A POPULAR Bruton restaurant has applied for a number of changes to the listed premises.
A planning application has been submitted to Somerset Council for At The Chapel, proposing a number of changes to the High Street venue.
It aims to separate the currently interlinked bakery and restaurant businesses.
“The organic development of At The Chapel over the years has created a layout that is not very efficient or safe for the current operations,” the application said.
“Both the kitchen and the bakery share access and circulation routes via external doors and staircase over the ground floor and basement.
“The bakery is located at basement level in a separate building to the rear of the terrace but the prep area is at ground floor level in number 30, whereas the restaurant kitchen is at ground floor level, with the prep and wash-up areas in the basement.”
Mackenzie Wheeler, on behalf of At The Chapel owner, Stay Original Ltd, broke the plans down into three areas:
- An internal staircase, installed in 2008, would be removed and an external door returned to its original position.
- The external landing and basement level staircase, also installed in 2008, would be altered to create a straight access to a ground-floor door.
- And a new opening would be created between numbers 28 and 30 High Street – all part of the At The Chapel buildings – allowing access from the kitchen in 28 to proposed wash-up and storage facilities on the ground floor of 30.
“Currently, access between the cooking, wash-up, prep and storage areas for both the restaurant kitchen and the bakery are very confused and ‘intertwined’ within the basement and ground floor of 28 to 30 High Street, Bruton,” the application went on.
Some of the staircases and access points set to be altered in the At The Chapel buildings. Pictures: Mackenzie Wheeler/Somerset Council
“The two businesses are independent operations with their own management, staff, supply chains and operating hours.
“The access routes between the various functions of both businesses cross each other via internal and external staircases in a manner that is unsafe and uncomfortable for staff, particularly in poor weather, and risk cross contamination and damage to the product.”
The works would locate all bakery areas at basement level, with restaurant kitchen works at ground floor level.
“Staff in the bakery and the restaurant kitchen will no longer have to travel between floors to carry out their work and access is therefore greatly improved,” the plans added.
For more details, and to comment on the scheme, log on to www.somerset.gov.uk and search for application reference 23/03206/LBC.
I would like you to consider disabled access I was to attend a funeral wake but could not get in as this was on the lower floor .