The "jewel" of Southport is set to reopen next month as an all-new food and drink venue.
The Grand, formerly the Grand Casino, will be opening on July 15, with the restaurant and bar areas already filling up with bookings. The Grand Brasserie and Chloe's Piano Bar will be the first venues within the building to open next month with The Princess Grace Suite available to view for wedding bookings in the weeks that follow and The Sky Bar to open by Christmas.
People have been invited to book Chloe's Bar and the Grand Brasserie as the Mikhail Hotel and Leisure Group expands its stretch of venues on Lord Street, with the company already owning the Bold Hotel, Punch Tarmey's and the Lord Street Hotel, as well as owning the recently refurbished Southport Market. Now the once rundown and derelict Grade II listed building will be reopened with a luxurious finish, in line with how the casino once was.
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Chairman of the Mikhail Hotel and Leisure Trip, Andrew Mikhail, said: "Bringing fabulous buildings back to life is such a rewarding feeling, it’s what I love to do, and a building as stunning as The Grand deserves to be enjoyed by the people of Southport and beyond. I myself have very fond memories of the original Grand.
"I took my then-girlfriend and now wife, Vicky, on our first date to the Stanley Casino restaurant on the first floor 23 years ago. Sadly, I lost my money but I gained a wife! It feels so strange to be owning not only The Grand but the surrounding venues, Lord Street Hotel, Punch Tarmey’s and The Bold as they are all places I visited as a kid with my parents."
Andrew spoke to the ECHO last year when he was forced into intensive care when he caught coronavirus. Since then he has revealed ambitious plans to build a Tower of Hope on top of the Grand in the phases to follow.
He added: "It was a sensible decision taking on the Grand, being the most iconic building on Lord Street. It made sense having already invested millions into our current developments in Southport’s Northern Quarter, directly adjacent and opposite, all with the support of the local community.
"We really hope that the people of Southport are proud of what we have done and come out in force to support our new venture as my life and soul has gone into this project. The Grand is, in many people’s opinion, the jewel in the crown of not only Lord Street but of Southport."
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