When we opened Dolly’s in July 2011 we joked that Hebe the
Labrador was our Unique Selling Point.
Before opening the tea room, Dolly worked at Amos & Penny Vets in
Penryn and Hebe would go along to work with Dolly and sit behind reception with
her friends Molly and Jack the spaniels, and she built up a long list of
friends who would bring her presents and give her tummy rubs.
We decided to make Dolly’s dog-friendly and we refer to Hebe
as Head of Security. She greets
customers at the top of the stairs (sometimes a little too enthusiastically),
accompanies them to their table and will sit patiently with them in the hope
that they will order food. She has her
own fan club. Dolly was walking through
town recently and had a pig’s ear thrust at her for Hebe! She was even given Christmas presents from
Dolly’s regulars. She loves Sam the post lady but her favourite visitor is
Sandra from the butchers – no prizes for guessing why.
Unfortunately since setting up the business Hebe has gained 4kg (much to the frustration of Emma and Kelley from the vets). Well, she is a Labrador after all. The Hoover doesn’t get much action when Hebe
is about. We have had to put a notice on
the tables asking people not to feed her but we feel her persuasion methods are
not all together above board. Although
she has never been placed in ‘dog with the most appealing eyes’ at the Landerio
Show we believe she is using them to her advantage. She is not allowed at the bar on really busy
nights, as it is impossible to keep tabs on her. She has, though, on occasion visited Mango
Tango and 8 Bar!
If Hebe takes any time off from the bar - she recently went
to St Mawes on the ferry with her friend Ruth – there are disappointed
customers. The staff at Dolly’s are
heard to say, ‘Oh she’s out at the moment and will be back around 4.’ We are aware that some people only come to
Dolly’s because of Hebe. She has even
managed to convert some anti-dog people to a point of woofer toleration. She has been wearing a strong of pearls for the last couple of weeks, in celebration of the Jubilee and now of course it is Ascot Week..... She is very pleased with her new look and the attention she is receiving.
