City worker Frederick teamed up with a fellow accountant, Richard Cryer, to raise the cash to buy and develop the Grantley Arms in Wonersh, Surrey, and sought help and advice from the pub-operating family of his wife, Hannah.
There was an opportunity, he thought, for the pub to one of the only ones in the area serving fresh food, with the kitchen making its own bread and ice cream, for instance.
After a £500,000 refurbishment to create a modern bar in the 16th century-listed building, convert a skittle alley into a formal restaurant and conjure a spectacular private dining space out of an old store room, a pub that was losing money is now on track to turn over £1.2m in its first year.
Chef
With head chef Matt Edmonds, former head chef at Searcys at the Gherkin, in London, in charge of the kitchen, and Mario Martinelli coming from a five-star hotel to be the pub’s general manager, it has attracted diners from beyond the local area.
Serving two different menus, it has gained two AA rosettes and was named ‘one to watch’ in the Gastropub Top 50 awards.
Frederick has worked on the community side of the business, too, staging weekly quizzes and live music, serving local ales at the bar and making sure the pub is involved in local events.
All profits are being ploughed back into the pub to develop the Grantley further.