Out with the old as Whig welcomes new era

As the Northern Whig swapped its familiar Soviet-era style for a softer and more modern look this month, Horatio Group MD Stephen Magorrian revealed that he’s on the verge of acquiring another premises in the centre of Belfast…

A total of 15 new full and part-time jobs have been created following a £300,000 refurbishment of the iconic Northern Whig in Belfast’s Cathedral Quarter.

The familiar Soviet-styled interior of the popular bar and restaurant is no more following an extensive eight-week redevelopment programme inside the 4000 sq. ft. venue.

The work went ahead after long-term tenant at the premises, The Horatio Group, acquired the business in February. The group already owns Horatio Todd’s in Ballyhackamore; Denvir’s Coaching Inn in Downpatrick and Molly Brown’s in Newtownards.

And speaking to LCN this month, group managing director, Stephen Magorrian, said that he was very happy with the results of the Northern Whig’s revamp:

“The feedback has been great, it’s been extremely positive,” he said. “People have been saying that they see a real change in the venue and they think we’ve done a really good job with it.”

Mr Magorrian also said that the changes weren’t just about the interior of the building, the whole offering – including the drink and food menus – has been updated. It was a “total repositioning” of the Northern Whig, he said, and he went on:

“One of the issues that we had in the Northern Whig was that there was a lot of space. It was this long, open room with those dramatic Russian statues. When the place was busy, it was a really interesting and inviting venue to be in, but when it wasn’t busy, it could feel very empty. It was difficult to put an atmosphere into it and it suffered because of that.

“What we were really trying to do with the place was make it a bit more homely and to add lots of interesting features so that every time you visit, you see something totally different,” added Mr. Magorrian.”

The Horatio Group has been leasing the Northern Whig for the last 10 years or so and the recent refurbishment work represents the start of a new era for the popular bar and restaurant. Speaking in the middle of May, Mr. Magorrian said that the revamp, which should have taken just four weeks, ended up lasting for around eight:

“There are still some small snags that need to be worked through”, he added, “but everything should be completely finished by the end of the month.

“We’re very happy with the way that it turned out. I think it will work well and people are going to love it. There’s already a different crowd coming in that we’ve not seen before and I think that people who wouldn’t have considered the Northern Whig in the past are coming down to see us now.”

And Mr. Magorrian also revealed that the Horatio Group hopes to add a fifth bar and restaurant venue to the group in the very near future. While he wouldn’t reveal the exact location of the new premises, he confirmed that it will be in Belfast. He hoped to go to contract with the new venue before the end of May.

“I’m very happy with all the premises that we own at present,” he added. “All of them have a strong presence in their local areas. They’re all doing well and there are good opportunities to evolve and develop and we are working on that with all of them.

“The other aspect of the business that we are keen to develop is the outside bar business. We’re just back from Balmoral Show where we have done the bars for the last two years and that’s gone really well for u. We’re keen to build on that going forward.”

As for the future of the group, Mr. Magorrian is keeping his options open:

“We aren’t actively looking for anywhere else knew, but if an opportunity came along, we’d still be keen to consider it,” he said “But it’s not our objective to be looking after five or 10 more venues. It’s been a difficult few years for everyone and we’re keen to focus on the business that we have now and get them working at their best.”