In her second-go-round as a cafe proprietor in Windsor, Margo Keegan brings her wealth of experience – in both food and fashion – as well as her love of community to George St Loft.
Margo and her mother originally opened a cafe in Windsor (in the same location) in the 2000s. “I fell in love with this little cafe way back when, when mum and I had it,” she recalls. With a gap of six years in between that cafe selling and the opening of George St Loft some 10 years ago, Margo feels she has “come full circle”. “The last 10 years was when I finally decided it was my time to do my own business. I realised Windsor needed some really good, healthy, local food that’s got soul and food that really shows love, love on a plate, because Windsor was lacking that in a big way.”
Prior to Windsor, Margo’s career began in fashion before detouring into merchandising and then finding her niche in hospitality. “I’m a creative person; I come from a creative background. My mother was a fashion design and textile teacher and I studied fashion, so I’m all about the visual,” Margo states. “Fashion is what you see, and food has a very similar aspect. If you like what you see you will want to buy it. You eat with your eyes, the same as when you dress.”
To that end, George St Loft is an inviting space with displays of jams, marmalades and relishes; freshly baked sweet treats; and a menu boasting yummy dishes made from locally sourced produce, including honey, and coffee from Underground Coffee Roasters in Penrith. “We do a lot of home-baked and seasonal food; whatever’s in season, we tend to gravitate to it. Our menu is fairly standard but we try to introduce specials through each season,” Margo explains.
George St Loft also boasts cosy, indoor seating, a communal table, and an outdoor courtyard, not to mention friendly staff. “I think it’s really important you feel comfortable the minute you walk into a space; that’s the most engaging thing. If you walk in and you are greeted not only by really good staff but by a really good environment, that’s the initial start,” Margo says. “Once you follow that through with the visual presentation of amazing food – as long as that follows through onto the plates and then into the mouths – that’s it in a nutshell.”
“I think I’ve created a family within my work place. We call them ‘the community’ but so many of my customers are like family,” Margo says. “I think it’s important that the people who come here feel like family.” And no doubt the George St Loft regulars feel exactly that way.
7/266 George St, Windsor NSW 2756
Ph 02-4587 9222
www.georgestloft.com.au
