‘This is the end’: Toowoomba CBD cafe shuts permanently

THE owner of a popular Toowoomba cafe has expressed his sadness in announcing the venue would close permanently.

Engine Room Cafe owner and chef Terry Jennings.

THE owner of a popular Toowoomba cafe has expressed his sadness in announcing the venue would close permanently, after new coronavirus restrictions crushed patronage.

Terry Jennings, who bought the Engine Room Cafe on Railway St five years ago, revealed he would shut the doors and let go of his 18 staff after losing 80 per cent of his business.

“How do you find the words to say goodbye when your heart is so broken?” he wrote on Facebook.

“This is the end my friends. We’ve fought hard and done our best but sometimes that just isn’t enough.

“We won’t recover. We won’t be back.”

The venue was a popular breakfast cafe in Toowoomba, and renowned for having the city’s best breakfast.

It also added the “Big Benny”, a giant Eggs Benedict, to its regular menu two years ago.

Speaking to The Chronicle, Mr Jennings said the decision to close was necessary after suffering such a massive drop in business.

“We were doing everything within our power (last week) to stay open, and the government has pulled the rug out from under us,” he said.

“It was better to close the doors than drag it out for another month.

“The government should’ve stepped in a week ago, said everyone is closed and that would’ve made us survive.”

Mr Jennings said he wanted to thank customers and the cafe’s landlord who had supported the business over the years.

“We’ve had Toowoomba’s best breakfast, and if it wasn’t for our customers we wouldn’t be where we are,” he said.

“The landlords in general are getting a harsh wrap right now, so I’d like to thank ours for everything they’ve done for us.

“The government really needs to step in and do something for landlords in this country.”