As I enter I feel somewhat underdressed (and definitely undershaved, if that’s a word) for The Foregate at 42 Foregate Street in Worcester. It is a magnificent building, make no mistake.
The entrance must be one of the grandest of any bar in the city. Customers cross the threshold between Doric columns and beneath an open pediment with an Apollo mask and sunburst motif.
VIBRANT: The Foregate bar in Foregate Street in Worcester (Image: Tom Preece (used with permission of The Foregate)) Once inside, the feeling of harmonious proportion is only amplified. The atmosphere is akin to that of a drawing room in a lavish country house and I feel like I’ve blundered inside by mistake like a bedraggled Victorian chimney sweep enquiring after the lord of the manor. If I had a cap, I feel I should surely doff it. I should, at the very least, have combed my hair.
However, a closer look reveals a surprising cosiness and sense of intimacy. Above all, there is a spirit of friendliness, conviviality and courtesy.
COOL: The Foregate combines cool and warm colours and has a classic quality (Image: James Connell/Newsquest photos)
I’m told there’s no dress code (though the stylish décor seems to demand I make more effort to fit in) and project manager Simon Ashton greets me warmly.
He is chatty, thoroughly unpretentious, down-to-earth and welcoming. Mr Ashton also possesses that rare (and in my view underrated) quality that all people in hospitality need (and too many sadly lack), the ability to make you feel perfectly at home in a new place. We must all, at times, depend on the kindness of strangers.
ELEGANT: The Foregate bar in Worcester oozes old-fashioned elegance with attention to detail on all fixtures and fittings (Image: James Connell/Newsquest photos)
Nick Carroll, the licensee of the bar (owned by Trinity Group property developers), is a man in the same mould. With an Irish father and Greek mother, the chartered architect has inherited something of both those worlds: the wise-cracking quick wit of the Irish with a healthy dose of Mediterranean passion thrown into the mix, just to spice it all up.
“I expect the interior to evolve. It’s not a fait accompli. But certainly, if I don’t get Robert Plant to visit soon I’m going to close down within a year,” says Mr Carroll with a wry smile.
ELEGANT: The Foregate bar in Worcester (Image: James Connell/Newsquest photos)
The business only opened during the Victorian Christmas Fayre, an early present for the city perhaps. However, it somehow feels more established than this, like an heirloom restored to its former glory.
“It’s going well but a culture takes a long time to build in a new venue. We want to build a culture that people embrace,” said Mr Carroll.
ENERGY: Simon Ashton is experienced in the hospitality sector and brings this to the fore at The Foregate (Image: Photo by Tom Preece (used with permission of The Foregate)) The bar has an intimate, metropolitan cool jazz vibe with plenty of intimate spaces (nooks and crannies) for private conversations.
The colours are subtle, even slightly muted which only adds to the impression that this is the vision of someone with impeccable good taste and a keen eye for fine detail.
The cool blue-grey of the walls and bar is balanced out by the richer, warmer colours of the leather cushions and the original wooden floors.
There is nothing garish here. Original 1950s prints decorate the wall. The restroom signs are also from that decade. Every toilet is enclosed and, because of their size, more closely resemble cloakrooms than the sort of claustrophobic little cubicles you might find elsewhere.
One of the triumphs of this bar (spreading its wings in the old Thursfields solicitors offices) is the use of space. Possibly its greatest surprise, which may well make this the envy of many pubs and bars in the city centre, is the large walled beer garden at the back which must surely be a boon in spring and summer. If the garden is a secret, one expects it will not remain one for very long. People talk, after all.
SECRET: The courtyard beer garden at The Foregate will surely be a boon in spring and summer (Image: James Connell/Newsquest photos)
“Come early summer evenings, this will be the place to be, particularly as there are no gardens in the city centre,” said Mr Carroll.
There are lots of beautiful touches in the bar. For example, many of the fixtures and fittings (such as the bar stools) come from the estate of Danny Jones, a Worcester antique dealer and entrepreneur.
“It gives us great pride to be able to acquire a number of original fixtures and fittings,” said Mr Carroll.
The radiators have been salvaged from city department store Debenhams.
Mr Carroll says the bar has already forged a reputation for the quality of its Guinness with the popular stout receiving an endorsement from the Organ Grinders, an Irish ceilidh band.
GRAND: The Foregate bar has the advantage of being in an attractive building in the city centre (Image: James Connell/Newsquest photos)
The building, which is grade II listed, dates from the mid-eighteenth century (1700s) which probably gives the building much of its appeal.
Former Thursfields staff have already been inside to pay a visit to their old office, although they struggled to recognise it after so dramatic a metamorphosis.
“We welcomed them in for a drink on opening night and they struggled to recall where their desks used to be,” said Mr Carroll.
What are the drinks? There is a wide choice including The Foregate (ale), Guinness, Lucky Buddah, Birra Moretti Sale Di Mare (a premium lager), Budweiser, Brixton (pale ale), Cruzcampo, Robinsons Flagon Cider, Two Farmers Apple Cider, HPA (Wye Valley Brewery) and Nutcracker (Wye Valley Brewery).
POTENTIAL: The 13 apartments above The Foregate are being renovated to become Airbnbs (Image: Nick Carroll)
The drink menu is expected to change quarterly. The Guinness is something that managers particularly pride themselves on.
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Kam Adamczyk, general manager, said: “We think we have the best Guinness in Worcester but you’re welcome to come in and tell us otherwise.”
A range of cocktails and non-alcoholic drinks are also available. Mr Carroll calls the wine list ‘an expansive one,’ with bottles from all over the world, each carefully selected for quality.
All pints are under £6 and bottles of wine are available from between £27 and £180.
Food is available in the form of award-winning snacks supplied by Top Barn Farm including scotch eggs and pork and onion pies.
Above the pub (with a separate entrance off Farrier Street) are 13 Airbnb ‘micro apartments’ which are in the process of being refurbished. Set to open in February over three floors, it is hoped the apartments will complement the bar and encourage more people to visit the city.
Kam Adamczyk, general manager, said: “We want it to be a place where everyone feels welcome. The staff are approachable and they will take the time to speak to you. You are not not just pound coins in our pockets. We want you to stay and enjoy the experience.”