A watering hole in the heart of a village has reopened with the new landlords promising “pub grub and reasonable prices”.
Jo Smith and her partner Matt Birch have taken on The Powell Arms in Birchington.
It shut down earlier this year following backlash over the then-publican’s cashless policy.
The boozer is Ms Smith’s first hospitality business, a “scary” prospect.
But, she says, sticking to values of “community focus and customer service” should mean plain sailing.
The 46-year-old, who also runs Ramsgate-based Trapeze Recruitment, said: “I’m getting a lovely feel that The Powell is the heart of the community, and the community really want a pub back, so first and foremost, we want to bring a pub back.
“In a couple of weeks, we will be opening the kitchen, and it’s going to be good pub grub.
“I think before Covid, it was very much a pub for the local community, and what I’m hearing is it became very restaurant-focused, and unfortunately, the previous leaseholder didn’t take cash.
“I don’t think that went down very well.
“We’re going to be taking cash, the prices of our beer we think are very, very reasonable, because we’re not tied.
“It’s not about just pushing our food, it’s about creating a community hub.”
The pub also boasts six bed and breakfast rooms, which are being run on the couple’s behalf by company Adliv.
Ms Smith says the prospect of taking on a new career in her 40s is daunting, explaining: “It was just pure surprise, it wasn’t on the plan, we’d never sat down and thought we want to run a pub.
“This pub just came along out of the blue, and we weighed up the pros and cons and thought actually let’s give it a go.
“The unknown does scare me, but in the corporate world of recruitment, I managed eight branches.
“But as long as everybody walks out feeling they had a good experience, we can’t go wrong.
“We’ve written a mission statement, what we want for the pub, so as long as it’s at the forefront of our mind, everything should be fine.
“It’s about the values of the business, which are trying to exceed customer expectations and the fact that we’re a community pub.”
Her partner Matt has experience in the industry, running Durrant’s Fine Wines in Manston.
This means wine will have a big focus on the drinks menu.
The kitchen will be fully open Thursday to Sunday, with light bites and sandwiches served Monday to Wednesday.
The Powell reopened on Sunday.
In March 2023, Byron Hayter and business partner Dhvani Patel opened the pub but revealed it was only to accept card payments.
But the policy was branded “utterly disgraceful”, with one local vowing: “I will never return to your premises again”.
At the time, Mr Hayter said staff safety was the main reason behind the decision.
The Powell Arms is believed to be the village’s oldest pub, dating back to as early as 1750.
It was previously known as The Quex New Inn, but this was changed to its current name in the 1800s.
