AS the new dog friendly cafe opened officially on Saturday, The Gazette got a first glimpse inside the new venue.

Willows Coffee House, located at the bottom of Church Street, is described as a "dog friendly" haunt for owners to enjoy a tail wagging and wide range of doggy treats.

Speaking about her new adventure, owner Mary Stevens, told The Gazette: "I got made redundant from a large financial services company for 35 years and I wanted to put something back into a town that gets knocked a lot.

"There is no decent coffee in Basingstoke, so I thought why don't I use the redundancy money to do something a bit different and give Basingstoke something nice."

Posted by Basingstoke Gazette on Saturday, 8 August 2020

Canine vistors and their furry friends can expect to chew on speciality coffee from Winchester to doggy icecream, as well as vegan, gluten and vegetarian food.

The dog friendly cafe was inspired by Mary's late father, who used to be the Mayor of Basingstoke from 1988 to 1989.

"Dad had a passion for Basingstoke and hated the fact it was called donut city, and was the local councillor for Kempshott," Mary continued.

The shop's opening times are 7.30am from September to catch the businessmen and women in their morning commute, and they will close at 5pm during the week.

On Saturdays, the opening hours are 9am to 4pm and Sundays they will be shut.

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