DENISE BARKLEY meets two sisters bringing the taste of Devon and Cornwall to a little corner of Old Town

TWO sisters have found the perfect brew with their new tea room, bringing a taste of Cornwall to folk in Old Town.

Rosie Lee’s, in Victoria Road, has only been open for a few weeks but its traditional cream teas and cakes already have a loyal following.

Owned by Alison Saunders and run by herself and sister Elaine Cowell, both from Wroughton, the bijou 15-seater tea room is busy and buzzing with customers looking for a traditional alternative to coffee shops. The freshly-brewed teas, scones with jam and clotted cream, and hand-baked cakes are going down a treat.

“We are offering something a bit different in Old Town, and we seem to have struck a chord,” said Alison, 49. “We are getting great feedback from our customers, many of whom are already regulars.”

Alison said that she and Elaine, 45, had dreamed of having their own tea room, but it took a combination of events to give them the impetus.

“Just before last Christmas, Elaine found out she was being made redundant, and at the same time our dad Alan was quite poorly,” she explained.

“My husband Barry and I had booked to go on a Caribbean cruise – it was a well-overdue honeymoon, we’ve been married 11 years!

“But then dad needed to have a big operation on the day we were due to sail, so we cancelled the cruise and got the money refunded through our travel insurance.

“It was one of those moments when you realise life is short, and it was time to do something different – so I decided to use the cruise money to start a tea room.”

And a casual conversation resulted in Alison finding the ideal premises.

“Our daughter Lucy works at Gibson’s Bar, in Victoria Road, a couple of evenings a week and Barry and I occasionally pop in for a glass of wine.

“We got talking to the owner Howard Tucker and I jokingly commented it would be good to make use of the premises during the daytime – and his response was ‘that’s a good idea’!” Alison revealed. “So I said to him ‘are you serious, because we are’ and that was that – it was all quite sudden really, and I think we were a bit shocked we were actually doing it!”

Alison came up with the name Rosie Lee’s – Cockney rhyming slang for tea – for the tea room and it opened in the middle of February. The opening hours are 10am to 3pm Monday to Friday and they are currently trialling Saturday opening too.

The sisters are proud of their teas and cakes and insist on top quality. The tea comes from Dorset Tea and, as well as the popular English Breakfast, there are some more unusual flavours on offer such as strawberry and cream, foraged fruits and green tea with lemon.

The delicious cakes and scones come from the Berkshire-based Handmade Cake Company and, for that true taste of Cornwall, there are strawberry and blackcurrant jams from Boddington Berries in Mevagissey and clotted cream from the famous Rodda’s creamery in Redruth.

A cream tea costs £4.50 and includes a pot of tea – with free refill – a freshly baked plain or fruit scone, clotted cream and jam. There’s coffee available too.

“We guarantee all our cakes are delicious, because they have been personally sampled and given the seal of approval by us!” laughed Alison.

“And we aim to offer a personal service so if anyone would like a particular type of cake, or tea, then they just have to ask and we’ll do our best to help – we always have three or four gluten-free cakes on the counter each day too.

“We prefer people to book ahead by a couple of days for the full afternoon tea, which includes sandwiches, cakes and scones, because that way we can find out about their preferences, or any intolerances, and give them exactly what they like.”

Echoing Rosie Lee’s intimate, quirky style, everything is served up on charming mismatched crockery with teapots clad in bespoke woolly tea-cosies knitted by members of Wroughton WI.

“It’s our village WI, and the ladies very kindly knitted us 10 tea cosies – we have a lovely selection including a beehive, strawberry, pineapple, cupcake, and some stripey ones,” Alison smiled. “They are much admired, and if anyone would like one I’m sure the ladies of Wroughton WI would be able to help.”

The sisters, ably assisted by Alison’s daughter Lucy, are thoroughly enjoying the challenge of running their own family business, and the customers keep coming back for more.

“We have found a niche in Old Town, and people seem to love it,” Alison added.

“We have groups of mums, older couples, younger people who work in the offices nearby, and people on their own who might sit there with their iPad and a cuppa for an hour or more – there’s a nice friendly atmosphere, and no-one seems in a hurry to leave.”

For those in a hurry, cakes can be bought and taken away, and Rosie Lee’s will even deliver. There’s croissants and toasted teacakes for breakfast and filled jacket potatoes at lunchtime too.

l Rosie Lee’s, Victoria Road, Old Town SN1 3BD, call 0775 7034 091, email: rosielees.teas@gmail.com