Everything You Need to Know About: Freight Island Newcastle
Here’s what to expect from Newcastle’s newest neighbourhood Freight Island
Freight Island Newcastle is set to open its doors this June, bringing a whole new level of food, drink and live entertainment to the Toon’s social and cultural scene.
Ahead of its grand opening, we’ve put together a handy guide about what to expect from this amazing new addition to Newcastle – read on and get set for the arrival of Freight Island!
What is Freight Island Newcastle?
Described as “Newcastle’s newest neighbourhood”, Freight Island is a social and cultural hub offering everything from street food, fine dining and drinks and to live music and other entertainment.
Spread across 60,000 square feet, it’s an all-day destination designed to transition seamlessly from laidback afternoon meet-ups to late-night fun. Central to Freight Island is The Plant Room – a gorgeous, leafy space decked out with booths and bench seating and set beneath a huge retractable roof, the largest of its kind in the UK’s hospitality sector.
Where is Freight Island located?
It’s located on the rooftop of Eldon Square in the unit formerly occupied by the Debenhams department store and its main entrance can be found on Newgate Street opposite The Gate.
When is Freight Island open?
Freight Island’s grand opening is on Thursday 11th June. From then on, it’ll be open on Thursday from 12pm to 11pm, on Fridays and Saturdays from 12pm to 1am and on Sundays from 12pm to 11pm.
What kind of food will be available?
Freight Island will be home to 12 kitchens occupied by independent food traders from Newcastle and the wider North.
The line-up so far features Newcastle favourites I Scream for Pizza, Meat:Stack, Gosforth’s FAB Bakery and Ouseburn’s Miso who’ll be joined by other traders including FUKU, V. Goode Pies, Pita, Jerk Junction and Churro Kingdom. Together they’ll be cooking up everything from Asian fusion eats to Greek and Caribbean fare alongside pizza, burgers, pies and sweet treats – so there’s something for everybody!
And in August, Freight Island will welcome PYR – a restaurant headed by the team behind Northumberland’s Michelin-starred restaurant PINE. Focusing on live-fire cooking, PYR is set to offer a menu built around seasonal British cuisine with locally caught seafood, prime cuts of meat sourced from regional heritage farms and seasonal vegetables from long-term small-scale growers.
What kind of drinks will Freight Island’s be serving?
There’ll be four bars spread across Freight Island’s 60,000 square foot space, including a dedicated cocktail bar, and they’ll be offering a diverse range of drinks including beers from local brewery Two by Two Brewing and organic wines sourced from sustainable vineyards.
What kind of events and entertainment will Freight Island host?
Music and nightlife lovers are in luck because Freight Island is bringing a packed programme of DJs and musicians to Newcastle with a series of events dedicated to different types of artists each weekend.
On Thursdays, it’s Playing Out which showcases emerging North East talents and on Fridays, it’s Rhythm Tonic featuring DJ collective takeovers headed by DJ and music curator Paul Stewart. Saturdays see Drink, Dance, Disco take over Freight Island with DJ sets from world-class talents and local support acts, and on Sundays there’s a more chilled-out offering with female-led collective Sundaze.
Freight Island will also host major live sports events – including the 2026 FIFA World Cup – and later in 2026, the venue will launch a purpose-built, 1,200 capacity music and events space set to provide a stage for both local artists and touring acts.
Is Freight Island family-friendly?
Yes, at certain times Freight Island is family-friendly (in fact, its World Cup screenings even have a dedicated family area) but some events are more suited to adults, so always check beforehand.
Freight Island is located on Newgate Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 5TG. For more information visit freightislandnewcastle.com.
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