A new dog-friendly restaurant at a historic castle owned by a reality TV star is poised to open later this week.

The Naughty Dog at Lympne Castle, near Hythe, will officially launch on Thursday (August 29) with an invite-only event between 1pm and 4pm, though a licensing bid is still to be determined by Folkestone and Hythe District Council.

It will open to the public the following day, with daily trading hours from 8am-6pm.

It is the latest venture by Dr Ann Kaplan Mulholland, who was featured on Real Housewives of Toronto, as she and her husband seek to bring the attraction back up to scratch in a multimillion-pound investment.

Opening in the space previously occupied by The Bistro, The Naughty Dog will offer gourmet street food in an establishment bosses say has been “designed to be inviting” and is inspired by Hampton Court Palace.

In a statement, Lympne Castle officials said: “We wanted a place where locals could go, we wanted to offer interesting, different and great cuisines.

“As tourists increase their visits to the castle, we wanted a third dining choice within the castle grounds.

“We have built on the design of what was and is an incredible space. When visiting the Historic Royal Palaces, Ann took notes and photos and designed The Naughty Dog around an original castle kitchen at Hampton Court Palace.

“The Naughty Dog’s interior is unique and invites people into what could have been a medieval castle kitchen (except for the ice cream machine and haute dog stand).

“People will take delight in the decor, appreciating an amazing place to visit and the great food. People will also have a place to bring their dogs and relax.”

Inspired by a love for four-legged friends, the interior will lean heavily into its dog-friendly atmosphere and even has a menu designed for pups.

Meanwhile, the restaurant’s exterior court will boast five “very old and very large” olive trees bedazzled with fairy lights.

On the menu will be ‘haute dogs’ – luxury versions of hot dogs – along with seafood, salads and breakfast.

An application for the venue to be able to play live music daily from midday and sell alcohol during between the hours of 8am to 11.30pm remains undecided though whether or not this will be utilised remains to be seen.

Dr Mulholland snapped up the castle last year for less than half the asking price, bringing an end to a years-long saga which saw it fail to sell for its original price of £15 million.

She told KentOnline in April she managed to wrestle the cost down after inspections of the site revealed the extent of work required to renovate the building, some of which dates back 1,000 years.

The medieval Grade I-listed castle - the first buildings of which date back to 1080 - sits within more than 130 acres.