The owner of one of Nottingham's best-loved greasy spoon cafes has died at the age of 60. Stefan Horan took over BobbersMill Cafe in 1997, by which time it had been going for more than 50 years.
Mr Horan, of Arnold, passed away on February 8 after pneumonia brought on a heart attack. The hard-working father-of-three improved the fortunes of the cafe which was famous for its doorstep 'sos' sandwiches - first served in 1943 - and no-nonsense grub. While some would be offended by the greasy spoon description, Mr Horan proudly stood by it.
His funeral will take place on Monday, March 13 at Gedling Crematorium at 1pm. His eldest son Daniel Horan said: "As some of the staff will be attending we'll be closing the cafe. My dad's only closed it once in 25 years and that was my wedding day, even though he wanted to open in the morning until my mum told him off."
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Born and bred in Nottingham, Mr Horan had been married to Janice for 34 years and was about to become a grandfather for a second time in a couple of weeks. He had worked in electro-mechanical engineering for Premier Pump and Tank before taking over the cafe in Nuthall Road, Bobbers Mill, despite no previous experience in kitchens.
"He'd always come home smelling of diesel so bacon was a bit better than the diesel when he bought the cafe," said Daniel. "He used to get taken into the cafe as a boy and that was the case for a lot of the older guys around Nottingham, so he was always aware of it. Everybody of a certain age knows the cafe.
Daniel, of West Bridgford, added: "He's a big missing piece. Staff are very upset and have been working to keep things going and they said the customers are very shocked. He came into contact with a lot of people and they appreciated that my dad was always a friendly face.
"He put all his energy into the cafe, which didn't leave a lot of energy for when he wasn't there. He'd often get in and go to sleep. He enjoyed a Sunday, which was his only true time off. He made the most of it, always going to the pub for dinner with my mum. He leaves a big hole and a big legacy for the cafe."
When Mr Horan bought BobbersMill Cafe, customer numbers had been in gradual decline for a long time but he built it up, even batting off competition when McDonald's opened across the road.
"It was on the up again and that was down to all the effort my dad put in, making sure there was a good variety on the daily specials and consistency. I think the biggest thing was he worked very hard to keep his prices as low as he could.
"Everything has gone up so he had to do a price increase in November and he should have done it before the summer but he really didn't want to upset any of his regulars. He worked very hard to make every penny count which was then passed on to the customers.
"He was super committed to the cafe. He respected everyone who came in and that's unusual for a lot of places. It was a very eclectic customer base, every type of person came in. He'd lend people money, he'd hate to see them struggling more than they had to."
Mr Horan, who was also father to Stephen and Phillippa, was a dedicated family man. "He put everything into providing. He was always winding my mum up saying he was going to work until he was 70 so they had enough to live on forever - that was his goal. He was a victim of his own success," said Daniel.
"There's a notice in the cafe to let customers know. I know the cafe is very popular with people from all over. He ran it very diligently and the family are at a bit of loss what we're going to do with it going forward."
Mr Horan died in the Queen's Medical Centre after several days on life support. Daniel thanked the critcial care unit, A&E staff and paramedics, adding they had been "fantastic."
Cafe worker Tara Allen, who has worked there for 16 years, said: "Everybody is so shocked by it. He has always been a good boss. He was always someone you could have a laugh with. If you had any problems you could go to him and he would help you. He was like your friend as well as your boss.
"He was always friendly to customers. A lot of customers in the cafe thought a lot of him as well. Even if he was poorly he would always come to work, he always put the staff first before himself. We all feel like the cafe won't be the same without him now."
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