Bentley services
A12 southbound at J32A
Signposted from the road.
IP9 2JJ
Two sites located between junctions, with no public connection between them.
A complicated history of several sites clustered around a junction. While it is technically possible to move between northbound and southbound here, it's not an official route.
Facilities
Catering: Starbucks Amenities: Travelodge Outdoor Space: Grass verge behind coffee shop Charging Points: EV Point 50kW CCS, 50kW CHAdeMO & 22kW Type 2 Forecourt: BP, Costcutter, Costa Express, Rollover
Parking Prices
Short stay customer car parking is available. There are no formal HGV parking spaces.
This information is provided to us by third parties. You should always check with staff on site.
Contact Details
🏢 Address:
A 12
London Road
Capel St. Mary
Ipswich
Suffolk
IP9 2JJ
Trivia and Design
When the bypass of Capel St Mary opened in the 1960s, there was a flat crossroads here. A pair of garages opened: the southbound garage was positioned directly on the road, before the junction. When the new Ipswich Road was built around the service area, it was provided with an access to the facility.
The forecourt used to be directly operated by BP as one of their BP Connect sites. A Wild Bean Café was added in 2009.
The site was sold to an independent operator in 2014. They removed the Wild Bean Café and briefly added a Mace store. This was replaced by a SPAR store in 2015, before being de-branded in early 2021. The store is now supplied with Costcutter produce, with the only mention of the brand being on the MID sign.
Restaurant History
Forte built a Little ChefHistory on either side of the road in 1986, joining to both the existing filling stations and making use of the space made available by the new road layout. These each gained a Coffee Stop in 1994 and Burger Kings in 1996. This side also gained a Travelodge hotel in around 1992.
Both restaurants closed in 2012, as part of R Capital's axe of sites deemed to be underperforming. This one closed slightly later, lasting until 31 July 2012, becoming a Starbucks store later the same year. This Starbucks store was later sold to Euro Garages who had planned to add a Subway store at one point.
There was once a third restaurant, immediately to the south of here, at the previously junction. This was built in the early 1980s as a Happy Eater. It initially competed with the two Little Chefs, and then pretended to compete while they were both owned by the same company.
Eventually it had to be converted to become a third Little Chef in 1998, but it only lasted like this until 2000, when it inevitably closed. The building went on to become the Harvest Moon Café until 2017, when it was converted into Zaynab Indian restaurant.
Alternatives
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| Colchester (10 miles) | Services on the A12 | Orwell (A14 westbound, 7 miles) Martlesham Heath (13 miles) Beacon Hill (A14, 11 miles) |