At long last the doors of the Shakespeare are open once more.
I have been watching the flurry of activity of builders over the last 6 months or so. I have scoured social media for snippets of information. The new owners are Fleet Architects (@fleetarchitects) who appear to be the hot name on people's lips having launched the upmarket @fortroadhotel so I was expecting something quite radical and exciting.
Now, just in time for summer The Shakespeare has opened its doors once again. This is the moment I have been waiting for. I just had to see what have they done with the place.
The old Shakespeare was the embodiment of Margate of the time. It was old, ugly, falling to bits and unloved. By 2016 it was too late. It had fallen so far down the rabbit hole there could be no return. It closed its doors, its future apparently consigned to dereliction.
I have read the TripAdvisor reviews up until its closure in 2016, which were amusingly dire.
It is the westerly end of Margates glorious seafront that you will find the Shakespeare which isn't the wild west at all and is perfectly placed to balance the scales of Margates hospitality scene.
Investment had to happen eventually didn't it?
The tide has turned for this seaside town and now there is investment flying in and everyone wants a piece of the action.
The old town is getting all of the attention and rightly so, but that's not the be-all and end-all in a town where even the impossible is probable.
Situated on the main entry road, The Shakespeare is likely the first pub you will see before the golden sands reveals its charms. Behind it is the train station so is conveniently placed for a pit stop for your arrival or departure. Oh and it has stunning sea views.
The Shakespeare Hotel dates back to 1760, It was called the British Tar Tavern back then, renamed The Shakespeare after a famous steam train that run the lines between Dover and London, not the great bard, not alot of people know that!
I am actually quite upset about that as I could have used this line from Hamlet in my opening gambit:
Something have you heard
Of Hamlet’s “transformation”—so call it
Since nor th’ exterior nor the inward man
Resembles that it was.
Instead I've got a steam train that no one really cares about now, ho hum...
Interestingly it predates the buildings around it which we see in this picture.
Presumably then it had the pick of the plots as nothing else but pasture land and simple rudimental dwellings as far as the eye could see? So they must have purposely chose its position with an easterly perspective to make the most of the morning sun and the welcome evening light of the setting sun behind it.
Fascinating when you think it was built at least 50 years before Margate Harbour was, I wonder whether it looked out to anything at all apart from uninterrupted coastline?
Love a bit of history.
At some point an extension was built to its front with large windows, and we must be grateful for that because now it's a stunning lounge area commanding a delightful and enviable seaview.
Now I can't recall whether The SHIFTING SPIRIT is seperate tiles like the Countdown conundrum and if you jiggle them around it makes something completely different? I think I can make "The SPIFING SHIRT" only one F though... But I like the statement, it's profound.
So that's enough preamble to whet the appetite, let's get into it.
My first impressions are good, entry into the main bar area and the space opens up before you. I was pleased to see an actual bar which seems to be a premium in new pub make overs, so I am assured that this is a traditional style of pub and that can only be a good thing because there is a genuine loss of atmosphere without one. Beside it is a small blackboard with a selection of cocktails priced to entice.
The canopy above the bar has one mission and that is to remind you where you are. I like it, it is a celebration of the type face used externally.
The back bar is well illuminated and everything is shiny. The service is unfussy, I appreciate the avoidance of unnecessary stuffiness.
I review the illuminated font badges and for a second I am like a rabbit in the headlights (funny enough I am not a real rabbit) as I don't instantly recognise what's on offer, but after a second and more measured review I was pleased to see a strong selection of craft ales and brews which are very much the tipples of choice for a discerning customer.
This would appear then to be its target market.
A scan around the room and it is set up for couples and small groups and the air is a pleasant mix of articulate chatter and soft volume music. It feels very comforting.
I order a pint and at £6.20 (others are available) it is on par with other bars around, but price is a point of discussion because it is a premium which many people will refuse to pay or justify, but the void that is created is filled with people that appreciate their environment and it is this ambiance which I find myself appreciating the most.
