THE new Bradda Glen Restaurant in Port Erin has officially opened its doors to the public.

New tenant Andy Hardy, who also runs The Courthouse and The Alpine in Douglas, has told isleofman.com that he hopes it lives up to people's expectations.

Andy was awarded the tender for the business from the Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture in June last year.

Since then the building has been completely renovated and refurbished inside and out.

Andy, who was one of over 20 people who applied for the tender, explained his decision to apply.

He said: "I'd walked past here countless times and it always struck me that it was a beautiful place and I was quite surprised that it was empty. I think it has family written all over it.

"It went out to tender, I came down and had a look at the site and around the south of the Island and I just thought it would be nice to put in a big family restaurant in a brilliant location and do really simple, honest food.

"It made sense to us to try and create a concept that would appeal to as many people as possible – families, kids, older people, dog walkers – everyone in the local community." 

The emphasis at the restaurant is on good quality locally sourced produce. There is a light brunch menu which runs alongside the full menu and the restaurant can cater for those who are vegetarian or who have particular dietary requirements.

Andy continued: "We want to offer food that is popular - crowd pleasers that are done well.
 
"We've designed a menu that I think suits the location and I've given the chefs the freedom to put their stamp on it and take advantage of the fact they know all of the local suppliers.

"Everything is sourced because of the provenance and quality of it. If you start with good ingredients you're going to make a nice dish."

At present there is a 'bring your own' policy on alcohol as Andy is currently waiting to find out if his application for a restaurant licence will be approved.

The issue over the restaurant having a licence to serve alcohol has been a hurdle that Andy has battled to overcome since taking on the tender last year. 

He originally applied for a public house licence which would have allowed the restaurant to serve customers alcohol with a light snack or meal and would have permitted music to be played until 12am.

This was refused after a number of residents raised their concerns over noise, people leaving at night and the access road to the venue.

Plans for a playground on the site and a local market garden where the chefs could grow herbs and vegetables were also refused after objections from local residents.

However Andy says that getting a licence for the restaurant is vital in ensuring the business survives but has moved to reassure residents that he has no plans to turn it into a pub.

He said: "We've been totally transparent with what we wanted to do with the building all the way through this. I can understand the concerns but I'm not here to put people's backs up. The bottom line is if we don't get a licence we will struggle.

"I've already curtailed my business options to try and make them understand it's not going to be a pub – we haven't even built a bar! It is not the market we are going for.

"I'm conscious that I want to fit in with the local community. We are very aware that the Isle of Man is a small place where everybody knows everybody so your reputation is everything.

"We've tried very hard to build a good professional reputation and I think that when the Port Erin residents understand what this business is about, who we want to appeal to and what we are trying to do, then I'm hoping this will allay their fears and hopefully they will allow us to trade normally with the same kind of remit that other places of this sort of ilk do.

"We want to be judged on the same rules as everybody else. I'm very pragmatic in that if you do something you might as well do it right the first time hence trying to turn this into something a little bit special."

Andy will find out if the licence has been granted on June 16. "I'll present my case and the local residents with their concerns will present their case. It comes down to the magistrates to decide what license they see fit to grant," he said. If the application is rejected Andy will appeal.

He continued: "I'm thankful the department has supported us and assisted us with regards to taking on this beast and turning it into something, hopefully, people will appreciate.

"Word of mouth is everything in the Isle of Man. If people come here and eat nice food and get served well hopefully they'll go away and tell other people and that's how you get longevity in business.

"There is lots of love for Bradda Glen. People have very positive and fond memories so I hope it lives up to expectations." 

Bradda Glen Restaurant is open from 10am to 3pm and 6pm to 10pm from Monday to Friday. It is open from 10am to 10pm on Saturday and Sunday. For more information telephone 01624 837713.  

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