Have Darwin and Wallace gone for the natural selection of name?

Old Fire Station facade on Chiswick High Road. Picture: Ian Wylie

Chiswick was recently reminded of the site of its former fire station when the facade outside a High Road building was revealed.

After the closure of All Bar One, extensive refurbishment works have been going on at the site at 197-199 Chiswick High Road. These revealed masonry on the front of the building showing that it was the former home of the local fire brigade.

The licensing application by the new owners Darwin and Wallace Ltd has been made using the name of the Old Fire Station suggesting that they may be considering this for their planned 'bar with dining facilities'. The company was not available to confirm their intentions but previously bars opened by the chains have not been branded with the company's name.

The station was originally opened on this site in 1891 and operated there until 1963 when it moved to its present location on Heathfield Gardens which was formerly occupied by Christ Church's vicarage.

All Bar One closed in September. The bar has been the subject of rumours for a number of years. In 2012 it was due to turn into an Asian restaurant but the owners had a change of heart and gave the place a makeover and new menu.

Darwin & Wallace is currently expanding across London with a plan to acquire sites between 5,000 square feet to 7,000 square feet, predominantly in affluent 'villages' including Chelsea, Kensington, Knightsbridge, Notting Hill, Soho, Fitzrovia, the West End, Hampstead and Haverstock Hill, Camden, Islington and Shoreditch.

The concept of All Bar One was originally to provide as a 'female friendly' bar at a time when most pubs and bars were often seen as intimidating places for single women to go and drink or eat. The first bar was opened in 1994 in Sutton, London, and by 2012 there were almost fifty outlets in the UK, mostly in central London.

December 27, 2015