Historic Newcastle Music Store Set for Major Restaurant Transformation
According to newly submitted planning documents, the famous JG Windows music store in Newcastle's Central Arcade is poised to become a substantial new Thai restaurant operated by the Giggling Squid chain. This development marks a significant change for a prime city centre location that has been vacant since the music retailer's closure in November 2024.
End of an Era for Iconic Music Retailer
JG Windows, which first opened its doors in Central Arcade back in 1908, permanently shut down after more than a century of serving both renowned musicians and aspiring artists. The expansive store was known for stocking everything from musical instruments and grand pianos to records, sheet music, and equipment. The business attributed its difficulties to intense competition from major online retailers, leading to the auction of its remaining stock and leaving the large unit empty alongside the neighbouring premises previously occupied by health food company Naked Deli.
Giggling Squid's Expansion into Newcastle
Taras Properties Ltd, the property division of arcade owners Reuben Brothers, has submitted planning applications detailing the conversion of the vacant space into a sizeable Giggling Squid restaurant. The family-run business, named after a nickname given to the founders' children, has been steadily growing throughout the United Kingdom and currently operates 53 restaurants nationwide. Their ambitions include establishing a prominent new venue in Newcastle by occupying both the former JG Windows and Naked Deli spaces.
The design statement accompanying the application highlights Giggling Squid's extensive experience, spanning over two decades, with establishments across England, including a Grade II Listed site on Earl Street in Maidstone. The document emphasizes: "Both units are currently vacant; as such, the proposed development seeks to facilitate a long-term viable use for the building as a restaurant, which is located in a prominent position within Newcastle City Centre's Urban Core."
Preserving Heritage While Creating New Vibrancy
The proposed development includes careful restoration and preservation of historical features. Most of the historic first-floor layout would remain largely unchanged, with only three minor openings planned. Proposed modifications involve installing a kitchen area alongside customer dining spaces featuring a combination of banquette seating and dining table seating along the Grey Street elevation and bullnose.
Externally, the shopfront is proposed to be repainted green in accordance with the Grainger Town Shopfront Design Guide. On the Grey Street elevation, the top and bottom mouldings of the former Naked Deli shopfront will be replaced to create continuous mouldings to the fascia. The existing timber shopfront will undergo careful restoration, including preserving the existing gold leaf "Newcastle Brewers Ltd" sign at the footwell of 99 Grey Street.
Within the internal Central Arcade walkway, the existing stained and polished shopfront will be preserved and repaired where necessary. The existing JG Windows signage will remain in place, with new fascia signage to be overlaid using 3mm powder-coated aluminium.
Enhancing City Centre Vibrancy
The planning application argues that the development will significantly enhance the vibrancy of Newcastle's city centre, aligning with local policy objectives. It notes: "Given the site's prominent location within the Urban Core, the proposed development would enhance the vibrancy of the city centre, as encouraged by local policy. The compatibility of restaurants in proximity to dwellings has also been established through the presence of Côte Brasserie and Café Andaluz within the Central Exchange Building."
The application further states: "The proposed development will provide some clear conservation benefits through the retention of features of residual value within the building and the enhancement of the Grainger Town shop front. Due to the large amount of necessary physical works within the building, it is acknowledged that there could be some residual less than substantial harm, albeit at a very low level following a considered design process."
Ultimately, the proposal concludes that the public benefits associated with transforming the vacant space into a high-quality restaurant far outweigh any minimal harm, ensuring that a currently unused location will become fit for purpose and enjoyable for the public once again.
