Local legend Savour Café celebrates 20th anniversary

Local legend Savour Café celebrates 20th anniversary

Matt and Dan Jefferis are celebrating a huge milestone at Savour Café – 20 years of operating in the heart of New Farm.

Now known for its bustling atmosphere of long-term regulars and their house coffee blend with its chocolatey dark roast, Savour Café was once known as Vue.

Vue was opened in Merthyr Village by sisters Gianna Di Bella and Luisa Stevenson, who the Jefferis brothers had worked with previously, and six months in, they asked the then-21-year-olds to come on board as part owners.

Eventually, Dan and Matt bought out the whole business.

“Our goal was always to own our own cafe by the time we turned 30. So when the chance to become part owners came along, we saw it as a great opportunity. It also became our version of university, where we truly learned how to run a business.” Dan said.

Since 2008, Dan and Matt have been flying solo, and in 2020 they transformed Vue into Savour with a new, bright and airy look in the decor.

For a long time, they served Di Bella coffee, but at the recommendation of Phillip Di Bella, the Jefferis brothers went on to work with Providore Co. to create their own signature blend.

The Savour blend is based on the flavours that people loved from the Di Bella coffee they served, designed with beans from around the world.

The business has worked so well thanks to their different strengths – while Dan’s domain was the kitchen, Matt was the barista, front of house on the coffee machine.

Dan describes their menu as “a combination of customer favourites over the last few years”.

“Some people come and get the same thing every day,” he observed, and said every dish seems to be one of their regulars’ favourites.

Nonetheless, Savour’s food is a continual evolution, with different specials each week giving them a chance to experiment and find out what is popular.

They make all their meals and cakes in-house, with deliveries of pastries for their cabinet from C’est Du Gâteau.

With the opening in 2022 of their express café, Franc, just a few metres away from Savour, they have stepped back from their posts on the floor and now focus more on management.
They have always prioritised hiring staff with the right attitude for the job.

“We regularly get comments on how good our staff are and many of them have formed friendships with our regulars,” Dan said.

Matt added that some of their customers have been coming here for 20 years.

“It is great, it is a good community feel. And we’ve had customers that come in, and then become friends with other customers,” he said.

20 years of coffee and community – that’s something to savour.

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