Mill Kitchen& Bakery

Ben Hicks has run Mill Kitchen since April 2022, when he took over the café inside Sunny Bank Mills from its original founder Ailsa, who opened it after moving from Oxford. The bakery turns out bread, cakes and pastries from an on-site kitchen each morning, including a vegan pain au chocolat, before the café opens for breakfast and brunch service. Eighty-four covers spread across an inside dining room and an outdoor terrace within the old mill complex, a former textile works now given over to studios, a museum and independent shops. Mill Kitchen sources ingredients locally where it can and hosts community events through the week, from craft markets to acoustic sets, alongside occasional evening trade and venue hire for private functions. Its spot beside the mill's soft play area makes it a fixture for local families.