Darlington’s oldest café the Three Squares Café open for 80 years

Gavin Dobson, from Darlington, has owned Three Squares Café on Skinnergate for the lastten years. However, the history of the café goes back a long time.

Three Squares Café has been trading for approximately 80 years, but before that it was an ice cream parlour.

Gavin took over the running of the business from his mum and dad in 2016 and said the café has been in his family for the past 15 or 16 years.

He explained how he took on running the café.

“My mum and dad were looking to downsize and retire, and they asked if I wanted to take on the running of the business,” he said.

“It is something to keep the tradition going. I employ my wife and my dad; it is family-run. Being the oldest café in Darlington, it is a big responsibility to keep it going as traditional as we can.

“We’ve kept it that way, we’re not changing anything. That is one of the reasons why I wanted to take it on, to keep the traditionalism and keep the flame going.”

Gavin said he was initially nervous at taking over a Darlington institution, but said he got used to the responsibility.

He said: “It is like a badge of honour running a business that is an institution and well-known in the local area.”

Gavin also works in public service and said he can draw many parallels between that and running a café.

He said: “In public service you have got that professionalism. It is the same with running the café; you treat people how you want to be treated.

“It wasn’t really difficult adjusting from public service to running the café.”

The café is also a big draw for a number of people after featuring in the 90s BBC drama series Harry.

Gavin says he sees people coming from all over the world, including Australia, the US and the Middle East who reminisce about the café.

His wife Louise added: “Last year, two ladies visited who were now living in Australia.

Louise and Malcolm Dobson of the Three Squares Cafe in Darlington. (Image: SARAH CALDECOTT)

“They hadn’t been in Three Squares Café since they were 15 years old and they were about to turn 80.

“They left with a funny story about being barred from the café but couldn’t remember why. However, it was their favourite spot for picking up boys.”

Gavin also said advertising for Three Squares Café reached the 2022 Fifa World Cup in Qatar.

He said: “A lad who was a steward at the 2022 World Cup came over on his days off because he’s from the area.

“He knew about the café and he said, ‘I have seen your post in Qatar’.

“You get people from all over the world coming here. A couple came from the US last year because they had links to Darlington.”

And Gavin said having people visit the café from all over the world who reminisce about their time spent there is one of the best parts of running it.

“It is amazing to hear all those stories,” he said.

“It is the same tradition of the bacon sandwich, the cup of tea, the coffee, even speaking to members of staff.

“Some of the customers who come in, it might be the only meal they have for the day, so you get some elderly customers coming in.

“It’s their routine, it’s part of their life coming in for their breakfast. It is a big thing in people’s lives as well.”

Being Darlington’s oldest café, the owner of Three Squares Café spoke of the continued importance of supporting independent businesses.

He said: “It’s not just us alone in Darlington, there are lots of other independent businesses.

“There are hairdressers, dentists, cake shops. Other business owners will sometimes pop in the café and vice versa.

“It is all that shared retail we have in common. It is really important that independent businesses should be recognised for their hard work and what they do.”

Gavin did say running a business is “not easy” and said it is important for anyone thinking about starting a business to “go and research”.

He said: “You have to make sure you are committed. Running a business is not easy, you need to be hardworking, loyal and you need to be switched on more than anything because you just don’t know what is around the corner.

“Bills could rise, and our electric bills have gone up. There could also be local issues such as parking or potholes, delivery drivers getting stuck.

“It is a lot of things you’ve got to contend with. You have got to be on the ball to make snap decisions at the same time.

“Anyone thinking about running a business now, do a lot of research and make sure that you are prepared for any eventual challenges because you just don’t know what’s around the corner.”