A BOURNEMOUTH restaurant has seen its Christmas bookings increase by 70 per cent amid a massive refurbishment.

SoboFish, located in Southbourne, is being fully refurbished by Bournemouth-based interior design company KTM Design and is set to reopen on December 1.

With evening footfall doubling since the completion of outdoor refurbishment and a rise in festive bookings, owner Matt Betteridge says he is “proud” to have overcome various challenges before re-opening.

He said: “After only being open one week before lockdown, SoboFish has overcome its fair share of challenges. Our team worked incredibly hard to keep us going during Covid, providing home deliveries and collections, as well as overhauling our garden to maximise seating capacity for Covid-restricted dining.

“As a result of everyone’s efforts, evening bookings have doubled since completing our outdoor dining refurbishments and we’re now proud to be the number one seafood establishment in Bournemouth on TripAdvisor.”

Matt took over SoboFish in January 2020, opening in March of that year – one week before the first national lockdown.

He added: “We’ve had an overwhelmingly busy period since fully re-opening and Christmas is set to be even more popular – especially as so many festive celebrations were cancelled in 2020.

“We want to welcome the winter season with a fresh new look, giving people the opportunity to enjoy a fantastic dining out experience after missing out last year.”

KTM Design founded Katie Thomas said: “SoboFish is known in the community for its friendly, inviting atmosphere, and high-quality dishes. We wanted to ensure their new design stayed true to these values, while reflecting a fresh, updated image.

“Our design follows a Scandinavian style where we chose warm neutrals, blue tones and soft linen textures to give a warm, welcoming feel with a nod to the natural environment. We’ve also designed large feature wall murals which include different sea creatures to leave a bold, lasting impression with customers and make for a truly memorable dining experience.”

Matt Betteridge added: “At SoboFish, we pride ourselves on working with suppliers who are right on our doorstep, so KTM Design was the ideal partner for our refurbishment project. We’re excited to see our vision to life over the coming weeks and share our new look with customers from December 1.”