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04
Aug
Harrogate wine merchants reveals further expansion plans
A well-known Harrogate wine merchants has lodged plans to convert a storage area into a bar.
Ake and Humphris on Leeds Road opened a small in-store wine bar in January following an “amazing response” to an outdoor pop-up bar last summer and on weekends.
But the company is now looking to expand further, as plans submitted to North Yorkshire Council seek approval to turn a storage unit to the rear of the site into a bar.
The boarded-up windows in the photo above, which face St George's Road, would be turned into an entrance to the new bar, should plans be approved.
Tara Stagman, finance director at Ake and Humphris, told the Stray Ferret:
With a little help from Anna at Caswell Design, we now have some really good-looking plans for converting our existing storerooms to the rear of the building into a beautiful, relaxed wine bar over two levels, with improved facilities and its own dedicated entrance on St George’s Road, as well as enhancing the outside seating area.
The new bar will be split over two levels (pictured below).
Plans say the front section will feature the bar area and a small number of seats, whilst the rear section will be seating only.
The existing outdoor seating area on the Leeds Road side of the site has proven popular, plans say, so the owners wanted to offer a bigger, more permanent bar that can open year-round, no matter the weather.
The new bar would serve a range of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, as well as cold meats, cheeses, bread and olives.
The application says:
The proposal would provide the local residents with an area to sit inside as the external area has previously been very popular within the local community. The section of the building currently boarded up will be revitalised with a new window and doors.
The external area will be levelled out to provide easier access to the new wine bar, with landscaping to be used to provide this area with a more dedicated entrance.
The existing outdoor seating area on the Leeds Road side of the site.
Retractable awnings are also proposed at the site, as well as new planters and fencing.
Ms Stagman also told the Stray Ferret:
This has been the natural next step following the success of our pop-up wine bar at the weekends in front of Ake & Humphris on Leeds Road last summer.
It started when we all brought in our garden furniture and set it up outside the shop, like a Spanish roadside cafe, to test the idea of sharing wines by the glass on the premises. Honestly, we were surprised by how popular it was! Existing customers and newcomers quickly filled the space and got chatting to each other and there was a real sense of good-natured community and plenty of enjoyment of some great wines.
By the end of the summer, we had pages and pages of names and signatures in support of opening a bar to serve customers all year round.
Ms Stagman said the new bar will be unveiled before Christmas and the team hope it will seat up to 40 people.
The new bar would open until 11pm on Fridays and Saturdays, and 10.30pm on Sundays. The outdoor area will continue to close at 9.30pm.
The council will issue a verdict at a later date.
Second bar
The news comes after Ake and Humphris last year announced it had taken over the unit formerly occupied by Shurupody on Harrogate’s Oxford Street.
The company is set to open an upmarket wine bar at the site and told the Stray Ferret the bar will “definitely be open in time for Christmas”.
“We’ve got some really exciting plans for the space, making it the perfect place to shop for wine gifts and whisky, or sit down and enjoy a relaxed glass of wine along with great cheeses, charcuterie and other light bites”, Ms Stagman said.
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