A POPULAR art gallery will be left without a cafe from the end of this month.

The Tearoom, on the first floor at Peter Potter Gallery, Haddington, will close its doors on April 30.

Helen Gray, who has run the business for the past year, confirmed that it was to shut.

She said: “There are a lot of different reasons [for closing] but the main one is that it does not make enough money.

“It is off the High Street [at The Sands]; years ago they used to queue up here but there are now so many eating places opened up.”

Mrs Gray will instead concentrate on her other business, The Tearoom at Tranent Asda.

She said: “We have been very successful along there and been there for nearly 10 years, first when it was the Co-op.”

Mrs Gray, who lives on Haddington’s Davidson Terrace, confirmed that the four members of staff at the gallery cafe would not be joining her in Tranent, with one already having found work at Merryhatton Garden Centre.

She thanked all the customers who had supported the business over the past 12 months and said: “The people we have had were very nice and very complimentary to myself and the staff.”

Arabella Harvey, director at the gallery, which opened in 1976, said: “It’s the first time the cafe has ever operated as an individual concern, and we’re currently having a very interesting and exciting conversation with a number of people locally about how we are going to take the cafe forward.

“The cafe is a really important part of Peter Potter Gallery and we’re keen to make sure it offers something high quality and unique in East Lothian, and that it’s a good fit with the gallery in terms of its ethos and commitment to supporting East Lothian producers.

“We’re also interested in developing more seasonal menus using local and foraged ingredients, as well as using the space for evening events now and again.

“We’d love to hear from people in relation to what they’d like to see in the cafe in terms of opening hours, food and atmosphere.

“To that end, we’re holding an open weekend on May 7 and 8 where we’ll be offering people free teas, coffees and cakes in return for feedback about what they’d like to see in the cafe, which is a much-loved space by people of all ages and backgrounds.”