Pub reopens with the goal of bringing people back together
NEW OWNERS OF HOLE IN THE WALL WANT IT TO BE AT THE HEART OF THE COMMUNITY
IT’S a beautiful Sunday when we visit The Hole in the Wall on North Sherwood Street for our first look at the newly reopened pub.
Its new owners call it a “back-street beer house with a modern twist”, and say the focus is on making it become a real community venue.
Located just round the corner from Mansfield Road and watering holes such as the Lincolnshire Poacher and Golden Fleece, it’s sure to be a popular stop-off on the city centre drinking circuit.
Chris Robertson and Drew Grimshaw have experience in the industry and have great plans for the venue, which opened on April 1, including live music, street food pop-ups and quiz nights.
“Opening post-pandemic was always going to be difficult but we chose a really historic building with good foundations,” said Chris.
“It’s been slightly unloved for years and never had an identity so that’s why we are bringing it back for the community.
“Back-street is a term that people used to associate with a bad pub but actually it’s a sense of community.
“We are looking to turn it into a backstreet beer house but with a modern twist. It took about four weeks of literally gutting it from top to bottom, repainting and cleaning to give us a blank canvas to build on.”
The pub has been painted a beautiful dark green which gives it a fresh inviting feel.
The garden area to the left of the building is nice sheltered and summerready with tables dotted throughout the space.
The pub is not currently doing food, but Chris highlighted that they are thinking of offering pizza and pop-up street food further on.
Opening the doors for the first time was a relief, and locals have already been in to see the new space.
“It was a relief to get the doors finally open and it was lovely to see people come back who hadn’t been in for a long time.
“We didn’t go large, we kept it lowkey and allowed the community to warm up and realise the pub is here for them now,” Chris added.
“After the pandemic, it’s more important than ever to bring people back together.
“Pubs are great at doing that and creating a place where people can talk and socialise.
“A problem shared is a problem halved so we really want to focus on that aspect by holding events where we can fundraise for mental health charities.”