Suburban Green, the bar and restaurant in the buzzing Beech Road area of Chorlton, has closed down after barely 18 months of opening. Owners Cal Gregg-Williams and Martin Lowe thanked locals for their support of the bar in a note in the window.
“Suburban Green, Chorlton, is now closed,” it reads. “We’d like to thank you for your support over the last two years. We feel privileged to have made so many friends and to have been welcoming into this thriving community. Best wishes to all.”
Gregg-Williams and Lowe revived the favourite Beech Road bar after it had been left empty for several years. Prior to their arrival, it had been The Parlour, which was opened by former Coronation Street actor Rupert Hill and Jonny Booth, owners of venues like The Castle on Oldham Street and the Bakers Vaults in Stockport.
The spot won Best Sunday Roast in the whole of the UK in the Observer Food Monthly's annual awards in 2012, but the pair sold the bar on in 2017. It then closed down a year later, and remained empty until Suburban Green took on the lease in 2020.
On signing the lease, Lowe said: “Acquiring what we feel is one of the most prominent properties on Beech Road, this site is exactly the location we want to continue the growth of Suburban Green. Our mission is to deliver a premium hospitality experience to our customers on their doorstep.”
Speaking to the Manchester Evening News, Gregg-Williams said that the bar struggled to get a foothold post-pandemic. “We had the fit-out done and were ready to open in September 2020, but because of covid, the first time we could properly let people inside was the 17th of May, 2021, eight or nine months later,” he said.
“Ultimately, we were a bar that did nice food. But at the time we had no choice to operate as a restaurant, because a lot of that time, you couldn’t have people standing up drinking. Then December wasn’t great due to Omicron, and that had a massive impact on hospitality as a whole, a real blow to everyone.
“A lot of people were relying on that to boost sales after covid. We thought summer would be really good, but reduced footfall meant we weren’t as busy, and it just meant it wasn’t doing the numbers we needed it to be doing. It had been empty for over two years prior to us taking it on, so we stripped it back, spent a lot of money future-proofing. You put so much effort and energy and time into somewhere, like we did into Chorlton, and you do feel gutted, but it’s definitely for the best.”
Another well-known operator is poised to take on the unit, thought details remain unconfirmed. Lowe and Gregg-Williams also have a Suburban Green bar in Wilmslow, and another which opened on Chestergate in Macclesfield last month. They also run The Wine Cellar in Wilmslow.
But there are still challenges ahead. “Our electric bill in Wilmslow has gone up from £2000 a month to £5000 a month. It’s gone up £35,000 a year, and you can’t just pull that sort of money from thin air, and you get it putting 10p on a pint either,” he added.
It follows the closure of Chorlton chicken restaurant Peck & Yard - which is reopening as a ramen spot - last month.
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