January 8, 2021 3.35 pm This story is over 37 months old

Work starts to turn Lincoln High Street store into arcade bar

Beer garden, cocktail bar and lots of guns

A planning application has been approved for alterations to the former Ruddocks store in Lincoln to become Carousel bar and Quickdraw virtual shooting range, with work already starting on the site.

City of Lincoln Council have approved internal and external alterations to the building, including a new cocktail bar, beer garden and cellar, kitchen, toilets and flagstone tiled flooring.

Carousel was supposed to open in September 2020 but was delayed due to the pandemic so in October, a pop-up simulation shooting range opened at Home nightclub in Lincoln, with technology used by USA police and replicas of real guns.

This is all part a concept operated by Lindum Leisure, which has links to a group of businesses including Home, Curiosity Shop and Craft. Lindum Leisure is currently leasing the building from Ruddocks.

Ruddocks of Lincoln closed in 2017 and was a family-run business for more than 160 years.

The changes are set to take shape by March this year.

The pop-up at Home nightclub in October. | Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite

Operations Manager David Nejrup told The Lincolnite in October: “We are really excited to bring this concept to Lincoln. It’s a really tough time for everyone in hospitality at the moment.

“For the past 10 years our company has always defined hospitality by engaging with our guests in a unique and insightful way, and now I we feel that with the current environment, that definition is more poignant than ever.”

Proposed ground floor plan for Carousel.