Plans to open a “chic” wine bar on a pier will bring Cornwall to the Kent coast, developers say.

The owners of popular seaside café-cum-restaurant The Jetty in Broadstairs have launched a bid to more than double the premises in size.

Papers show the business – which has a capacity of 30 indoor diners – will be able serve several more customers at a time, while the rest of the extension will be turned into a 40-seat wine bar.

Christian Miles – who snapped up the site with business partner Warren Roe two years ago – says the transformation will bring more tourists to the town.

“We want to keep the character of the building, but at the same time we want it to have a chic, trendy vibe as well,” he told KentOnline.

“A lot of our customers are coming to us and saying ‘wouldn’t it be lovely if we could have a drink here before or after dinner?’

“The idea will be to have a place where you can have coffee in the mornings with a 360-degree view of the coast and, in the evenings, it’ll be somewhere you can go for picky bits and a drink.

“This will bring with it a taste of Cornwall as there’s a lot of these cool places on the beach there, and they seem very popular.”

The Jetty is based in the pier head shelter, which offers punters views of Viking Bay – a popular location for sunseekers in the summer.

Documents submitted to Thanet District Council show the project will create up to 10 more full-time jobs. The business currently employs 10 people on a full-time basis.

The planning application, which was lodged with the local authority last month, has secured the support of The Broadstairs Society.

And Mr Miles believes his scheme will give the town a financial boost, having already forked out more than £600,000 on acquiring and refurbishing the site.

“The bistro at the moment can do about 30 customers at a time with an outdoor area that can seat about 25, and during the summer months we’re rammed,” he added.

“We need more space. We’re hoping to get another 10 or so diners inside the restaurant with the extension, and another 40 in the wine bar.

“Before we bought it, it was no more than a greasy spoon, but we seem to have turned it into a location that locals and out-of-towners like to come to.

“This will only add to the destination Broadstairs already is.”

Mr Miles, who was a founder of estate agency Miles and Barr, says the venture will likely remain open until 10.30pm most evenings.

In addition, 10 new public benches are proposed as part of the project which it is hoped will "create a positive environment for the public to enjoy".

If their plans are given the green light by the local authority, the developers expect to begin work in October, before opening the revamped site next Easter.