Since it inception in May 2021, central to the ‘Destination Status’ of SOLAS has been it ethos of quality, fresh and value food. SOLAS has invested hugely in its facilities which saw revenues in its café rise to over €589,000 (ex-vat) in 2024.
SOLAS’s owners are interested working with true food experts to bring the SOLAS café to the next level, while SOLAS management will focus on other key business areas to drive footfall and revenues.
Seating Capacity
Total Seating Capacity of over 200 spaces made up of
- Indoor area of 54 seats
- Covered and heated Courtyard café of 120 seats
- Outdoor Courtyard and amenity capacity of 60 seats
Kitchen & Ancillary Capacity
- Walk-in Freezer and Fridge: 200 sq ft
- Production Kitchen: 640 sq ft
- Kitchen store rooms: 320 sq ft
- Serving and Till areas: 500 sq ft.
- Natural Gas is used for cooking and heating
- 2 x Stand Mixers ( 1 commercial 1 domestic)
- 1 x UNOX Baker top oven
- 4 x Stick Blenders (2 commercial 2 Domestic)
- 1 x Asber BlastChiller
- 1 x Merrychef Speed Oven
- 1 x UNOX Speed Pro Oven
- 3 x Under Counter Fridges
- 3 x Counter Top Fridges
- 2 x Gas Double Fryers
- 1 x Gas 6 Burner Stove & Oven
- 1 x Robocoupe Food Processor
- 1 x Lincat Grill
- 1 x Industrial Panasonic Microwave
- 1 x Under Counter Freezer
- 1 x Bangs Double Pizza Oven
- Front of house Fridges (under Counter, deli & drinks)
- Freezer
- Full equipment for Catering hot & cold food
Other Facilities
- Sluice room with sinks and washing machine
- Staff Break room
- 7 Toilets (1 staff, 1 disabled)
- 30KW array of solar panels
- Onsite electrical generator which cuts in automatically if there is power outage
- 4 * 22KW gas heaters (individually controlled) covering the covered food court
Special Notes
- Wine Licence
- Opening hours: 10-5pm (option to 9pm)
- HSE Inspections up to date no issues
- 270 Parking spaces
- Dissable acces
- Strong stock & POS system
- Excellent customers review
Relevant Financials
Sales growth 2022 to 2024
Sales per Month in 2024
Possible Business Models
So there are 3 business models which SOLAS are willing to consider business proposals from interested parties. The key objective of this exercise is to find a partner who is competent, honest and committed to working over a medium to long term time frame to turn SOLAS into a truly national destination. In particular the ability to work with the other key elements of SOLAS i.e. Events, Plants & Shop
Option #1 Rental Model
This option is on balance (but only marginally) the preferred option and should be relatively simple to implement as Food area is effectively self contained area with its own electrical meter, Gas meter and facilities. The kitchen and café are both modern, in good condition and there is no outstanding finance.
Option #2 Nominal Rent and Profit share
This option clearly demands a higher level of trust but SOLAS owners are happy to work with the right partners. Within the SOLAS campus there is already 6 different businesses which are operating and thriving based on this business model (which is normally based on 10% of turnover but may be different for the café business)
Option #3 Food Manager with Partnership Potential
A huge part of the success of the SOLAS café is down to hard work and skill of our current food manager Daniella who is returning to Romania in early 2025 to start her family. If SOLAS could find an equally talented and wonderful person to work, the option of moving from employee to partner within a one year timeframe would be positively considered.
Expressions of Interest & Further Information
- If interested contact david @ thegardenshop.ie or phone 086 3475357
- Sales Accounts for FY2024 with breakdown based on month and item type are available on demand
- Timeline: the objective is to have partner agreement in place by the end of January 2025
