Andy Hook, owner of Blackfriars Restaurant in Newcastle and Hinnies Restaurant in Whitley Bay, has teamed up with head chef Troy Terrington to open Dobson and Parnell at 21 Queen Street, specialising in refined British and European cuisine.
Set within a Victorian Grade II Listed building on Newcastle’s vibrant Quayside, the elegant high-ceilinged dining room will add a touch of old-school, understated glamour and comfort to the venue.
The 65-seat restaurant, which has created 20 new jobs, has been named in honour of two of Newcastle’s Victorian architectural stalwarts, John Dobson and William Parnell, who designed the original building in 1863.
After the 1854 Quayside fire, the Council asked John Dobson to draw up plans for the rebuilding. He immediately produced a street plan and in 1856 his much praised scheme was approved. The Council struggled to sell the plots amongst claims that they were overvalued.
In 1857, the entire area was sold to developer Ralph Walters at a bargain price. He came from Newcastle, but lived and worked in London. He asked London architect William Parnell to produce a scheme, which was built between 1858 and 1863. The final layout followed Dobson’s street plan but without his proposal to link the Quayside and the upper town.
The Victorian building has since been an attractive location for restaurateurs. It was the original home of Terry Laybourne’s Michelin-starred 21 Queen Street as well as the popular modern-British restaurant Pan Haggerty.
Chef Patron, Troy Terrington, who is taking the reins within the new Dobson and Parnell kitchen, moved to the North East in 2005 and worked as head chef at both Blackfriars Restaurant and Jesmond Dene House. His menus, which he’ll re-write every day depending on the freshest produce he can find, will use ethically-sourced local, seasonal produce direct from nearby farms and markets.
The Victorian brasserie-inspired interior has been designed by Newcastle-based Dakota House of Design and blends modern elegance with key Victorian features, including traditional pendant track lighting, original brickwork, cast iron columns, high ceilings, banquette seating with glass partitions, rich dark timber flooring, a brass bar top and decorative tiled counter fronts.
“The brief that we received from the client was to create a smart city centre restaurant with a Victorian stylised interior which had a modern twist on a classical theme,” says Deborah Hodgson, director of Dakota House of Design. Dakota decided to use classical elements; tin tiles and timber panelling in a more contemporary style with stripped back brickwork and timber floors.
“Brass finishes were incorporated throughout in the fixtures and fittings to bring warmth to the interior. Victorian inspired paint colour hues of period greens and Heritage blues were used to complete the finished creation. Inspiration classic London-esque stalwart”.
