Week Two Thu 29th Jul 15:27:34
Plumbing work is now all in place, the re-wiring team is working with the Heritage team to ensure the original features are not damaged whilst accessing all the electrical points. 
Week One Thu 29th Jul 15:23:36
Having put a detailed plan together for everything from the radiators to the plug sockets, we started clearing out of all our possessions. Our contractor, Humberstone and Pulford, started stripping out the carpets, the old heating system, and the damaged roof. Luckily none of the original features of The Jews House were damaged.  
Finally we have good news!! Thu 29th Jul 15:18:06

 We have been waiting in anticipation, as I am sure a lot of you have ... 

But ... 

Work has finally started on The Jews House Restaurant!   

After eighteen months of neglect, the council has finally given the go ahead to the contractors to get the hammers out. 

Now we can start planning the refurbishments, choosing the colour schemes etc and Gavin is relishing the excitement of planning not only the seasonal menus but the Christmas menus as well - it will be upon us in no time!! 

Both of us want to thank you for all the support you have given us.  Knowing you are looking forward to our return has helped to keep us going. Please believe us when we say we have been waiting for this moment for a very long time. 

Although work has started, we don’t want to get carried away and give an opening date yet, but we are working with the builders and will keep you informed of their progress. 

The work is estimated to take eight weeks unless we have any delays. We hope to be open in September, just in time for the start of the game season! 

When the restaurant re-opens we will have different wine and food evenings, for example Fish nights, Tapas nights and Tutored wine and food evenings with Simon, our wine friend.   

Over the past eighteen months we had time to reflect on what needs improving. With help from an interior designer friend we have lots of  ideas to welcome you back to a warmer feel and atmosphere.  One thing, however, will stay the same – our commitment to offering you exceptional food with, outstanding, friendly service.

Update coming soon!!! Sun 25th Jul 17:03:03
Update... Mon 1st Feb 16:48:57

Hello Readers, 

Our time at Coffee Aroma has passed us by so quickly and in readiness to concentrate our efforts on the re-opening of The Jews House we have now moved on. We hope in the future to create some tapas style evenings at The Jews House.  

Permission now granted from the government and Heritage, the wheels have been put in motion for work to commence. Better late then never!! 

Along time since I last updated this page however things are now moving positively forward. Work to eventually start late February, early march with a view to open early April.
24th June 2009 Wed 24th Jun 21:05:55
 
It feels like ages since we could write and give you some news. On The Jews House Restaurant side of thing we still have not seen a hammer or builder on site! We had Rainbow restoration in which have cleared the heart of Jews House and are now just waiting for the heritage to give us the consent to go ahead.
 
The problem is the building is grade one listed so the Lincoln city council can not give consent to do work on the building so it moves to the headquarters of the heritage. Time at the heritage move very slowly, which is very frustrating for us as a business but we have to respect the age and beauty of the building. We just hope that all this time and planning will mean the building is put back to its original state.
 
It seems like we will be looking towards autumn time before restoring can even start things and then we don’t know what delays are expected.
 
On the brighter side …..
 
For quite a while now Gavin and I have had a love for Tapas food, the way it create the atmosphere, how so many different flavours can fill a plate and so many unique dishes in just one seating. We are flying off again to Barcelona to do some more research next week! For our new  joint venture.........   
 
Gavin and I are going into partnership with Coffee Aroma which is a European coffee bar just off the high street. Coffee Aroma’s atmosphere of relaxation and culture is well suited to the Tapas style food we want to create.  
 

So please keep an eye out for the new Tapas bar, Jews House style coming soon!!!
19th March 09 Sat 21st Mar 10:17:40
We're still hoping to be able to open in temporary premises and are still looking for just the right place with the right ambience to welcome you, but we are waiting to find out from our insurers if and when we will be able to organise this.  In the meantime ... watch this space ...
18th March 2009 Sat 21st Mar 09:59:55

Things are moving on, albeit very slowly  We've now had someone in to design us a complete early warning fire system so this experience will never be repeated. 

As you know, the Jews House can get very cold so we are also taking this opportunity to put a new heating system in place; so ... every cloud does have that silver lining.

