A popular local pub in Staple Hill has reopened as a neighbourhood café bar and restaurant. What was once the Red Lion on Broad Street has relaunched as The Forge & Fern after an extensive renovation of the 19th Century building.
The new venue is family-friendly, serving food and drink all day. As well as a complete renovation of the existing building, The Forge & Fern includes a new extension, creating over 3,000 square feet of floor space, an all-weather garden and alfresco terrace, all of which will have full wheelchair access throughout.
The Forge & Fern is the first venue for The Forges hospitality group, and has a strong environmental and sustainability focus, as well as creating jobs for the local community. On site, rooftop beehives have been installed, which will provide local garden and community pollination as well as providing honey which will be used on the menu, and a huge living wall above the outdoor terrace will bring its own ecosystem, promoting biodiversity in the area.
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Food at The Forge & Fern will be served all day, every day, with a range of cakes and coffee, brunch dishes, small plates and signature pub classics. In-keeping with their environmental and sustainable commitment, much of the produce will be sourced from local suppliers, including Buxton Butchers and Hobbs House Bakery.
The menu includes a range of burgers and steaks, pasta dishes, fish and chips and salads. Small plates range from sticky Asian pork belly and buttermilk fried chicken to salt and pepper squid and falafels with minted yoghurt and pickled cucumber.
One of the signature puddings is the chocolate mousse, honeycomb and salted caramel ‘pot’ with golden honey sponge cake. There’s also the vegan Speculoos cheesecake with Biscoff biscuit crumb.
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The venue has its very own gin distillery in the pub’s basement, which is visible to customers through a glass floor. The in-house gin will feature prominently on the bar’s drinks menu.
Speaking about the new opening, a spokesperson for The Forges said: “We’ve been having an input on the old Red Lion site since its acquisition in 2019. To say this has been a long time in the making is something of an understatement, and we’re incredibly excited to be so close to opening.
“Everything we’re doing with The Forge & Fern is focused on the community, from employing local people to help us renovate the old site, right through to providing a place for everyone in the area to enjoy once we open our doors. We’re extremely proud of how it’s all come together.
“We can’t wait to welcome all of our new locals to see what we’ve done with such an iconic Staple Hill venue, and are really looking forward to serving up some great food and drinks and becoming part of the community.”
The Forge & Fern is open from 8am all day seven days a week.
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