Any STW landlords) tell me about running a pub

Bit speculative this, but something interesting came up being involved in a pub/restaurant.

Background is in hospitality and service industry, but never had my own pub.

Doom/gloom accepted, but anyone on here ad this experience?

Scampi Fries at wholesale prices.
I’m in.

Work in a pub if that helps?

It’s you, Jimbo, very you!

As it happens, spent much of this evening chatting to a chap who runs a pub in That London’s City of London. (Not at his pub, I hasten to add!) Intriguing stuff. Also know a few folks who run pubs I can put you in touch with if needed. No experience myself, apart from being the other side of the bar!

(Did my earlier email reach you? Hoping I had the right address still!)

Certainly where I live pubs fail/close more often than hora gets a new bike. The social situation that supported pubs has changed and is still changing. The only successful ones are those that pack the punters in on a Fri-Sat-Sun or concentrate on food.

The pub as social hub has changed over much of NW England, and I would be very very very wary of assuming it will be a way to make money.

Be teetotal and have a great USP.

The only successful ones are those that pack the punters in on a Fri-Sat-Sun or concentrate on food.

Or those that find an amazing niche and do amazing work at filling that niche. [/url]

A similar thread

Meh, can’t be bothered..

crikey – Member
Meh, can’t be bothered because I was wrong..

FTFY! 😉

OK, so they’re in London, but they are on a back street away from passing trade. They’ve built a very successful business on word of mouth, and all because they do something right – A Pub. Superb beer, tasty food and great service, all in a convivial atmosphere. If they put the same in any major conurbation*, I reckon it would work.

* OK, it needs to be in a city, I reckon, given that they need the volume of people to allow the variety of beer. However, on a lower volume note – http://www.maletarms.com/ – Noel has always done well here by doing “pub” very well indeed.

Couldn’t be bothered because I don’t know the situation of the pub in question. I’ve seen almost 5 out of every 6 pubs shut here. It’s not a growth industry.

Yep, sorry if my reply was a little forceful! The chaps at Cask are a success story in an industry that is suffering, I just want to champion that as much as I can, as I think they deserve it.

It’s sad to see closed pubs, I agree. Even those I’ve never been in, or never even wanted to go in, to someone, that was their pub, and that’s a sad thing.

Pubs are great. Great pubs should be celebrated.

I agree wholeheartedly, and I would champion any pub as an integral part of many communities.

Pubs are great.

Outside London, I suspect that the demographic changes which are impacting on the pub industry are an indication of things to come. I think the concentration of population in London has cushioned the blow, but it will eventually affect the number of pubs that stay open.

My Dad used to be able to describe the journey from his place of work to our house by pub names alone; some 20 or 25 pubs over an 8 mile stretch from the city centre to where we lived. I can do the same journey now in 9 pubs… 🙁

CFH – YGM sorry for the slow reply!

Jimbo, no worries! Will read when more awake, reply due tomorrow! Just wasn’t sure I still had the right email!

My sister was a landlady for several years. My advice is don’t. She worked incredibly long hours (start 9am finish after midnight), you’re still tied to the pub even on your nights off, had poor living quarters, was robbed, etc etc. You also act as a counselling service for the regulars.

Free beer was great for me, mind.

I went cycling with the landlord of our local a couple of times. Ive no idea why on earth he ran a pub. From our chats it seemed to be just hard work, daft/long hours, bugger all pay, drunk customers and no free time.

He did run the pub well, good food and loads of stuff going on to bring in punters – it was a good pub.

The only time he could come riding was very early in the morning, had to be back by 11.00. That was after finishing in the early hours.

He hated some of his regulars, liked a few and tolerated the rest. Thats not a job, thats a way of life.

It all depends on the type of pub, how it’s staffed & run and the opening hours.
A reasonable size locals pub that’s open 11am to 11pm will see cleaning starting at about 8am, general bar prep will take you most of the way up to opening time and you’ll be lucky to be in bed before 1am.
Days off will be a long distant memory unless you’re paying for a good bar manaager – but even then you’re effectively on call 24-7.
Yes, there’s a lot of doom and gloom stories and it’s bl00dy hard work but it can be very rewarding. Personally I loved the cellarwork side of things and working the bar can be great.

Bottom line, if you’re serious about it make sure you actually know what you’re getting into before you jump in & if you do still go for it then I wish you the best of luck.

I owned and ran a pub with a restaurant in the early nineties and hated it . As has been said it’s long hours , I didn’t think it was hard work but you spend a lot of time doing incredibly menial tasks . Perhaps it’s a reflection of my personality but I only really enjoyed the company of about 3 of the locals so having to pass time with people you would rather not and don’t have much in common with can make the long hours seem longer . It’s hard to run a pub and have a healthy lifestyle , but at least people can’t smoke in them now . Both myself and my partner were trained chefs , if you aren’t then you can effectively be held to ransom by your chef . My biggest mistake was to buy the place with a partner who I thought I knew well but we had completely different ideas about how to run the business but I was delighted when he bought my share off me after less than 2 years and I was able to get out with as much money as I went in with . He stayed there for another 15 years and only left when he had to have a heart bypass in his early fifties and would probably tell you a more positive side of the whole experience .

