One of Aberdeen’s best known bars is to reopen today following a £300,000 revamp.
The College Bar, on Alford Place, closed eight weeks ago to undergo the biggest makeover in its 24-year history.
And tonight the doors will open again, providing the city with what the owners believe is a plush, trendy place to visit.
Paul Clarkson, operations director at family-run firm PBDevco, said given the recent downturn in the oil and gas industry, the company felt the time was right to overhaul the venue.
He said the new look is unrecognisable from what was there before with the bar now offering table service, a live music stage for local acts to perform, new technology in the form of a bespoke ultra HD viewing cube and tank beer. The College is the first venue to bring Tennents tank beer to Aberdeen, with only two other venues in Scotland pouring the unfiltered and unpasteurised version of the popular lager.
Mr Clarkson said: “The College is one of our longest-standing venues having been in our family for 24 years. It is a fantastic building and it has remained practically unchanged since the day it opened.
“We just felt that with a number of new venues opening up in the city the time was right for us to modernise it and to try to offer things that our customers have been crying out for, like a space for local musicians to perform.”
Mr Clarkson said they had taken inspiration from other bars and venues across major cities like Edinburgh, Glasgow and London when deciding how to transform the College.
He added: “At PBDevco we are continuously working behind the scenes, looking for fresh and exciting ideas.
“This has been a complete overhaul and a task we as a company have not undertaken since the launch of the Bieldside Inn. Absolutely nothing is the same from the textiles to the tiles. We have reduced the bar space and introduced new seating booths.”
Mr Clarkson said as a result of the relaunch of the College bar, PBDevco has introduced 15 new jobs, from bar staff to managerial positions.
In addition to the College, PBDevco manages a number of other venues across the city, including Soul, Soul Casino, So…, the Queen Vic in Rosemount, The Howff, and the Bieldside Inn.
