Home of fine cooked breakfasts, Sunday roasts and plenty of good chat, The Market Cafe in Huntly has solidified itself as part of the community over the last decade.
Cafe owner Fiona Forrest took over the cafe at Huntly Auction Mart ten years ago, in what she tells me was a “massive gamble”.
“I thought, it’s either going to work or it’s nae,” she says.
“But it’s been a great success for me.”
Fiona, who describes herself as “chief bottle washer” at the cafe, leads a small team of six at The Market Cafe – all “local ladies”, she tells me, who know their community well.
It’s a family affair at The Market Cafe, with Fiona’s daughters, Abbie and Lucy, helping out at the cafe too.
What is the offering like at The Market Cafe in Huntly?
53-year-old Fiona has worked in the food and drink industry for nearly 40 years, since she began working as a waitress in the Union Hotel in Turriff at just 14.
Now, she runs the Huntly cafe, with a focus on “traditional, good food” on the menu.
“It’s homemade, wholesome food: macaroni cheese, soup, fish and chips, stovies, mince and tatties, all those sort of things,” she says.
“You can’t go wrong with that.”
Sweet treats in the form of cheesecakes, trifles, scones and other desserts are also on the menu at the Huntly cafe.
Fiona and her team also host popular roast dinners on Sundays, and offer outside catering for weddings, events and parties.
Fiona tells me about a recent interaction with a new customer that brightened up her day.
“A gentleman says to me: ‘Who’s the owner here?’
“I was just picking up dishes, and I said: ‘That’s me.’
“We don’t have fancy seats or fancy tables here, we’ve just got a normal, basic run of the mill café.
“And he says: ‘You might not have fancy seats, but by god, you’ve got bloody good food!’
“That made my day that.”
‘I think we’re a big part of Huntly’s community now’
The Market Cafe is popular with workmen for breakfasts, says Fiona, and many other customers come from further afield to enjoy the casual, friendly environment and, of course, the great grub.
“We’ve got a huge returning customer base here,” she tells me.
“Lots and lots of people come twice a week, three times a week, sometimes maybe four times a week,” she laughs.
“A lot of people from Huntly come out here to have lunch or catch up with friends.
“It’s quite a good base for people coming from Elgin or Inverurie, people use it as a meeting point in the middle to catch up with friends and family.”
The familiar faces that come back to the cafe time and time again make the hard work worth it, says Fiona.
“It’s hard work, this industry, but to see the returning customers, you think: we can’t be that bad, can we?
“Folk come in every other day some of them, and they’re looking forward to coming to see you. And it’s great to see them.
“You build up a really good relationship with those people as well.
“We’ve made lots of new friends.
“I think we’re a big part of Huntly’s community now.”
I ask Fiona if she has a message to these loyal customers.
She says: “A great big thank you to them all, for keeping us in our jobs!”
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