Emotional final night spurred three Aberdeen drinks bosses to save Bar Ninety-Nine from closure

Seeing the emotion of patrons and customers was the motivation for three businessmen to save one of Aberdeen’s favourite night-time venues.

Bar Ninety-Nine had been a staple in the city for 12 years, and regulars were shocked to hear of its impending closure last month.

On the final night, it was an emotional farewell for many.

Among those there to say goodbye was Martin Farmer, who had worked with the Back Wynd bar previously and felt the emotion from long-time patrons.

Also working that night was general manager Stephen McNab, who had been with the business for more than seven years.

He had seen it flourish — and stood by it during the dark days of lockdown.

The two men, who had known each other for several years, teamed up with businessman Adrian Gomes to figure out how to save Bar Ninety-Nine from disappearing.

Adrian is the founder of 10 Dollar Shake, a cocktail catering company.

He has also had success in the city’s bar scene having founded The Tippling House on Belmont Street.

Martin said: “It was a no-brainer for me to get together and start this bar consortium — a trio of friends and colleagues — to bring back Bar Ninety-Nine.

“I was there on closing night, and it was so busy. A lot of people were emotional — just because of the venue that it is. Some staff had worked there for 14 years. It meant something to the community.

“At around 1 a.m. on the night the bar closed, I got a call from Gomes who said, ‘We have to do this.’”

Two-week turnaround from closing to reopening

Martin described the process as a “whirlwind” as, within days of closing, the trio had made arrangements to take over.

He is no stranger to the Aberdeen hospitality industry having worked in bars across the city for 18 years including Orchid and now works for a premium whisky company.

Stephen, who had been manager, is now part-owner and will run daily operations.

He said: “I’ve been in the hospitality trade for 15 years, so it was the next natural step for me to go from general manager to ownership.

“Especially somewhere like Bar Ninety-Nine, where there are emotional ties — what better place to make the move?”

Stephen says the most important thing about the bar is the “community” around it.

“I’ve always felt like the bar is the go-to trade bar in the city, with bartenders coming in. It’s just such a close-knit community.

“It was really that last night, when we closed up and saw the turnout from regulars and bartenders, that it all came into perspective — what Bar Ninety-Nine meant to a lot of people. We couldn’t just let it keel over and die.”

Saving Bar Ninety-Nine was a ‘no brainer’

While reopening the bar was important, the trio knew some things had to change. Previous staff were offered the chance to return, though some chose not to.

With everything in place, news broke that just two weeks after Bar Ninety-Nine closed, it would reopen — many patrons surprised but delighted at the quick comeback.

The trio have an advantage: they’ve spent a lot of time at Bar Ninety-Nine and know what needs to be done to make the business profitable.

A lot of time was spent considering the viability of the business, with Stephen describing it as a “numbers game”.

He’s confident that once the operation is streamlined, they can begin to invest in the bar’s future.

With all three men bringing their individual skills, he says, “anything is possible” with Bar Ninety-Nine.