Farndon Boathouse
Riverside, Farndon, Newark
Full Refurbishment & Extension
In Early 2008 we purchased what would become The Farndon Boathouse. It was a dilapidated Portuguese Restaurant, in a stunning riverside location with private boat moorings.
We acquired the site freehold and totally renovated it, constructing a huge extension in the style of a wooden 'Boathouse' with large bi-fold doors, wrap around decking and raised terrace to take in the views.
For the interior we went for an open airy and industrial feel with a slight Nautical twist.
Gastro Pub Brand
The food was mainly twists on British classics plus grills and seafood. 'Gastro Pub' was the word of the moment!
There was nothing like it in the area.
We gained an AA rosette in 2011 and later we gained 2 rosettes for culinary excellence which we held until we sold the Business. We were also shortlisted for the best Nottinghamshire out of town restaurant and best newcomer in regional awards.
The idyllic waterside location and fantastic food made Farndon Boathouse the haunt of choice for scores of discerning Nottinghamshire foodies as stated in one local newspapers.
We implemented all the values from Tom Browns of fresh food and attentive yet unobtrusive service as it was a winning formula.
We also used digital marketing and social media to push the brand, changing the menus seasonally.
Events are a great way to help spread the word!
We put on a list of special events, wine evenings, live music and themed food nights throughout the year.
The highlight of the calendar a fantastic annual 'Garden Party' event for 450 guests. The current operators still host the event to this day.
We covered the front car park in Astro Turf to create a garden overlooking the river with picket fences and a stretch tent . We put in a stage for the bands and DJs then sold the restaurant as the VIP area overlooking the Stage .VIP guests had a banquet and the standard ticket guests had a fabulous BBQ buffet . We finished off the evening with a huge fire works display.
We really enjoyed creating the brand and basically building the restaurant pretty much from scratch. It really was a unique venue and gave us the confidence to do our next venue just 18 months later which was three times the size.
We had also found our company identity and a real natural draw for customers. All of our venues over looked the River Trent, and were considered beauty spots!
