Renovation Interview with Samantha Welch

Construction is officially underway! Don't mind our dust as we transform our bar and lounge to celebrate 20 years.

In a few short weeks, we will be welcoming guests into our newly renovated bar and lounge - we cannot wait to show you this new chapter here at Novo!

In the meantime, we caught up with Samantha Welch, our operations director, about how this renovation will help improve the overall guest experience.

What are you, as a manager, most excited for with the new bar?

It will be absolutely beautiful! The interior has never been able to come close to offering what our patio does, in terms of ambiance. While this design will still be very different from our patio I think it will now be an equally beautiful place to enjoy Novo.

In what elements do you think this will improve service/the overall diner experience?

The bar will be much larger which will give us much better storage capacity making the bartenders' job easier. It is really quite amazing that we have been able to grow as a business with the constraints of the old bar.  The additional storage will also help us clear the path along the hallway to make it out to the patio. If you remember back to the first time you ever walked into Novo from the front door, it has always been a little awkward passing by all of the storage, and what feels like through the kitchen to make your way to the patio.  While we cannot completely avoid that, due to the historic nature of the building, the changes in storage location and lighting will hopefully make that process easier for our guests to navigate.  The goal is to de-clutter the walkway allowing people to see as much of the original brick wall as possible.

What do *you* think guests will like most about this new bar?

We will have more seats at the bar top so it will offer a more lively and social atmosphere for guests. When I dine out, I love eating at bar tops. The service can oftentimes be more relaxed and personable with the added bonus that if you need anything your bartender is just steps away. The new design will be a beautiful place to deliver that experience.

What do you say to those who will say, "But I liked the old bar!"

I can't say that I disagree with them - there have been so many memories created there and this will be a big change! The design process has taken us about two and a half years to work through, change our mind and then change it back again. We took our time and we looked at every angle. Ultimately, what we gain in accessibility and function significantly outweigh any of that fear of change. There will be very few tables in the lounge now to accommodate the expanded bar and that will take a bit of getting used to for alot of our guests. We know there will be community members who will miss the old bar. We hope they will continue to trust us and take the opportunity to create some new memories in this revamped space.