Business partners Luke Kerlin and Jamie Shepley have revealed the name of the cafe inside the former Knights Meats building will be "Mr Lawrence" after the original building's name - T. Lawrence & Sons.

The cafe will be in the old coolroom and meat-hanging area, with 25 seats inside, and a 25-seat terrace on Fitzmaurice Street. The duo are planning to sign on with Toby's Estate for their coffee beans, and are waiting on a liquor license to be finalised for a planned fine dining twist on the cafe's offerings.

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"We're going to do a fine dining chef's menu on Friday and Saturday night to keep our fine dining roots alive, we've worked in fine dining most of our lives," Mr Kerlin said.

Once the cafe is up and running the duo have ambitious plans for a 'stage two' which will see a fine dining restaurant constructed at the rear of the old Knights building with a view of the Murrumbidgee River.

As to a precise opening date, Mr Kerlin says the cafe, originally promised for late July, will be open within a few months, with delays to the building side of things and new Covid restrictions throwing an unforeseen spanner in the works.

"Are opening date is going to come up quick, but it's hard - because of Covid, there is shortage of timber and tradies," Mr Kerlin said. "It's a hard time so I can't put an exact time on it but I hope we'll be open in a couple of months."

The cafe will operate inside the old Knights building alongside a high-end home centre run by local businessman Jason Pearce.

Mr Kerlin said with the evolving situation, it is hard not to be anxious about opening up a hospitality venue that no one can currently dine in, but that they are confident the community will rally behind them.

"We're in a massive pandemic which is a scary thing," Mr Kerlin said. "Everyone is struggling to pay bills, it's a scary time, it's hard. There is so much uncertainty in starting a business but even just in general life."

He said despite the jitters, they are completely committed to opening the project and have been adjusting their plan according to the changing health advice.

"We're making adjustments, focusing on takeaway," he said. "We're definitely going in there, we're definitely going to be a cafe, but obviously we need to adapt to NSW regulations and Covid."

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