Lion ready for roaring trade again
Pub has new owner after closing for four months
THE new owner of the Red Lion in Leek, Simon Brown, left, pulls a pint after the pub reopened following a four-month closure.
Simon picked up the keys to the town centre venue earlier this month and spent last week refurbishing it, including building a new bar himself, and adding a cake bar and a new pool table.
THE Red Lion in Leek has undergone a week-long refurbishment and is now back open for business - after being closed for four months.
Owner Simon Brown, from Sneyd Green, got the keys to the premises on Wednesday, September 4 and opened nine days later.
The 31-year-old said: “The opportunity came up to own the pub and I thought why not - I’ve never owned a pub before, so it’s exciting.
“We’ve done everything in just over a week. We’ve rebuilt the bar ourselves as I’m a joiner, so it’s cost us less.
“We’ve got a brand new coffee and cake area, as well as brought a pool table in.
“Other than that, not much has changed. The food, drinks and coffees are pretty much the same because I know it worked.
“The pub was doing well, so there was no reason to change what wasn’t broken.”
Locals are glad to see The Red Lion back open on Market Place after the four-month closure.
Jennifer Hulse, 72, lives in Leek and would visit the pub weekly before it shut.
She said: “My husband and I used to come here every Saturday to meet with friends. I’m so glad it’s back open so we can do that again.
“The new bar looks fab and I love that the coffee and cake is separate to the main bar.
“I really hope they do well as the family are lovely and hard-working.”
Nathan Priestnall travels to Leek from Endon to visit the pub, and was impressed by the refurb.
The 32-year-old said: “The Red Lion is a great addition to Leek and the new bar is really impressive.
“I come to Leek as Endon is pretty quiet and there aren’t many places to take my 17-month-old baby for food.”
The pub will see live music and DJS every weekend, and Simon is excited to see how it goes down with punters.
He added: “Already everyone is really excited - the word about us being open again travelled fast.
“It’s been a great reaction from the public so far, and I can’t wait to see how well we do on market days.”