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Meet the Member

In the late 1800s, amidst the temperance Loyal customers recall, with fondness,
movement's fervent call for healthier Robert himself tending the roaster, the
habits, a devout Methodist named Robert warmth and the aroma filling the cafe.
W. Stokes found his calling. Not in
preaching, but in brewing.

His passion lay in coaxing hidden flavours
from coffee beans and crafting harmonious
tea blends. With a natural entrepreneurial
spirit, he seized the opportunity at the turn
of the century to open his first shop in the
heart of Lincoln City, where the aroma of
roasting beans became his sermon,
drawing in customers and accolades alike.

Thirty medals, a testament to his skill, lined
the shelves as Stokes expanded his reach.
In 1913, he ventured into hospitality,
breathing new life into the ailing Lincoln
Coffee Palace. Reborn as Arcadia Coffee, it
became the first chapter in Stokes' story
etched onto Lincoln's High Street

Tradition held strong even in attire. Until
When Marks & Spencer made their approach recently, crisp black dresses and white
to purchase Arcadia, Robert Stokes set his lace collars and caps adorned the waiting
sights on a historic landmark - the High staff, lending a timeless elegance to the
Bridge, one of the last remaining medieval experience.
bridges in the UK to embrace living quarters.
But even as history whispered from its JANUARY/FEBRUARY. 2024 | ISSUE 34
Here, the Stokes name became walls, the spirit of innovation
synonymous with the scent of freshly bloomed under the current generation.
roasted coffee wafting through the high Nick Peel, Robert's great-grandson,

street, stirring childhood memories for inherited not just the business, but a
generations. legacy of entrepreneurialism.

www.beveragestandardsassociation.co.uk