New Belfast restaurant venture creates 35 jobs
Pictured outside Fratelli’s new Belfast premises are head chef, Johnny Glass; general manager, Michael Johnston; sales and marketing manager, Beth Swindlehurst and project manager, Colin Johnston.
The company behind Northern Ireland’s award-winning Galgorm Resort and Spa and the £12m Scottish Mutual hotel development in Belfast city centre has unveiled details of a major new investment in the city’s growing hospitality sector.
Tullymore House Limited, which this year received planning permission to transform the iconic Scottish Mutual building opposite Belfast City Hall into a boutique hotel, has confirmed plans to bring its award-winning ‘Fratelli’ Italian restaurant and bar concept and brand to a site at Great Victoria Street in the city.
The site, which formerly housed the Malt Room Bar & Restaurant, is undergoing a major refurbishment programme ahead of the restaurant opening week commencing on November 17. The restaurant will be set over two floors, the ground floor with restaurant seating for 100 covers and an open style kitchen, and the first floor with one large function room/restaurant for seating 100 covers. There are also plans to extend outside with a terraced area, which should open in spring next year and will seat about 40 people.
The opening of Fratelli Belfast and creation of 35 new full and part-time jobs represents a total investment in Belfast’s hospitality sector of more than £500,000.
The new Fratelli restaurant and bar will serve a range of traditional quality, affordable Italian dishes in a modern family-friendly setting under the guidance of head chef, Johnny Glass, who comes to the restaurant from Will Brown’s Old Schoolhouse Inn at Comber which, earlier this year, was one of three Northern Ireland restaurants to receive a Bib Gourmand award in the coveted 2015 Michelin guide.
Project Manager, Colin Johnston, who is overseeing the launch of the new restaurant, said recently that he was delighted to announce the investment:
“Spread over two floors and carefully-designed to reflect the concept, brand and quality which drives the Fratelli name, the new restaurant is superbly-located in one of Belfast’s best-loved locations, Great Victoria Street, which is a major hub for tourists, commuters and shoppers,” he added. “Fratelli Belfast will offer a part of the Galgorm experience in the heart of the city and we are very much looking forward to welcoming new guests, colleagues and familiar faces.”
In March, the Scottish Mutual building, opposite the city hall on the corner of Bedford Street, received formal planning permission to be transformed into a 40-bedroom hotel.
The building will retain all of its iconic features, have 40 bedrooms, two bars, two restaurants, as well as 10 serviced apartments. Up to 180 full and part-time jobs will be created in the hotel once it is up and running, as well as around 100 jobs during the design, building and fit-out stages. Work on the project is already under way.
Separately, the new £10m extension to the Ballymena-based Galgorm Resort and Spa is expected to be completed next year. The extension will incorporate an additional 48 bedrooms, a new leisure wing and gym and extensive expansion to the outdoor thermal facilities and will require 60 new full and part-time jobs once open.
