Rain or shine, the Toon faithful pack into St James’ Park .
And soon they’ll be able to make the most of latest investments at their spiritual home The Strawberry pub, which are being carried out to beat the North East’s unpredictable weather.
The Strawberry pub is the place to be for Toon fans ahead of home games, and a mecca for visiting fans from all over the world, and on match days it can be a case of standing room only.
So landlord Michael Hill wants to make the most of all the space he has at the popular venue, and hopes to transform the rooftop terrace into an all-year round, all-weather haven.
Mr Hill has applied for permission to build a retractable cover over the terrace, turning it into a comfortable terrace in summer as well as a space for drinkers to use, regardless of the weather.
He said: “With the North East weather being what it is, we have an exterior area which isn’t used all the time – but we want to have an all-year round terrace, that’s illuminated and heated, which will really increase the space that we have for our customers.
“When it’s raining the cover will stay down but on those few days when the sun really comes out we can retract the roof.
“We actually created the terrace when the smoking ban came in, but our regulars don’t do stairs and preferred to go outside the pub instead.
“It has been a long process taking this forward, but it’s all been priced up and ready to go, so as soon as we get permission we can get going, and hopefully have it ready for the start of the next season in August.”
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The planning application, supported with drawings by architects Building Design (Northern) Ltd, says: “The Strawberry Pub currently has an outside terrace at first floor. The owner wishes to build a retractable cover to this terrace. It will be powder coated, steel framed with a white UPVC fascia at low level to the walls covering the existing handrail and white UPVC glazing above with some top openers.
“There will be a UPVC sliding door to access a smoking area and fire exit. The retractable fabric canopy over the whole area will be to the owners preference and manufacturer’s detail and the colour in keeping with the existing building.”
This will be the second sizeable investment made at the pub, base right opposite St James’, since it created a second bar on the first floor, doubling the size of its bar space in time for the Rugby World Cup games when they were hosted in Newcastle four years ago.
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The pub’s name and street name, Strawberry Place, is said to have its origins in the nuns of nearby St Bartholomew’s who grew strawberries on plantations on the land to make strawberry wine.
Mr Hill added: “Business is good. At the end of the day we’re just a little old pub holding their own quite comfortably.
“The extension a few years ago has been a success, and seems more popular with a younger clientele, and it’s boosted the size of the pub and the number of functions we can have.
“We are one of the oldest pubs in Newcastle with a lot of regular trade, and we’ve never lost focus of what we are.”
Adam Serfontein of Hanro, owners of the building, added: “The Strawberry public house is one of Newcastle’s prized possessions. We bought this many years ago, and at the time it was referred to as one of Newcastle’s four “Cathedrals”.
"The first is obvious, the remaining three being the brewery, the football stadium, and of course The Strawberry.
"We now own the property in a joint venture with Kier Group. We have enjoyed an excellent relationship with our tenants, Michael and Caroline, and are delighted to support this new investment, which will make the business even stronger.”
"The Strawberry is a real peach!”
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