It's cheers all round as three North East pubs celebrate success at UK awards which will now see them take part in the grand finals in London.
The National Pub & Bar Awards have announced 94 venues across Britain as county winners and among them are three in the region which are now in for a chance of even greater recognition when the awards body ups the ante this summer. The local successes are Three Mile in Newcastle; The Crown Inn at Humshaugh in Northumberland - which called Wednesday's announcement 'a great way to start Easter' - and The Bay Horse in County Durham, with the good news coming despite ongoing struggles during the cost of living crisis and just in time for the Easter weekend trade.
The annual awards are out to highlight the positive and inspiring work being carried out across the UK’s hospitality industry and the 94 chosen pubs and bars have been judged as the best in their respective counties. When the annual ceremony takes place in London on June 28, the county winners will discover which among them will take home one of the 15 regional titles and which will win the overall National Pub & Bar of the Year accolade, naming it the UK’s best.
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Other awards will include Pub Brand of the Year; Bar Brand of the Year; Pub Chef of the Year and Sustainable Pub & Bar of the Year. Entries for the awards have been open since the start of the year, with hundreds of pubs explaining for judges all aspects of their operations from design, training, welfare and marketing sustainability, food and drink.
Tristan O’Hana, editor of Pub & Bar magazine which runs the awards, said: “We were overwhelmed by the level and quality of entries this year. It just goes to show what magnificent work is going on across the UK hospitality sector."
The North East scene has fought back since the pandemic lockdown and continues to do all it can to boost trade despite being hit by rocketing energy bills and food costs due to the cost of living crisis. Tristan added: "With outrageous energy costs, recruitment shortages and a punishing taxation system, these businesses are once again facing tough times."
The Crown Inn, which has featured in the Good Beer Guide, said in a Facebook post it is "absolutely delighted" to learn of its success, adding "the awards ceremony isn’t until the end of June but we had to share now". The message read: "Huge thanks must go to all of our customers both old and new who come from near and far for continuing to support us but most importantly the biggest thanks needs to go to our team here at the Crown who continue to go above and beyond every day to make pub what it is. This mornings news is a great way to start Easter."
Three Mile at Gosforth, reopened - after a lockdown delay - following a major £7.5m revamp of the site by its owner Malhotra Group and went on to be named a winner at The National Pub & Bar Awards last year after previously being named a county winner. Ahead of Easter weekend it posted an image on Facebook of inviting-looking drinks, asking: "Ready for a fabulous Easter bank holiday ahead?"
For The Bay Horse, in Hurworth near Darlington, the award is another string to its bow. The list pub, which has previously featured in the likes of The Good Food Guide Top 50 and Inspectors' Choice Michelin Pub Guide, recently revealed it also has been recognised again by the Harden's Diner Survey 2023 for it 'very high quality food'.
Tristan is encouraging people to visit their best locals over the long Easter weekend and added: "Now, more than ever, it’s vital that people support their local pubs and bars." For the full list of the 94 UK-wide county winners see here.
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