Team at Nightingale House Hospice's Caffi Cwtch

Beyond serving delicious dishes to visitors from the community, the café's proceeds also contribute to supporting patient care at Nightingale House.

Peter Jackson, catering manager, and head chef, has managed the team at Caffi Cwtch since it opened seven years ago.

Nightingale House Hospice's Caffi Cwtch.

He explains more about the busy café's role in the community: "The team is made up of nine paid staff and about 50 volunteers. We provide food not only for customers but also for all our patients in the Inpatient Unit and that are on the Wellbeing Programme. That's why we don't take orders at the café between 11.45am and 12.15pm because patients are always our priority.

"We have customers who come to the café every week. There have been some that have been coming here since Caffi Cwtch opened, like the Rotary Club, who come almost every Wednesday morning since we opened."

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Peter added: "The café isn't just for customers who want a bite to eat, it's also a place where patients' relatives come before or after they have visited their loved one. Sometimes they come to the café for some downtime when they are visiting. Occasionally, patients themselves will come to the café too."

The Caffi Cwtch team is passionate about creating tasty dishes for customers and patients to enjoy, but sometimes patients have specific dietary needs.

Peter said: "We easily cater for different patient requirements. Even when patients have special diets, like soft or pureed diets, we make food that tastes good but can cater to their needs. Some patients need food to ensure their medication works properly, the patients benefit from the food being prepared fresh on the day, and we can cater to their tastes.

Ina Holland, Peter Jackson and Beatrice Williams at Nightingale House Hospice's Caffi Cwtch.

"We try to get to know the patients, build a relationship with them, make sure they are happy and eating. If a patient would like something, we will always try our best to provide it, even if we have to pop out and get the ingredients, especially for them. We have had some out-of-the-ordinary requests before, like porridge with garlic and ginger but we do it. We always accommodate everyone's tastes."

Caffi Cwtch is a testament to the profound impact that a well-prepared meal can have for people, particularly in the context of a hospice.

For more information, please get in touch with rachelle.mclachlan@nightingalehouse.co.uk