Merseyside restaurant owner Gary Usher sparked a huge debate online this week after confirming he’d allow dogs to visit his new pub.
Gary is the man behind acclaimed restaurants Wreckfish in Liverpool and Burnt Truffle in Heswall and has this week announced that he is in the final stages of purchasing a derelict pub in Cheshire to transform into his Elite Bistros group's first "gastropub", reports the MEN .
Chef Gary revealed on his social media accounts that the pub in question is the historic White Horse in Churton, near Chester, which he is in the process of purchasing.
However, despite the excitement around the new pub - which is close to Gary’s heart - he sparked a debate about whether dogs should be welcomed inside pubs or not.
The well-known chef's followers had lots of comments and questions about the new opening - with one follower asking "dog friendly I hope?"
Gary replied to the tweet and said: "Of course!"
However, some critics said they’d be giving the new pub a miss if it had a dog friendly policy.
One person said: "No thanks. Too many people thinking dogs in pubs is a good idea. Dogs are not people and shouldn’t be treated as such."
Gary responded saying: "If you don’t like dogs in pubs I’d swerve coming to one of ours then. Dogs will be treated like royalty and I will probably most commonly be found rolling around the floor with them."
Should dogs be allowed in pubs? Have your say in our comments section
It soon sparked a debate among other Twitter users, with most agreeing with Gary.
Cafe owner Barry Ashley said: "I have 3 cafes, I allow dogs in. I have barred humans but never a dog. What if dogs had their own Twitter what a great place that would be? The only thing they would be slagging off would be squirrels."
Another added: "The majority of people in the country eat with dogs or cats in the room. I can’t talk though because I don’t like it if people let kids scream in a restaurant. (But I don’t stare or moan.)"
A third wrote: "What even is a pub without a dog?"
However, others shared their negative experiences of dogs in pubs. Lynda Ross tweeted: "I was in a pub where a dog ran up to me, urinated on the floor and the owner thought it was hilarious.
“Not the dog's fault but owners need to take responsibility."
Another said said he'd "rather be starving and crawl to the next normal restaurant" than patronise the pub.
Gary responded and said: "Didn't realise liking dogs was so controversial. Chris would rather starve".
Announcing the big news about his new pub, Gary tweeted: "I’m a terrible business person because I can’t keep my mouth shut when I’m excited. We are in the middle of buying the white horse pub in Churton but it’s not complete.
"I’ve always loved it there and it would be a dream for us to run it. The pub is beautiful and so is the area. My mum and dad live a few minutes away so I’m very familiar with the area and walking my dog Billy there with my mum and dad's dog Rossa.
"I’m absolutely aware how much The White Horse means to the community In Churton because like any good pub that’s who it’s primarily there for, the community and anyone else who visits is a lovely bonus. If we get it I don’t want to rip it apart and change the way it looks. I love it.
"Our plans at The White Horse are pretty simple,we want to serve great drinks, delicious unpretentious food by a team that love what they do.
"I'm super keen to hear what the local community like. all I ask Go easy on us,this is our first pub, we won't get it all right straight away."
Get the top stories straight to your inbox by signing up for one of our free newsletters
