City Diary — 4 November
Peach boss's wife has the write idea
Sales of Peach Publishing's first book are going well, apparently. The Faithless Wife, by Jo Eames, is fast becoming the 'novel of Menorca', the story being set on the Balearic island. Hamish Stoddart, the managing director of Peach Pub Company, who made the unusual decision to set up a publishing arm, is proud not only of his first literary baby, but of its author. Eames is his missus. Let's hope she's not trying to tell him something with the title.
Diners' dismay at pub closure
Punch is bringing back the Taylor Walker name by re-branding about 100 of its managed pubs in the capital under the badge. But work on the refurb at the Prince of Wales site in Wimbledon has dragged
on and left a number of customers going hungry. Punch sent out thousands of emails offering those in the area a chance to try its British pub classics — bangers and mash or pie — for just £5. The offer was valid from Tuesday, 19 October to Sunday, 24 October. However, one source went along on 20 October with a friend for a bargain lunch and found the pub closed up with a note on the door: "Under refurbishment. Due to open on 22 October. "We were very excited to be heading for a proper winter warming meal instead of the usual sandwich fare or expensive pizza in Wimbledon, so it was a real shame to miss out," she said.
Good and proper list of pub pluses
Greene King has set up a rather nifty microsite for its Proper Pubs campaign. Visitors are asked to rank the things they regard as crucial to a proper pub. The top-five items are: 1. Friendly, welcoming landlord; 2. Clean toilets; 3. Great ales, properly served; 4. Selection of great wines; 5. Great value and quality across the range.
Chilli White heats up the club scene
Nightclubs may be suffering but Yellowhammer Bars, led by James Spragg, has invested in a new concept, Chilli White. There have been successful openings in Leeds and Leicester —
and the third site, in Bournemouth, has been awarded Best Venue in Bournemouth at the resort's annual Best Bar None awards. Spragg said: "The Chilli White offer is all about re-inventing the old nightclub experience. Our use of social networks
and the web allow us to communicate and interact with our customers in a way not done before and all three businesses are performing well ahead of expectations."
Jibes galore light up Britvic dinner
To the Lancaster Gate Hotel in west London, where Diary was lucky enough to be invited by Britvic to a dinner to raise money for Bath rugby stalwart David Barnes (it's his testimonial year) and some worthwhile causes, such as Help for Heroes.
The evening was shaped in part by the pub industry's very own David Elliott, formerly of Greene King, who is heavily involved at Bath RFC and helped Barnes organise the event. A who's who affair, the evening saw interviews with Sir Clive Woodward, Martin Johnson and current England skipper Lewis Moody plus a 'charidee' auction conducted by Jonny Gould — a man who specialises in persuading people to part with their cash by essentially hurling as much abuse as possible at all and sundry.
One table was labelled the "cast of Deliverance", Sir Clive was deemed "tight" and a group of solicitors was lambasted for spending their "ill-gotten gains". At one point he called upon Elliott to help sell a pair of running spikes worn and signed by 100-metre world record holder Usain Bolt. "Imagine the irony — a pair of Puma shoes worn by the fastest man in the world, held aloft by David Elliott, the slowest man in the world," bellowed Gould.
JDW boss refutes swap suggestion
Industry gossip was suggesting that JD Wetherspoon is in the midst of swapping
Carling and Coors Light for Carlsberg and Tuborg just 14 months after the original swap. Not true. Chief executive John Hutson says: "It's a seven-year supply deal with Carlsberg and it's going very well. We're pleased, especially with Carlsberg." So there.
Ted's tussle with Greg continues
The ding-dong between Enterprise Inns and Otley MP Greg Mulholland shows no signs of abating. Mulholland sent Enterprise boss Ted Tuppen a letter saying that the Black Horse in Otley, West Yorkshire, should be sold by the company. He describes the recent conversion of the site to O'Malley's Irish Bar as an "act of desperation". Tuppen has fired back a letter that accuses Mulholland of making "self-serving and Ill-informed" comments.
He also accuses the MP of not having the "good grace" to await an Enterprise response to his letter before making his views known in this magazine — and harbouring a "personal vendetta against the Enterprise team". No sign of peace breaking out yet.
Brighton is no small beer when it comes to cask ale
Brighton once again has a beer named after it. Brighton Best, a 4% ABV easy-drinking cask ale,
is being produced exclusively for the 43-pub InnBrighton estate by microbrewer WJ King. It came about because InnBrighton's managing director Gavin George is old mates with Dubliner Nigel Lambe who took over the brewery in Horsham, West Sussex, a few months ago following the retirement of Bill King, who set it up when his family brewery, King & Barnes, was taken over by Hall & Woodhouse.
In a further twist in the tangled web that is Sussex brewing, Brighton Best is the creation of Ian Burgess, formerly second brewer at Harveys, of Lewes. Harveys' own Best Bitter was recently taken out of the InnBrighton estate and Brighton Best neatly fills the gap.
GK contractors building business
Greene King building and maintenance contractors are proving a fertile source of new arrivals in the pub sector. First, Steve Haslam took an Enterprise pub and has now expanded to four. Now Gary Downham, who runs building contractor Regional Interiors, has set up a new company called Pie & Pint Inns.
He's invested £500,000 in a refurbishment of the Hare, in Roxwell, Essex. He says: "Some may think this a massive gamble and maybe it is, because I've had up to 30 men working on the place at times.
But a great deal of research has been carried out into the kind of establishment we have launched."
