Greene King have put the Grapes pub on the market. Ten years ago it was one the liveliest pubs, but of late it has only opened on busy evenings. This will be the third pub Greene King have sold in Abingdon in recent years. The first two have become Tesco convenience stores.
The Keys has notices out saying they are closed until further notice. The pub always had lots of events and was always flying lots of flags outside but it seems that the Landlord could not continue operating under Greene King’s terms.
Meanwhile the old post office is still empty but Wetherspoons have said they will be opening a new pub there in October and creating 40 jobs.
http://www.fairdealforyourlocal.com/
Abingdon doesn’t half miss Morland!
I hope someone takes on the grapes, but being right opposite a Weatherspoons will be tough. Why pay £3.50 a pint when it’s £2.50 opposite?
It’s a shame, Abingdon used to have such a decent selection of pubs. I always enjoyed the Ock Street run on a Saturday night, but now it’d only take half an hour and you’d have done all the pubs that are left!
I am pleased a Weatherspoon pub is opening, as it will give us a selection of ales so we don’t have to drink Greene King’s rubbish. I do think that it could spell the end for a few other pubs though. I can’t see how The Harp, and the Blue Boar will compete.
🙁
It’s such a shame, but a sign of the times? Not so long a go the Anchor had a bad time. But on the upside The Nags Head and Kings Head and Bell appear to be doing well.
My favourite pub? The Loose Cannon Shop! Fantastic that brewing has returned to Abingdon!
It appears that pubs now need to diversify and offer food, but unfortunately this means a significant amount of capital investment to refurbish and target the appropriate demographic. It is a tough call to try to compete on price on beer with Weatherspoons who clearly benefit from huge “economies of scale”.
If The Grapes is left closed for a length of time then this will exacerbate the already poor retail environment in that part of town.
I believe the private landlords who own these premises should be forced to give them a lick of paint as some of the shop fronts and buildings above the shops look very grotty. This would help to lift the town a little and perhaps encourage investment.
I too used to love the ock street run. I think we benefitted from having the brewery and kept the high number of pubs Abingdon used to have as a market town that was the centre of Berkshire. Greene King are not sentimental though and are closing everything they can’t squeeze huge profits out of. They want us in a few pubs eating food as well as having a quiet drink.
Had a chat with the new land-lord of The Anchor on Wednesday and appears very keen to make a go of it. He says he will personally be behind the bar 6 days of the week which is so important to maintain customer service. I wish him good luck!
the grapes seemed to become desserted shortly after they introduced some kind of ‘only smartly dressed people over a certain age’ policy a few years back – clearly that sort of person in Abingdon wasn’t a pubgoer.
Abingdon gets a mention on ITV Suffolk news regarding Greene King’s change of pub signs. Video and article at http://www.itv.com/news/anglia/story/2013-06-07/suffolk-brewery-accused-of-cultural-vandalism/
I must apologise. My report said the Grapes had closed and then I saw it plainly open last night so have modified this. I must check my facts. I must check my facts. I must check my facts * 100.
The Suffolk story Steve refers to was also in the Telgraph today – Green King clearly not just toying with the pubs in our town.
I’d echo earlier comment that we do have sone excellent pubs in Abingdon – in addition to those previously mentioned i’d add the Brewery Tap which is putstanding and the Spread Eagle. Also those folks who want to pay £2-50 for a pint, you dont need to wait for Wetherspoons to arrive – you can already get an excellently kept pint of Bridge or Bombshell at the Conservative Club for £2.50 🙂
Wouldn’t catch me in the Tory club
By that do you mean the con club itself or the tap? Same difference really…
is the tap a tory club?
Some might say.
good boozer to be fair
never been the same since they knocked down the red lion in the vineyard….
From my front window I can see a big sign that says £2.28. But, to be fair that is for Carlsberg not ale.
No wonder we have a mini barrel of Abingdon Bridge in our kitchen!
I’m gutted to hear about the Cross Keys closing. They made a real effort in recent years introducing Real Ale into a traditional lager drinkers pubs. It was also great to see them putting on beer festivals, such a shame!! Its a real sign of the times and classic case of a tied pub not being given the opportunity to thrive by the brewery. They won’t let them sell different beer and the beer they have to buy in is set at such a high price its almost impossible to make a profit!!! I hope this does not spell the end of the pub but I’m not holding out a lot of hope.
Its also a shame to see the Grapes is in trouble but I think, as previously mentioned, the pubs longevity will be in question when the Wetherspoons opens. I take my hat off to anyone who would be willing to run a pub across the road from it!!
are weatherspoons permided to play music x