That was until I sat in the window and sipped my pint which was both perfectly chilled and crisp and moorish, I was as happy as a pig in shit.
I am looking for points to criticise and I am struggling to find any in the styling, however I do have a "but" which I will come to.
The ceilings have been lined with gorgeous textured pattern paper, hanging from them are lovely pendant lights. The walls are half panelled with fillets of stained wood and then they have opted to go for the almost finished look with some painted walls, others with bare plaster which is a fairly modern thing to do but it bugs me because it isn't a celebration of what came before, it just looks like they ran out of paint half way into the job! I know what they are trying to achieve, am I just being picky?
The windows are large and airy and dressed with some luxurious curtains, I gave them a stroke in appreciation. I'm even admiring the window furniture, it is all in the detail.
The chairs and tables are a lovely mix of traditional styles, the tables have been covered in a red vinyl, as have the counter areas so it is a timeless combination of deep reds, greenery from the plants and decadently stained wood, Ron Burgundy would approve.
Oh and the stripped wood floor is beautiful. Everything looks like it has been lifted out of a catalogue.
I have never stepped foot in here before and I will admit then that I expected something a bit bigger! It has the large extension room to the front (or side, but that was the front originally..ah you know the bit I mean) and then the bar area with seating to the front, behind the bar are the rather tiny toilets.
Don't sit on the toilet and expect to wipe your bum!
Sorry I couldn't resist the urge to sit on the thinking chair, for a no.1 I might add!
Upon doing a tight pirouette to close the door behind me and then backing into the space, squeezing myself upon the throne as the walls are very narrow, I amused myself at the prospect of having to chop my arm in half in order to retrieve the loo paper from the dispenser which is kind of too close to you... Imagine T-Rex arms, that's what you need, then how do you go from there to back there without dislocating your shoulder? Hmmm
Anyway that's one to find out for yourself (ladies loo not inspected)
Jokes aside and back to the business end (not that one) how can I sum this up?
The Shakespeare is a pleasant place to lounge, and I can't think of anywhere that has the same ambiance, but I still can't help to wonder if this is it, or is there more to come?
Have you ever heard the term "Peacocking" used to describe a pub or restaurant?
No? Well you will be pleased to know I am writing an article on the subject, ready for my readerships pleasure soon!
Until then a brief understanding would be to tell you that across the country the latest buzzword for pub and restaurant interior design is Peacocking. It's a fact.
If a pub or restaurant is going to entice customers it must strut it's story by it's styling.
This isn't just about putting a history lesson on the menus, or pictures of old on the walls or even naming a beef burger "The Shakespeare" as some kind of homage to the Bard.. sorry, steam train!
Imaginative expression is where it's at, and I'm not getting any sense of that here.
This is an area to develop as I feel it isn't strutting anything other than being a pleasant place to be and maybe there is nothing wrong with that but in a economic climate which is brutal on the hospitality industry then you simply have to up your game to survive.
It Isn't Peacocking by using it's story to grab your attention, it hasn't got references to its past, yes it's styling is a modern sympathetic take, and it's got a great view but other than that what does it do or present that warms your soul and makes you want to come back? Ummmm?
I could describe my experience quite simply, I could say it is a bit like a hotel lounge bar, clinically presented but otherwise only somewhere to use while on the way to somewhere else.
It is of course early days and yes they have to get into their stride. I assume the proposed holiday apartments need to be finished and a hot desk space is in the offering, and given the work from home culture that now exists then maybe this will provide a solution to a modern problem by repurposing pub spaces? I fear I would find it to easy to justify a well earned pint though, and that's just for turning up!
I can't imagine food not being in the offering somewhere along the line either,
So all in all there is reason to celebrate for it is simply a lovely place and I have no doubt it will become a much loved pub for a whole new generation once more.
I might not know what it has planned next, but what I do know is that it's within reasonable walking distance to my house and I will be back as often as the Mrs will allow.
1 Canterbury road, Westbrook, Margate
Kent, CT94NH
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