A COFFEE shop owner has said she felt "overwhelmed" when she found out she had scooped a Good Food Award earlier this week.
Flavia Popa, mum to two daughters, moved to England from Romania 14 years ago and has spent the past seven years living in Wirral.
39-year-old Flavia, who lives in Bebington and describes herself as a "coffee maniac", decided to open Our Coffee Shop in Spital in 2018 after wanting to "open a place with good quality coffee".
Speaking to the Globe, she said: "I am really proud of the coffee we do, as it is proper barista coffee, and the staff are all Barista trained.
"After the coffee came the cakes because I always loved baking from a little girl with my mum.
"I wanted to share my baking with the world because everyone loves cakes. Everything is made by me, so it has my signature on it.
"Initially, I wanted to share my Romanian roots but then I realised English people really love traditional cakes!"
Flavia describes her bakes as "traditional but with a twist" and says "everyone loves them".
She also now serves breakfast and brunch and said it is "such a great feeling when you get nice feedback as it makes you want to carry on and get better".
Flavia and her team of three others were "shocked" when they found out they had won a Good Food Award.
"I didn't even know who had registered or nominated us so it came as a complete shock", she explained.
"We’ve been overwhelmed already with other awards, winning the Best for Dessert and Afternoon Tea with the Wirral Globe, but this one is for the UK so it is an even bigger deal.
"It was the best feeling and it’s all due to the customers. If they didn’t share us or appreciate us none of this would happen.
"They are amazing. I am blessed to be here in Wirral."
Flavia praised the support of her customers and said that the "continuous appreciation and daily compliments warms my heart".
"We know our regulars by name, but we welcome everyone", she said.
Our Coffee Shop is located on Spital Road.
Find out more about the coffee shop here.
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