Cambridgeshire town's first bar with on-site bakery set to open - but you can't get a beer just yet

A new bar is set to open in Northstowe, the new town north of Cambridge that began being built in 2015. Northstowe Tap and Social on Station Road will open its doors for the first time on Saturday (April 13), although alcoholic drinks will not be served due to a hold-up with its licensing application.

During the weekend, the site will only open for food, baked goods, tea and coffee. The original plan, announced earlier in the week, was to open fully on Friday (April 11), but a statement by a Northstowe Tap and Social team explained they are 'absolutely gutted' that this can no longer go ahead.

The statement explained: "Due to a delay in our license application, we are no longer able to open as planned tomorrow evening. However, on Saturday evening, we will be open for food from 8.30am to 5pm, with incredible baked goods, all the coffee and incredible Steak and Honour burgers.

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"Again, we are incredibly sorry it has come to this. We have tried everything we could, to be able to open as fully as planned."

The initial aim was to open the bar by Easter weekend. However, an issue with the internet meant this had to be pushed back.

The owner of the building, Steven Brewer, was motivated to turn it from a warehouse to a bar when he saw press reports about the lack of facilities in Northstowe. Last year, a BBC described a town with 'no heart' and mentioned its lack of GP surgery.

Alex White, operations and marketing manager for the bar, said: "There's a really lovely local buzz already. We are in here most days, and we will see people looking in and already so, so excited - as are the people commenting on social media.

"We have got a really great, enthusiastic team of staff, who are all local and who are passionate to be part of something on their doorstep."

Included in the staff members helping to build Northstowe Tap and Social are: the general manager, Sam Adams, wo has a background of working in Cambridge pubs; and Molly, the baker, who trained at Stir in Cambridge and has worked at Small Town Bakery in Sawston.

Thorne Wines, based in Sawston, helped with the wine list, while Rennet and Rind from Cambridge will supply cheeses.

Alex continued: "We have got the taproom side, with 21 beers on tap. These are craft and local beers. We also have big fridges with takeaway wines and canned beers.

"At the other end, there is an in-house bakery. Molly, our baker, is sourcing local produce. Then, we have a café section, with high-quality coffee, and deli items such as jams and chutneys.

"Steak and Honour burgers will be served from an outside building, next to the main bar site. They will be serving five days a week, and have a lunch offer of 'Hero' sandwiches - rolls filled with amazing cold cuts and salads.

"Upstairs, there is a mezzanine balcony with a big projector for large sporting events and film nights. Next to this, we have a function space that will be available for hire, and which will also be used for fitness classes."

Steak and Honour is a restaurant in Cambridge, which also operates burger vans. Northstowe Tap and Social plans to open from 8am until 11pm, seven days a week.

The bar is just a two-minute walk from a guided busway stop. There is also a car park, for those customers who opt to drive instead.