The opening of an eagerly anticipated new coffee shop in Ipswich town centre is set for later this year.

Honey + Harvey, which has two popular branches in Melton and Woodbridge, is set to open in the former Mambos Bar and Grill in Queen Street.

Plans for the eatery were announced in 2019, but the building, which had been empty for several years, needed more work than originally anticipated, and then the pandemic caused further delays.

Earlier this year, signage appeared on the outside of the building with the message "Coming soon".

But now Jackie Ha, chief operating officer at the independent bakery chain, said: "We're probably looking October or November at the moment.

"We've got the clear-out done, we've just got to finish organising and ordering everything.

"And there's obviously lots of delays in ordering anything and everything at the moment so we're aiming to be open by Christmas."

In March, Mr Ha told this newspaper that the new coffee shop was hoping to be open in August.

But he said: "We'd rather it was done right. We're not in any rush for it to be open, we just want everything to be perfect in there — and we're pretty happy and confident it will be."

The chain had a strong response when it announced the new Ipswich branch, receiving more than 1,000 comments on social media.

Honey + Harvey, founded in 2011 by Harvey Allen, is known as a casual dining eatery with a focus on organic local produce.