If you have passed through the centre of Onchan you may have noticed that the former Isle of Man Bank building has been redeveloped into a great restaurant.

Bonds Restaurant is up and running in the iconic structure at the heart of the village. It’s been a labour of love for the owners of the restaurant, Peter and Aisha.

Walking into the restaurant on 26 Main Road, Onchan, you are immediately drawn to its striking architectural features which have largely been preserved by the owners in the art deco style for the public to enjoy.

The bank vaults inside the building have been restored and adapted as the wine cellars for the restaurant.

It is a stunning place with a wonderful ambience that creates a great dining experience and venue for any celebration or event.

The luxurious look of the place has the food to match, with the menu offering a range of local produce.

Great homemade food is at the heart of Bonds. The chefs use the best locally-sourced organic Manx produce and are passionate about showcasing the finest ingredients with the restaurant also catering for vegans, vegetarians and gluten free customers to ensure everyone’s needs are met.

Bringing the menu to life is head chef Andrew McKinnon and second in command Ruben Pretorius who are both from South Africa. The owners recruited them especially to work at Bonds Restaurant and they have ’excellent credentials’ having worked at DW Eleven Restaurant in Johannesburg.

It was in his mother’s kitchen based in a small town in South Africa where Andrew discovered his love of food.

Learning to make traditional dishes using the freshest ingredients, his love quickly turned into a passion and a drive to create the highest quality dishes.

Following his studies at Capsicum Culinary Studio in South Africa, he graduated with diplomas in professional cookery and culinary arts.

Chef Andrew began his professional career at a fine dining restaurant in Johannesburg.

His food philosophy can be summed up in five words - consistency, quality, freshness, seasonal and precision.

Desiring new challenges and a lifestyle change in the beautiful Isle of Man, Chef Andrew accepted the Head Chef role at Bonds Restaurant where he is excited to introduce his own brand of food to the people of the Isle of Man.

Originally from Pretoria, South Africa, Ruben took up an Internship at the Alpine Heath resort in northern Drakensberg. After graduating and moving to the Cradle of Humankind region - a South African World Heritage Site where he worked on a game lodge - he developed his culinary skills under the tutorship of chef Allistaire Lawrence who is a top South African chef who has competed on ’Chefs Line’ featured on Netflix.

He then moved on to DW Eleven working for Marthinus Ferreira, a chef who’s appeared on South African TV food shows, where he met Andrew. He also worked as a sous chef at Boschendal Wine Estate in Franschoek.

After moving to the island to join Andrew at Bonds Restaurant, he hopes to incorporate exciting flavours and local produce that showcase local farmers.

In addition to beautiful food, wonderful wine and superb service, Bonds prepares a whole host of cocktails based on the financial theme, with the most popular being the ’Moneypenny’.

Adding to the wow factor, the venue hosts theme nights with their first being ’Licensed to Chill’, a black-tie event based on the Bond films and local singer Mae Challis singing the Bond classics.

Theme nights take place on the last Friday of every month. The next one follows the popular TV series Peaky Blinders, which is on Friday, January 31, from 7.30pm. With a four-course meal and live entertainment, tickets are £50pp and events are generally a sell-out.

The restaurant is available for all special occasions such as anniversaries, birthday parties and wedding receptions.

It also caters for corporate events and meetings.

Bonds is open for dinner every night apart from Sunday and Tuesday and is open for lunch from Wednesday to Saturday. It also serves Sunday Lunch with families and children being welcome.

To see the menus, visit www.bonds.im or visit Bonds Restaurant’s Facebook page. To reserve a table, email [email protected] or call 266491 or 466316