A long-serving York publican is to relaunch his former bar in another part of the city centre.

Paul Gardner had been tenant of the Terrace in Fossgate for 17 years, but the Stonegate Pub Group decided not to renew the lease.

Stonegate then spent £300,000 on a refurbishment, with the venue re-opening as the Stonebow in July, under manager Joe Sophocleous.

York Press:

It left sole-trader Paul - owner of several pubs across the city - looking to find a site elsewhere.

Through a mutual friend, Paul became aware the venue at 17-20 New Street was becoming available.

Mitchell and Butler, which ran All Bar One on the site, was looking to exit its lease early.

The venue closed unexpectedly last week, with a sign in the window saying this was “to make way for something new and exciting.”

READ MORE:

This follows Mitchell & Butler offloading other All Bar One sites across the country.

With the New Street site becoming available, Paul was soon able to recreate The Terrace.

He plans to pick up the keys to the premises in a week or two with it re-opening by the end of the month.

Paul explained: “The name The Terrace belonged to us, so we have the majority of our previous staff in place. There have been other sites that we have looked at. They (the staff) are ready to come back.

York Press:

The new Terrace at 17-20 New Street will be just like the former Terrace after it undergoes a quick refurb. It will feature sport, home-cooked food, and 12 tv screens, including a 100-inch model.

Paul said of the site: “It’s very central. It links various sites of the town, from the Revolution and Pitch & Piano, through to the Roman Bath and The Three Cranes. It’s a site in town that can benefit everybody and it is accessible to Swinegate.”

“We are then able to take our sport and food, plus the live music, and make it available to a wider, bigger audience.”

Paul plans to give the venue “a new twist” with three to four weeks of renovations planned, though nothing structural will happen to the building.

“It’s just a case of creating The Terrace back to how it was.”

Paul, 51, is born and raised in York and has been running pubs around York for 26 years.

At present he also runs the Oddfellows at Wilberfoss, and prior to the former Terrace (now The Stonebow), he was at the Nag’s Had in Heworth.

York Press:

His previous pubs also include the Greyhound at Dunnington, the Cross Keys at Dunnington, the Bay Horse at Stamford Bridge, the Cock & Bottle in Skeldergate, the Windmill in Blossom Street.

Paul added: “There will be something for everybody. We are looking forward to our new project and welcoming back our old customers. We are just looking forward to getting back to it.”