Birmingham city centre’s luxury venue Nude Bar & Grill temporarily shut - here’s why

A restaurant and bar that opened following a £1 million investment from its West Midlands-based owners has temporarily shut its doors.

Nude Bar & Grill, situated at the former Pint Shop premises at 38 Bennetts Hill, said they are temporarily closed - but will be opening their doors again in October 2022.

The bar opened in September 2021 and is spread over multiple floors. The luxury hospitality venue includes a Champagne lounge and the restaurant serves a modern fusion menu with an Asian influence.

The eatery is located in a Townhouse-style property and when guests enter they encounter a grand staircase leading to two further floors. It has many dining rooms, including a private one, two bars, a lounge and a women’s bathroom complete with a salon including antique perfume bottles.

The bar was shut due to staffing issues and is only open for events and private hire, a representative told BirminghamWorld.

Nude Bar & Grill was opened by Donna and Craig Chance - owners of Comfy Pub Co, who also run the Trooper at Wall, The Wine House in Lichfield and Hoof Beats Bar & Kitchen in Brownhills.

They had waited waited for more than half a decade to start a new venture in Birmingham city centre. The pair purchased the name ‘Nude Bar & Grill’ six years before launching the eatery.

Previously, as the venue opened, Donna said: “The location we have found is perfect for us, it’s actually a privilege to be moving into such a beautiful building and such a thriving part of the city centre.”

The closure comes as a shock since more than a million people are visiting Birmingham over the duration of the Commonwealth Games 2022. However, the hospitality sector is still reeling from losses during the pandemic lockdowns and lack of staff.

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) data shows that in April 2020, just under 1,650,000 employees in the sector were on furlough as businesses paused trading, falling to just under 590,000 employees furloughed at the end of May 2021.

This represented 25% of all furloughed employees. Eventually, the sector adapted to the changing restrictions, with the proportion of businesses temporarily closed falling from 81% in the spring 2020 lockdown to 54% in the early 2021 lockdown.

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