Elite Bistro’s Gary Usher, who is the man behind the award-winning Sticky Walnut and Burnt Truffle, and owner of The White Horse, Churton, Cheshire, told his story at the MA Leaders Club in Chester last week.
The pub, which opened 2023, saw strong trading during its first three months but four months later trade became quieter.
Usher said he had to do something as the pub was not working and reached out to some friends to look at introducing some chef guest nights.
“It is important for me to be honest about that. I feel very lucky to be able to do that and I know a lot of people can’t. I like to think my messaging on social media has been very honest about it.
Struggling
“I wouldn’t want anyone struggling with a rural pub to be thinking god its hard at the minute, then see me go ‘god its hard at the minute’, and I will just call Tom Kerridge and get him down.
“I realise I am in a very lucky position to be able to do that. But we did it because we were in the shit”, he explained.
The chef guest events see the pub cook for around 100 people and charge between £100 to £150 a head.
Usher admitted without that revenue the pub wouldn’t work, adding the knock-on effect has transformed the pub creating awareness meaning it is busier at quieter times.
Importance of community
He also said one of the major benefits of having a country pub is the real impact the local community has had.
“The community in that area and the surrounding areas would mean I would not want to move anywhere else,” he said.
“In a time where I have been pretty low myself because business has been so hard in the restaurants that community and what a community can be and what a pub can mean to a community has given me life.”
Usher got into hospitality with his first pub being in the kitchen of a pub. While working at The Fat Cat in Llandudno he took on an apprenticeship after being approached by the general manager at the venue.
He then ended up taking on the White Horse, which had been closed for three years, after driving past it.
Usher continued: “I didn’t want it to be a foodie pub but it needed to be a foodie pub because as we probably all know the drinking side of things can’t necessarily support a pub now.”
He added a lot of the locals expected him to open a gastro pub but he wanted to keep it as a country pub serving good food with a main focus on keeping the bar area where people can come in a for a pint.
