A famous café and bakery is set to open its first branch in a former garage outside Cambridge. Fitzbillies, renowned for its Chelsea buns, will open the new café in Harston, marking Fitzbillies’ first premises in South Cambridgeshire.

It is expected to create seven new café jobs alongside relocating existing bakery employees to Harston. Planning permission was awarded by South Cambridgeshire District Council at the end of 2025 to convert a repair garage in Harston into an artisan bakery with a café.

The bakery, office, and café functions will be in a single building, allowing customers to see Fitzbillies’ goods being made fresh on site. The 105-year-old bakery was founded in 1920 on Trumpington Street. It now has three branches in central Cambridge and an off-site bakery on Clifton Road.

Current owners Alison Wright and Tim Hayward became involved with the business in 2011. They have since grown the business, opening a second branch on Bridge Street in 2016 and a third on King’s Parade in 2023.

Alison Wright, co-owner of Fitzbillies, said: “Harston is the perfect next chapter for Fitzbillies. For years, we’ve wanted to bring our bakers and our customers back under one roof, and this site gives us the space to do exactly that. We hope the café will become a real hub for the village; somewhere for local people to meet and socialise. We can’t wait to become part of the community.”

Fitzbillies instructed Carter Jonas to find a relocation site for the bakery operations in 2024. An existing Ducati motorbike sales and repair garage at 59-61 High Street in Harston was identified as the preferred site before Carter Jonas submitted the change of use planning application.

John Mason, Associate, Planning and Development, Carter Jonas Cambridge, said: “Carter Jonas’ commercial, building surveying and planning teams are delighted to have assisted Fitzbillies in securing their new site, negotiating a favourable lease and securing a planning consent. We look forward to trying one of their famous Chelsea buns when the new branch opens in the summer.”

The new café’s opening hours will be Mondays to Fridays from 7.30am until 6pm, Saturdays from 8am until 6pm, and 8am until 6pm on Sundays and bank holidays.