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Branching out with Browns Bar & Brasserie

Contemporary cuisine is being served up at the brand new Browns Bar & Brasserie in Newcastle.

Browns Restaurant & Bar

Contemporary cuisine is being served up at the brand new Browns Bar & Brasserie in Newcastle.

Located on Grey Street in the city’s central conservation zone, Browns Bar & Brasserie Newcastle is the latest in a long and successful chain of Browns restaurants to open in the UK. The 200-cover restaurant switched on its ovens for the first time in April and has already proved a hit with local diners.

Owned by bar and restaurant management group Mitchells & Butlers, Browns Bar & Brasserie has been serving simple, classic and freshly prepared dishes since 1973. Although food is important to Browns, the location of each restaurant is also a key ingredient for the chain’s continued success and this latest site is no different. Browns Bar & Brasserie Newcastle is housed within a Grade II listed building and has retained many of the features of its former existence as a bank, offering a unique eating experience for the North East.

Browns Restaurant & Bar

Sandeson Ltd was the main contractor on the project and Harrison was the interior fit-out designer.

Harrison Senior Designer, Andrew Kirk, said:

“Located on a Georgian street in Newcastle, Browns Bar & Brasserie is perfectly situated in an area of the city that is known for its history. Typically Mitchells & Butlers invest in period buildings and so the location of this latest restaurant is very much in keeping with what the Browns Bar & Brasserie brand is all about.”

Work began on Browns Bar & Brasserie Newcastle in February 2012 and the project was completed in just 12 weeks.

The restaurant is located on the ground floor of a five-storey building and notable features include a solid wooden bar with a polished brass counter top, along with limestone and reclaimed oak block flooring. All of the lighting in the restaurant is provided via bespoke LED lights, whilst large sash windows provide additional illumination.

Browns Restaurant & Bar

Exterior work on the building included the restoration of stonework and the installation of a freestanding menu and associated signage. Tables and chairs – providing an additional 20 covers –were also added to the entrance of the building in order to allow diners to eat alfresco.

Andrew Kirk said:

“Traditionally Browns Bar & Brasserie are fitted into buildings that already have their own unique style. We then borrow elements of these existing features and enhance them with Browns’ own scheme to create the perfect dining experience.

“We begin with the back of house areas to ensure that we provide a workable restaurant that offers impeccable service and then we move on to the remainder of the site to complete the internal layout.

Browns Restaurant & Bar

“Browns retain a traditional style regardless of where they’re located and this creates very strong brand recognition. We may tweak the colour scheme a little and the furniture may become a touch more relaxed from time to time, but each restaurant will always retain its own unique classic style.

“The feedback for Browns Bar & Brasserie Newcastle has been great and clients Mitchells & Butler are extremely pleased with the opening of the site. This is another great restaurant and another great investment in their already successful portfolio.”

Browns Bar & Brasserie Nottingham

Browns Bar & Brasserie Nottingham opened its doors in February 2012 with a champagne and cocktail party to welcome diners to the latest site in the East Midlands. The restaurant is situated on the corner of Park Row and East Circus Street in Nottingham city centre and is just one minute’s walk from the Nottingham Playhouse and five minutes from the city’s Cathedral Quarter.

Browns Restaurant & Bar

Before being transformed into an exquisite eatery, the Nottingham branch of Browns was formerly a Victorian house that existed in a semi-derelict state. As part of the work to transform the site, a great deal of conservation work took place to return the building to its former glory. Work included the reinstatement of many existing features including door frames, floors and ceilings.

The interior design of the restaurant features a cream and black colour scheme, whilst the drinks bar runs along one of the main walls and leather booth seating provides a comfortable dining experience for guests.

Additional features of the restaurant include spacious dining rooms, a large open fireplace and a feature clock. A conservatory is also located towards the rear of the building.

Browns Restaurant & Bar

As part of the refurbishment and conversion of the building, an extension was built along one side of the restaurant to connect an external courtyard with the site.

All of the new elements of the building – including the extension – were designed and built to match the existing features of the site.

Harrison Senior Designer, Andrew Kirk, said:

“There is a positive buzz about Browns Bar & Brasserie Nottingham and since it opened it has been a very successful site. The new build elements and the existing features create an interesting contrast of styles – creating a selection of different dining spaces – and it has really transformed this building.”

