ONE of Glasgow’s most popular bars has been given a comprehensive makeover by Pacific Building.
And the end result drew praise from the clients, who described it as “fantastic”.
The Drum & Monkey on St Vincent Street in the city centre is renowned for being a traditional pub of unique character, revered for its eclectic range of real ales and its down-to-earth food.
A former a bank building, it retains an air of grandeur. Built in 1924 by the eminent architect Andrew Balfour, the style has been compared to classical American architecture of the time.
It is a former CAMRA Pub of the Year, and it has a spacious interior with plenty of nooks, crannies and booths to hide away in, as well as an ornate, corniced ceiling to admire.
Together with the cornicing, the magnificent island bar, wood panelling and marble columns give it a grand air but this is a friendly city centre pub where everyone is welcome.
St Vincent Street, on which it sits, marks the British sea victory over the French off the coast of Spain in 1797.
The hostelry is operated by the giant Mitchells & Butlers stable of restaurants and bars under their Nicholson’s brand.
The Drum & Monkey was closed for three weeks during the rapid refurbishment, which involved:
- Ceiling suspension for new lighting
- Installation of feature copper beer tanks in main bar area
- Formation of new stairs
- New balustrades
- New bar top, underbid, back bar and uppercut
- New hardwood floors
- New carpets
- Decoration
- French polishing
- New beer fonts
- Soft drink dispensers
- Electrical installations
- Ladies’ and gents’ washroom makeovers
- New furniture
- Plumbing
- Replacing bric-a-brac
- New bottle fridges
- Timber restorations
A spokesman for M&B’s design team said: “A big thankyou for all your help on this project. It looks fantastic and we very pleased with everything you have all delivered.
“You did a great job sorting out some of the issues that arose – very much appreciated. Pleasure to work with you all and look forward to working with you on the next one.”
Mitchells & Butlers are the United Kingdom’s leading operators of restaurants and bars with more than 1700 businesses in their portfolio of well-known brands.
