Bosses at a Lancaster restaurant are set to branch out by opening a new wine bar and deli in a former amusement arcade.
The team at the Quarterhouse on Moor Lane will soon open the Stonewell Spring delicatessen and wine bar at 4-5 Stonewell in the city centre.
Alan Hempton, co-owner of the Quarterhouse, said they are looking to bring "something that's missing in Lancaster city centre".
The new wine bar and deli, which is expected to be ready to open by late summer, will sell fresh bread, fish, meat, vegetables, cheeses, oils and confectionery, all provided by local artisan producers. And customers will be able to sit in and enjoy a drink too.
The property on the corner of Moor Lane has been derelict for years and was previously home to Colonial Amusements.
Here is how the building looked previously.
It was built by the Baxter family in 1883 to house their successful drapery and grocery business.
By 1900 the family were making their own sodas, tonics and seltzers from water from the nearby Stonewell Spring, noted since the medieval period for its invigorating and strengthening properties.
Work on the premises has been taking place as part of the Lancaster High Streets Heritage Action Zone project.
This is a four-year £2m plus project centred in the Mill Race area of Lancaster, part of the Government’s national programme of investment into high streets led by Historic England.
Locally the project is being led by Lancaster City Council with support from a number of local partners including Lancaster BID and Lancaster University. The project informally began in April 2020 and will end in March 2024.
"Peter Mercer is the developer and he got a grant to bring the building back into use," said Alan.
"We also got some grants from the council to redo the frontage in the traditional 1880s style."
Signwriter Steve Carne (pictured below) has been working on hand painting and adding gold leaf to the windows in a traditional style.
The Quarterhouse opened in 2019 and is run by Alan Hempton and James Cocker, who are both from Lancaster. Here they are with other members of the Quarterhouse team.
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