The city centre’s only dedicated steak house has filled a culinary void and has proved to be evidence of Sunderland’s growing economy.
The Chop House above the historic Dun Cow pub reopened on May 14th after the former owner left the company.
Paul Scott, who is general manager of the Grill Room and its sister venue The Peacock, said: “We’ve found that the evening economy has certainly been boosted in Sunderland.
“For all the talk that people spout that there’s no money in Sunderland and everybody goes Newcastle and all decent people go to Durham, it’s clearly not the case.
“There are people in Sunderland with money to spend, and we’re starting to see that they will come and spend it in Sunderland.
“We’ve started off really well considering we’ve had a complete rebrand, a brand-new menu and some new decorations.”
The restaurant has successfully retained its focus on quality steaks and grills, while drinks will be provided by the extensive bar and its real ale selection downstairs.
“Although the restaurant looks quite formal, we still don’t want people to stand on ceremony, and we’re giving a good choice of really good quality locally sourced produce cooked by a fantastic chef.”
Lisa Colin, a supervisor at the Grill Room, said: “we’ve had a really good first month and the feedback has been excellent so far.”