£1m Makeover for Dunoon Bar

Residential property tycoons Archie and Grant McArthur of McArthur Property Ltd. have diversified into the licensed trade by opening the £1m Braes bar and restaurant in Dunoon. The father and son team will also open a boutique hotel in the former St Catherine’s Hotel on the banks of Loch Fyne in late 2012.
Grant McArthur told DRAM, “We owed the former Glasgow Hotel in Dunoon for about six years, and it had fell into disrepair, and our original plan was to convert it into flats, but we changed course and went for a restaurant, as we believed the area would greatly benefit from a quality bar and restaurant. We had a few teething problems, but things have settled down and we are already working on premises number two, St Catherine’s in Loch Fyne. It will re-open as a boutique hotel with chalets, plus it also has its own pier, so we are very excited about the plans we have for the property.”
The Braes took around two years to complete and also includes a function suite, with the McArthur’s responsible for the contemporary design. Says Grant, “We consulted some great design companies, but we were so sure about what we wanted and had the luxury of time on our side that we didn’t rush it. The beautiful solid oak bar, for example, came from ebay and was originally around the £40K mark, which we bagged for 10% of its original cost.” The design is clean and functional with brown leather couches, light wood, mirrors and plasma screens.