It’s a way of life running a pub.
Decent pubs if run properly have a future but as said above if it’s not up to scratch it will struggle
I used to be in pub management, nearly took on a tenancy of my own, looking back I’m so glad I didn’t.
Freehouse is the way to go and learn how to keep real ales well, I was in charge of the cellars at two pubs which both got in to the good beer guide.
Food is an area that needs some effort to find the right balance for your area.

And the most important piece of advice don’t drink your profits, the number of landlords I know who have a drink problem, it costs them in more ways than one. My stance was don’t drink when working and no more than one beer after a shift, days off are a different matter.

Well, We only went and did it!

got the keys today – couple of days spit and polish, staff training, letting ale settle etc, and we open on thursday.

http://www.thelambwittering.co.uk

been a lot of negotiations and umming and ahhing, but took the plunge.

big leap, but relishing it. We have some very cool stuff happening in the next six months too….facebook page and website for updates.

I started drawing up plans for a bike rack this arvo (though not any hills to speak of in the vicinity!)

https://www.facebook.com/TheLambWittering for more info – sorry mods for the links…..

I can only wish you the best of f******** luck!

Keep us posted. If it werent for all the hard work, being tied to one place, drunk clients, 10am floor mopping, Ive always wanted to own a pub 🙂

Wow! Best of luck with that one.
The pub looks ace. The menu isn’t my cup of tea but hopefully some of your locals will like it.

If you’re going to do it, do it properly. Sounds like just my kind of pub! Good luck to you.

looks nice, though if i was you i’d have a different or even seperate daytime or evening menu with value attached. Look for classics like lasagne, battered fish etc things that normal people will enjoy and are cheap to buy but good profit margin.

good luck though

When considering ‘the classics,’ you need to consider the target market, the local demographic, the usp of pub and the style of operation.

Those dishes are still valid, but would clearly need to be executed in a more upmarket fashion. People want to spend their money on something different with the focus on perception of value for money.

best of luck jimbo what be your locale ?

My favorite pub round here does the basics well but with good quality veg and salad as raggonair suggests (may one suggest hes probably pretty qualified to provide an answer;)) and does weekly specials of fancier stuff.

Thats why i like it.

sometimes i just want wholesome grub ! (and they do a mean sunday dinner with all the trimmings

Thanks guys, menu is literally a first hash to get something on he website. Proper menu to be uploaded today, there’s a burger in there, a pasta dish as well as some more fancy stuff, so I completely agree. Beer will be badger, going with best and fursty ferret to start with. Beer arrives today!!

The best of British to you.
I have a mate who has a second home in West Wittering I have instructed him to take the family when he is next down there 😀

Regarding the menu, if it fits the local population and their buying habits then it will work.

I have two pubs near to me that have re-opened within the past 18 months and they have chosen to take a very upmarket route with their food.

They are both packed out everyday and winning awards. What recession?

That place looks awesome! That’s how I’d want my local to look 🙂

Best of luck.

STW discount? 😉

Best of luck, and probably more chance of success in a rich part of the country than elsewhere.

Its 8:02 in the morning and now I want to go to a pub!

Best of luck!

Best of luck to you and if you can find a way to tap the summer traffic jam for trade you should be onto a winner.

I know that pub well, as I was an employee of hall and wood house for a decade, with most of that running a pub up the road!.

I even covered 3 weeks of holiday relief in the lamb!

Seriously though, if you need any advice / help I have a mass of expertise in the food side – menu planning / costings / purchasing / marketing etc ( and only live 40 mins away!) Happy to help!

the knights.31 AT btinternrt.com

Good luck!

Robin

Good luck Jimbo, hope it all goes well.

Best of luck to you. A decent boozer is a thing of beauty. Especially if it serves really good pies! 😀

I presume you’ve read this thread

Country Pub & English Kitchen

+

…lardon…confit…salsa verde…bourgignon…futtucini…ile flottante…toile…

bit of a mismatch?

Oh, and good luck! 🙂

Dave

Was really hoping it was going to be closer to Brighton!!

Firstly, all the best of luck.

One comment, with a menu such as that, why not get beers to accompany it. There are tons of fantastic craft brewed ales, that can really work well with a lovely meal.

Breweries such as:
Thornbridge
Oakham
Kernel
Mikkeller
.. and even Brewdog.

A Michelin starred restaurant near here did a beer n bangers day, where they served sausages with glasses of beer. Each sausage was specifically paired with a beer to enhance the flavours of each.