New pudding shop opens in Weymouth town centre

Naughty Fork Desserts opened on St Thomas Street last week - serving up tantalising waffles, ice cream, milkshakes and more. It has helped provide employment for dozens of local people.

The milkshake bar

The shop, which has opened up at the former Subway takeaway premises, near the town bridge, is reminiscent of a psychedelic, miniature version of Willy-Wonka's chocolate factory - complete with fake grass, Fly Agaric mushroom sculptures, and pastel decor.

Owner Keith Foose, who is also landlord of next door pub Hardy's Hophouse, almost bit off more than he could chew as the near-derelict shop needed a significant amount of work to bring it back into a useable state before its striking new makeover.

Mushrooms, snails and fake grass in the window

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However the finished Naughty Fork shop floor is most certainly looking nice - and almost all the desserts are made on the premises, using local ingredients.

Mr Foose said: "Business has been really good since we opened last Friday - we've had a mixture of holiday makers and locals. Trade is strongest during evenings - we're open from 10am until 10pm every day and also do deliveries during evenings."

According to staff Taylor Kelly and Lauren Weymouth, some of the most popular items include waffles and cookie dough. The only items that are not homemade are the Purbeck Icecreams, which have been proving a hit - and 'Waggy Doggy' ice cream for dogs.

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The business grew from humble beginnings during lockdown - Mr Foose has previously spoken of how he had a brainwave during an evening with friends that led him to set up a dessert business from an Airstream trailer behind his pub.

Much like Willy Wonka's chocolate factory, the wacky idea proved to be a big hit, and Keith was spurred on to establish a more permanent premises for the fledgling business - which led to the new shop being secured.

Staff now work between Hardy's Hophouse and Naughty Fork - with around 26 new employees being taken on in total.

These balloons are actually hand-blown glass, courtesy of nearby Stuart Wiltshire Glass

When the Echo originally covered the story, Naughty Fork was the only dessert offering in the town - however there is now a new challenger to the throne, in the form of Funkin' Desserts - which also opened recently in town.

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However Keith said that a bit of healthy competition is no bad thing - and that the businesses offerings are very different.

• Naughty Fork is open from 10am - 10pm daily, with deliveries between 6pm until 10pm.