The bar is set to reopen with live music and a new look
The Carlton on Lord Street(Image: Andrew Brown Stand Up For Southport)
An bar with a “suntrap” beer garden has reopened following a lengthy renovation process. The Carlton, located on Lord street, has been closed since the start of the year to facilitate a great overhaul to its interiors and beer garden.
The Carlton has finally reopened today after a six month journey. A brief message announcing the venue’s return was shared on Facebook. It read: “Open today 5pm. We are back.”
The venue has been a firm favourite among generations of Sandgrounders and visitors thanks to its sunny beer garden and prime location. Older residents will remember the building as The Red Rum Hotel.
The beer garden relaunches as the ‘Chase Beer Garden’ with live music today and tomorrow. Guests can enjoy entertainment between 4pm and 7pm with DJs playing inside from 8pm.
The Carlton is owned by local hospitality operator Carl White, who has invested heavily in Southport town centre as well as in Ormskirk and Formby.
The Carlton bar on Lord Street(Image: Andrew Brown Stand Up For Southport)
Carl’s portfolio includes The Carlton, The Auld Dubliner, The Avenue and The Chop House. Carl said: “We are excited to welcome everyone back to The Carlton this weekend, with a fresh new look and some great live music. We are pleased to have worked with Chase on the investment to open The Chase Garden.
“We have elevated the garden by eight inches, so it is more level with the rest of Lord Street. Our disabled entrance has also been improved, as we want our venues to be as accessible as possible for everyone.
“We have bought lots of new plants to make it look greener, along with some stylish new outdoor furniture. New brickwork, new paving, new flagstones, new artificial turf, and new festoon lighting have been installed, along with new signage to give The Carlton a fresh new look for this summer.
“We are so lucky that this is such a big suntrap. The sun seems to come across at about 1pm and stays shining until around 7pm or 8pm. We are becoming known in Southport more for our outdoor offering than indoors.
The Carlton bar on Lord Street(Image: Andrew Brown Stand Up For Southport)
Carl added: “Lots of work has been carried out inside too. We discovered an internal issue with the building in January so we had to excavate the bar and install a new one.
“People can still expect the same style and look that we had before. We want to offer customers high end drinks with good quality brands at reasonable prices.
“You can never stand still. Our standards have got to remain high. We refurbish The Carlton every two years; we’re constantly investing in upgrading all our venues, so our customers can expect the very best experience.
“The Carlton will be open every Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday each week, but we may review that and add to those days over the summer.
“Everyone is looking forward to coming back. While the work has been taking place we have had loads of people coming in and asking how things have been going and when we’ll be reopening again. We’re looking forward to seeing everyone and enjoying a busy weekend.”