A Wiltshire pub which was rescued and taken over by the local community has been enjoying life under the relatively new arrangement.
The Winterbourne in Winterbourne Bassett was formerly known as The White Horse when under the ownership of Wadworth Brewery.
Yet when the pub’s future was cast into doubt and rumours of it being replaced by housing started to circle, residents took matters into their own hands.
Renamed The Winterbourne, the pub became community-run in March 2018, opening in August with Romanian tenants Maria Badet and Mihai Gal at the helm.
Manager Richard Boseley from Swindon has been at the pub for seven months and appreciates its impact personally.
“Everyone has made me feel very welcome and I have even become a shareholder in the business of which there are 60 on the committee,” he said.
“This pub ticks all the right boxes for me in this climate as we are dog friendly, have an outside area and great food.
“The name changed because it is the only pub in the village and because the villagers all played a part in taking over the pub they wanted a name that reflected that.
“Everyone who works here is also so passionate about the pub and recently we even hit the top ten per cent for reviews on Trip Advisor worldwide.”
The 50-year-old has also overseen the introduction of a cocktail menu which has caused quite a stir amongst locals.
“We do lots of traditional ales including always having one from Broad Town Brewery which we change every now and again,” said Richard.
“The new cocktail menu just started which is raising a few eyebrows with the customers.
“We have a Romanian Rainbow dedicated to Maria and Mihai which has vodka, pineapple juice, grenadine and blue curacao.”
The pub serves a variety of food dishes including some seasonal specials alongside its impressive selection of drinks.
“It is a combination of a restaurant and a pub as we do tend to do table service but if people want to eat outside they can come up and order,” said Richard.
“There is a lunch and dinner menu throughout the week as well as daily specials such as venison pie and pork medallions.
“We have tried to brighten up the pub to make sure it looks refreshing and new while maintaining that traditional classic pub look.”
The Winterbourne is open all week bar Mondays and hosts a quiz each on the last Tuesday of each month with all proceeds going to Wiltshire Air Ambulance.
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