Browns Restaurant & Bar

 Browns Bar & Brasserie Birmingham

Located next to Selfridges just outside Birmingham’s prestigious Bullring shopping centre, the 2-storey Browns Bar & Brasserie Birmingham opened in November 2011. As well as offering up a selection of fine foods and real ales, the restaurant has a range of signature cocktails to tantalise the taste buds.

The restaurant is situated within the Bullring’s Dining Quarter, which includes Nando’s, Pizza Hut, Jamie’s Italian and ChaoBaby. As the Dining Quarter opens late into the night, this site is the perfect location for Browns and provides shoppers with a place to dine once the shops have closed for the day.

Browns Restaurant & Bar

Harrison Senior Designer, Andrew Kirk, said:

“Recently Browns Bar & Brasseries has started opening sites within new builds, usually within retail districts or shopping centres. These sites allow us to add a new facet to the Browns Bar & Brasserie brand by modernising some of the traditional elements of the brand so that we can create restaurants that are relevant to a different target market.

“With this site being located next to Selfridges, a somewhat outrageous yet iconic landmark building, this new restaurant had to be as equally dynamic in its design so that it didn’t get over shadowed.

“From a design point of view we got a great deal of enjoyment out of trying to fit the Browns style into this site and it made this a very interesting project to be a part of.

“We had to design the interior to look very organic in its shape and then we introduced a fully reclaimed bar feature on the ground floor to create a focal point for the restaurant. Although the building was new, we didn’t eliminate the sense of history that Mitchells & Butlers like to maintain within the brand and we made sure to include reclaimed materials where possible within the site.

Browns Restaurant & Bar

“Along with the Bullring, we’ve also completed work at Bluewater shopping centre in Kent and there are more restaurants in retail areas in the pipeline.”

Browns Bar & Brasserie Manchester

Browns Bar & Brasserie Manchester opened in January 2011 on the corner of York Street and Spring Gardens. When the site opened, it marked the first time in eight years that a Browns Bar & Brasserie had opened outside of London.

The building is a Grade II Listed structure that was built in 1902 by architect Charles Heathcote and it was chosen to house Manchester’s Browns Bar & Brasserie due to its historic significance.

Spread out over a ground floor and basement level, the Manchester site is a 265-cover restaurant that serves breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea and evening meals. Browns Bar & Brasserie Manchester is also surrounded by a number of high-profile eateries including Rio Ferdinand’s restaurant Rosso and Jamie Oliver’s diner, Jamie’s Italian.

Prior to housing the restaurant, the site was a former bank and many of the site’s existing features were therefore retained, restored and incorporated into the finished design. A wood panelled manager’s office was retained and transformed into an intimate private dining room, whilst ornate ceilings and marble pillars were cleaned and given a new lease of life.

Browns Restaurant & Bar

Additional features include an island drinks bar located within the centre of the restaurant and a grand piano, which in turn provides diners with sophisticated sounds as they dine.

Harrison Senior Designer, Andrew Kirk, said:

“As Browns Bar & Brasserie Manchester was installed into a Grade II listed building, a large amount of the existing features – including a great deal of the original light fixtures – couldn’t be altered.

“These features became necessary design considerations that we had to incorporate into the overall style of the restaurant, however instead of creating problems we saw this as a way to add character to the site.”

“I’ve worked on a number of Browns Bar & Brasseries alongside my design partner Joanne Tedstone and one of the most interesting aspects of our job is watching the brand continue to evolve.

“All of the sites have their own unique character and present their own individual challenges, but one of the most enjoyable elements for us is that we get to take an existing design and give it a new twist to suit each site.”

Quartz Electrical & Mechanical Services Ltd

Quartz Electrical & Mechanical Services Ltd specialise in mechanical and electrical installations for the commercial and industrial sectors. The company has branches in the North East and West Midlands and with over 100 staff the company has an annual turnover of £10 million.

Quartz Electrical & Mechanical Services offers its clients a wide range of specialist services from design and installation through to refurbishment, shop fit-outs and 24 hour maintenance.

For Browns Bar & Brassiere, Quartz Electrical & Mechanical Services Ltd conduct all electrical and mechanical works on each site, which includes distribution, lighting, power and rewiring, heating, plumbing, ventilation and air conditioning. The company is involved with each restaurant throughout the entirety of the project.

Quartz Electrical & Mechanical Services Ltd Midlands Manager, Karl Genway-Turner, said:

“Working with Browns Bar & Brassiere is very important to us and we value our working relationship with the brand.”

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