Restore the Lobster Pot!

I know I'll undoubtedly be accused of being nostalgic, regressive, idealistic and unrealistic - have I left anything out? - nevertheless, if the Lobster Pot bar and restaurant in Strangford, County Down, ever wishes to restore its old magic of the 70s and 80s, it surely needs to get rid of the hard surfaces, bare floorboards and stone. There must be photographs and documents somewhere with the decor and menu of the original Lobster Pot. As somebody once said, let's have thick carpets, thick curtains, thick upholstery and thick, rich mahogany.

Somebody needlessly and unwisely destroyed its essential character fifteen or twenty years ago when they gutted it out and dumped its features in a skip. They went on to waste money on its infrastructure.

Why not restore it? Give it back its original nautical theme, the original layout with the lounge-bar to the rear; velour, semi-circular banquette seating with crescent-shaped mahogany tables and thick carpeting; and many more features which made it what it was thirty years ago. Consult former owners of the 70s and 80s, if necessary.

The à la carte menu was exemplary, with every conceivable vegetable and dish. The owner's wife personally attended to diners, with the large padded and bound menus under her arm. Such personal attention contributed in establishing the restaurant as one of the very best in the county.