Pub Awards: Best Managed Pub – The Wheatsheaf, Borough

However, with flair and imagination, this well run boozer stands out from that crowded field. With Youngs giving manager Tom Bowen the space to thrive, he’s seized that opportunity and as a result, this is a pub that is not short of ideas to propel itself forward. In terms of business, this is a pub that’s flying high.

There’s no stone unturned when it comes to customer wants and needs with the Wheatsheaf. The retail standards are very high and you feel as though the team are a few steps ahead of everything.

The ideas come thick and fast in this pub, mobile phone prompts for drink orders, the outdoor service, the tweetsheaf promotional activity for sport, the tips jars, everything is in sync with the plan to show that this is a place that will always be ahead of the curve.

The ideas are not all the work of the manager, the entire team gets to feed in to help drive the business forward and Tom promotes a flat structure within the team to ensure everyone can buy into that success.

For a managed outlet, this pub stands out from the pack. The working relationship between company and manager is incredibly fluid. Ideas flow and custom keeps on coming back.

Judge Jessica Mason said: “The Wheatsheaf is an exemplary hostelry that shows what can be achieved when you team a great pubco that trusts the judgement and can do attitude of the manager. In every way possible, this pub answers the demand for visitors, from service right through to marketing and the range available. In such a competitive part of London, rich with food establishments, the pub answers what people want from a drinking destination.”