A popular Watford café is set to close for weeks to enable a major renovation to take place.

Ocean Bells Coffee, a family-run independent in High Street, has been a hit since opening in 2014 and is now set to double in size.

On Monday (April 29), the business announced that it will shut tomorrow (Wednesday May 1) for three weeks to allow it to carry out the “very exciting” revamp.

Watford Observer: Ocean Bells owner Jon Cao.Ocean Bells owner Jon Cao.

Watford Borough Council approved the expansion plans in January last year, which will see Ocean Bells move into the former Shakeway unit next-door, leased by the café last year, and combine it with the existing space.

Owner Jon Cao, who took over in 2018, explained that once the café reopens it will be able to fit many more customers and introduce an outdoor seating area in the alley to atria Watford at the side of the added unit.

“It’s quite exciting,” he said. “We will have doubled the space and outdoor seating, that is especially exciting.

“We hope that by expanding to next door we can provide more space for customers to come in and enjoy the great coffee and fresh brunch.”

Part of the wall dividing the two units will be knocked down to join them together, according to designs included in the planning applications submitted to the borough council in November.

Watford Observer: Ocean Bells Coffee and the neighbouring Shakeway unit.Ocean Bells Coffee and the neighbouring Shakeway unit. (Image: Ocean Bells Coffee/Instagram)

Signs for Ocean Bells are set to go up outside the former Shakeway, which would also be painted the same colour as the existing café.

Planning drawings suggest the larger site would appear as two separate mirror-image cafes when looking at them from the High Street.

Mr Cao assured customers that everything else will be staying the same and they will be able to enjoy the same coffee and lunch menu, which includes speciality coffee, loose leaf tea, home-made cakes and freshly made sandwiches.

Once work gets underway, the business plans to share daily updates on the progress via its social media pages.