A LONGSTANDING Camden Town Greek restaurant is set to clean out its charcoal grills for the last time – and re-open as a trendy craft beer pub.

Alexander the Great, on Plender Street, which is ranked in the top 150 restaurants out of 17,000 on the TripAdvisor website, is in the process of being sold to new owners, who this week applied for planning permission to convert the ground floor and basement bar into a new pub.

Current owner Stelios Nicolaou, who bought the restaurant as a going concern in 2002, said he was unaware of any attempts to change its use or alter its licence and added that he had not finalised the sale.

He said: “This is the first I have heard of any plans to stop serving Greek food. I have been negotiating its sale, but on the understanding it is a going concern.”

The restaurant is one of a number in the Camden Town area – known in the area as the “Peloponnese Triangle”, due to the high concentration of Greek restaurants and cafés – but over the years, customer numbers have dropped. This autumn, the popular Andy’s Taverna is due to close.

A planning application filed for the Alexander the Great site, by potential new owner Jeremy Sirrell, says they want to serve a range of cask and bottled beers. 

The applicant states that Mr Sirrell’s son will be the licensee and is experienced in running craft beer pubs. 

The current interior, with its classical statues of Greek figures, Taverna-like stonework and climbing indoor plants, will be ripped out, while the kitchen, with its charcoal barbecue, will be removed and replaced with casks of beer.

The application adds: “The existing building has been modified on many occasions internally over the years in its life as a fish shop, fish takeaway and Greek restaurant.”

The applicants were unavailable for comment.