Herewith, some personal reflections on a 6th January visit to The Pickwick Inn:
It was around 6.45pm on a Friday night, a little over a month since the pub re-opened under Ashley’s brave stewardship and the place was just as everybody imagines a traditional village pub should be – noisy and throbbing, full of conversation and celebration! There were a couple of joyful, birthday groups in fancy dress with cakes full of sparklers. The bar area was crowded with standing drinkers but there was still space to eat at a table in the dining area (the gluten-free, beer-battered cod was a delight; lovely white flesh within a light, crispy case) and the bar service was efficient despite the crowd. I almost lost count of the number of familiar faces and friendly greetings encountered during the course of the evening! It seemed as though half the parish was out, happily determined to prove that there is still enormous social value in such a community watering hole, with everybody willing Ashley to succeed in his brilliant, hard-working efforts to rescue the pub from its recent dire state. If this visit was typical, there should be no worries about the pub’s long-term survival!