THE BANK Cafe and Bar, located in a historic needle factory on Queen Street in Astwood Bank, is being billed as ‘Redditch’s best-kept secret’.
The building was rescued, refurbished and restored to initially create an antiques centre and cafe.
The venue was first established in 2016 and, during the difficult times of the Covid pandemic, Bank soon became a hub for the village.
Dylan Shaun and Becky – the owners of the local family-run business – made the decision to increase the size of the cafe as the need and want to go out and socialise became apparent.
Dylan said: “After more continued support on the cafe we then decided to apply for an alcohol licence.
“After facing many challenges acquiring the licence through the planning process, we then had a fully operational premises licence until 11pm.”
The bar opened in June 2022 and went from strength-to-strength. So much so that live music was introduced in December and soon became popular with various up-and-coming singers and bands lined up for every Friday and Saturday.
Dylan added: “With Redditch being associated as one of the worst places to go on a night out, we wanted to offer more and this then led us to do a bigger refurbishment and invest more money into the business to be able to offer a better place to enjoy evenings out.
“We have an ambition to put Astwood Bank – and in turn Redditch – back on the map.”
Plans are in the pipeline for more evenings which would see Bank offer entertainment from Thursday to Sunday.
The Rugby World Cup starts next week and matches will be screened at Bank across several TVs in the bar.
Other plans include introducing evening food with guest chefs, street food vans and more.
Dylan said: “There are a lot of things this village has to offer, such as ourselves, the Astwood Bank Club, The Lounge, The Why Not and The Oddies.
“There are also places to go out to enjoy food – Little India, Flying Fish, the Food Emporium, Astwood House and Tilas.
“We also want to bring in even more new talented and up-and-coming musicians so we can offer a variety of genres.
“There will be lots more event evenings in the works so watch this space!”
Other plans for Bank include extra downstairs seating and toilet facilities for the cafe and a bigger variety of food throughout the mornings and into the afternoon brunch.
To stay updated with the latest developments, visit Bank’s social media pages – on Intagram, ‘Bank Cafe & Bar’ on Facebook.
So if you want to enjoy ‘Redditch’s best kept secret’, head down to Bank at 2a, Light House Works, Queen Street, Astwood Bank, B96 6BT.
Or call 01527 892014 or email Dylan@Bankcafebar,com for more information.
