The historic Blackfriars Restaurant in Newcastle has renovated its 780-year-old Cloister Garden to host open-air food events ranging from barbecues to hog roasts.
The restaurant in Friars Street, just of Stowell Street, is said to the oldest dining room in the UK due to the 1239 building's former use as a monks' refectory and it has been run by Andy and Sam Hook for the past 22 years, during which they have created an award-winning venue and expanded to add an adjacent bar and upstairs cookery school plus tasting room.
Now, its revamped medieval garden is set to prove another big customer attraction, offering an all-weather outdoor space for al fresco dining, performances, markets and community events. Tapping back into its history, owner Andy envisages it having a whole new lease of life with customers enjoying a sunny day visit or after-work chill-out.
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"We can already see the potential for city workers to kick-back and relax in the afternoon sunshine with a glass of chilled Whispering Angel Rosé," he said. Already on offer there are Friday night barbecues and, on Sunday afternoons, hog roasts, but the landscaped garden has potential for all sorts of outdoor dining options and punters can take advantage in chillier weather of its new fire pits and heated lamps.
It is also set to prove an ideal back-drop for guests attending wedding parties in its adjacent Banquet Hall. Blackfriars says it has invested a 'six-figure sum' in the revamp which, due to the garden's heritage, took place only after years of planning and working with local organisations including Newcastle City Council, Historic England, NE1 and Newcastle Gateshead Initiative as well as Newcastle and Durham universities.
Andy said: “Blackfriars is a scheduled ancient monument so it was vital we assembled a team of specialist surveyors, archaeologists and traditional craftsmen to deliver a scheme we hope will last for decades to come." With involvement from Landscape architects, who first became involved in the design plans in 2020, and Hastings Civil Engineers, great care was taken over everything from choice of materials to seating, lighting and the site's remaining walnut tree, thought to be the best specimen in the city.
And, to complement the surrounding medieval building, new beds were planted with ancient varieties of shrubs and herbs which are intended for use in the restaurant kitchen as well as for encouraging bees. Future hopes include securing funding to install interpretation panels around the garden, explaining its history, and to create an app featuring a digital record of Blackfriars' heritage.
Other plans include opening a micro-brewery later this year on the site of the friary’s chapter house which was used from the 16th century as a Brewers Guild’s Meeting House.
For now, Andy says their summer barbecues and hog roasts, which have been similarly carefully planned to fit in with the surroundings, are both already selling well. "We have been passionately promoting Blackfriars’ unique heritage for over two decades now," he said, adding: "Our intention has always been to renovate the somewhat neglected cloister garth into a vibrant space to be enjoyed by the whole community.
"The outcome is better than I could have possibly imagined.” For information about what's on offer see Blackfriars' website, which is also soon to have a new look, here.
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