Edinburgh coffee caravan closes suddenly as owner issues ‘deep sadness’ statement
A coffee caravan that relocated over 250 miles from the Scottish Highlands to the Edinburgh seaside has been forced to shut – just weeks after it opened.
The Isle of Coffee caravan was a popular fixture on the Isle of Harris before its move to the Capital last month. The small coffee shop, built in a 1961 Swift caravan, has been trading on the corner of Morton Street and Esplanade Terrace in Joppa since mid-May.
But now co-owner Sean Parr has informed locals they will be closed until further notice, due to “irreconcilable differences” with Edinburgh City Council.
In a post on Facebook, Sean wrote: “It is with deep sadness that I have to let the great customers of Joppa know that we are having to shut the Isle Coffee caravan on Morton St and Esplanade Terrace.
“In trying to satisfy the needs of the council we have sadly not met the needs of the community and at this stage these seem to be irreconcilable differences. We hope in the future to find a workable solution and that we may be able to return to our new home.
“In the meantime we are heading back to Harris (good news for our Hearachs) at the end of the week and we will try and sort this all out from there. We are devastated to have caused so much consternation, it was never our intention to bring anything other than good vibes and great coffee when we moved to Joppa.
“We have loved meeting so many wonderful, friendly and joyful locals – it is a truly fantastic place to live and we have been made to feel so welcome by so many people, we just hope we can sort things out and come back to Joppa.”
Locals expressed their sadness at Isle of Coffee's sudden closure in the comments.
One local wrote: “Really sorry to hear this, I enjoyed my post-swim coffee and was looking forward to many more. Your caravan was an asset to the Joppa end of the prom. Hope you manage to sort something out soon.”
Another said: “Please don’t give up! Your coffee and your happiness and upbeat look on life has been such a joy to have. Hope to see you back on Morton Street very soon.”
A third commented: “Sean, this is such rubbish news. I was so hopeful that this situation could be resolved. Really such a shame – you were a welcome addition to Joppa. Hopefully it will get sorted in the future.”
Edinburgh City Council has been approached for comment.