Companies

Sargeson steers Laurel to social responsibility

05-May-2005

by Tony Halstead Laurel Pub Company has axed a "10 shots for the price of eight" offer and increased the price of its doubles as part of new social...

Now is time to nip the

05-May-2005

nit-pickers in the bud The thing about regime change is that you start to get nostalgic about the former system, with all its faults. No, I am not...

Your help builds secure future

05-May-2005

It is easy to forget at times when the licensed trade is under attack from so many sides, what a valuable contribution it makes to the economy at...

Pubs clean up their acts on tipping

04-May-2005

Pubs have been praised for cleaning up their act when it comes to swapping leading spirits brands with cheaper substitutes. Only one in 50 pubs is...

Great Pub Chefs - Russian Revolution - Olga & Dag Crawford

01-May-2005 By Alice Whitehead

A tremendous culinary change has swept through an idyllic Scottish isle thanks to a couple's first foray into the gastro-pub scene. Alice Whitehead reports

What the Sunday papers said

01-May-2005

A quarter of high street branded pubs are about to be put up for sale as the sector prepares for a wave of consolidation, Barracuda owner PPM...

Battle of the Chefs - Two Pubs go to War

01-May-2005 By Max Gosney

The month's contest becomes a double act as two chefs from two venues vie for the Battle of the Chef crown. Max Gosney reports on the ultimate duel...

Book Review - Masterchef Goes Large

01-May-2005 By Mark Taylor

Book review of MasterChef Goes Large

Wild Thing! - Seafood - The perfect catch for a pub chef.

01-May-2005 By Richard Fox

Wild thing!… you make his heart sing! Richard Fox reveals why one of the few pure and natural resources left is the perfect catch for a pub chef....

Wetherspoon sales decline continues

29-Apr-2005

JD Wetherspoon has reported a further slide in sales across the past three months.The high street pub group is also stepping up the roll-out of its...

Toad conversion by October: EP

28-Apr-2005

by The PMA Team Eldridge Pope, now called EP and owned by serial entrepreneur Michael Cannon's SDA Limited, will have converted its Toad high-street...

Best in show

28-Apr-2005

As the London International Wine & Spirits Fair fast approaches, Adam Withrington prepares for a show which could well be a daunting...

Vigilance matters

28-Apr-2005

With the average British pub losing £100 a week in cash and stock theft, GRAHAM RIDOUT reveals how you can stay one step ahead with improved...

Licensees left out of pocket

28-Apr-2005

Scores of would-be licensees who paid out for the promise of a pub placement have been told they are likely to find themselves thousands of pounds...

Freedom for Pubs Association vows to renew its fight

28-Apr-2005

A trade group has vowed "the fight goes on" in its bid to end the beer tie.The Freedom for Pubs Association (FFPA), which was set up last August, is...

Whitbread confirms consumer slowdown

28-Apr-2005

Publicly-quoted pub stocks were hit hard on Tuesday after Whitbread's preliminary results confirmed a consumer slowdown in the pub-restaurant sector....

M&B's franchise estate poised to top 100-mark

28-Apr-2005

by Tony Halstead Managed pub operator Mitchells & Butlers is marketing 22 further pubs as franchise leases. If all the pubs are successfully...

Retailers should unite in High Street Charter'

28-Apr-2005

by John Harrington Pub and club operators should join together to create a High Street Charter to encourage social responsibility in the high...

Regulars ensure yolk's on barmaid

28-Apr-2005

Barmaid Harriet Sluman just couldn't resist throwing an egg at John Prescott's battle wagon last week. The deputy PM was leaving a rally in Rushden,...

Poor advice adds to

28-Apr-2005

transition confusion By now, many readers will have received a bundle of information from their local council on the new licensing regime. It will...

I feel like a guinea pigin this inflexible system

28-Apr-2005

I have been a multiple licensee for more than 25 years and have been increasingly overwhelmed by the red tape. My main frustration has always been...

Licensees join fight to tackle pirate TV footy

28-Apr-2005

by Tony Halstead Licensees are helping soccer bosses win their battle against pirate TV screenings of Premier-ship football. More than 50 calls are...

Former JDW managerloses case

28-Apr-2005

A former JD Wetherspoon manager, who didn't take action after a female pub worker reported being sexually harassed, has lost his claim for unfair...

ALMR slams Act as incompetent

28-Apr-2005

by Tony Halstead The Government has been accused of selling the pub industry short by failing to deliver on major trade issues. Association of...

Doing it yourself just doesn't measure up

28-Apr-2005

I am often asked if the industry still needs traditional style stocktakers now that so many licensed businesses have moved over to a full-blown EPoS...

