Thriving rural pub with a backdrop to suit older customers and the 'Instagram generation'

After a major refurbishment by its new owners, The Horseshoes in Uckington is a thriving rural pub.

Situated midway between Shrewsbury and Telford, the pub was given a makeover earlier this year which resulted in a classy, modern yet traditional look

The Grill Pub Co completed an extensive refurbishment of the pub and reopened in April - with customers all saying the same thing; the place has completely transformed, the decor is stunning, classy yet still traditional and the food and drink served is top class.

The Grill Pub Co runs five places in total across the UK, including the Staffordshire Grill in Brewood.

Rich Neville, 45, from Brewood, is the general manager of The Horseshoes, and says that since taking over and completing the extensive transformation, the business has been really busy and successful.

"It required a lot of work when we took over, but we transformed it all out, giving it a whole new look," he explains.

"There is a classy, modern look to the decor now but we also left the traditional look too, especially with the old brickwork around the walls and fireplaces.

"We feel that it is all about the ambience of a place, ensuring that we create a nice atmosphere and feel, where people enjoy the experience when here and that's what the point is.

"Making it an experience when coming here, not just to come in for a quick drink but to provide the customers with a top class service."

Pubs and businesses alike have been facing a challenging period in recent times, firstly with the pandemic, now the energy crisis, but also because the experience that customers want has also changed.

Whilst the traditional pub-goers still exist, and are vital to the trade, younger customers not only want to experience good drinks and food, but also want the place they are visiting to look good.

A new generation of customers that has found the pub through digital and social media wants bars, pubs and restaurants to be 'Instagrammable' - which is making sure it is appealing to the eye and is suitable to being photographed.

One of the things that the management of the Grill Pub Co has managed to achieve is keeping the traditional pub look, whilst also making it 'Instagrammable'. This has been done with a combination of classy decor and adding things like LED lighting and installing large plants, giving the whole venue a fantastic look that fits in with different generations.

Despite The Horseshoes having a successful time since opening under the new management, the business is not immune to the ongoing challenges facing the hospitality industry.

After battling the Covid pandemic, pubs and restaurants now face the cost of living crisis which has seen energy costs soar. Some establishments have had their energy bills increase more than four times over.

Speaking about the ongoing energy crisis, Rich adds: "It is difficult with the recession and cost of living crisis right now.

"We are getting through it and facing it head on, but we are certainly suffering too.

"It's not just the business but of course our staff suffer with the cost of living, so we are just having to fight through it together."

Businesses have of course been forced into increasing prices in order to try and remain profitable but Rich says: "We don't charge crazy prices, we are reasonable.

"There is the pub and the restaurant, where we offer table service, drinks service and we are always looking to go the extra mile and produce an extraordinary service to our guests.

"We pride ourselves on serving good food, good drinks, and going above and beyond for our customers - we are trying to be better than your normal restaurant.

"We serve the same menu as Staffordshire Grill, with a lot of steaks which are all 35-day aged, as well a whole range of items on our menu. We also serve a wide range of drinks including beers, real ales and have a large selection of wines.

"There are also a large selection of cocktails and mocktails available too - these are growing a lot now, people love coming in for our large range of cocktails, but we also try to serve a range of different drinks to those that do not drink alcohol with a variety of mocktails and zero per cent beers and ciders.

"On top of serving top class food and drink, we are also dog friendly in here as we get a lot of walkers from either the Wrekin or Attingham Park, so we do welcome them in.

"It has been great that since opening in April, we have built a nice relationship with quite a few regulars that come in most nights, and it has been nice to be able to build that relationship in that time.

"We ensure that we concentrate on providing a nice, ambient environment, serve good food and drink, as we are not your normal restaurant, you will get top-class service here."