FEATURE
Imagination – The room is creatively filled with industrial items and Star Wars souvenirs .
and sand troopers , to name just a few . There ’ s even an “ armoury ” at the side – in effect , a droids ’ repair room where jawas jabber away under a red glow .
And while the decor is space age and industrial , it ’ s strangely cosy too . But how did all this happen ?
Alan explained the first-floor room was previously used for storage . But when the downstairs restaurant grew more popular or was unavailable due to the many private events the Warehouse hosts , it made sense to convert upstairs to make more dining space .
And what a conversion . After work started on September 11 , a “ soft ” opening for friends and family took place just 10 weeks and four days later .
And as Sean explains , that upstairs conversion was always only going to have one theme – furnished to a large extent by his massive collection of Star Wars memorabilia .
He said : “ We were building a games room in the house and were going to build a Star Wars bar , but I think my wife , Pauline , just got sick of all , so bringing it here was ideal .
“ We already had a few Star Wars bits downstairs , so it was always in my mind . And as soon as I had the nod from Alan and Pauline , it was game on – and it was getting done to the best of my knowledge . I wanted it as perfect as possible .”
It ’ s not all about Star Wars at Hangar 7 , with industrial-type decorative pieces dotted around the room and on the ceiling .
There are exciting developments with the business too , including a new lunch menu featuring “ lighter ” options such as baguettes and pastas , and a “ Friday night dinner ” option where , until Thursday lunchtime , you can order a freshly prepared meal , pick it up and take it home to eat on Friday night , meaning you don ’ t have to do the cooking and there are no dirty pans to clean .
An East meets West “ secret menu ” is also planned , where you don ’ t know what you ’ ve eaten until you ’ re told afterwards , to help break down people ’ s boundaries of not trying new things .
And the outside catering element of the business continues to thrive . Alan said : “ On Saturday , every element of our business was in full flow – breakfast , lunch , dinner , outside catering , Hangar 7 and Warehouse , all in one day .”
But back in Hangar 7 , there ’ s no getting away from Star Wars – to the extent that fans from as far afield as Scotland , Wales , London and even
Texas have come to take a look . It ’ s not open all the time , however . Alan explained : “ We don ’ t want it where people can just come in off the street at the drop of a hat . We want it to stay special – opening for certain nights and occasions , or when we need the extra space .”
However , it doesn ’ t just appeal to sci-fi buffs . Alan said : “ One guy wanted somewhere for his mum ’ s 70th . We mentioned upstairs but told him it probably wouldn ’ t appeal if he wasn ’ t into Star Wars . But as soon as he saw it , he said , ‘ We ’ re having it ’. And when I told him the toilets were downstairs , he said , ‘ Well , I ’ ll put her over my shoulder if I have to , we ’ re having this room !’”
And for Sean , whose full back Star Wars tattoo took 35 hours , it ’ s a place of wonder – and where his imagination is still driving him on .
He said : “ People walk in , look and book it . And it looks beautiful on a night – the lighting is stunning , and we nailed it first go . The bar looks beautiful too .
“ But this is just the beginning in my eyes – and it ’ s probably never going to be finished . There ’ s loads to be built and loads of stuff still at my house . My brain ’ s still swimming with ideas as well – I want to make it even more interactive and ‘ alive ’.”
The voice of business in the Tees region | 111