A local boozer in Barnes has received a new lease of life after a group of investors reinvigorated the historic property. Leading the charge is George Glasgow Jr, the CEO of George Cleverley Shoes in the Royal Arcade on Old Bond Street. The Barnes resident told The Standard he wanted to create a truly independent, local pub.
“Although my business is based in Mayfair,” Glasgow says, “I have a remarkable number of clients who tell me they are looking for a lovely local pub.” Glasgow now owns the majority of The Brown Dog with Sam Tidswell-Norrish, a founder member of the team at private equity firm, Motive Partners, and the pair have gathered a few famous local names to help their new venture thrive.
“Sam and I are the predominant faces of the business,” Glasgow explains, “but we’re lucky to have F1 legend David Coulthard involved alongside the likes of Robert Rowland [co-founder of United Fitness Brands, the owner of Barrecore and Triyoga] and David Roper [founder and former CEO of industrial conglomerate Melrose Industries]. For the most part they are Barnes residents who came together because we all wanted to make a local pub that was truly independently owned”.
The Brown Dog first opened as The Rose of Denmark in 1898 in the desirable stretch of cottage-lined Barnes streets known as Little Chelsea. Glasgow says the new team is committed to maintaining The Brown Dog as a proper local. Community-focussed events will include the Barnes Mum Collective, a monthly morning meeting designed to support SW13 mums with a range of family challenges, from childhood nutrition to emotional wellbeing. And, in keeping with the pub’s name, The Brown Dog is pooch-friendly, too.
Glasgow continues: “We’ve been known as a child and dog-friendly pub, which we’re keeping up with the ‘Kids Table’, a great little arts and crafts afternoon for children. It’s a free event in one section of the pub and the separation of space gives the parents a proper chance to relax in the dining room while the kids are looked after. Nobody else really does anything like that in south-west London.”
Aside from the strong community initiatives, The Brown Dog has expanded its food offering too, now including a full outdoor pizza oven, dedicated pizza chef and, as every pub needs, a selection of fabulous Sunday roasts. There’s Brown Dog Ale on tap, too — probably best left to grown-up humans.
“We’ve also teamed up with a few vineyards,” Glasgow says. “Amulet Estate in Napa Valley will do some wine dinners with us, and the Singapore-based chef Andrew Walsh, who used to work for Jason Atherton, is doing a special event later this year.”
Glasgow seems buoyed by the new challenge and says that the response so far has been positive. “We did about 250 covers on Saturday, and about 180 on Sunday. The feedback has been great, but for us it’s less about profit and more about creating a pub for the community that will last for decades.”
