Sunderland's Keel Tavern in line for two major design awards - and it needs your vote

It’s almost exactly a year to the day since Keel Tavern pulled its first pint as the first of four much-anticipated bar openings in the units beneath Holiday Inn in Keel Square.

After a successful first Christmas in the city, it was soon joined by The Botanist, with The Muddler and Flower Cafe set to open in the coming months to complete that block of development.

Now, Keel Tavern is capping off its first year in style with two design award nominations.

The first is a new international award called The Food in Space Awards with a shortlist of food and beverage outlets from across the globe from Sydney to Slovakia - and just one shortlisted from Sunderland.

Keel Tavern is going head to head with The London Pub in Bloomsbury, London in the Brewery & Pub category - and you could help the Wearside watering hole win.

The new awards are judged solely on public vote which can be cast by scrolling down the page and liking the Keel Tavern here.

No need to enter any details, a like on the image is all that’s required.

So far, it has 800 votes, twice that of its competitor in the Capital.

The other awards in which Keel Tavern has been shortlisted is the Northern Design Awards 2024 in the Social Space over £1m category.

Another Sunderland company, The Tram Shelter in Seaburn, has also made it to the finals of this year’s awards in the Restaurant Design less than £250k category, with the winners announced at a ceremony in Liverpool at the end of November.

Keel Tavern was brought to the city by North East hospitality group, Vaulkhard Group, who commissioned North East interior design specialist Pulp Studios Design House to design the pub.

It became a real passion project for designer Gerard McElvenny who is from Sunderland, and has designed bars across the North East and beyond.

Named after Keel Square, Keel Tavern’s design is inspired by the old Vaux Brewery which once stood yards away on what is now the Riverside development.

“To make it to the last two of an international design awards is really quite something and it would be great to win either of these awards,” said Gerard. “It’s great to see people using the spaces we designed this past year, the reception seems good and people are fond of it.

“Once The Muddler and Flower Cafe open nearby, the bars will really complement each other and help each other out. Even better when Culture House and the new bridge opens.

“The brief was to create a proper boozer and we took a three storey concrete block and gave it intimacy with the gallery and little booths.”

Gerard added: “As well as the brewing history, with details like the hops in reference to the fact the town used to smell like hops all the time and the Brewery Tap sign in reference to the old pub on the Vaux site, there’s subtle design accents.

“These include lattice work inspired by the old Roker Park who had such a long affiliation with Vaux.”