Scotland

Glasgow rocks

Hard Rock Cafe Glasgow- 179 Buchanan Street

Blending the city’s historic feel with the energy and vibe of the Hard Rock brand, Hard Rock Cafe Glasgow is housed at 179 Buchanan Street in the restored, renaissance-inspired, 1981 Athenaeum Theatre.

The new cafe employs more than 80 people from the local area and with more than 9,000 square feet of space, and a collection of memorabilia from the likes of Sir Elton John and Rod Stewart, Hard Rock Cafe Glasgow is the perfect dining destination when hitting the city.

The 170-cover venue opened in November 2013 and joins the very popular Hard Rock Cafe Edinburgh to become Scotland’s second Hard Rock location. Hard Rock Cafe Glasgow includes the legendary merchandised-crammed Rock Shop – with Glasgow-specific merchandise – and also has the capacity to cater for private celebrations and functions.

President and CEO of Hard Rock International, Hamish Dodds, said:

“As a proud native of Scotland, I couldn’t be more pleased that our world-famous Hard Rock brand is calling Glasgow home. Glasgow is a truly amazing city with a long history, vibrant culture, rich heritage and of course, wonderful people. Hard Rock is a perfect addition to this beautiful city.”

European Vice President of Operations for Hard Rock International, David Pellow, said:

“Hard Rock is excited to expand our European portfolio to include this unique location in Glasgow, a key market for our brand. Glasgow is a superb musical hub within Scotland, and we look forward to serving Glasgow’s resident and visitors with a one-of-a-kind entertainment package, while establishing Hard Rock Cafe Glasgow as a must-visit dining and bar destination within the city.”

Work began on converting the former theatre into the new Hard Rock Cafe in August 2013 and reached completion in November. Leading architectural and interior design practice Fuse was the interior designer on the project.

Speaking to Premier Hospitality about this exciting new venue, Fuse Director, David Matthews, said:

“Guests enter Hard Rock Cafe Glasgow by the Rock Shop, which is located towards the back of the old theatre. Entry is on an upper ground floor, with the main cafe space situated on a lower floor level. This area is dominated by a very large bar with a stage at the far end – we reintroduced the stage for live performances. There is a fair bit of memorabilia inside as expected with a Hard Rock Cafe.”

One aspect of the project was to ensure the building could be watertight moving forward, as in its former state the structure was suffering from leaks in the ceiling and basement. The flat roof was completely replaced and the basement floor was reworked, with new slabs installed.

David commented:

“There were some fairly significant alterations, but everything was completed with a great deal of respect to the site’s history.”

Hard Rock Cafe Glasgow- 179 Buchanan Street

Hard Rock Cafe Glasgow pays homage to the city’s reputation of remaining at the forefront of contemporary style and trends, with upscale design features and innovative technology which is displayed throughout the cafe’s interior and exterior dining areas.

Hard Rock Cafe Glasgow includes the Rock Wall™ Solo, an interactive touch wall with technology that enables fans to explore the world’s greatest rock ‘n’ roll memorabilia collection and virtually tour the company’s venues around the world. In addition, memorabilia from Hard Rock’s iconic collection adorns the walls of Hard Rock Cafe Glasgow, including a green two-piece suit worn by The Who’s Pete Townshend and an Epiphone Firebird guitar used by Scottish singer-songwriter KT Tunstall.

Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones also joins the long list of legends donning the walls of Hard Rock Cafe Glasgow, with a snakeskin jacket worn during the Stones’ 1978 ‘Some Girls’ tour. Additional artists with memorabilia on display include Alex Harvey, Bay City Rollers, Amy MacDonald, Primal Scream and Big Country.

Guests of Hard Rock Cafe Glasgow are able to enjoy fresh, high quality dishes from Hard Rock’s menu, including a mouth watering selection of 10-ounce Legendary Burgers, alongside the ever popular selection of ribs, chicken and pork choices. In addition to its food, Hard Rock Cafe’s extensive award-winning drinks menu includes Hurricanes, Margaritas, signature favourites and Alternative Rock (alcohol-free) beverages.

Fuse has a long standing working relationship with Hard Rock International, the company behind the Hard Rock brand and it is a very important partnership, as David explained:

“We work for Hard Rock International on sites across the world, but this is the first time that we have completed a site within the UK. We have just completed a site in Istanbul and we currently have projects in Austria, Holland, Kazakhstan, France, Denmark and Spain.

“Hard Rock International is a very important client for us.”

With a total of 174 venues in 54 countries, including 138 cafes, 17 hotels and 7 casinos, Hard Rock International is one of the most globally recognised companies. Hard Rock International owns the global trademark for all Hard Rock brands and owns, operates and franchises Cafes in cities including London, New York, San Francisco, Sydney and Dubai.

Hard Rock Cafe Glasgow- 179 Buchanan Street

Hard Rock is known for its collectable fashion and music-related merchandise, Hard Rock Live performance venues and award-wining website. Starting with an Eric Clapton guitar, Hard Rock owns the world’s greatest collection of music memorabilia, which is displayed at its locations around the globe.

Since it was established in 1971, Hard Rock has been committed to a wide variety of philanthropic causes and activities across the world, and Hard Rock Cafe Glasgow carries this casual commitment to its market too. In every Hard Rock city, staff make it a priority to become a valuable community partner, in addition to participating in global initiatives including the annual Signature Series T-Shirt Programme.

For more information about Hard Rock Cafe, please visit: www.hardrock.com.

Romech Projects Ltd

Romech Projects Ltd specialise in the provision of bespoke mechanical, ventilation, refrigeration & plumbing /heating systems for the construction industry. The company was established in 2004, however between the company’s four main principles Romech Projects Ltd benefits from more than 120 years worth of experience.

Over the years Romech Projects Ltd has developed a diverse and prestigious portfolio of clients, including BT, BSkyB, Co-op, Starbucks, Glasgow University, Glasgow Airport, Hewlett Packard and Holiday Inn, amongst others. Most recently Romech Projects Ltd has worked with Hard Rock Cafe on its new venue in Glasgow.

Romech Projects Ltd Project Manager/Designer, Colin McLatchie, said:

“As this was only the 4th Hard Rock Cafe in the UK it was important for us to work with such a world renowned brand, which has helped heighten our profile in the food & beverage industry.”

Colin added:

“At Romech Projects Ltd we pride ourselves on our attention to detail and our ability to exceed clients’ expectations. Over 70% of our order book/client base is repeat business, and we deliver a quality project on time and within a client’s budget.”

Galgorm Group

Galgorm Group specialises in the design, supply and fabrication of catering equipment to the hospitality trade, including refrigeration and extraction systems. The company has been in operation for 46 years and within this time has worked on an array of projects, including Waterford Institute of Technology, Liverpool Museum, Merchant Hotel in Belfast and Ravenhill Stadium for Ulster Rugby.

Working on Hard Rock Cafe Glasgow, Galgorm Group worked with Hard Rock International to design and supply catering equipment for the new venue. This is the second project that Galgorm Group has worked on for Hard Rock International, having previously worked on Hard Rock Cafe Brussels.

Galgorm Group Contracts Manager, Gary McMullan, said:

“It was very important for us to work on this project. Hard Rock Cafe is a worldwide brand and through our involvement on these two sites we have come to know the team at Hard Rock International well. We have developed a direct relationship with the guys and it is great to work with the team.”

Gary added:

“At Galgorm Group we are proud of the relationships that we have with our customers. We want to ensure that our customers are happy and we provide a service which proves this.”

 

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