12.63°C Roots and Grooves Café is moving confidently into its next chapter under owners Chelle Luk-Hang and Richard Cosgrove, with the café, vinyl room and music space continuing to evolve at 1 St Nicholas Passage overlooking St Nicholas Square in Colchester.
When we first spoke shortly after the handover, both admitted the experience still felt slightly surreal. Now, with the venue settling into a new rhythm, Chelle and Richard are beginning to see their ideas take shape while continuing to build on the atmosphere and community spirit that made Roots and Grooves such a valued part of the city’s independent scene in the first place.
Neither came into Roots and Grooves from the outside. Both had already spent years around Colchester’s independent music and hospitality scene through DJing, events, record collecting and the venue itself, having both been regular customers before taking over.
For Richard, stepping into the day-to-day running of the venue has brought an entirely new perspective.
“For me it’s been a real learning curve, but a really enjoyable one,” he says. “Coming from the customer side of café and music culture into actually running a space like this has been really interesting. There are a lot of new challenges, but it’s been exciting.”
Chelle says one of the most rewarding parts has been reconnecting with the wider community around the venue, whilst also working with a team who have shown a lot of resilience during the transition.
“We’ve spent a lot of time talking to customers, promoters and other independent businesses,” she explains. “That’s been important because we’ve been able to get honest feedback and really understand how much people care about the space.”
A lot of that feedback has centred around the daytime experience as much as the music programming.
While events remain central to Roots and Grooves Colchester, Chelle and Richard are equally focused on developing the café side of the venue – somewhere people can stop for coffee, food or a quieter catch-up during the day before the space naturally shifts into music and events later in the evening.
One of the first priorities was to adapt the layout to make the venue feel more open and flexible while retaining its familiar atmosphere.
“We quickly realised just how loved the venue already was,” Chelle says. “A lot of what we’ve been doing has simply been about building on that and making the space work as well as possible for different kinds of customers throughout the day.”
Changes have included new furniture, more adaptable seating and the addition of a new bar space overlooking St Nicholas Square.
“That front window area has made a huge difference,” Richard adds. “People can sit, have a coffee, look out over the square and properly enjoy the atmosphere.”
The new pavement seating licence will also help open the venue up further during the warmer months, making the café feel even more connected to the square outside.
“The furniture is much more flexible now,” Chelle says. “People can move things around and make the space work for them, whether they’re coming in for coffee, lunch, work meetings or evening events.”
One of the nicest pieces of feedback has been hearing customers say the venue still feels more opened up despite only subtle changes.
“A lot of people have said it feels refreshed but still has the same vibe,” Chelle says. “That was always really important to us.”
Richard describes the process as adding their own touches rather than trying to reinvent the venue.
“It’s never been about changing what Roots and Grooves is,” he says. “It’s about respecting what was already here while gradually taking it to the next level.”
That same approach has extended to the food and drink offering.
The pair say repeat custom is already a major part of the café’s rhythm, with regular daytime customers steadily growing and the venue’s coffee loyalty card showing the team’s appreciation to local and loyal customers. Roots has become part of many people’s everyday routine.
“We’ve definitely noticed people coming back regularly,” Chelle says. “That’s been really nice to see.”
Food-wise, managers Karli and Alex are continuing to build around items that already have a strong following while gradually introducing unique ideas.
“There are menu items people specifically come back for,” Richard says. “The loaded hash browns are definitely one of those.”
Richard and Chelle have also expanded the drinks offering with a broader range of beers and ales while continuing to refine the menu over time.
Meanwhile, the venue’s vinyl room is being refreshed and reorganised.
“We’ve reworked the layout a bit and made browsing easier,” Chelle explains. “There are some brilliant records in there, and we want people to really enjoy spending time in the space.”
Music culture still sits firmly at the heart of everything they’re building.
“What’s really become clear is just how important this place is as a music space,” Richard says. “Colchester has a strong independent music culture and people genuinely care about having spaces like this in the city.”
Alongside established nights and returning promoters, they’ve also introduced some new programming and collaborations.
“Fridays are becoming more relaxed and music-led, while Saturdays are more dance-focused,” Chelle explains. “We’re also looking at pop-ups, talks and collaborations with other creatives.”
They believe the venue’s size remains one of its biggest strengths.
“Because it’s intimate, people can experiment here,” Chelle says. “Promoters, DJs and artists can try ideas in a way that feels relaxed and creative.”
That flexibility is also helping Roots and Grooves Colchester develop into something broader than simply a café or music venue.
“It’s become a social space where lots of different communities overlap,” Chelle says.
For both owners, independence remains central to what they are trying to build.
“Independent culture is hugely important,” Chelle says. “It keeps things creative and community focused.”
They also point to the support they’ve received from other businesses and venues across Colchester since taking over, including conversations, encouragement and in-kind support from businesses such as Coda, Three Wise Monkeys, Ace Comics, Queen Street Brewhouse, Red Lion Books, Foresters Arms and, further afield, fellow vinyl shop Good Love Records in Brightlingsea.
“There’s definitely a feeling that people want to collaborate more,” Chelle says.
Both now say they feel far more confident in their vision for the venue and how all the different elements fit together.
“We understand the rhythm of the place much better now,” Richard says. “Not just the venue itself, but what people want from it and how the café, music and community all work together.”
Looking ahead, they want Roots and Grooves Colchester to continue growing naturally as a creative and community-led space. They are particularly keen to uncover more of the smaller scenes and creative communities that may not always have had spaces to experiment before.
“We want it to be somewhere people come for great coffee, food, music and ideas,” Chelle says. “A place where people feel comfortable spending time.”
Richard agrees.
“If someone has a creative idea and needs a home for it, we’d love Roots and Grooves to be one of the places they think of first.”
The next stage of that evolution begins this weekend with a launch party on the evening of Saturday 16th May, followed by the introduction of a new weekly Friday hip-hop night led by Shoesy, alongside Bobby Skillz, Komplikated and Chelle.
Going forward, Fridays at Roots and Grooves Colchester will focus on hip-hop culture and more laid-back music-led evenings, with DJs from across East Anglia and beyond joining the programme.
“Every Friday will be hip-hop, apart from occasional special events,” Chelle explains. “It’s about creating consistency while still keeping things creative and open to new ideas.”
Whether you’re stopping by for lunch or coffee, digging through records or heading to an evening event, Roots and Grooves continues to evolve as one of Colchester’s most distinctive independent spaces. You can follow their social channels for upcoming events, menu updates and vinyl news.
