A family-run restaurant in Aylesford which has fed chart-topping rock stars, ballroom dancers and TV presenters is closing after 35 years.

The owners of Kits Coty, in Old Chatham Road, Blue Bell Hill, will switch off their ovens and tidy away their napkins for the final time on Sunday.

After the purchase is completed, the new owners, Edenwood Wealth Management, intend to use the restaurant space as an event and conference space for hire.

The company, who hope to move in in March, have also applied to turn residential accommodation above the restaurant into offices.

Chef and owner Allan Casey, 62, described the building as "derelict" when he made the purchase in 1984. However, the establishment later became a go-to place for couples and families celebrating anniversaries and birthdays.

Over the years celebrities such as Sir Cliff Richard, model Kelly Brook, Strictly Come Dancing veterans Ola and James Jordan and Grand Designs presenter Kevin McCloud have dined at the eatery.

In 2000, Allan and his wife Sue, 59, who works at front of house, decided to modernise and turn Kits Coty, named after nearby neolithic monuments, into a brasserie.

Allan, who trained at Thanet College and still works in the kitchen with his son Rob, 34, said: "We have been here as a family from the beginning. It's a very difficult trade to be in, particularly at the moment. A number of high street restaurants are closing so its nice to have been around for a long time."

Sue said: "People come here and say its like coming home. I think its the fact I am always here meeting you at the door.

"Because we have an open plan kitchen people can see Alan working. They just like the personal touch."

Alan and Sue are looking forward to spending more time with their grandchild and welcoming another one next year. However, they haven't ruled out a return to the hospitality sector yet and hope to stay in the area.

Sue said: "We have got to do something a bit less full on. We have given it our all and we have enjoyed it very much."

An application to turn the accommodation above the restaurant into offices and install two car charging points was lodged with Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council on November 27.

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