positive, it is in a spectacular location. We are getting the keys on Wednesday. I don’t want to jinx it and say where it is yet, but it is all getting confirmed.

Axel Tucker & Nicola Patterson (Image: Picture: SARAH CALDECOTT)

“It’s been a rollercoaster, it’s been absolutely mental. The universe has been in my favour this week, and I am absolutely buzzing. I am so happy.

“I am getting all the kitchen units delivered today as well because where we have is completely empty and right in the centre of town as well, which is really exciting. So, it will be a lot better than where it was previously.”

Following the setback last month, Nicola said she considered applying for other jobs and giving up on her dream.

She said: “All that work, all the planning and late nights, I just thought ‘surely not’. So for about a week, I did what any sane person would do and had a meltdown!

Axel and Nicola have said the new location will be in the town (Image: SARAH CALDECOTT)

“I considered applying for other jobs, but I thought through the laughter and absurdity of it all, I realised the fire, the thing that made me build it in the first place, wasn’t gone. It was just buried under a bit of disappointment.

“If everyone stopped when they fell at the first hurdle, no one would actually achieve anything. You have just got to keep going.”

Nicola, who used to be a teacher in Thailand, said she could not have got through the last month alone, as she thanked her friend and business partner.

She told the Echo: “Axel has been amazing, he’s held the line with me, we have bounced between meltdowns and spreadsheets. He stayed steady and kept me grounded. We have built it back and it’s going to be even better this time. I am buzzing.”

Nicola said the café will showcase that (Image: Sarah Caldecott)

The co-founder of the healthy eating café even revealed she has had a message of congratulations from fitness coach and social media personality Joe Wicks.

While Nicola is not saying where the new location will be, she has said the focus will still be that “healthy doesn’t have to be miserable”.

She added: “I can make it dog friendly; I couldn’t do that before. An interior designer is coming in to design the café, with my say.

“It’s going to be extremely natural, even the furniture is getting made out of trees which have fallen down in the forest. I am in conjunction with my local grass-fed butchers who will be supplying the meat.”

She also said the café would cater towards college students too.

She said: “They will be able to grab and go. They will be able to get something that’s going to nourish them and taste nice at the same time, without being expensive.”