Business boosters: Month of love, Beer Academy & Tea-time club
Tea-time club
Where: Barrasford Arms, Hexham, Northumberland
The idea: Chef-proprietor Tony Binks says: "When we took over the freehold back in 2006, the local farmers were keen for us to keep the bar, although it didn't attract much trade. Bar food had great potential as the farmers were really hungry on a Friday evening after work. As an experienced chef I thought I could do better than offering packets of crisps and my £5 hot dish is a big hit. We also offer desserts at £1 off the menu price."
What we needed: "Word of mouth is our best advertisement. Each Friday we serve a local dish without impacting on our restaurant trade. It has to be ready to go as soon as it's ordered, and our tea-time customers definitely don't want things like Thai curry — it has to be very traditional, such as toad in the hole, bangers & mash, mince & dumplings or liver & onions."
Business benefits: "Instead of just a quick pint, customers often order two courses and an extra pint or glass of wine. So each might pay up to £9 for food, plus drinks. Friday wet trade in the bar has doubled since we started the offer. I often have surplus ingredients, so this is a great way to use them. We've sold up to 47 dishes on a warm summer evening. If I make my standard 20 and we don't sell them all, customers are happy to take some home."
Top tips: "Tailor the dish to suit your clientele, and vary it weekly."
Beer Academy
Where: Bunch of Grapes, Pontypridd, Glamorgan
The idea: Family-run Otley Brewing Company in Pontypridd has launched its own Beer Academy (BA), based at its flagship pub, to establish the pub as a centre of excellence in south Wales for real ale and its enthusiasts. Managing director Nick Otley says: "I've always been passionate about real ale and particularly wanted to share this with those who don't feel they fit the box of a typical real-ale drinker and wouldn't consider beer as their chosen drink.
Unique in the area, the BA offers exclusive events with leading beer experts, such as Melissa Cole and Roger Protz. Cole ran a free beer and food-matching event for female members, and Protz attracted a crowd by picking his top five award-winning Welsh beers and matching them with the Bunch of Grapes' favourite dishes."
What we needed: "We launched the BA last year at Otley's Oktoberfest. All of the events are posted on the pub's Facebook and Twitter pages and included in the BA's monthly newsletter, which is emailed to members, whose details were collated at events in the run-up to the launch."
Business benefits: "Annual membership is free. The BA has already attracted a total of 140 members and interest is growing steadily."
Top tips: "Engage experts to promote interest and involvement in your events. Otley Brewing Company's ongoing collaboration with expert beer writers includes Protz co-brewing a Burton ale and renowned beer writer Pete Brown joining us to brew a Russian stout."
Month of love
Where: Five Bells, Colne Engaine, Essex
The idea: Marketing manager for the freehold pub, Catherine Hales, says: "Instead of doing an event for just one night or weekend for Valentine's Day, we thought we could do a month-long event. The idea was to make it more accessible for everyone to come and enjoy a night out, not just couples. It also meant that people who were busy on the Valentine's weekend could still celebrate by coming another day. We had our regular menu on — because past experience has taught us that people often want the normal menu, not special menus — and we offered sharing dishes for groups and friends as well as couples. Nibbles were £4 and sharing dishes ran from £10 to £25 for seafood and meat platters. Dessert sharers were priced at £10."
What we needed: "We advertised in our local newspaper, emailed our database of 800 and wrote about it on our Facebook page where we have 600 friends. We also have 250 followers on Twitter."
Business benefits: "It was really successful. Around 400 people ordered from the sharing menu during the month, but we also had our normal menu running as well. We always try to come up with new ideas. We'll probably do something similar next February, although there will be a twist."
Top tip: "Don't exclude groups just because the event is traditionally geared towards couples."
Menu Watch: PubChef's focus on new dishes and food promotions
The dish: Treacle-cured Wester Ross salmon, Oriental salad and home-made bread
Seen at: the Clog and Billycock, Pleasington, Blackburn, Lancashire, theclogandbillycock.com
Details: A creation by Northcote Manor chef Nigel Haworth, the Wester Ross salmon is rubbed with a combination of salt, lime juice, lime zest and lemon before being cured for 24 hours in treacle and soya sauce in a vac pack. Manager Carl Dilks says sales have been going very well since the salmon debuted on the menu four weeks ago and will be retained on the menu for the "foreseeable future". Dilks says the dish, which is served with an Oriental salad and home-made wholemeal bread (£6), accounts for around 10% of starter sales.
