Food revamp before ban

More than four out of 10 Everards tenants revamped their food menu before the English smoking ban, a new survey shows.

The survey of the Leicestershire brewer's 164 licensees also found that 90% had a smoking shelter ready by the ban's start date of 1 July.

In addition, 20% had added a coffee provision to their pub, while 69% had ordered deep cleaning before the big stub-out. The survey was taken to monitor the impact of Everards' Springboard scheme, a package of support provided in preparation for 1 July. Everards also announced a £1.5m investment in smoking shelters, plus an extra £1,500 spend per pub.

Commercial operations director David Bremner said: "We're delighted the scheme has been so well received by the licensees."

and the overall take-up of the various initiatives from the package has gone a long way to helping them to meet the smoking ban head on."

DownYourWay

Crown Inn

Capel

Surrey

Ambience: Pleasant country pub in a pretty Surrey village. There's a nice garden with a decent shelter. A ginger cat greets us as we make our way to the bar.

Time and tempo: Early afternoon on a sunny Saturday, with a few families and some couples enjoying a drink and a meal.

Food: The bar menu lists a range of classic pub dishes. I went for the burger with cheese. It was unspectacular, but did the job and at just under £7 wasn't bad value for money. We had to wait quite a while for it to arrive, but we were happy to bathe in the sunshine in the meantime.

Service: The lady behind the bar was very friendly and apologetic when she mis-heard my order and gave me Diet Coke instead of Coke.

Return visit: I expect so.