If you’re based in a town with a history of flooding, having a name like Waterside Café might seem rather ominous. So it proved in December 2015 for this veggievegan eatery, when a torrential deluge hit Kendal in south Cumbria, causing huge damage to homes and businesses alike.
Waterside’s owner, Magda Szymanska- Linowiecka, remembers the fateful day: “A policeman came round first thing that morning to warn us of the risk, then at 11am we were forced to evacuate the premises.” The adjacent River Kent rose to unprecedented heights, sweeping into the café and art gallery next door.