Emotions ran high at the weekend as the doors to The Newton Park, a well-known pub in the Newcastle area, closed for a final time. The building will not remain shut for long, however, as it has been confirmed that it will be transformed into an American smokehouse restaurant.
Final orders and farewell
During a turbulent period for the hospitality industry, several well-known bars and pubs have closed this year. In Newcastle city centre, The Mushroom shut in January and later reopened as Dirty Murphys Irish and live music bar. Earlier this month, The Duke of York in Wallsend announced its closure. Now, in nearby Benton, The Newton Park has served its last pints.
As reported by ChronicleLive in May, The Newton Park is being taken over by Hickory's Smokehouse, a chain that has already had success with its restaurant in Thornaby and expanded to Gateshead at the start of June, taking over the former site of The Gold Medal near Team Valley, which closed earlier this year.
What's next for the site
Hickory's Newcastle is expected to open in Benton by the end of the year. At the weekend, the Newton Park team said farewell to regulars as the final pints were pulled. A Facebook post revealed that managers Jim and Deb had the honour of ringing the bell to call last orders for the final time.
The post added: "there couldn't have possibly been anyone better than these 2 amazing managers to ring the bell for the final time! Thank you Jim and Deb for all yous have done for this pub. Best wishes to all the staff in their next chapters."
Excitement from Hickory's
Jason Bligh, Head of Culture & Community at Hickory's, said: "We are so excited to be opening in Newcastle - it's a city with such incredible energy, character and a brilliant food and drink scene, and we can't wait to become part of it."
"This will be our third opening in the North East within a year, and each time we've announced a new restaurant, we've been blown away by the reaction. We're already getting to know the local community, and we've got a really good feeling about what's to come here in Newcastle - it's shaping up to be something special for our Hickory's family."
