Amble seafood restaurant opens doors once again after finished £210K project

Diners can now revel in the newly refurbished seafood restaurant, The Old Boat House, thanks to a £210,000 refurbishment and extension

project.

The popular fish restaurant, which invites guests to take in the panoramic harbour views while feasting on the catches of the day, has more than doubled its indoor capacity following the ambitious renovation, which includes a new £80,000 kitchen.

Martin Charlton, chef and managing director at The Old Boat House

Meanwhile a new café/bar area, incorporating an eye-catching shellfish display means the Old Boat House is now also somewhere to enjoy a freshly brewed coffee or a glass of wine, as well as the freshest of seafood dishes.

Crowned Coastal Fish Restaurant of the Year in the 2016 and 2017 Fishing News Awards, The Old Boat House can now serve 80 diners inside and around 50 outside.

Chef and managing director, Martin Charlton said: “The expansion of the seating area was fairly seamless. There was the odd afternoon that we needed to close but on the whole, we kept The Old Boat House operating as normal during the refurbishment.

“We spent £80,000 on the new kitchen and sourced the equipment from all over the world. The main console was specially made in Italy and shipped over here.

The Old Boat House can now serve 80 diners inside and around 50 outside

“The biggest difference is the efficiency. The new equipment allows us to meet our usual standards across the board but we can serve more customers more often.”

The refurbishment and investment marks the start of a new phase for the Old Boat House and its neighbouring Fish Shack, which Martin runs with his wife, Ruth. It also signals the end of the couple’s involvement with two other restaurants they had been managing: The Boat House in Blyth and La Famiglia.

Staff from both restaurants will be re-employed at the Old Boat House and Fish Shack, bringing their collective staff numbers up to 50.

Martin said: “We have been managing four restaurants and we decided that, in order to find the time to develop The Old Boat House, we would need to sell our Italian restaurant in Amble and the Boat House in Blyth.”