Honeycombe drops forecasts on tough trading

27-Apr-2005

Honeycombe Leisure is finding the traditional pub market tough going, but says its skill at managing pubs successfully on behalf of other operators...

Keri crowned karaoke queen at Pub & Bar

27-Apr-2005

Budding pop singer Keri Farish picked up a cheque for £1,000 after starring in the Pub Stars national karaoke competition at The Publican's Pub...

Phil Vickery to champion local sourcing at Publican Conference

27-Apr-2005

TV chef Phil Vickery will be a headline speaker at The Publican Conference this year, focusing on his work on developing local sourcing with Kent...

The next chapter

26-Apr-2005

Having exited brewing, Brakspear is now focused on tenancies. By Lorna Harrison.Following an era of controversy surrounding the sale of its...

Pub & Bar 2005: drinks news

26-Apr-2005

Hi Spirits has added two new flavours to its Antica Sambuca range. Banana and Mandarin are both now available from Waverley TBS with the Mandarin...

What the Sunday papers said

24-Apr-2005

Inevitiably, the planned £7.4bn takeover of Allied-Domecq by Pernod Ricard dominates the weekend business pages: Patrick Ricard says that his father...

Cut in profits dampens Spirit Group's IPO plan

21-Apr-2005

by The PMA Team Fresh doubt surrounds the float prospects of Spirit Group, the UK's largest managed operator, after profit margin dropped. One City...

Fully booked

21-Apr-2005

Booker is now firmly focused on its customers after its long-running takeover saga. John Porter meets Hans Kristian Hustad - the new man at the...

Party pledges

21-Apr-2005

It's time to separate the wheat from the chaff - and get to the heart of the major political parties' election commitments to the pub trade with our...

Yobs set to blame pubs under 'Last Drink Policy'

21-Apr-2005

Licensees have been told they could face prosecution if anyone arrested for an alcohol-related offence fingers their premises as the last place they...

Licensees unimpressed by Tories' binge-drinking plans

21-Apr-2005

Licensees have given a lukewarm reaction to the Conservative Party's five-point plan to tackle binge-drinking.Tory leader Michael Howard announced...

Don't just keep the Jennings name

21-Apr-2005

Can Jennings survive? The takeover bid by Wolverhampton & Dudley has been accepted by the Cumbrian brewer, so there is little point in manning...

Clarification on display of hours

21-Apr-2005

I have been taken to task very politely, of course by a licensing officer (many of whom read the Morning Advertiser, you will be pleased to...

Greene King grows Wayside

21-Apr-2005

Greene King is to convert 20 of its pubs to Wayside Inns in the next two years. Since the company bought the 43 Wayside sites from Laurel last...

Fountain sale may raise £60m for S&N'

21-Apr-2005

A Scottish newspaper has claimed Scottish & Newcastle could pick up a £60m windfall when it sells its Fountain Brewery site in Edinburgh to...

Friend in after hours

21-Apr-2005

Q We have had a situation on which we need your advice. One night last week, at about 11.45pm, our barman was sitting having a drink with his friend...

JDW festival features 50 ales

21-Apr-2005

Managed operator JD Wether-spoon is to run its largest-ever beer festival next month. The festival, which runs between 9 and 22 May, will see many...

Hull hit by joint spot checks

21-Apr-2005

A pub operator has complained about multi-agency spot checks on outlets in Hull city centre on key weekend trading nights. Licensees were recently...

More councils say licensees must be present at all times'

21-Apr-2005

by Ewan Turney Irate licensees in North Norfolk and Huntingdon have reported that their councils have adopted a similar stance to Calderdale Council...

Other areas of concern

21-Apr-2005

Smoking The party wants a self-regulatory approach, agreed with the industry. Conservative industry spokesman Stephen O'Brien says: "Within the time...

What the pubs say

21-Apr-2005

The take-up is evenly split "In summer we sell more Guinness Extra Cold than ordinary but otherwise it's pretty balanced. I think a lot of people...

West's

21-Apr-2005

got spring in its step Despite a wet and sluggish summer last year, the region's pub market is blossoming thanks to spring and thriving tourism....

Tourist directory targets licensees

20-Apr-2005

A tourist directory which has been targeting firms across the world from Bolivia to Belgium has stepped up its pursuit of UK licensees.Pubs across...

CI Traders questions Guernsey casino development

20-Apr-2005

Channel Islands leisure and retail group CI Traders has put a question mark over its proposed casino development on Guernsey.CIT said it is talking...