Eat Botanic’s new owner Ray Kharel is turning the popular North Orange cafe into the city's newest evening destination.

“When I moved to Orange, I came here to have a coffee and as soon as I saw the place, I fell in love,” says Ray, sitting in Eat Botanic’s shaded patio dining area.

“I told my wife, this is my dream project. One day, I'll run this myself.”

Originally from Nepal, Ray worked as a restaurant manager and venue manager while studying in England and has been in the industry for 15 years.

Moving to Australia, he worked in a number of restaurants in Sydney before deciding to make Orange home. 

“I was looking somewhere to settle down, and I found Orange. I don’t like it too hot, so I actually left a job at Noosa Heads to move here,” says Ray.

After three years in local restaurants, Ray jumped at the opportunity to take on Eat Botanic when it arose earlier this year, and he has a vision to make it much more than just a cafe.

“This is a community space, but closing at two o'clock makes it very hard for people like the mums and dads working and when they bring their kids to the park in the afternoon, the cafe is closed,” says Ray.

“And if you are living in North Orange and you want to get a cup of coffee or a glass of wine, you need to go to town; there's nothing.”

Eat Botanic is now open from 8am to 8pm, with breakfast until noon, lunch from 11am to 2.30pm, and coffee, cakes and slices available all day. But in the afternoons and evenings, Ray invites people to come and enjoy a glass of local wine or beer and one of the best views in the city.

“I think this is one of the best locations to see the sunset in Orange,” he said. “So I’d love people to come and have a local wine, local beer or cocktail, and one of our cheese platters or meat platters and enjoy the sunset from up here.”

As well as collaborating with local wine and beer makers, Ray has made sure to source local produce for the Eat Botanic menu where possible.

“What I want to do is showcase Orange to the people who come here,” he says. “The Botanic Gardens is one of the landmarks for visitors, so when they come here and try a wine, if they like it, they can go to the winery and buy it. It’s about helping each other business in Orange. I'm trying to be local at Eat Botanic as much as I can.”

Affordability and great customer service is also a priority for Ray at Eat Botanic.

“It’s about talking to people, asking how they are going and making them feel welcome. That ambience and atmosphere,” he says.

Eat Botanic is also now doing High Teas, which can be booked from Tuesdays to Sunday.

And as the weather warms, Ray plans to introduce a Tapas-style evening menu. 

“I’m looking forward to welcoming everybody to come enjoy the tapas, enjoy the sunset, nature and the view to Mount Canobolas.”

Eat Botanic is located at 302 Hill Street (next to the Adventure Playground and Orange Botanic Gardens) and open from 8am to 8pm, Tuesday to Sunday.