Merry Christmas...what a year it has been

Another day, another lockdown.

Needless to say that we are thoroughly disappointed to have to close again. We have invested a great deal of effort putting measures in place to ensure that we are covid-secure. This doesn’t just include visible elements such as sanitisers and masks, but also a huge amount of training and external risk assessments.

The news is deeply upsetting, but as always, our priority is to keep our guests and our staff safe and well. We are keeping a close eye on government guidelines and will keep you posted about plans for reopening as and when we can.

But, despite all of the madness of 2020, we are reluctant to sign-off on a low note. It has been an incredible first year of being open (seven months if you count the lockdowns). We’ve achieved so much and it has genuinely been a dream come true in lots of ways for both of us.

When we look back, we’ve had plenty of proud moments – being listed in The Times as one of Britain’s Top 30 places for a pub lunch; our incredible press reviews; being the number one restaurant on TripAdvisor; and being shortlisted as ‘One to watch’ by the UK’s Top 50 Gastropubs – to name a few.

That being said, none of those things come close to the fun we’ve had getting to know the local community. We knew the area was a special place before we opened, but after interacting with you all and seeing the support you've shown us, there's no doubt in our minds that we made the right decision.

For that, we want to say a heartfelt thanks and wish you a happy and healthy Christmas and New Year.

Daniel and Margriet

Video: Our year in pictures