SoBo Beach's lease ends on 31 October and WestBeach has stood empty since May. Cabinet backs unnamed operators for both on Wednesday; Full Council decides.
Two of Bournemouth’s best-known seafront food sites are about to get new long-term tenants. BCP Council’s Cabinet will be asked on Wednesday to back a preferred operator for each: the SoBo Beach site on Southbourne Promenade, and the empty WestBeach restaurant next to Bournemouth Pier.
Neither operator is named. The bids, the draft lease terms and the rents are all in confidential appendices, so the public papers do not say who has won or what they plan to open.
The recommendations are in two reports for the Cabinet meeting on 30 September, both written by the council’s Head of Seafront.
SoBo Beach, Southbourne
The café and bar on Southbourne Promenade trades as SoBo Beach. Its lease runs out on 31 October 2026, according to the Southbourne Promenade report.
The council ran an open procurement to find an operator from 1 December 2026. The report says:
- 5 operators expressed interest, from national, regional and local firms
- 3 were shortlisted for interviews and presentations
- one of the three withdrew when invited
- officers recommend the remaining bidder they scored highest
The report does not say whether SoBo Beach itself bid. It describes SoBo Beach only as the “current tenant” and says the land “will become vacant in November 2026” when its lease ends.
The site plan attached to the report outlines 507 square metres on the promenade, off Southbourne Coast Road, plus 235 square metres of hatched beach in front of it. The new lease also makes the tenant responsible for repairing and maintaining the public toilets there.
SoBo Beach began as a stopgap. The council cleared the old Bistro on the Beach building in February 2022 to make way for a temporary catering venue from June 2022. At the time it said a permanent restaurant with 17 beach lodges would follow, opening in 2024. That building has not been built. The council’s Southbourne Beach project page still describes a restaurant, 16 beach lodges and a public cliff lift. This week’s report does not mention the permanent scheme at all.
WestBeach, Pier Approach
The restaurant on West Beach Promenade, about 150 metres west of the pier, has been empty since May 2026. That is when the previous tenant, Sandy Feet Ltd, left, according to the West Beach Promenade report.
The council’s agents, Savills, marketed it over the summer, with offers due by 3 August. The report says 13 operators expressed interest and three were shortlisted.
The marketing pack, published with the report, describes what the new tenant gets:
- a single-storey building of about 3,387 sq ft (315 sq m)
- a front terrace that previously seated about 30
- a separate beach seating area for up to 60, usable for up to 26 weeks between April and September, subject to planning permission
- a premises licence allowing alcohol sales from 10am to 2am, seven days a week
- a lease free of any brewery or supplier tie, with most fixtures and fittings already stripped out
The building is on the 2026 rating list at a rateable value of £55,000. The council holds it on a head lease; the Meyrick Estate owns the freehold and has to consent to the new letting. The report warns that this consent could delay completion.
The two sites side by side
| SoBo Beach, Southbourne | WestBeach, Pier Approach | |
|---|---|---|
| Status | Trading; lease ends 31 Oct | Empty since May 2026 |
| Expressions of interest | 5 | 13 |
| Shortlisted | 3 (one withdrew) | 3 |
| New operator from | 1 December 2026 | Not stated |
| Ward | East Southbourne and Tuckton | Bournemouth Central |
Both reports say the preferred bid offers the highest guaranteed and projected rent, “strong covenant strength” and “significant private sector investment”. Neither puts a figure on any of it in public.
Why Full Council has the final say
Officers would normally sign off a lease themselves. These two are worth more than their delegated limit once the rent is capitalised, so Cabinet can only recommend them. The final vote goes to Full Council, which next meets on 13 October.
Even after that vote, both leases still depend on a valuer confirming the deal is the best the council could reasonably get. WestBeach also needs the freeholder’s consent.
What it means for you
- SoBo Beach regulars: the current lease ends on 31 October and a new operator is due to start on 1 December, so expect a gap of about a month. The papers do not say who takes over or what changes.
- WestBeach: the pier-side restaurant should not stay empty into next summer if the lease completes, but no opening date has been given.
- Who wins: the names should become public once the leases are signed. We will report them when they are.
Cabinet meets at 10.15am on Wednesday 30 September. Agendas and papers are on the council’s meeting page. For more on what is happening across the district, see our Bournemouth planning news.
Have your say