A South African-inspired restaurant at a popular tourist spot has closed.

The Saffa Bru served its first customer at Folkestone’s Harbour Arm just seven months ago but now its unit sits vacant. It is hoped a new vendor will take it on.

Owner Keaton Randall has been a chef for 12 years and told KentOnline in May that the two upcycled shipping containers, which the space is made up of, were a “great opportunity”.

The unit is home to both a street food-style service hatch and an indoor seating area.

Despite the closure, bosses at the Folkestone Harbour & Seafront Development Company (FHSDC) – which owns the popular harbour arm – are hoping a new business will take it over.

General manager Paulo Kingston-Correia said: “Industry-wide in the UK, 60% of restaurants will fail within the first year. A further 80% won’t make it past three – five years.

“At Folkestone Harbour, however, it is a very different story.

“The vast majority of those who have traded on our site either continue to trade for many years, expand and open new businesses on site or grow into a brick-and-mortar premises in town.

“Whilst we’re always sad to see traders leave, we’re equally excited to see what exciting new offering will come in its place.”

Thousands of people visit the harbour arm every year, following a huge multi million-pound renovation project in 2016.

It is now home to restaurants, a food and drink market, bars, a market, rides and mini golf. It also attracts the crowd with its outdoor screen, which shows films and sports events for free.

The Saffa Bru unit is one of several opportunities harbour bosses are welcoming applications for at the moment.

In October, the huge and blue Big Greek Bus closed after eight years of serving customers on the arm.

Bosses at the bus confirmed they would be embarking on “something very new” but remained tight-lipped on their future plans.