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Wales Online
Wales Online
Entertainment
Robert Dalling

The popular Swansea restaurant shut and empty for years with all its signs still up

Along one busy street in Swansea, there has been a restaurant name which has been on display for around two decades. The only problem is, it has been closed for more than half of that time. Rendezvous in Princess Way was a once popular place where people would dine out and enjoy an infusion of Mediterranean and Oriental cuisine.

It was regarded by many at the time as one of the city's premier Chinese restaurants, whilst other reviews on TripAdvisor dating back to 2012 described it as "our favourite restaurant in Swansea." It was popular for family and birthday meals, along with office meals out, and would have a pianist playing there on Saturday nights.

But the red-bricked Swansea Council-owned building closed suddenly years ago. You can read a review of what we thought about the food there 11 years ago by clicking here. Despite being empty ever since, it has still not been replaced, with its bright blue signage fully on display to this day, just like it was on its final day of trading, with a padlock on the door and boarded up window panes. Get Swansea stories straight to your inbox with our newsletter.

READ MORE: The big name bars and restaurants in Swansea city centre that are closed right now and what's happening with them

Its signs still appear outside the building (Robert Dalling / WalesOnline)
Padlocks are wrapped around the doors (Robert Dalling / WalesOnline)
It was once considered a firm favourite among many in the city (Robert Dalling / WalesOnline)

A glimpse inside the old building shows fixtures and fittings and rubble scattered around, along with unopened letters on the floor. But there could soon be a new future for the premises. Swansea Council has said the building will be transformed as part of the city centre's £1 billion regeneration.

A Swansea Council spokesman said: “This premises - owned by the council - will form part of the city centre’s ongoing £1 billion regeneration, attracting new businesses, residents and visitors. It’ll be part of the Swansea Central North scheme, largely on the site of the former St David’s Shopping Centre, that’ll bring a varied range of new opportunities to that area.

“It’s envisaged that the Rendezvous building will be retained and reimagined as part of the transformation. Our development partners, Urban Splash, are making progress on proposals for Swansea Central North. We’ll keep the public informed of our plans and they’ll be fully consulted."

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