Cafe & Gift Shop

The Cafe & Gift Shop is currently closed.

Why is the Cafe closed?

After a period of closure due to the impact of COVID-19, our previous operator at Falls of Shin went into liquidation in January 2021. Unfortunately, despite going through two thorough procurement exercises and after speaking to several interested parties, KoSDT have been unable to find a suitable operator for the restaurant and shop. This has not been helped by COVID restrictions, the higher cost of goods and produce, and the difficulty of sourcing staff, which has become a huge concern across the hospitality industry. Given this situation, and after very careful consideration and due diligence, the KoSDT Board and Management is not in a position to open the restaurant and the shop at the Falls of Shin in 2022.

In addition, although the Trust kept the toilets in the building open to the public last summer (at its own expense) this is not an option that KoSDT is in a position to consider this year due to the considerable drain on resources, both financial and physical, to the charity. KoSDT spent a substantial amount of Trust reserves last year to keep the toilets open while doing everything in our power to try and secure a new operator, by undertaking two procurement exercises. However, given increased energy costs and the resources needed to help the community through the current, and ongoing, cost of living crisis, the KoSDT management and Board have now reluctantly decided to close the building for the foreseeable future.

The wider site, including the salmon viewing platform, car park, children’s playpark, path network, motorhome facilities, and the electric vehicle charging point, will remain open and well maintained as this is an important resource to both the community and visitors.

The KoSDT Board will now be discussing the options available with our funders as there are still outstanding grant obligations and securities associated with the funding that KoSDT secured to develop the site. KoSDT are proud to have been involved in this award-winning redevelopment and we are confident that the building can still be an asset to the community in the future through the creation of employment and other economic opportunities. However, given the current circumstances we now feel it is right to explore the best options for the site, and the community, in the future.

We will keep you posted with any future developments as we go through this process.