PLANS for a cafe and restaurant with sweeping views of across the Thames Estuary have been unveiled.

Leigh-based SK Architects has revealed its plan for a two-storey restaurant on East Beach, Shoebury, to replace the wooden cafe ravaged by a fire more than four years ago.

The plans include a ground floor bistro cafe and a first floor restaurant for evening dining.

The environmentally-friendly building, which will have two kitchens, will be partly powered using solar panels.

Chartered architect Steven Kearney said the cafe and restaurant would serve breakfast, lunch and dinner.

He added: “The ground floor cafe will serve the beach users with teas, cakes, breakfast and lunches and the upstairs restaurant will be for the evening.

“One of the walls of the restaurant will be glass, to give people great views out over the estuary.

“We have themed the design of the restaurant on the beach huts which are a traditional part of the seafront and the building will be brightly coloured to reflect this.”

Both the cafe and the restaurant will be able to seat 100 diners.

Residents nearby have been waiting for a replacement cafe after planning permission was granted more than two years ago.

Laurie Gaymer, 63, of Gunners Road, said: “It will be a wonderful thing and we need to inject more into the Shoebury economy.

“It is absolutely excellent and it is an upmarket move for the area.”

Simon Mudd, 42, owner of Essex Kitesurf, on the beach, said: “It is a fantastic idea and it is about time something happened.

“Shoebury is an up-and-coming place to be now.

“The beach has a lot going for it, but it lacks certain things and the introduction of a nice restaurant and cafe would be great for the area and hopefully it will bring more people here.”

However, David Schindler, 35, who lives next to the beach, in George Street, claims the new design is too big for the beach and not in keeping with the surroundings.

He said: “It is going to bring commercial activity to a very quiet and sleepy part of Shoebury and there will be more noise at night, as well as parking problems.

“We want a very similar cafe to the one there before as it was nice and pleasant and it was open when the beach was busy, during the day.”