Commuters will be able to grab a hot drink before catching their train as a cafe chain opens its latest branch at a Kent railway station.

Costa Coffee is welcoming customers to its new outlet next to the ticket office at Maidstone East.

It will mark the second in the town centre, with one of its coffee shops already located in Fremlin Walk shopping centre

It also had a store in Maidstone High Street, but this shut at the beginning of last year and was later replaced by another cafe, Real Eating Company.

The latest Costa can be found in the station entrance, which was redeveloped in 2021 as part of a £2.5m regeneration project.

In a statement online, a spokesperson for Southeastern said: “We’re pleased to offer you a new Costa Coffee at Maidstone East.

“If you are getting your morning train or heading home after a long day, you can now pick up your favourite hot drink and tasty treat right at the station.

“Just one more way we’re delivering better journeys.”

It will be open Monday to Friday from 6am to 7pm. On Saturdays it will operate between 7am and 7pm, and on Sundays, 8am to 7pm.

The cafe chain sells a range of hot and cold drinks, including smoothies and bubble teas.

It also offers a variety of pastries, cakes and sandwiches, some of which are supplied by M&S.

Soon, there will be another Costa in Maidstone, with developers making way with the new drive-thru at the Eclipse Park estate, in Sittingbourne Road, just off the M20 at Junction 7.

When finished, the new Costa will feature both inside and outside seating, as well as 28 parking spaces, two disabled spaces and a waiting space.

It is also expected to create the equivalent of eight new full-time jobs.

But some have opposed the cafe, likening it to an “unofficial motorway service station”.

A completion date is yet to be revealed.