The Red Lion, Stow Hill, Newport is up for sale, asking price £175,000, down from £190,000 last month. A once decent boozer that has fallen on bad times over the past few years, not helped by the indifference of the owners, Punch Taverns, and their sozzled tenant.
Once a Welsh Brewers pub, the Red Lion played host to the first meeting of Gwent CAMRA back in the 1970s and in the 1990s was bought by Marr Taverns and then Ushers Brewery of Trowbridge. In the Ushers days the landlord used to serve guest beers from a secret cellar - it was know as the 'Ann Frank Cellar' due to it being so well hidden. The same landlord built up a lunchtime food trade, the present incumbent does not even open the pub lunchtime, no doubt too busy sleeping off the drink from the night before - the pub opens around 3/4pm depending on when the landlord wakes up from his vomit-encrusted bed.
The pub has also gained a reputation for violence, not helped by the fact that the landlord refused to identify to the police a regular who attacked another customer. So he lost a few customers that way, not that he cared too much as his drinking has reached such problem levels that such thoughts are blocked out of his tiny alcohol-soddled mind. Yes Brian I mean you - are you going to threaten to stab me again just because I criticise your shitty pub?
From the sales catalogue:
"No accurate trading figures are available. Prospective purchasers will need to reach their own conclusions as to the potential trade and profitability which can be enjoyed at this outlet"So Punch refuse to tell anyone what the pub is trading at? No surprise they have had to knock down the price by £15,000 in a month.
This could be a very successful pub once again, given the right ownership and management, opening the pub lunchtimes would be a start. Lighting the real fire in Winter would also help - the miserable git of a landlord could not be bothered one Christmas a few years ago.
There is a small area out the front for smokers and a larger unused rear courtyard and a passageway - this was the first pub I noticed when the smoking ban came in - noticed the smell of stale beer in the carpets as well as the smell from the toilets - tobacco smoking did have its advantages in some shit pubs!
Can't see anyone wanting to buy a Newport pub at the moment, looks like another auction property on the cards and conversion to flats?
Aye, it's a shame that old pubs are going out the game. A minimum price for booze would encourage more people to drink in pubs instead of getting sozzled at home before they go out!
ReplyDeleteDL - reforming the smoking ban would be better for pubs than an artificial price scheme
ReplyDeleteHopefully someone will take a left out of Cardiffs books and squat the place!
ReplyDeleteThe Red Lion also plays host to the landlord's dodgy mates - one is a well-known local arsonist who has had a string of his former pubs mysteriously catch fire. In the end even Wetherspoons got sick of him and sacked him and his wife. Wonder if he advising Brian at the moment?
ReplyDelete