Taste of Cuba will bring 70 new jobs to Swansea
Between mid-October and midNovember, Swansea will be getting three new venues, all from the same bar and restaurant group.
The team behind L’il London and Fancy A Rum? are set to open a Cuban-inspired bar above a gin micro-distillery and restaurant on York Street, as well as a restaurant and martini bar on The Strand.
The three venues mean Cygnus Investments, which is made up of local businessmen David Bellis, David Wakely and David Atkins, are recruiting for up to 70 new members of staff after the next two months.
The positions range from chefs of all levels, with salaries up to £40,000, general managers, with wages listed as between £24,000 and £27,000 with bonus, assistant managers, with wages between £18,000 and £20,000 with bonus, bar supervisors, plus waiting and kitchen staff.
Juniper Place – Still & Stove and the yet-to-be-named Cuban bar will accommodate up to 530 people – 200 on the ground floor, 330 on the first floor – and has cost £1.5m to refurbish.
The Meatery and Martini Co will open next door to L’il London – a bar that opened in early 2016 and has fast established itself on the city’s nightlife scene.
Inspired by the London district of Shoreditch, the team behind it wanted to bring “the London East End vibe to Swansea.”
Now they are looking to bring a Cuban vibe – but they hit a stumbling block.
After a trip to Cuba for research purposes, they were enthralled by the story of Ernest Hemingway’s love of the country. They decided to name the bar after the famous author – as a tribute and to “educate the masses of the wonderful works of Ernest Hemingway” – but solicitors got in touch and they were informed they could not use the name.
They are now asking people to vote, on their Facebook page, for a new name for the venue.
The options are Castillo De Cuba (Castle of Cuba), Gusto De Cuba (Taste of Cuba), Cubano, Old Havana, Havana 1920 and Espirito De Cuba (Spirit of Cuba)
The bar and kitchen will offer Cuban cuisine to be washed down with cocktails created by award-winning mixologists.
Juniper Place restaurant will be looking to use “only the best Welsh produce”. Cygnet Spirits will use the distillery to manufacture and sell gin and rum on site.
The two venues at 1 York Street – formerly Colin Charvis Carpets – will open between mid-October and the end of the month. The site is at the gateway of the £500m regeneration currently under way to link the city centre to the waterfront.
Mr Bellis said: “I am hugely excited about it. It seems to be good timing, with the nighttime economy, and the daytime one, on the up. I am enthused about it.
“There are a lot of nice people in Swansea and they deserve nice bars. We have unique ideas that will bring something new to Swansea, and indeed Wales, whilst being on the gateway of the huge regeneration in the area.”
The third venue – The Meatery & Martini Co – will open in early November.
The Meatery & Martini Co is described as a “quirky restaurant” and will offer Wagyu steaks, fresh fish of the day and only the finest cuts of meat.
Customers will also be able to order a giant racelette, a melted cheese wheel served at the table.