Luminar optimistic despite tough trading
15-Nov-2005
Despite continued tough trading late night operator Luminar said it remained "cautiously optimistic" it can end its financial year in good...
What the Sunday papers said
13-Nov-2005
Property tycoon Robert Tchenguiz and City money woman Robin Saunders are locked in a battle to buy Spirit Group, the managed pub business valued at...
NALHM lobbies to curb late-night alcohol sales
11-Nov-2005
A pub manager's union is calling for the Government to make it illegal for pubs to serve most drinks with an abv above 5% after 11pm. The National...
Drink Talking: Toby Walne
10-Nov-2005
Toby Walne, Daily Mail contributor, pleads with pubcos to connect with their communities.Foaming at the mouth like a rabid dog, the Daily Mail...
Bird-flu scare fails to dent poultry sales say licensees
10-Nov-2005
by Lucy Britner Fears of the potentially-deadly bird flu have not affected sales of poultry dishes in pubs. This is despite Alexis Gauthier, chef at...
Growing business with Greene King
10-Nov-2005
Greene King launched an initiative to help its tenants grow their businesses six months back. Ewan Turney reports on how it's going. Growing your...
A tale of conflicting realities
10-Nov-2005
How should we interpret the rise and rise of vodka in the UK? Let me offer you two possible scenarios. I'll call one the Road to Perdition, and the...
My Shout
10-Nov-2005
David Elliott says the smoke ban plan shows the trade's influence with ministers has hit a new low While relaxing recently, enjoying my fourth pint...
L&E pubs set to ape Tesco model
10-Nov-2005
London & Edinburgh Inns pubs are aiming to become 'the new Tesco' of licensed retailing to counter the impact of smoking restrictions and take...
Off-trade linked to 'proxy' U-18 sales
10-Nov-2005
by John Harrington The dramatic scale of the problem of adults buying alcohol for minors in the off-trade has been revealed. Almost nine out of 10...
Letters
10-Nov-2005
Licensing shake-up will not curb binge drinkers There is no doubt that Britain has a serious drink problem. There is also no doubt the existing...
Fuller's agrees £91m deal for George Gale
08-Nov-2005
London brewer Fuller's has agreed a deal to acquire rival family brewer George Gale.The move values Hampshire-based Gales at £91.8m in total, with...
What the Sunday papers said
06-Nov-2005
The new licensing law, which comes into effect in less than three weeks, could lead to more drink-related violence, rather than reduce the...
A Ray of hope
04-Nov-2005
Wickwar Brewery boss Ray Penny is a man with a plan. His business has just moved from micro to regional scale and he is passionate about its future....
Letters
The truth is out there
03-Nov-2005
After last week's smoking ban announcement, people are looking for answers.For now, the national focus on the smoking ban has moved on. Bird flu,...
Top pub chef is Keen as mustard
03-Nov-2005
Pub chef Daniel Keen has been named as Tees Valley's hottest culinary talent in a regional newspaper award scheme.Darren, joint licensee with his...
Pub Chef awards bulletin
03-Nov-2005
Jonathan Furby, landlord/chef of the Linnet in Trowbridge, Wiltshire, won the Starters and Light Bites category with baked pork and mustard tart on...
Punch behind Government over bill move
03-Nov-2005
Britain's second-largest pubco, Punch Taverns, is one surprising supporter of the Government's food-based ban. Unlike most operators, Punch, which...
Novus: new name for Urbium
03-Nov-2005
by Mark Stretton Urbium, the late-night bar operator, is to change its name to Novus. The move follows its £113m management-backed buyout by Electra...
Licensees' reaction
03-Nov-2005
Gerry Murray Newmarket Inn, Nottingham 'I don't think the Government has considered it will cost a lot to keep the streets clean after people go...
Retro active
03-Nov-2005
Pub operator Geronimo Inns broke the mould when it opened a premium food-led outlet at Britain's busiest airport back in May. JOHN HARRINGTON...
Charles Wells boss hits out at clubs exemption
03-Nov-2005
by Ewan Turney Bedford brewer and operator Charles Wells has blasted the Government for giving private clubs a smoke-ban exemption and forecast a...
Heat's on for over-rented pubs
03-Nov-2005
There have been claims that the pub-owning company Provence is charging tenants unaffordable rents at some country inns. Its pubs are sold to...
New off-trade body to tackle under-age sales
03-Nov-2005
by John Harrington The off-trade has agreed to tighten up its policy towards under-age sales after a summit meeting with top ministers and police....
