Med-inspired Englishness on the menu for Kenilworth pub

A group belonging to brewery Mitchells and Butler has bought the Queen and Castle pub opposite Kenilworth Castle from the Beefeater chain.

The new owners, a group which also runs the Saxon Mill in Warwick, closed the pub for six weeks of renovation on Wednesday.

Managing partner David Singleton said he hoped to take the Queen and Castle away from its ‘branded’ image.

He said: “If you take the Saxon Mill you can see how we’ve renovated the building and brought out all the lovely features.

“The Queen and Castle is a beautiful pub with lots of heritage and we want to do the same there.”

Mr Singleton said the pub would reopen in the first week of December. It will create around 22 new jobs, bringing the total to around 40.

Although existing staff have been invited to stay on, he said the renovated pub would serve a different style of food.

He said: “It’s a typically English menu that’s Mediterranean-inspired. By that I mean fresh ingredients and fresh fish with a chef who will create some daily specials as well.”

The cost of the redecoration is not yet known, but Mr Singleton said the “significant” investment would be in the hundreds of thousands of pounds.

The group owns seven pubs around the Midlands, including the Boot Inn at Lapworth.

Even with the economy still suffering, Mr Singleton is confident the pub will be popular with both locals and tourists and will not squeeze out other Kenilworth restaurants.

He added: “We have been working in the area for more than 25 years. We know what the local community is looking for. There is plenty of business to go round. It’s a busy restaurant as it is. I don’t think anybody should be concerned about our arrival.”

He added: “We have a tried and tested formula: we are uncompromising in the standard of our food and the quality of our service.

“We like our pubs to be destination venues so people go to the pub for a particular reason, whether it’s for a pint or lunch with the family. With the Saxon Mill we have the lovely river and with the Queen and Castle there is Kenilworth Castle.”