The team who worked their magic to turn a flagging village pub into a thriving business are at it again. Earlier this year owner Sean Reddington and his staff turned the Old Vol at Caythorpe into a destination for food lovers and families.
The pub has just been awarded two rosettes by the AA Restaurant Guide for its 'exceptional' menu and boasts a coveted garden bar and terrace with a tiny town for young visitors. Its popularity means it is well on course for a £2.5 million turnover in its first year.
Now they're about to do it again - just two miles away, at another country pub. This time it's the Reindeer at Hoveringham. The pub has now closed and will be undergoing a £100,000 makeover. It will reopen on December 1, just in time for Christmas celebrations.
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The same chefs and front-of-house staff will rotate between the two to ensure the same high standards but with more of a focus on classic British, such as pie nights, curry nights and pub quizzes.
Mr Reddington said: "[Taking over] the Old Vol pub was because I was living around Caythorpe. I never had a huge desire to get into the pub trade - I enjoy the other side of the bar too much but the opportunity came up there.
"And it's a similar sort of story with Hoveringham - it's down the road from my house, I know the villagers really well. The fact that the villagers own the building shows the sense of community spirit.
"The Old Vol is doing so well. We have a waiting list nearly every Saturday and Sunday for the next six weeks ahead. There's an opportunity to combine the pubs and use the same chef as we get a lot of good feedback on our food."
Mr Reddington said the Reindeer pub has an "amazing" location, backing onto the village cricket pitch, and when the sun sets it's a picture postcard setting. The makeover will change the layout, turning it into an open plan area.
"We plan to completely knock it out. It's quite higgledy-piggledy. There's loads of small rooms so the plan is to knock it out and move the bar. It's a really old pub. It will still have the country feel and the fire, it just needs more space management. It will have that traditional feel but with a modern twist... comfy seating, nice strong tables and good service.
"The Vol's got two rosettes in six months. It's going to be the same staff, same management and same chefs so it's going to follow the same standards."
Speaking to advisers in London Mr Reddington was told Old Vol has one of the highest turnovers of all pubs in the UK currently. Turnover May to September was exceptionally high at the Old Vol and Mr Reddington said: "If anything it's going too well. It's hard because it got so busy and I always had a longer term plan to focus on the quality, not the quantity.
"The busier it is the harder it is to serve and that's what we're trying to manage better now with more managers and more chefs. We are finding our feet in a positive way."
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