A new café in a former Bristol Wetherspoons has opened its doors. The Crafty Egg has opened at The St George’s Hall pub on Church Road, which has been closed since 2021.
The Crafty Egg, which already has sites in Fishponds and Stokes Croft, has secured part but not all of the former Wetherspoon venue. The popular café has now confirmed it has opened its doors on Instagram: “We’re pleased to confirm that we had a successful soft launch of our new venue on Church Road last night! It was great to meet so many lovely local traders and, of course, our competition winners.
“We’ll be open for the rest of the weekend, but for *drinks only*, to help us ease into our full offering. If you’re keen to see what we’ve been working so hard on, you’re welcome to come and check us out.
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“As we settle into this brand new space, we kindly ask for your patience with our team as we’re all finding our feet together. We hope to start serving our brunch menu on Monday or Tuesday.”
The pub, which left customers shocked and saddened by its closure – and trying to take souvenirs before it closed its doors for good – in 2021, has seen multiple plans proposed over the years.
Plans were submitted at the start of August to convert the historic building into 13 HMO units to provide a total of 42 beds. Developers claim that transforming St George’s Hall into a series of HMOs would “meet the needs of a modern St George”.
However, a community group has vowed to not give up as it aims to save the historic cinema from being converted into housing
In its original post announcing the news of its takeover, The Crafty Egg confirmed that the agreement “covers the front half of the pub, excluding the old cinema section, beer cellars, kitchens, utilities, bathrooms, and rear customer areas”. The team added: “Nonetheless, we adore the space and are confident the Church Road community will too.
“Should investors aiming to renovate and restore the cinema area to the rear ever purchase it, we support that vision and pledge our assistance!”