Fast-food veggie restaurant planned for empty city pub
PLANNING APPLICATION FOR SIGNS FOR BUSINESS WHICH HOPES TO OPEN SOON
A FAST-FOOD restaurant with a difference is planned at an empty Nottingham pub.
Veggie Master, a vegetarian and vegan restaurant that serves vegan chicken burgers, sausages and pizzas, is planning to open in Lenton in March.
A planning application has been submitted for new Veggie Master signs at the closed Bag O’nails pub on Lenton Boulevard.
Balwinder Singh, 22, a member of the family who are the franchisees behind the plan, said they were excited to see progress made on the restaurant.
“We’re very excited – it should be open, hopefully, by the middle of March.
“We wanted the Nottingham store to be the busiest and best Veggie Master there is in the county, that can seat 60 people and employ 8-12 people.
“There is already work going on to refurbish the whole place and once they are done and it’s all fitted out we will be good to go.”
The Singh family also runs the chain’s branch in Derby and Veggie Master has other franchises in Birmingham and Reading.
Mr Singh added: ”It’s a family venture and everyone pitches in – my brother in India and my father as well. We’re from Derby so we’re local, but we started having customers from Nottingham commute half an hour to grab a kebab.
“Everything is vegetarian and 90 percent of that is vegan. It’s your standard takeaway food, your kebabs, burgers, wraps, pizzas.
“But with that little twist that your know it’s all safe for vegetarians and vegans.”
People in Lenton said that the plans were “interesting”.
David Spear, 28, who works at Canvas near the proposed site, said: “I would definitely try it out.
“It would be good for it to be used. “When the pub closed, I remember I said to others that it was a great location for something else.”
And he added: “I think it would be quite popular, especially in a student area like Lenton where I think there are more people who are vegan or vegetarian.”
Mr Spear, who is originally from Chicago but lives in Beeston, added: “When you think fast food it’s generally burgers and chicken so it’s different.
“I think it’s a lot more normal to be vegan here in Nottingham compared to in America, so I think it would do well.”
Patrick Phillips, 65, who is retired and lives in Lenton, said: “I’’m a meat eater myself. It is an interesting concept, though.
“I would rather there be something there interesting than have this dead space in Lenton that makes it look bad.
Rioghnach Barlow, 19, who studies medicine at the University of Nottingham, said: “I was vegan for a bit and there was enough places to do it properly. In Nottingham there are a few but not a lot locally that you could walk to. It’s a cute idea I think.”
The application is currently pending consideration by Nottingham City Council.
I would rather there be something there than this dead space in Lenton that makes it look bad Patrick Phillips