Stack can't wait to welcome people back as it gears up for big reopening on Monday, April 12
and live on Freeview channel 276
From 10am on Monday, April 12, Stack Seaburn will be among the outdoor spaces in the city reopening its doors to the public in line with the Government’s roadmap to ease the country out of Lockdown.
As one of the city’s largest beer gardens, it’s amongst the most eagerly-awaited reopenings with thousands of people booked to attend in its first few weeks.
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Hide AdAt one point, as bookings went live, 6,000 people were trying to book the same tables, and the first two weeks of reopening were booked out in an hour and a half.
Visitors will be keen to work their way through the venue’s hub of food and drink traders – Acropolis, Longhorns, Healthy Thaim, Holy Duck, Boojie Burger, Chapos Tacos, The Little Cakery, Heineken bar, Farah’s Italiano, The Hop House, ZZA Pizzaria, Yolo Bar, Yolo coffee shop, Downey’s, The Gin Cabinet and Barley & Me – who will all be reopening.
Due to the North East being placed in the then Tier 3, Stack has not been open for sit-in dining since November 5, with a limited number of traders running a click & collect service since then, which may continue should there be the demand.
"We are eager as anything to let people back in,” said Gemma Dishman, Marketing & Special Projects Manager for Danieli Holdings who own Stack.
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Hide AdYears in the planning, Stack was designed to be a walk-in venue, but due to Covid had to slash its capacity from 2,000 to 600 and introduce a temporary booking system to meet the Government’s requirements.
Despite that, in the 10 weeks it operated as a sit-in venue, from opening in early September, it welcomed 100,000 people through its doors attracting people from as far south as Teesside and as far north as Northumberland to Seaburn, giving a much needed boost to the local economy, while also providing 100 new jobs for the city – on top of the traders’ jobs.
Gemma said: “We opened in a pandemic which is challenging, but the response we had in those 10 weeks was incredibly positive. We know our audience is eager to come back and enjoy the food, drink and entertainment, and we want them to have a good time, but we want them to be able to do that even with the restrictions in place.”
It’s hoped that Stack will be able to open for the first time as it was intended to be as a venue from June 21 when all restrictions will be lifted. In the meantime, many have expressed disappointment in not being able to get a booking, but Gemma explained the guidelines they must follow.
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Hide Ad"We need to ensure social distancing to be able to open and that those who do have a booking have the full Stack experience with a three hour window,” she explained. "We’re not built to be a bookable venue, but we had to adapt in the pandemic.”