As for us, we have been enjoying ourselves helping our friend Mark Osbourne at his 1877 Restaurant in Nottingham.

Gavin:  "Although I know Mark and his style of cooking quite well it was interesting to see how he is doing now, since he opened the restaurant.  His new kitchen has a fabulous cooker range with lots of gadgets and these help him create the menu he has.  It's great to be able to compare ideas and different techniques in the kitchen with someone as passionate as i am".

Sam:  "I've really enjoyed learning how other restaurants present themselves as a team.  All the gadgets were fun to use, but not practical in a restaraunt as old as The Jews House Restaurant."
14th February 2009 Fri 13th Feb 12:11:02
We've been invited to help out at a friend's restaurant in Nottingham, Restaurant 1877, this weekend.  Looking forward to swapping (stealing) ideas and it will be nice to be busy again.  We'll tell you about it next time.
12th February 2009 Fri 13th Feb 12:08:31

We've had a meeting with contract cleaners to sort out what can be cleaned and stored whilst we wait for the work to be done.

We're hoping our new chairs can be cleaned and restored to their original standard!
10th February 2009 Fri 13th Feb 12:02:06

We've now realised we've got a lot of time on or hands so we're looking into renting other premises so we can carry on business.  But we don't want to compromise the Jews House service, ambience and food so we're trying to find just the right place.

 

We'll keep you posted!
9th Feb 2009 Fri 13th Feb 12:01:51

We had a meeting today with people from the Council, including the Heritage Team Leader.  The good news is that the repairs and redecoration should only take about four weeks, however ...

 The bad news is that it will be a minimum of six months before we will be ready to reopen!  We had quite a shock when they told us this.  It's because the building is Grade 1 listed and it's quite a sensitive matter, with a lot of discussions to be had to make sure it is restored to its original state.

Jews House Closure due to FIRE Fri 30th Jan 16:50:28
After two and an half years of being opened, we'd nearly finished our renovation of the upstairs restaurant, lounge and toilet area. You always have an image of what you want but just can’t explain it or find it in the shops, but… with lots of hunting we found some lovely antiques which hopefully can be restored.

Less than a week into our reopen from our 10 day decorating break that would hopefully give upstairs a real atmosphere, we were looking forward to Saturday and a more relaxing time than the decorating was bringing.

That Thursday evening Gavin and I decided to stay on as we really needed the varnishing to be finished and the floor to dry before Saturday. I left at about 2am and headed home to receive a call at 5am from Gavin.

Not being able to understand or hear what Gavin was saying he put down the phone and I turned over and went back to sleep.  Woken a short while later Gavin told me he was in hospital as The Jews House had had a fire.  

Gavin says

‘It was obviously a very traumatic experience, the smoke, the fumes, not being able to breath but…. I will never forget how cold the fireman’s ladder was!! On a more serious note we would like to say a big THANK YOU to the fire-fighters, police, ambulance and hospital staff for everything they did. You don’t really understand what they do until you need them, thank you!’

With new furnishings and wallpaper that felt like it took a year to put up. Why did we choose stripes on the most uneven walls in Europe?? None of this mattered as I made a dash to Gavin. Fortunately Gavin returned home the same morning with no ill effects.   

It did not really hit me until I actually got to the restaurant. Mr Gray, the fire officer, waited to take me round and explain the cause of the fire and how it had spread. The fire was caused by an electrical fault on the tumble dryer which has caused the Victorian roof at the back of the building to collapse and all our hard work went up in smoke. You should have seen the ballerina pictures and art work by Fraser Scarfe! The fire had only ruined the back of the building but the smoke has got everywhere so even though it may only take a few weeks to build a new roof , the whole restaurant will need redecorating and aired to get that smell out. The smell of damp, burnt wood now lingers on everything we own.     

We are now playing the waiting game for insurance procedures, council and heritage to repair and restore the extension, a very delicate matter as it’s rather old and historic!! It does get you down as we are so eager to re open but it’s a long process.

The main thing is Gavin is ok and we will reopen soon.