Most people know that Brunel designed the Bath Spa railway station. Not so many know that he also designed one of the city's hotels.

The Royal Hotel opposite the city's railway station was designed by the renowned architect and engineer. Constructed for the arrival of the railways during Victorian times, it started trading in 1846.

Known then as the Station Hotel, it was given the royal prefix as a reminder of Queen Victoria's visit to the city, although it is said she wasn't as taken with Bath as her predecessors in Georgian times.

Now, 165 years after it first opened its doors, the hotel has undergone a major transformation and has opened a new brasserie in honour of its designer.

With so much work now taking place at the other side of the station The Chronicle teamed up with Bath in Time to offer readers the chance of seeing how the newly refurbished hotel used to look.

It may not have the footbridge which connected the train station platforms to the first floor of the hotel – this was demolished in 1936 – but the Royal Hotel's patrons are still travellers.

Before this bridge was demolished when the Italian patriot Garibaldi passed through after his triumphal tour in 1864 he was to have addressed the crowd from the bridge. However he was unable to alight from the train because of crowds joining the mayor on the platform.

Lord Manvers made very precise directions in the Great Western Railways Act of 1835 about how Manvers Street should be established. It was therefore one of the first railway approaches to be laid out according to legislation.

However the only part to be built of what could have been a beautiful piece of urban design was the pair of almost identical hotels immediately opposite Brunel's station.

They both turn their corners convincingly with a set of giant Ionic columns.

The eastern hotel, which was the Argyle, is now linked into the new SouthGate complex while on the western corner is the Royal Hotel.

One wonders what would have happened if the intended terraces of Manvers Street and Dorchester Street had ever been built. Perhaps they would have suffered the same fate as Churchill House.

Hotel general manager, Mike MacDermid, said: "We have high occupancy rates throughout the year but nowadays people are coming from around the world – New Zealand, Australia, Japan, America as well as Europe and the UK."

There are also celebrity patrons with the Theatre Royal Bath so close, as well as the city's many festivals which attract well-known names. The opening of the Thermae Bath Spa has also boosted trade.

Mike says the new brasserie which cooks local and home-made produce is a tribute to tradition and modernisation.

The hotel was a Berni Inn from the conception of the brand through to the mid-90s but Mike says they have moved away in the main from that style of food, although it has kept the steak element for which it is famed.

Mike says: "We are right in the heart of the city and within easy reach of all the attractions. Many still come by train but we are also catering for coach parties who have come from all over the world.

"Brasserie Brunel is a tribute to the hotel's heritage but also providing what people in the 21st century want."

The renovation was undertaken by the hotel's own maintenance man Alan Fordham creating a lighter feel to the room which is decorated with images of Bath and, of course, Brunel himself. The hotel is owned by Patrick McQuire and Ron Zanre, both hoteliers and restaurateurs who formed Patron Hotels and Restaurants.

Mike, who has worked in hotels across the country but latterly in Bath and Devon, said: "It has been in my blood for 32 years. Every day is different and there is no set pattern. You meet so many different people. It's a great job."

Brasserie Brunel is open daily for lunch, afternoon tea and dinner – bookings can be made by calling 01225 463134.