Opening date CONFIRMED for new ‘restropub’ in former Electric Pavilion building in Northampton town centre

The opening date for a new ‘restropub’ in Northampton town centre, which combines a restaurant and a pub, has been confirmed.

Craft & Skewers will open its doors for the first time in the former Electric Pavilion building in Gold Street on Tuesday, May 23.

The latest addition to the town will be open everyday from 12pm until 10pm.

The organisers will look to host an official launch event a couple of weeks after the opening, to give them time to settle in and welcome new customers.

Craft & Skewers’ concept is that authentic Indian street food will meet a traditional pub environment.

This is the second location for the chain, which has proved successful in Newport Pagnell since it first opened in November 2021.

The team hopes to replicate the “casual aura of a pub”, where customers will have the opportunity to enjoy cocktails and craft beers while watching live sports.

Avishek Prakash, one of the owner-directors of Craft & Skewers, said: “I’ve been involved in the hospitality industry for 22 years, mainly with restaurants with buffets.

“Restaurants work very hard to bring customers in, but people don’t have to be encouraged to go to a pub.

“Our concept is we want to marry restaurants and pubs together, by bringing Indian food to a pub-like environment.”

Avishek says this has been done successfully in Birmingham before, but there was the potential for it to be taken even further.

He said: “We’ve got the winning formula, and our venues are a lot more Instagrammable than a typical pub.”

The Craft & Skewers team was looking to expand to a new location, closeby to where the first restropub is located.

They wanted to opt for a town or city centre to provide a good place for groups to meet up, and Avishek hopes this will be the case following their move to Northampton.

“This is the perfect venue,” he said.

When asked what people can expect from inside the building, Avishek says there is seating in the bar area for between 25 and 30 people as you enter.

There are high tables and two television screens for live sports.

As you walk further into the venue and up a ramp, there is the main dining area with seating for a further 60 people – with a couple more television screens so people can eat and watch simultaneously.

They also plan to utilise the space outside as the warm weather is approaching.

With a big bar on the left as you enter the building, there are 12 taps for craft and traditional beers.

“Indian restaurants are more popular in the winter time,” said the owner-director. “In the summer, more people prefer to go to pubs and drinking venues.

“We hope what we’re offering will be popular all year round.”

The food menu offered in Newport Pagnell consists of cocktail plates, home style curries, mixed grills on sizzlers, and sides and sundries – including a variety of rice and naan bread.

Avishek says the Northampton menu is “90 percent the same” as what is offered there, but it has been simplified further to meet everyone’s needs even when the venue gets busy.

There are also desserts to choose from.