The FINANCIAL — Brighton pub company Indigo Leisure has taken on a new site in the city, after the Cask Pub and Kitchen closed its operation at the Middle Street pub, formerly known as both the Hop Poles and the Spotted Dog.
According to Caterer and Hotelkeeper, the Brighton site became the second Cask Pub and Kitchen venue when it opened in March, but the company, run by pub entrepreneur Martin Hayes, who also runs the Craft Beer Co, said it had taken only a short term agreement there.
A spokesman for Greene King, which owns the freehold for the site, said: "Following a refurbishment and a return to its previous name, the Hop Poles will reopen its doors on 20 June with an outstanding local operator taking ownership of the business. We are proud to have this iconic Brighton business within the Greene King estate, and are confident that it will continue to be a landmark site and a thriving and successful business."
The Hop Poles was previously run by landlords Tony Leonard and Dominic McCartan. The couple left the Spotted Dog and their other Brighton pub, the Eagle, earlier this year after failing to agree sustainable rents with Greene King.
Under McCartan and Leonard, the Hop Poles turned over £1m in a year but business decreased as the recession hit and the couple were left having to pay what they claimed were impossible rents. Unwilling to continue taking the losses, they surrendered the leases to concentrate their efforts on their Lewes freehouse, the Snowdrop Inn. The pair had offered to take over the Hop Poles once again, after it emerged that Cask Pub and Kitchen was set to close.
The Eagle in Gloucester Road was also re-let to Indigo Pub Company recently. The firm will have a total of 14 pubs once the Hop Poles reopens later this month.
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