Glasgow’s legendary and highly profitable Rogano seafood restaurant – the oldest restaurant in the city – has been put on the market with a price tag of nearly £6m.
Property agency Creevy LLH is seeking offers in excess of £5.95m for the leasehold on the restaurant which Alan Creevy describes as “simply a Glasgow institution”.
Rogano opened in 1935 when the Cunard Liner Queen Mary was being constructed on the Clyde and the restaurant shares the elegant art deco style of the ship.
It has become an international name during its seventy-plus years of trading and its list of celebrity clients includes Henry Kissinger, Tina Turner, Bob Dylan, and Madonna.
Rogano occupies a sandstone building in a prime location in Exchange Place, just off Buchanan Street, in the high-fashion retailing area of the city and close to the central business district.
It is divided into the main 50-seat restaurant and the 30-seat Oyster Bar on the ground floor, and the 45-seat Café Rogano and 20-seat private dining room in the basement.
The restaurant additionally has an outside dining area on Exchange Place.
Sales are split equally between food and drink and have risen from £2.06m in 2004 to £2.29m in 2005 (net of VAT).
The restaurant operates on a long lease that runs until February 2121 and has a rateable value of £154,000.
Creevy sees enormous scope for potential buyers from the UK or overseas to roll out the Rogano name.
“We feel there would be a great deal of interest in this business from existing operators and entrepreneurs as well as wealthy individuals all keen to capitalise on the unique location of the property, the phenomenal business and indeed the Rogano name which could undoubtedly grace other major cities within the UK and Europe.”
By Angela Frewin