Sunderland's historic Bonded Warehouse to reopen after £250,000 investment

The people behind the popular Fat Hippo burger chain have opened the 19th century warehouse in Fish Quay, Low Street, as a function room and space for live music, craft beer and street food vendors.

The new chapter for the historic site starts tonight with a music and food event.

Owner Michael Phillips, said: “Stumbling across this diamond in the rough was exactly the kind of project we’d been looking for. Researching into the history of the building, we discovered the old bonded warehouse had previously been a passing place for dutiable goods, storage for ship anchors and chains and even lived as a brewery in the early 1900’s.”

The Grade II-listed property, which dates back to the 1830’s, was given a new look by interior designer Emmie Vincent, who also worked on the renovation of Fat Hippo Durham in Saddler Street.

She said: “The aim of the brief was to restore the old Bonded Warehouse back to its former glory. I have worked on a number of projects with Mike in the past, all of which have been old buildings full of character. We both share a passion to restore such buildings and bring them back to life. The challenge with Bonded Warehouse was to create a space that’s edgy enough for music gigs and events but elegant enough for weddings. So, the design became a hybrid of contrasting influences; think industrial revolution combined with Victorian elegance. Sunderland has such a rich industrial heritage, which is also evident in this building, so naturally this acted as the foundation to the design.”