Pubs flushed with awards overkill
03-Nov-2005
You know that the self-congratulatory awards business has sunk as low as it can go when a gong is handed out for the quality of a pub privy. Adam...
Bar manager jailed over takings theft
03-Nov-2005
A bar manager has been jailed for 15 months for stealing nearly £20,000 from his pub to prop up a failing food section. Timothy Knight took £19,200...
Bar-Me goes plastic after glass assault
03-Nov-2005
A Laurel pub in Milton Keynes will become a glass-free zone within two months. Bar-Me is going all-plastic following a campaign by the family of...
Sheps AGM hears about mystery bid
03-Nov-2005
A mystery bidder offered Shepherd Neame around £100m for its freehold pubs in a share-and-leaseback deal earlier this year - but the offer was...
The day Dr Reid turned into Mr Hyde
03-Nov-2005
In the days when trains had smoking compartments, a friend with both a wicked sense of humour and an addiction to nicotine would say to people...
Hosts given notice to make the TENs count
03-Nov-2005
In the second of four articles prior to licensing D-Day, Peter Coulson explains how temporary event notices work Next week you will have the first...
Holding its own
02-Nov-2005
Although the residential property market is in something of a slump, the same cannot be said of pubs at all. Michelle Perrett reports.Sales of...
Licensee in council fight over car park sign
02-Nov-2005
A licensee has slammed his local council for forcing him to take down signage advertising disabled parking bays.Roger Hodgkinson of the Traveller's...
Offer talks continue at Inventive as sales pick up
02-Nov-2005
Talks are continuing between vodka bar operator Inventive Leisure and a prospective bidder for the company.Inventive, which runs 40 Revolution vodka...
Pubs warned to check their gas bills
01-Nov-2005
Licensees are being strongly advised to check they are not being overcharged thousands of pounds for energy bills due to an error by British...
Wetherspoon's non-smoking pubs' sales down
01-Nov-2005
Sales at JD Wetherspoon's non-smoking pubs have continued to fall, according to a trading statement released by the pub operator today.The group said...
PubChef Awards - Starters and Light Bites
01-Nov-2005 By Natalie Cooper
As the first or possibly the only dish many customers try, pub starters and light bites need to make a great impression. Natalie Cooper reports...
PubChef Awards - Game
01-Nov-2005 By Natalie Cooper
Game is growing in popularity in pubs, with diners attracted by the health benefits and flavours inherent in the meat. This category saw chefs...
PubChef Awards - Beer and Food
01-Nov-2005 By Natalie Cooper
These days, there's a growing trend to accompany food with beer. The intention behind our Beer & Food category was to challenge chefs to create...
Chef's CV - James Rudden
01-Nov-2005 By Tony Halstead
John Rudden's route to the award-winning White Hart comprised spells in the kitchens of numerous pubs and hotels, giving him the perfect grounding to...
Great Pub Chefs - A vision realised - John Rudden
01-Nov-2005 By Tony Halstead
A bleak, run-down pub swathed in mist was not John Rudden's idea of a promising career move. But 10 years on, the White Hart is an expanding and...
What the Sunday papers said
30-Oct-2005
The Prime Minister is being asked to consider a discussion paper which suggests that drinking on public transport be banned. A rise in alcohol...
Taking flight
27-Oct-2005
Airport bars present a growing opportunity - and also a few special problems. Michelle Perrett reports.When you decide to get away and head to the...
A new approach
27-Oct-2005
Three months into his new role as InBev UK president, Colin Pedrick is set on turning things around for the company. Hamish Champ reports.Since...
Pubs at centre of Birmingham race riots
27-Oct-2005
Staff and customers at pubs in the Lozells area of Birmingham were left terrified after coming under attack in last weekend's riots.Four pubs - the...
Pubs to foot bill for ADZs
27-Oct-2005
All licensees in the government's planned alcohol disorder zones (ADZs) will be forced to pay towards extra policing and street cleaning, it was...
IN BRIEF
27-Oct-2005
UPC pub lands a leasehold first Staff at a multi-award winning venue have become the first from a leased pub to be awarded the BII diploma in...
All options open at Spirit, says Jones
27-Oct-2005
Spirit Group chief executive Karen Jones has insisted all options, including an IPO, remain open following strong fourth-quarter trading. Speculation...
Riding out a blip at H&H
27-Oct-2005
It may recently have posted a profits warning, but that doesn't stop Hardys & Hansons chief executive, Tim Bonham, from believing that the...
My Shout
27-Oct-2005 By Peter Linacre
It's time for British pubs to regain their star roles in TV ads for beer, says Peter Linacre When I was a boy, a lifetime ago, my early memories of...
