The Bluebell Hill branch was a former Little Chef on the A229 northbound near Chatham in Kent.
Opened in 1998, Bluebell Hill was a landmark Little Chef site. It was the first of a new generation of restaurants developed by Granada in a new look building. The building itself was manufactured off site and then transported and assembled onsite. This not only allowed for consistency of design but led to much quicker construction times, allowing, in theory, Granada to open more Little Chefs more quickly. The buildings themselves were brick finished with pitched roof, wood trimmed gable to front and slate coloured tiled roof.
Other restaurants at Chippenham, Kettering East, Kendal and Maresfield opened this year in the same style.
Located adjacent to a filling station on a road linking the M2 and M20 motorways this seemed like a good choice of site that should be busy.
However, the sad truth is that Bluebell Hill didn't last very long and by 2005 it had closed. Today the building has been taken over by independent outfit Mickey's Diner. Although a small extension has been added the main building, judging by the gallery on the Mickey's website, still retains many Little Chef features including the lighting, carpet and some signage. Mickey's also operate the former Little Chef at Detling (A249)